Debate: did controller retrofits actually improve ride quality or just add complexity?

Back in 2012 I worked on a 1992 Otis that still had the original relay logic. Smooth as glass, never a complaint. Then last month I serviced the same model after a Motion 4000 retrofit. It stops fine but there's this little jerk at floor level that wasn't there before. My partner says it's just a gain setting, but I've tweaked everything I can think of. Has anyone else noticed a difference in ride quality before and after a controller swap on hydraulic elevators?

2 comments

2 Comments

kellymurphy16d ago

Haven't you heard that a lot of these retrofit controllers come with generic software that never gets properly tuned to the specific elevator? I read a piece in an industry trade blog last month about how installers often skip the fine-tuning because it takes too long on the job. That little jerk you're feeling at the floor level is probably the controller trying to ramp down too aggressively for that old hydraulic system's valve response time. The Motion 4000 might be a solid unit, but if the technician didn't spend an hour on the deceleration curve settings, you're never gonna get that buttery smooth stop. Honestly, the old relay logic was simple but it was matched to that exact machine from day one, not some one-size-fits-all digital fix.

karen27516d ago

Oh MAN does this ever remind me of something! A buddy of mine works maintenance at this old office building downtown and they put in one of those new digital controllers last year. The thing was a NIGHTMARE for months, jerking around at every floor like it was learning to drive stick shift. Turns out the installers used the default settings from some OTHER building's elevator profile and just LEFT it that way. My buddy spent three weekends tinkering with the dip switches and firmware settings himself just to get it to stop slamming into the floor pads. He said the deceleration curve was literally copied from a high rise hotel system that had way newer hydraulics. Meanwhile the old relay box they ripped out never had a single issue for twenty years, just clunked along smooth as butter. These digital boxes are great when they're dialed in right, but it's RARE to find a tech who actually takes the time to do it proper.