- Author
- Klote, J. H.
- Title
- Method for Calculation of Elevator Evacuation Time.
- Coporate
- National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD
- Journal
- Journal of Fire Protection Engineering, Vol. 5, No. 3, 83-96, 1993
- Keywords
- elevators (lifts) | evacuation time | computer programs | people movement | time | emergencies
- Identifiers
- start up time; elevator round trip time; elevator motion; elevator loading and unloading; ELVAC
- Abstract
- A detailed method of analysis of people movement by elevators during emergency building evacuation is presented. The time to evacuate a number of people using one group of elevators includes the sum of all the round trip times divided by the number of elevators plus the times needed to start up the elevator evacuation and to travel from the elevator lobby to the outside or to another safe location. A trip inefficiency is used to account for trips to empty floors and trips to pick up a few stragglers. The method includes detailed analysis of elevator car travel including constant acceleration, transitional acceleration, constant velocity, transitional deceleration, constant deceleration, and leveling. The time for people to enter and exit the elevator car is addressed including inefficiencies for elevator door sizes and types. The impact of elevator arrangements is addressed, and the difference between commonly accepted and unusual arrangements is presented. A computer program, ELVAC, was written to calculate elevator evacuation time, and an example calculation of evacuation time is provided using this program.