The present invention refers to an improved elevator, in particular usable inside residential buildings.

Various types of elevators inside buildings are known in the art, sometimes as a substitute for indoor elevators, which transport people and goods inside a home or in actual condominiums.

However, these elevators are not satisfactory and present the following problems:

- the need to excavate pits to contain the operating equipment of the elevators

- presence of frames suitable for hosting the electromagnetic lock present on the access doors of the elevators, with a consequent increase in overall dimensions, which is a problem in confined spaces such as the interior of homes general safety problems relating to the opening of the access doors in the elevators and their operation in ascent and descent general problems of weight and bulk of existing lift solutions.

Object of the present invention is solving the aforesaid prior art problems, by providing an improved elevator which is of reduced bulk, light weight and high operational safety for users.

The aforementioned and other objects and advantages of the invention, which will emerge from the following description, are achieved with an improved elevator such as the one described in claim 1. Preferred embodiments and non-trivial variations of the present invention form the subject matter of the dependent claims.

It is understood that all attached claims form an integral part of the present description.

The present invention will be better described by some preferred embodiments, provided by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the attached drawings, in which:

Figures 1 and 2 are views of a first preferred embodiment of the elevator according to the present invention;

- Figure 3 is a detailed view of the opening handle of the elevator of the invention;

Figures 4 and 5 are views of a second preferred embodiment of the elevator according to the present invention in its starting position;

- Figure 6 is a detailed view of the elevator actuation device of the invention;

Figures 7 and 8 are views of the second preferred embodiment of the elevator according to the present invention in a lifting position; and

- Figures 9 and 10 are detailed views of the elevator door of the invention, respectively in its closed and open positions.

Referring to the Figures, a preferred embodiment of the elevator of the present invention is shown and described. It will be immediately obvious that innumerable variations and modifications (for example relating to shape, dimensions, various colors and parts with equivalent functionality) can be made to which is described without departing from the scope of the invention as appears from the attached claims.

According to the invention, the elevator 1, preferably for building interiors, substantially comprises:

- a containment structure 2, made up of two opposite walls;

- a connected door 3 hinged in a first of the two opposite walls and operatively connectable to the second of the two opposite walls in order to open and close for access to the elevator 1, this door 3 being equipped with at least one handle 5;

- a support surface 4 for users, designed to slide inside the two opposite walls of the containment structure 2 and operatively connected to a panel 10 placed in an opposite position with respect to door 3; a support and sliding structure 9 along which the support surface 4 and the panel 10 slide and are supported in sliding, said support and sliding structure 9 resting on a base 7; and

- at least one actuation device 11 present on the panel 10 to control the ascent and descent of the support surface 4.

The support surface 4 is equipped with at least one structural support beam 14 protruding outside the support surface 4 (i.e. from the side opposite to that on which people and goods to be lifted rest) and able to be inserted in a corresponding slot 8 obtained in the base 7.

According to the preferred operational configuration shown (which obviously is only an example and not a limitative one), the structural support beam 14 can consist of at least two horizontal beams 14 which intersect with at least two vertical beams 14 to form a sort of cross, the slits 8 of the base 7 assuming a corresponding configuration suitable for housing the cross beams 14.

As a possible operating variation, the structural support beam 14 can be constituted by a plurality of beams 14 arranged in any configuration, the slots 8 of the base 7 assuming a corresponding configuration suitable for housing the plurality of beams 14.

In an innovative way, the handle 5 is made of a rotating tube and is equipped with an integrated electromagnetic lock, designed to cooperate with at least one electromagnetic pin 18 placed on the base 7 and which cooperates with the control circuitry of the handle 5 itself to keep it in the closing position of the door 3 when the support surface 4 is not present on the plane, the rotation of the handle 5 allowing the support surface 4 to be called to the plane where the user is.

The actuation device 11 is of the rotating tube type and allows, when it is rotated and kept rotated, actuating the support surface 4 upwards or downwards, while, when it is released, thanks to at least one spring inside it (not shown), returns to its position and blocks the movement of the support surface 4.

Preferably, the handle 5 can be equipped with horizontal luminous bands 6 which serve to indicate at which floor it is located or to which floor the support surface 4 is going.

Similarly, the actuation device 11 can be equipped with horizontal luminous bands 16 which serve to indicate which floor the supporting surface 4 is on or to which floor is going.

As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the containment structure 2 and the door 3 can be made of transparent material, preferably glass, or of non transparent material, as shown in Figures 1 and 2.

Preferably, the containment structure 2 can be of a box-like shape with an elongated parallelepiped, but other shapes and configurations are obviously possible, which depend on the intended application for the elevator 1, for example in relation to the place where it will be installed, or to the maximum load it can lift.

The closing of the handle 5 (as shown in Figures 9 and 10) preferably and in a known way takes place on the ground, by means of (for example and in a known way) a special electromagnetic pin

18 which cooperates with the control circuitry of the handle 5 itself to hold it in the closed position of the door 3 when the elevator 1 is not present on the floor. The electromagnetic pin 18 is obviously grounded, and the power supply always arrives from the ground, for example through a consent hole of the pin 18.

Furthermore, the handle 5 can be equipped with a buffer battery (not shown) useful for its operation with open consent and in the absence of current.

The door 3 may have different types of openings, from sliding to pivot to classic hinge.

As a further possible alternative, the electromagnetic lock can be embedded in the floor and the handle 5 only provides the housing seat for the mobile pin. This solves the problem of wiring, power supply (which alternatively would risk being battery operated) and the emergency release key.

With the embodiments and configurations indicated above, which are absolutely exemplary and not limitative of the protective field of the present invention, the following advantages are obtained: cancellation of the elevator pit, thanks to the system of cuts in the floor that allow the ribs of the support beams to sink and create an accessibility surface a few millimeters high;

- presence of the handle 5, with or without integrated lock, which eliminates the classic large door frame, useful for housing the electromagnetic lock present in current elevators and/or lifts;

- the operating button inside the cabin, which in normal elevators must be kept pressed when the cabin is in motion, is replaced with a part of the rotary tube operating device 11 which, when released, thanks to the spring, returns to position and lock the elevator 1;

- the rotation of the handle 5 allows the call of the elevator 1;

- the horizontal light bands 6 and 16 present respectively on the handle 5 and on the actuation device 11 are used to indicate which floor the elevator 1 is on or to which floor it is going; and finally, the elevator 1 as described above will have a very pleasant and panoramic aesthetic appearance, due to the absence of any support frame.

Some preferred embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described above: obviously, numerous variations and modifications, functionally equivalent to the previous ones, which fall within the scope of the invention as highlighted in the attached claims, will be immediately apparent to those skilled in the art.