Efficiency increase of conveyor and lifting systems

The efficiency of conveyor and lifting systems, such as elevators or storage and retrieval systems, can be drastically increased through the use of energy recovery units. When lowering a weight, its potential energy is transformed back to electrical energy and fed into the power grid. In the case of storage and retrieval systems, regenerative breaking for horizontal motion could be implemented as well. Much potential also lies in optimal system management when employing multiple operating panels (e.g. in an elevator). A double-digit percentage gain in efficiency could be demonstrated by using an energy recovery unit and an optimized control algorithm.