
Elevator doors can prevent passenger falling to the hoistway. It can also offer an access into the elevators.
Elevator doors are set of doors that prevent passenger from falling onto the hoistway.
Types of elevator doors

Elevators with standard center-opening and two-speed center opening doors.
- Main article: Elevator door types
There are two main elevator door types, manual and automatic. Automatic elevator doors typically move horizontally, and they may have cascading panel to allow more width, as seen in typical freight elevators.
Escape hatch/Liftwell rescue doors
These doors are intended to be used only in an emergency, and by authorized elevator mechanics.
Elevator door devices
Door operator
- Main article: Door operator
The automatic elevator car door operator is the device usually installed on the top of the elevator car to operate the doors opening and closing.
Mechanical bumpers
- Main article: Door bumpers
Mechanical door bumpers (or door buffers) are usually found in older elevators or elevators installed in Asia, especially on elevators installed by Mitsubishi, Hitachi, and others.
Door sensors
- Main article: Door sensors
Infra red door sensors or beams are now common in modern days elevator. The beam detects objects on the doorway when opening and closing. If the sensors triggers a person or an object, it will cause the doors to reopen and does not close until the person moved away or the object is removed from the doorway[1]. Old elevators may using small light bulb for sensors lighting located on the knee level of the car door jamb (like Sabiem Elevator). Some modern infra red sensors used in Otis, and fewer Schindler and Kone elevators may emits a continuous beeps when the sensors triggers an object.
Door warning LED lamps
These are installed on both side of door edges, and lights up in green when the doors are opening, and flashes red when closing. Nowadays they are only found on some Schindler elevators in Hong Kong, Kone elevators in the United States, Otis elevators in the UK and some generic elevator companies elevators in the UK. Memco is the first manufacturer produce sensors with door warning LED lamps[2].
Door interlocks
- Main article: Door interlocks
Door interlocks prevents the door from being opened unless the car is present and completes an electrical circuit[1][3].
Door restrictor
- Main article: Door restrictor
The door restrictor is the locking device installed in the elevator automatic car door operator to prevent the doors open unless the elevator car is in the landing.
Door keyhole
- Main article: Door keyhole
Door keyhole is used to unlock the landing doors and it is usually done by elevator technicians in elevator maintenance or in the event of an emergency like entrapment. Most elevators have their door keyholes located on one door panel and aligned to the edge of the door, while some others may be located on the upper door jamb (like modern day Kone and thyssenkrupp elevators or the elevators using non proprietary elevator door components). Different elevator manufacturers have their own keyhole types. Except all are only one type for some country code.
Toe guard
Door sills gap filler
The mechanical device installed under the car door sills, to avoid the object falling into the shaft. Toshiba is the only manufacturer produce the door sills gap filler[4].
Elevator door control
- Main article: Elevator door control
Elevator door control buttons are used to control the elevators' doors. In some modern elevator brands like Mitsubishi and Hitachi, the door open and close buttons will be lit when the button is held and unlit when unheld, and the door hold button will be lit when pressed and unlit when the door closes.
Automatic elevator door design
Painted steel doors
These are just elevator doors painted with single color.
Laminated stainless steel doors
These are stainless steel doors that are covered with laminated sheet contains either plain single color or texture. This design of doors is commonly found in older elevators and commonly on the car doors.
Plain stainless steel doors
These are just basic, stainless steel hairline elevator doors (or patterned stainless steel elevator doors with one color or mirrored stainless steel elevator doors).
Decorative stainless steel doors
These are elevator doors decorated with textures or patterns (with multi-color or texture style), usually provided by elevator manufacturers. A plain stainless steel doors may also covered with advertisement posters which are usually found in shopping centres and fewer hotels. Another design is that the elevator doors are etched with a custom sign or even a logo of a certain company[3], retails, or building.
Glass doors
Glass doors are common in almost every buildings such as shopping malls, hotels, office buildings, parking garages, railway or subway stations, airports, and sometimes pedestrian footbridges. Glass doors usually comes in full glass (either with frames or not) and partial glass. Glass doors are useful to enchance security inside the elevator and to prevent crime and vandalism.
Elevators with manual doors may also have glass on the door as well.
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Guidelines for Modernising Existing Lifts (Electrical and Mechanical Services Department, Hong Kong)
- ↑ Memco Panachrome
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 What is an elevator? (by Dover Corp.)
- ↑ 【東芝エレベータ】 しきい間すきまレス
See also
- Elevator door structure
- Elevator door sill guide
- Generic elevator component door sill guide
External links
- hkelev - Elevator door types
- hkelev - Elevator door structures
- hkelev - Devices for the automatic elevator doors
- Vandal attack Door resistance testing (youtube.com)