The Evolution of Lift Traffic Design from Human to Expert System

The (human) lift traffic expert solves a number of equations (a mathematical model) to select a suitable lift installation to meet certain design criteria. The expert often then has to adjudicate between several possible designs. This requires a great deal of experience and perspicacity. Many lay people (architects, developers, facility managers, general M&E consultants) and also some lift industry personnel (sales engineers, support staff) desire a simple and quick method of selection. Over the years there have been many attempts to provide look up tables and charts for a quick selection. This paper describes these historical attempts from the 1960s onwards to the present time. The mathematical models are explained and the design process is described. A demonstration of the design process using a simple spreadsheet presented illustrates the expert decision-making process. The creation of a non-human expert system is discussed in [20].