Rant: That 'next generation' brake controller I installed last month is a total dud

Spent $400 on a SmartLift Evo controller for a new install at a 12-story office building downtown, and it's been throwing false door zone errors since day one. Tech support keeps saying it needs a firmware update, but the thing still drops the car every three runs. Anyone else dealt with these new digital controllers acting up worse than the old relay systems?

3 comments

3 Comments

blake3221mo ago

Check if they wired it into the same data bus as the security intercom system. Had a job where the elevator kept thinking someone was in the door zone because the intercom's voltage spikes were confusing the digital controller.

parkerp806d ago

Trace those wires back with a meter... I've seen this exact mess before in a hospital retrofit where they ran the elevator safety loop right next to the intercom bus. The voltage spikes from the intercom's paging speakers would couple right into the door zone sensors, making the car stop at random floors with the doors half open. Ended up having to pull new shielded cable and put a line filter on the controller input, took two days to chase down because nobody wanted to believe the intercom was the problem. Check the controller diagnostic log for "ghost" door zone faults, that's usually the giveaway.

stella_murray1mo ago

Voltage spikes confusing the controller" sounds like what happens when I try to fix anything electrical.