Glossary
The words used on these pages, each in one line.
Ski lifts
- Anemometer (wind gauge)
- Instrument on towers or stations measuring wind speed and direction for operating decisions. Ski lifts explained
- Bubble (hood)
- Transparent weather hood that closes over a detachable chair. Detachable chairlift
- Bullwheel
- The large horizontal wheel in a station around which the haul rope turns; drives or returns it. Ski lifts explained
- Capacity (pph)
- Persons per hour per direction the lift can carry at full load. Ski lifts explained
- Carrier
- Anything that carries passengers: chair, cabin, hanger or car. Ski lifts explained
- Counterbalance
- Two cars or cabins on one rope loop, so the descending one helps lift the ascending one. Aerial tramway
- Detachable grip
- A spring-loaded grip that opens in the station so the carrier leaves the rope and slows down. Detachable chairlift
- Drive station
- The station housing the motor that turns the bullwheel. Ski lifts explained
- Evacuation
- Planned rescue of passengers from a stopped line, by recovery drive or by rope rescue. Ski lifts explained
- Fixed grip
- A grip bolted to the rope; the carrier moves at rope speed everywhere, including the station. Fixed-grip chairlift
- Footrest
- Bar on the restraint frame that supports skis or board during the ride. Ski lifts explained
- Grip
- The clamp that attaches a carrier or hanger to the haul rope. Ski lifts explained
- Grip force test
- Automatic check of each detachable grip's clamping force at the station; a weak grip stops the lift. Detachable chairlift
- Hanger
- The arm linking grip and chair or cabin; on surface lifts, the bar or pole the skier holds. Ski lifts explained
- Haul rope
- The moving steel rope that pulls the carriers; on monocable lifts it also carries them. Ski lifts explained
- Heated seats
- Heating mats in chair pads, powered via rails and collectors only while the chair passes through the station; the stored heat lasts the ride (Doppelmayr since 2004). Detachable chairlift
- Line speed
- Rope speed between stations, in metres per second. Ski lifts explained
- Loading carpet
- Short conveyor that carries riders to the boarding point, at about a third of line speed. Ski lifts explained
- Loading gate
- Gate that releases riders onto the boarding point in time with the next chair. Ski lifts explained
- Passing loop
- Mid-line section where a funicular's two cars pass each other on split track. Funicular
- Rack
- Toothed rail between the running rails that a cog railway's pinion engages. Cog railway
- Restraint bar (safety bar)
- Hinged bar on a chair, lowered after sitting and raised at the sign before the top. Ski lifts explained
- Return station
- The station at the other end where the rope turns around a non-driven bullwheel. Ski lifts explained
- Rope gauge
- Horizontal distance between two parallel ropes; wide gauge (3.2 m on a funitel) resists cabin tilt in wind. Funitel
- Sheave train (Rollenbatterie)
- A row of small wheels on a tower that supports or holds down the rope. Ski lifts explained
- Span
- Distance between two supports (towers or stations). Ski lifts explained
- Spring box (recoil reel)
- Box on a T-bar's grip with a spring-wound cord that pays out when you take the bar and retracts after. T-bar
- Telemix (combination lift)
- Detachable lift carrying both chairs and cabins on one rope. Chair-gondola combo
- Tensioning (counterweight or hydraulic)
- System that keeps rope tension constant as loads and temperature change. Ski lifts explained
- Tower (pylon)
- Line support carrying sheave trains or track-rope saddles. Ski lifts explained
- Track (carrying) rope
- A stationary rope on which a carrier's wheeled carriage runs (3S, aerial tramway). 3S gondola
- Tyre conveyor (tyre bank)
- Rows of rotating tyres in a detachable station that decelerate, move and re-accelerate carriers. Detachable chairlift