Based on the analysis of different existing cracking processes, the DCP (downer catalytic pyrolysis) process is proposed for the production of light olefins from heavy feeds. A hot downer reactor with the height of 4.5 m and the inner diameter of 13 mm was designed and built to examine the details. The experimental results show that high olefins yields can be obtained from the DCP process: at the temperature of 659 degreesC and residence time of 0.75 seconds, the total yields of ethylene, propylene and butylene are up to 51.54 wt.-%, while the methane and coke are suppressed. At the same time, the stability of liquid products is desirable because of the high content of aromatics but low concentration of olefins.