As part of our full pod build, Team Hyperlynx will be fabricating a modular payload capable of

carrying the SpaceX Test Dummy through the test track.

We will demonstrate what we plan to build, what we have conceptualized and what we envision

for the future of the Hyperloop.

BUILD

The payload module featured in Team Hyperlynx’s final design demonstrates the

functional application of a modular payload within the hyperloop design while still meeting

the primary objective of winning the competition.

Our built payload will demonstrate several key features of the concept, including swapability,

ergonomics, safety, and user comfort and experience.

The payload module body will be composed primarily of aerospace-grade

foam, similar to the body of the pod while the canopy will be formed out of acrylic.

It will be constructed using computer-numerically-controlled machining and

vacuum forming techniques.

The payload will feature accommodations to support the SpaceX dummy during its journey through the Hyperloop.

Features include integral lighting, restraints and a graphic user interface featuring real-time pod data projected directly onto the canopy.

POWERHousing the battery within the payload module will allow for power packs to be hot-swapped during the normal payload removal and replacement cycle.

This concept will be incorporated into our final design in order to demonstrate the benefit it will have in future iterations of the hyperloop.

Mounted to Modular Payload

CONCEPT

The desire to make vehicle turnaround and re-launch as rapid as possible was the primary driver

for our conceptual design.

This is accomplished by separating the loading and unloading of

passengers from the unloading and loading of the capsules to and from

the pods.

Departures Queue Arrivals Queue

Loading Mechanism

Transfer Platform

Arrivals

Departures

To T

erm

inal

From

Ter

min

al

Additionally, our concept was driven by the desire to allow for endless variations of payload configurations to accommodate the needs of the users.

Single Person / ADA Sleeper Two Person Group / Family / Economy Cargo / Luggage / Freight

Controlling the arrangement of the modules will allow for optimization of weight distribution according to the loads,

improving the pod’s overall stability and performance.

Passengers would only physically engage with the hyperloop via the terminal, and not with the hyperloop pod itself. The passengers would simply call upon their payload capsule as they need it and all logistics concerning the preparation and loading of the pod would happen out

of their sight.

This would allow users to set the urgency of their departure time based on their travel needs and allow the system to manage these

expectations in real time.

Once passengers have boarded their payload capsule, their capsules would

be loaded into the departure queue via an automated process which would

simultaneously optimize for space availability, departure time, and weight

distribution.

Entry to Departures Terminal via Ground Transport

Boarding Payload Capsule

Logistical Sorting Queue

Departure Queue

Hyperloop

Full Payload Assembly

User Determined

Automated

VISION

This capability to sort and manage departures with far less lead time than traditional means provides an interesting opportunity to combine lodging with transportation. A “space-

available” queue could be formed in which passengers wishing to travel overnight could effectively go to sleep in one city and wake up in another.

In this manner, the hyperloop station would function as a sort of micro-hostel, with the sleeper pods acting as both lodging and transit.

This combination of lodging and transport could cause a paradigm shift in the way we commute, work and dwell.

Initial interest in and research into modular concepts which could be used as housing was spurred by experience encountering individuals struggling with a dire homeless situation during sub-zero Denver winters who simply did not

have access to shelter.

Attribution: Marc Brüneke

The “tube” concept was and continues to be one iteration of a reaction to this ongoing problem. Tube seeks to address homelessness by providing

decentralized housing at low cost throughout the city.

This idea was largely adapted from experiences during time spent serving aboard a Los Angeles-class attack submarine in the US Navy.

The sub, despite its cramped quarters and spartan living conditions, was nearly self-sustaining. This experience taught me that a lot could

be done in a small space.

The objective of the “tube” concept was to establish a way to ensure that anybody at any time could at least meet the basic

human needs of shelter, safety and security.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs via Wikipedia

Around the time the “tube” concept was conceived, SpaceX announced the Hyperloop Pod

Competition.

I saw a connection between the “tube” and the hyperloop as well as other emerging technologies and concepts which could, in my opinion, usher in an entirely new expectation for how we live our lives.

Transporting 7.4 million people each way and amortizing the cost of $6 billion over 20 years gives a ticket price of $20 for a one-way trip for the passenger version of Hyperloop.

In the August 2013 hyperloop white paper, Elon Musk speculates on the cost of a one-way hyperloop ticket:

“The influx of tech companies into San Francisco has been tremendous, and with it this new emerging traveler, this millennial traveler, who is looking for downtown experiences,” said Chuck Pacioni, general manager at the San Francisco Marriott Marquis. “Many of them may travel for work to Silicon Valley, but instead of staying at a suburban hotel, they want to stay in the city for the culture and the experiences.”

However, a June 2015 Bloomberg Business report sheds light on the true cost of a one-way trip to San Francisco - nearly $400 a night!

Los Angeles, the other leg of the Alpha paper’s proposed journey, doesn’t fare much better, at $240 a night according to the same report.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-30/san-francisco-hotels-are-world-s-priciest-as-rates-surge

Based on this disparity, I believe it is imperative that a lodging component be considered, if not integral, as a part of making the hyperloop a viable concept.

When considering the hyperloop as a platform for living as well as mobility, I believe that it has the potential to create a new paradigm - that of the “human network” or “physical internet” in which people are compelled to explore their physical world as they are no longer encumbered by the burden of travel and lodging.

This concept can also be seen reflected in the “Automobility” concept presented by the design firm, IDEO - particularly in the “WorkOnWheels” concept where a workspace can be deployed, along with supporting services, to wherever those doing the work wish to dwell. This concept is becoming more and more realistic everyday as self-driving car technology continues to advance by leaps and bounds.

http://automobility.ideo.com/

I believe that these technologies, when considered holistically, could bring about a new era. This era of “Technomadism” would be characterised by individuals, empowered by the capability that technology has afforded them, who would take it upon themselves to leverage that technology to explore more of what the physical world has to offer.

This paradigm would change the way we look at being “transient” and potentially lessen the stigma which currently surrounds it.

Not to mention that the production of the hyperloop would likely mean that the payload pods could be mass produced for relatively low cost and make the “tube” concept that I mentioned earlier an economically and socially viable one… Perhaps we could establish that baseline standard of living after all?

Eurocentric World Transit Map by Chris Gray http://clockworkgallery.co.uk/

NEXT STEP

In order to explore this idea further, we’d like to expand our hyperloop design by making a pod station prototype at University of Colorado Denver, allowing us to perform a feasibility study of the modular

payload elements as sleep capsules in downtown Denver, Colorado.

We would integrate our current capsule design with central heating, cooling and lighting and build a structure to house them that would also contain hygiene facilities like those seen on aircraft, RVs and

boats.

The estimated build cost for this concept would increase our budget by $50,000.

CU Denver Advisors

Connor Catterall Ben CooperNicole GarciaGeorge KempAndres LazoRichard MichalkaJack NelsonRichard PaaschJohn SpinelliMark UrbanSusan Waruinge

Chandler LacyTeam Captain

John K. Bennett, PhDHeather M. Underwood, PhDRJ Duran

Mech. EngineeringMech. EngineeringMech. EngineeringMech. Engineering

DesignComp. Science

ArchitectureBusiness

Mech. EngineeringMech. EngineeringMech. Engineering

Mech. Engineering

Ron Rorrer, PhDDoug Gallagher

Mech. EngineeringMech. Engineering

Inworks Advisors

Sponsors

Supporters

Comp. ScienceComp. ScienceIndust. Design

Thank you.

www.denverhyperlynx.com