How data and analytics is helping to make the Hyperloop dream a transport reality
Although many remain sceptical, Elon Musk’s demand for a ‘hyperloop’- magnetic levitation-powered trains carrying passengers at high speeds – is quietly powering ahead, COVID notwithstanding. In November, Virgin Hyperloop One carried out its first passenger test and longest test trip (15 seconds) in the Nevada desert, zoning down an airless tunnel at 107 mph.
Though the ultimate aim is approximately 7 times faster than that, it’s definite progress for the company which claims to be launching the first new mode of mass transportation in over 100 years. The test showcased a number of its technologies, from electric propulsion and electromagnetic levitation under near-vacuum conditions, and it says it’s now working with governments, partners, and investors around the world to make the idea of connecting cities like metro stops – with zero direct emissions – a reality in “years, not decades”.
Intrigued by news of the test, we reached out to Jerome Wei, Senior Director of Machine Intelligence & Analytics at the company, to see what IT is going into the project. Turns out, quite a lot, especially around what he described as seeking to apply advances in algorithms and computing to realise next-generation transportation capability. He said:
We’re building a system that will give back time and deliver the travel experience of the future, because if we only invest in the same technologies we’ve had for more than a century, tomorrow will look like today, only much worse. It’s been over a century since the Wright Brothers first showed us human flight was possible, so it’s time for a new era in transportation capable of carrying us forward for the next 100 years. So as a new technology, we are starting from the ground up with a highly digital strategy, incorporating data as a core element of system value. This data will enable a wide range of intelligent capabilities, including high reliability through predictive maintenance and high efficiency and performance through demand forecasting. Leveraging data, our fully automated system can actually react to changes in demand.
Wei went on to explain that Hyperloop is composed of a fleet of relatively small, autonomous, high speed, and high efficiency electric vehicles operating on a dedicated guideway. These system characteristics enable operational advantages in terms of fine grained management of capacity and service level, but to maximise such potential advantages, his team is developing something called the Virgin Hyperloop Command & Control System, which is made up of a number of interconnected automated planning, traffic management, and autonomous vehicle operations.
Why? Because the aim here is to enable a seamless passenger experience, allowing purchase of tickets through a mobile based app and being directed and guided to time and place of vehicle boarding within a hyperloop station (or in Virgin Hyperloop One language, a ‘portal’). Wei explained:
Sounds great, but how? The answer: analytics.
