Hyperloop One will accept competitive proposals up to September 15, and the winning proposals will be selected in March 2017, company officials said.
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Hyperloop Technologies (formerly Hyperloop One) conducted its first public testing of a flagship prototype propulsion system in Nevada. But now, it seems like that time has finally come thanks to Hyperloop One. Over the course of just a few seconds, the railcar accelerated to more than 100 miles per hour before being intentionally slammed into a pile of sand.
On Wednesday, Hyperloop One showed off its propulsion system during an open-air test just outside of Las Vegas. It changed its name from Hyperloop Technologies this week to avoid confusion with the next closest competitor, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies.
The propulsion technology featured in the Hyperloop consists of levitating pods, which utilize magnets and electricity to propel the vessels across low-friction surfaces. “We are very excited to have the chance to work with them to make Hyperloop a reality in France, Russia, the CIS countries and the Middle East”. The funding and test are important steps in Hyperloop One’s mission to build a fully operational hyperloop system by 2020.
The test track was in open air, so the test sled experienced drag that a finished Hyperloop would not.
A bare-metal sled, not a tube, shot down a track, with the sled elevated slightly by magnetic levitation technology.
Hyperloop One is also participating in feasibility studies to examine the potential benefits of hyperloop routes in Finland and Sweden.
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Commenting on the recent developments, Rob Lloyd, CEO of Hyperloop One, revealed that the company is working with partners to create new benchmarks in the transportation sector. New investors in the Series B round include 137 Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Fast Digital, Western Technology Investment (WTI), SNCF, the French National Rail Company and one of the major forces behind high speed rail in Europe, and GE Ventures. The Hyperloop high-speed transportation system incorporates reduced-pressure tubes in which pressurized capsules ride on a cushion of air that is driven by a combination of linear induction motors and air compressors.
