A Comprehensive Analysis of Turnout, Switching, and Nonlinear Control Technique to Enhance Safety, Efficiency, and Capacity in Hyperloop

This paper deals with a detailed analytical approach to design the turnout and guidance mechanism of the Hyperloop based on magnetic forces through a combination of existing railway and magnetic levitation (Maglev) transport technologies. This work also compares the best possible methodology between the movable track Beam (MTB) technique and the magnetic-based switching system, emphasizing the turnout design calculation for the guideway based on the radius of curvature, unbalanced lateral acceleration, deceleration and the centrifugal force acting on the pod during turnout. Ultimately, some conclusions were reached, and hypothetical work plans were drafted. The overall safety of Hyperloop transport technology generally refers to the overarching systems, materials, and processes that need to be considered for switching, turnout, etc. This paper aims to introduce a new vision for turnout Hyperloop systems to enhance safety by identifying the braking distance, improving the cost-effectiveness by profiting from recoverable energy and increasing the capacity. Moreover, adding switches to primary and secondary lines that share a standard geometric connection is studied through turnouts, and safety is increased by identifying the braking distances between the pods and improving the passenger’s comfortability by identifying the Superelevation. Turnouts, or switches and crossings (S&C systems), are particularly interesting in this category, as these components carry significant economic and safety implications for any transportation network. As a result, the Hyperloop’s switching (linear length) area will be $17.4~km$ long, which is exceptionally long compared to the Maglev, high-speed trains and conventional railway systems. The turnout length will depend on the deflection angle of 10°, maintaining a curve radius of $100~km$ . The comparison between Hyperloop and TGV systems reveals significant operational speed, radius, and design parameter differences. While the TGV demonstrates notable efficiency at $500~km/h$ speeds, the Hyperloop’s revolutionary design allows for unprecedented $900~km/h$ speeds. However, the Hyperloop’s immense radius of curvature and Superelevation to maintain significant passenger comfort and extensive switch length present unique challenges, impacting safety and infrastructure requirements. Despite TGV’s lower operational speed, its efficient braking distance and higher recoverable energy make it a competitive option. Furthermore, the nonlinear controller has been designed for maintain the air gap at desire values while track the momentum and magnetic flux to their respective references. Lyapunov stability theory has been used to ensure the globally asymptotic stability of the system. ODE-45 solver and MATLAB/Simulink environment have been used for the result and performance analysis of the nonlinear controller.