Meet Delft Hyperloop XI
Delft Hyperloop is a multi-disciplinary team which consists of 42 students of the Delft University of Technology. Delft Hyperloop is structured as a multi-departmental team with a management overseeing all of the departments.
Delft Hyperloop is a multi-disciplinary team which consists of 42 students of the Delft University of Technology. Delft Hyperloop is structured as a multi-departmental team with a management overseeing all of the departments.
Management has the purpose of overseeing all the departments in the team. In doing so, management coordinates and optimises the efforts of team members, aligning them with the project's overall strategy and goals.
“Our goal as management is to lead the team towards winning the European Hyperloop Week 2024 by providing the team with direction, structure and an environment in which everyone can reach their full potential.”
The Team Captain holds the final responsibility for the project. He is ‘the face’ of Delft Hyperloop and together with the rest of management the Team Captain will determine and safeguard the top-level strategy of the team. Furthermore, he is responsible for the human resources side of the team, effectively making sure that the team is motivated and fit.
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The Project Manager oversees the allocation of resources of the team. This means he is responsible for our planning and finances and allocation of tasks among the team members. He also plays a critical role in identifying and mitigating potential risks to the project, ensuring that we achieve our goals within the year and within budget.
The Chief Engineer oversees and manages all technical aspects of the project, ensuring a successful demonstration at the European Hyperloop Week!
This department establishes and executes the business strategy of Delft Hyperloop. We ensure that the team obtains all resources needed to develop the newest hyperloop technology, achieved by interacting with partners as well as the public, while maintaining a professional and engaging image.
As Delft Hyperloop is non-profit, acquisition goes through building strong partnerships and collaborating with relevant companies. These offer the team cash, material and expertise so that the team can build a pod that is ready to compete at the European Hyperloop Week (EHW). Moreover, many resources are needed for the operational side of the team, like managing the testtrack, logistics to or accommodation at the EHW. The business department is therefore always seeking out new partners, offering them a chance to invest in the future of sustainable high-speed transportation.
Furthermore, this department is in charge of the publicity of Delft Hyperloop. While the team is working on the technological side of the system's implementation, we strive to make the public familiar with the hyperloop concept. This is done by managing PR strategies and organising big events, in order to bring hyperloop closer to society. Thus, as Delft Hyperloop pushes the boundaries of technology, the business department ensures that these innovations do not go unnoticed, obtaining the recognition needed for future partnering and collaboration.
The lead oversees the business side of Delft Hyperloop, managing resources to maximize collaboration potential. He is responsible for the department's quality and organization, ensuring alignment across the business functions. Additionally, the lead manages the team's operations, including the logistics of transporting the hyperloop system to the European Hyperloop Week.
The Partnerships Managers play an important role in maintaining relationships with both existing and prospective partners of Delft Hyperloop. Their primary objective revolves around acquiring new partnerships, particularly with companies that align with Delft Hyperloop's mission. By successfully securing financial resources and valuable assets through their efforts, the team can realize the construction of a functional pod and, optimistically, achieve their overarching goals.
Public Relations Managers have a broad set of responsibilities like press management, internal and external event coordination, team exposure, and communication with external interested parties. Their primary objective is to increase public awareness of Delft Hyperloop and the Hyperloop concept. Throughout the year, PR Managers work diligently to maintain a professional and appealing image for Delft Hyperloop. Additionally, they are responsible for organizing events like the Design and Pod Reveal.
Whilst the technical engineers are constantly improving hyperloop technology it is also important to look at the visualization of the hyperloop system in the future when it is fully implemented. The design engineers are considering the passenger experience in their concepts in animations, VR-experiences, models and videos. If you want to see the results of their projects over the years, take a look on the research page!
The scalability department devotes their time to researching problems in a full-scale hyperloop system. Instead of designing and building a prototype pod, they look at the bigger picture of the transportation network and try to solve critical issues for hyperloop to become reality.
Each year the scalability department performs two researches where they brainstorm and choose the most relevant topics to contribute to hyperloop knowledge: one into the technical challenges and one into the socio-economic challenges that occur when implementing an actual hyperloop system. They investigate all the challenges of hyperloop and start discovering novel solutions to the most relevant ones. Due to scalability research, new discoveries and innovations can be discovered to come one step closer to hyperloop. If you want to see the results of their projects over the years, take a look on the research page!
The Mechanical department is the core of our tech division, responsible for designing the hyperloop pod's critical components: the chassis, emergency braking system, aeroshell, vacuum box, and track. This multidisciplinary team integrates various engineering and physics disciplines to ensure the pod's fundamental functions.
The chassis, our primary structure, provides mounting points for all subsystems with a focus on high stiffness-to-weight ratio, modularity, and adaptability. The fail-safe emergency braking system stops the pod in emergencies, ensuring maximum reliability and efficiency. The aeroshell enhances aerodynamic performance while maintaining an appealing design, optimized through CFD simulations.
The vacuum box maintains the right pressure for non-vacuum-compatible components, preventing critical failures. In full-scale hyperloop systems, passengers are also housed in vacuum boxes. Finally, the track, a crucial infrastructure element, guides and propels the pod, presenting challenges in cost-efficiency, scalability, and future implementation.
The propulsion department is tasked with making sure that there is sufficient thrust to propel the pod to the speeds necessary.
Due to the fully levitating nature of the hyperloop pod, this motor must work completely contactless with the track. For this, magnetic propulsion is used with the introduction of a novel magnetic motor.The Linear Flux Switching Permanent Magnet motor used in the pod combines high efficiency with simple track infrastructure, needing only a ferromagnetic stator to propel itself to great speeds. As this is a new motor, new characteristics are continuously discovered and put to use to increase the performance of the motor and the pod. Working on this motor is working on the forefront of magnet motor technology.
This motor also requires its own dedicated control algorithm, which the propulsion department is also responsible for. The propulsion department works closely with the powertrain department to develop a custom motor drive which tailored to our specific pod. All while being lightweight, efficient and fully vacuum compatible.
The levitation department, as the name suggests, is responsible for the contactless guiding of the pod through the track. The Delft Hyperloop pod is fully levitating and has no contact with the track at any time during operation. The system achieves a theoretical zero-current levitation by electromagnetic means, thereby significantly reducing drag and energy losses when compared to conventional rail.
The vertical levitation concept is called the HEMS, or hybrid electromagnetic suspension. It consists of a number of laminated steel U-cores, fitted with permanent magnets situated at its poles and electromagnets wound around them. The permanent magnet is carefully designed to lift the entire weight of the pod, while the electromagnet employs intermittent pulses to steer the pod. Laterally, the pod levitates rather similarly: The electromagnetic suspension (EMS) concept is much the same, save for the absence of permanent magnets.
Furthermore, the levitation department is responsible for its own control. The control engineers write complex code and algorithms to determine when the electromagnets need currents, and what size those currents should be. Additionally, the levitation department is responsible for several mechanical engineering-related endeavours. Brackets must be fashioned to attach the HEMS- and EMS modules to the pod. Lastly, the department is also responsible for producing the safety wheels of the pod, which are deployed when the levitation system fails or is turned off.
The Powertrain department supplies the pod with power. Every sub-system requires specific voltage levels with a wide range of current requirements. This requires batteries, safety systems for every load and voltage converters. This year, powertrain is also working on custom high-power electronics to drive the propulsion system. Due to the levitating nature of the pod, it must be able to supply its own power. To do this, high power and high energy density Li-ion batteries are used, just like in state-of-the-art electric cars. These battery packs must meet high safety standards while being lightweight, powerful and reliable.
The Sense & Control department plays a vital role in integrating and overseeing all pod subsystems. Its responsibilities include gathering sensory data about the environment, designing and building control hardware and software, and establishing communication among all subsystems, effectively serving as the pod's central nervous system.
The Hardware Engineers create custom printed circuit boards (PCBs) essential for pod control. Two critical PCBs they develop are the Main PCB, which collects sensor data and calculates pod actions using an STM32 microcontroller, and the braking PCB, responsible for deploying emergency brakes in potentially hazardous situations.
Software Engineers in the department create the software infrastructure running on the pod's control system. The core of this infrastructure is the Finite State Machine, defining the pod's states (e.g., levitating, accelerating, braking) based on environmental measurements. Additionally, the ground station interface displays all data, ensuring the team has a comprehensive overview of the pod's status.
Given its central role in coordinating all subsystems, the Sense and Control department is crucial for the successful development of a functional hyperloop pod.
This year a new department has been introduced to the Delft Hyperloop team: the thermal department. Its mission is to ensure that all components of the pod remain within safe operating temperatures, safeguarding both performance and endurance during operation.
Critical systems such as the magnetic motor, the (hybrid) electromagnetic suspension, and the battery generate substantial heat during operation. If left unmanaged, this heat could quickly push components beyond their failure limits. To prevent this, the thermal department develops and implements an advanced cooling system. Multiple liquid-cooling loops extract the heat from these critical components, maintaining their efficiency and reliability.
The unique challenge lies not in collecting heat, but in rejecting it. Because the Hyperloop pod operates in a vacuum and has no physical contact with the track, conventional methods of heat dissipation through convection or conduction are not possible. Instead, the department pioneers innovative solutions for storing, dissipating, and recycling heat. By researching and applying novel thermal management strategies, the team ensures that the pod can safely and efficiently complete its run.
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