Proposal submitted as part of the SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition illustrating Team Hyperlynx concept for a modular payload system.

2. 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.

3. BUILD

4. 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.

5. 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.

6. 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.

7. POWER
Housing 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

8. CONCEPT

9. 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
ToTerminal
FromTerminal

10. 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.

11. 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.

12. 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

13. VISION

14. 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.

15. 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

16. 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.

17. 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.

18. 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

19. 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.

20. 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:

21. “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.

22. 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/

23. 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/

24. NEXT STEP

25. 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.

26. CU Denver Advisors
Connor Catterall
Ben Cooper
Nicole Garcia
George Kemp
Andres Lazo
Richard Michalka
Jack Nelson
Richard Paasch
John Spinelli
Mark Urban
Susan Waruinge
Chandler Lacy
Team Captain
John K. Bennett, PhD
Heather M. Underwood, PhD
RJ Duran
Mech. Engineering
Mech. Engineering
Mech. Engineering
Mech. Engineering
Design
Comp. Science
Architecture
Business
Mech. Engineering
Mech. Engineering
Mech. Engineering
Mech. Engineering
Ron Rorrer, PhD
Doug Gallagher
Mech. Engineering
Mech. Engineering
Inworks Advisors
Sponsors
Supporters
Comp. Science
Comp. Science
Indust. Design
Thank you.
www.denverhyperlynx.com