Search
Company|Technology

Vibranium™ smart material

By

|

|

Read time 4 min.

HyperloopTT, Inc. reveals Vibranium™ skin material for capsule safety and announces digital innovation challenge

 

Jumpstartfund’s Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, Inc. (HyperloopTT) announced today a base technology of the Hyperloop™ System: Vibranium, a smart material specifically developed for the Hyperloop application, which it showed live during its presentation at the Pioneer’s Festival on May 24.

Made of sensor-embedded carbon fiber, this new smart material is eight times stronger than aluminum and 10 times stronger than steel alternatives, and transmits critical information regarding temperature, stability, integrity and more, wirelessly and instantly. It is also much lighter in weight—roughly five times less than steel and 1.5 times less than aluminum—reducing energy output to propel the capsule.

The Hyperloop Vibranium capsule construction was also revealed, showing the material in a dual-layer sandwich formation. This allows for complete passenger safety even if the outer skin is damaged. The material communicates issues immediately and the Hyperloop capsule would be taken out of circulation for maintenance. This technology is one of the first technologies HyperloopTT has developed in conjunction with top Slovakian companies.

“Safety is one of the most important aspects of our system,” said Dirk Ahlborn CEO of Jumpstartfund and Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, Inc. “We are 10 times safer than an airplane. Our collaboration with Slovakia and their technical skills in new materials, automotive and production processes have made this technology possible.”

To develop Vibranium HyperloopTT contracted with Slovakian collaborator C2i, a company that intelligently engineers carbon-fiber structures for next-generation cars and aircrafts. “With HyperloopTT and other Slovakian scientists we helped develop Vibranium, a new smart material, which is the perfect solution to build a safe system,” said C2i founder Patrick Hesel. “The challenges shown by the Hyperloop System are a perfect fit for the technical know-how available in Slovakian automotive, new material, and production processes.”

With an ongoing mission to solve many of the issues that make travel often unbearable, HyperloopTT announced the first in a series of innovation calls, starting with a Digital Innovation Challenge planned on July 6th in Bratislava, which will be followed by several entrepreneurial innovation challenges. As part of the challenge, HyperloopTT is developing a digital platform using mobile technologies and big data analytics, creating an opportunity for companies to improve travel and create new business potential. Interested parties are being invited to participate and create new applications for the marketplace.

“The Hyperloop digital ecosystem will allow passengers and businesses to participate in travel in new and exciting ways. It gives us an opportunity to craft a digital world that will mesh perfectly with Hyperloop travel and its many related services—and solve a great many issues that plague business and leisure travelers worldwide,” said Bibop Gresta, COO of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies.

“We believe the connection between the rider and the digital environment is a crucial relationship. This competition will help us find that perfect interactive model to keep our riders happy, informed, distracted, and/or relaxed while planning a trip or traveling in one of our capsules. And it will allow businesses to precisely tailor offers, advertising, entertainment, and opportunities to our passengers, creating a truly singular experience,” Gresta said.

About Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, Inc.

Founded in 2013 by JumpStarter Inc. utilizing JumpStarter’s crowd collaboration platform JumpStartFund, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, Inc. (HyperloopTT) designs, manufactures and builds the most highly profitable, fastest, safest, environmentally friendly transportation system for passengers and goods. HyperloopTT leverages technology and a team of more than 520 global experts to bring disruptive innovation to the traditional transportation industry. Hyperloop first gained public interest when entrepreneur Elon Musk published a detailed white paper describing a futuristic mode of transport that would move people from Los Angeles to San Francisco in about 30 minutes. Musk handed the concept to the public asking for entrepreneurs to take over its development while he focused on his existing projects. Hyperloop Transportation Technologies rose to the challenge.

About Hyperloop™

Hyperloop™ is a tube-based transportation system for inter- and intra-city transport. The removal of air in a tube allows for high speed capsule transport. The system maintains passenger comfort while accelerating capsules safely to 760 mph. Hyperloop uses a combination of alternative energy and conservation techniques such as photovoltaics, wind, kinetic, regenerative braking, and geothermal power to ensure sustainability and low cost. This suite of energy sources combined with an accelerated, low-cost build enables Hyperloop to develop rapidly and generate sustainable profitability, unlike most other transportation modalities.

Download shareable assets here.

CONTACT:

Ben Cooke

HyperloopTT Head of Media Relations

ben@hyperlooptt.com

310-720-1214

Related stories

Stories by topic