AUTOSHUTTLE
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Requirement Analysis


1. What the User Expects from Mobility
Expectation: Idealistic Reference:
Transporting people and goods, no complete substitution by phone, internet etc. modern means of transportation
convenient, available at any time, individual car
Fahrvergnügen (pleasure of driving) on nice roads, car
relieving system for monotonous roads automatic car
safe, reliable travel time prediction, weather independent better than car
cheap, easy to use car
environmental friendliness buses, trains

 
2. Restrictions by Environment and Economy
Road traffic is acceptable outside the densely populated areas and highly used corridors 
Road traffic within densely populated areas and highly used corridors shows: 
  • high emissions, noise, space consumption, divisional effect
  • high energy consumption
  • too low safety level
  • traffic flow decreases but further road construction is often inacceptable
Politically enforced restrictions at hand:
  • road traffic becomes more expensive, -restrictions, -interdictions
  • "Ecological" car becomes compulsory - disadvantages in safety, lowered customer acceptance, inconvenient situation for automobile industry

 
3. Evaluation of Requirements
User's expectations and restrictions by environment and economy yield the following ideal solution for future's transportation:
  • Road traffic outside densely populated regions and highly used corridors
  • Assisting, specialized system for road vehicle within densely populated regions and highly used corridors
Telematic-assisted road vehicle allow for relatively insignificant improvements of traffic capacity and environmental-friendliness.
E. g. PROMETHEUS-project in Germany: formation of a car-convoy results in ca. 25% fuel economy only, travelling in a car-convoy is safety-critical
Pronounced improvements of traffic capacity and environmental friendliness by integration road vehicle-track guided vehicle with formation of convoys during the trip

 
4. Technical Realisation: AUTOSHUTTLE
Consequent exploitation of the advantages of a magnetically levitated system:
  • Superior control - realisation of the rendez-vous-manoeuvre with an entirely wayside based control and safety system
  • Realisation of the non-moving point - direction on the point is determined by vehicle-borne actuators only
  • Very high traffic capacity - high attractivity and traffic volume of AUTOSHUTTLE is realised by the low headway realised by the rendez-vous-manoeuvre and the non-moving point and an economically and ecologically advantageous uniform travelling speed of 112 mph (180 km/h) for passenger cars and lorries on the same track.
  • Quasi no noise at medium speed - use of AUTOSHUTTLE yields at 112 mph (180 km/h) top and average speed and very low time losses for loading and unloading the shortest door-to-door-travelling times of all means of mass transportation in a wide range of travel distances.
  • Simple vehicles - the long stator is mounted wayside - ideal for a traffic concept with very many vehicles. The springs and cabin construction are very simple, since the user takes advantage of the comfort of his own road vehicle
  • Lowest enery consumption of all modern means of transportation - Convoys from vehicles contacting from rear to front of the following vehicle and with very low air resistance - low additional resistances by use of a levitation and guidance control with permanent magnet excitation and transversal flux
    		•
    enables this economically successful application of magnetically levitated systems.