Transportation system and vehicle for supersonic transport
First Claim
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1. A transportation system comprising:
- a substantially enclosed conduit provided between a first geographic location and a second geographic location, the enclosed conduit having a cross-section of a fluted tube and being provided with an atmosphere that allows a vehicle traveling within the enclosed conduit to achieve aerodynamic tunneling, the cross-section having a curve outlining one or more lobes and one or more waists, the cross-section being defined by a polar-coordinate equation r=a+b cos2 ct, wherein r is a distance of a point on the curve from a pole, t is an angle in a polar coordinate system, c is an integral multiple of ½
, and a and b are real parameters, wherein none of a, b and c is zero, and wherein the atmosphere inside the enclosed conduit has a density such that a speed of sound is greater than a speed of sound of atmospheric air outside of the enclosed conduit.
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Abstract
A transportation system for supersonic travel including a conduit containing an atmosphere that exhibits high aerodynamic tunneling performance, or high gas efficacy, and a vehicle designed to operate within the conduit. The vehicle traveling within the conduit along a support and guide structure that is complementary to a support and guidance system of the vehicle. The vehicle being propelled through the conduit via a propulsion system that includes contra-rotating propellers.
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Citations
14 Claims
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1. A transportation system comprising:
a substantially enclosed conduit provided between a first geographic location and a second geographic location, the enclosed conduit having a cross-section of a fluted tube and being provided with an atmosphere that allows a vehicle traveling within the enclosed conduit to achieve aerodynamic tunneling, the cross-section having a curve outlining one or more lobes and one or more waists, the cross-section being defined by a polar-coordinate equation r=a+b cos2 ct, wherein r is a distance of a point on the curve from a pole, t is an angle in a polar coordinate system, c is an integral multiple of ½
, and a and b are real parameters, wherein none of a, b and c is zero, and wherein the atmosphere inside the enclosed conduit has a density such that a speed of sound is greater than a speed of sound of atmospheric air outside of the enclosed conduit.- View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
Specification