Air bus transportation system

• US 8,015,925 B2
• Filed: 06/18/2010
• Issued: 09/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/18/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Abner J. Simon
• Original Assignee: Abner J. Simon
• Inventors: Simon, Abner J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Morano, IV; Joe
• Assistant Examiner(s): Smith; Jason C
• Application Number:
  US12/801,660
• Publication Number:
  US 20100326311A1
• Time in Patent Office: 452 Days
• Field of Search: 104/23.1, 104/124, 104/125, 104/139, 105/1.1, 105/1.2, 105/1.3, 105/66
• US Class Current: 104/23.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60M 7/00 Power lines or rails specially adapted for electrically-propelled vehicles of special types, e.g. suspension tramway, ropeway, underground railway
• CPC Class Codes: B61B 5/02 with two or more rails
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 37/00 Convertible aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 1/10 using self-propelled vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: E01B 25/00 Tracks for special kinds of railways systems B61B; wheel tracks on roads E01C9/02
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 30/00 Transportation of goods or passengers via railways, e.g. energy recovery or reducing air resistance
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 50/80 Energy efficient operational measures, e.g. ground operations or mission management

Abstract

A transportation system includes a vehicle having wings, a propulsion system, a lifting gear coupling the vehicle to an undercarriage, and a guidance assembly movably connecting the undercarriage to guide rails. The wings generate aerodynamic lift when the vehicle exceeds a first speed. The lifting gear supports a load of the vehicle in a first position in relation to the undercarriage when the vehicle travels at less than the first speed, allows the vehicle to lift to a second position in relation to the undercarriage as the vehicle accelerates beyond the first speed, and maintains the vehicle in the second position when the vehicle exceeds the first speed. The guidance assembly shiftingly engages the guide rails through rollers that are in rolling contact with the guide rails when the vehicle is in the first position and are displaced from the guide rails when the vehicle is in the second position.

Claims

1. A transportation system, comprising:

a vehicle body having a set of wings extending outward therefrom, the set of wings being adapted to generate aerodynamic lift on the vehicle body when a traveling speed of the vehicle body exceeds a first speed;

a propulsion system configured to propel to vehicle body to accelerate the traveling speed of the vehicle body from less than the first speed to a second speed that exceeds the first speed;

an elongated guide rail structure forming a path of travel;

an undercarriage disposed beneath the vehicle body;

a lifting gear mechanism coupling the vehicle body to the undercarriage, the lifting gear mechanism being configured to support a load of the vehicle body in a first position in relation to the undercarriage when the traveling speed of the vehicle body is less than the first speed, to allow the vehicle body to lift from the first position to a second position in relation to the undercarriage as the traveling speed of the vehicle body accelerates from less than the first speed to the second speed, and to maintain the vehicle body in the second position when the traveling speed of the vehicle body is greater than or equal to the second speed; and

a guidance assembly movably connecting the undercarriage to the guide rail structure, the guidance assembly comprising a set of rollers and a set of guiding supports configured to shiftingly engage the guide rail structure such that the set of rollers are in rolling contact with the guide rail structure to guide movement of the undercarriage along the path of travel when the vehicle body is traveling in the first position in relation to the undercarriage, the set or rollers are displaced from the guide rail structure when the vehicle body is traveling in the second position in relation to the undercarriage, and the guiding supports guide movement of the undercarriage along the path of travel when the vehicle body is traveling in the second position in relation to the undercarriage.

2. The transportation system according to claim 1, wherein the guide rail structure comprises an elevated pair of guide rails forming a dual rail guide track that provides the path of travel.

3. The transportation system according to claim 2, wherein the guide rail structure further comprises a plurality of support posts positioned periodically along the path of travel and extending vertically from a ground surface to elevate and support the pair of guide rails, and wherein a pair of support beams are mounted on and extend oppositely from a top surface of each support post to respectively support the pair of guide rails.

4. The transportation system according to claim 3, wherein the path travel is adjacent to already existing roadways, and wherein the plurality of support posts extend vertically from a ground surface to a height that is sufficient to elevate and support the pair of guide rails above vehicle traffic along the roadways.

5. The transportation system according to claim 2, wherein the undercarriage comprises a deck extending between a pair of opposing, longitudinally extending pontoons, and wherein the guidance assembly is mounted on opposing, respective inside surfaces of the opposing pontoons and movably connects each pontoon of the pair of pontoons to a respective guide rail of the pair of guide rails beneath the deck.

6. The transportation system according to claim 5, wherein the vehicle body further comprises a set of legs extending from a base thereof, wherein the lifting gear mechanism comprises a plurality of lifting gear rollers respectively extending from the plurality of legs and a plurality of lifting gear keepers extending from top surfaces of the pontoons, wherein each lifting gear roller of the plurality of gear rollers is received within a longitudinally-extending recess formed within a respective lifting gear keeper of the plurality of lifting gear keepers that permits longitudinal movement of the lifting gear roller within the recess between an internal floor and an internal ceiling, and wherein the lifting gear mechanism is configured such that the lifting gear rollers rest on the internal floors of the respective lifting gear keepers when the traveling speed of the vehicle body is less than the second speed, the lifting gear rollers lift from the internal floors to contact the internal ceilings when the vehicle lifts to the second position in relation to the undercarriage as the traveling speed of the vehicle body accelerates from less than the first speed to the second speed, and the internal ceilings retain the lifting gear rollers within the recesses of the respective lifting gear keepers when the traveling speed of the vehicle body is greater than or equal to the second speed.

7. The transportation system according to claim 6, wherein each lifting gear keeper extends at a slight incline to an orthogonal direction to the top surfaces of the pontoons, and wherein each lifting gear roller is spring-loaded within the respective leg of the plurality of legs, thereby allow each lifting gear roller to roll up within the recess along an internal wall of the respective lifting gear keeper when the lifting gear roller lifts from the internal floor to contact the internal ceiling of the respective lifting gear keeper.

8. The transportation system according to claim 5, wherein the guidance assembly is mounted on the respective inside surface of each of the opposing pontoons such that rollers of the set of rollers are mounted on the inside surface adjacent to a top surface of the respective guide rail and guiding supports of the set of guiding supports are mounted on the inside surface adjacent to a bottom surface of the respective guide rail.

9. The transportation system according to claim 5, further comprising a plurality of shocks each partially disposed within a respective recess formed the pontoons, the plurality of shocks projecting from top surfaces of the pontoons to varying heights and being spring-loaded within the respective recesses so as to recess evenly into the pontoons when the load of the vehicle body is sufficiently high.

10. The transportation system according to claim 1, wherein the set of wings includes a pair of side wings laterally projecting from opposing sides of vehicle body proximate to a front end of the vehicle body, a pair of tail wings laterally projecting from opposing sides of the vehicle body proximate to a rear end of the vehicle body, and a stabilizer projecting vertically from the rear end of the vehicle body.

11. The transportation system according to claim 1, wherein the set of wings are configured according to a desired offset between a force of gravity on the vehicle body and amount of lift force on the vehicle body that minimizes friction between the guiding supports and the guide rail structure when the traveling speed of the vehicle body is greater than or equal to the second speed.

12. The transportation system according to claim 1, wherein the propulsion system comprises a pair of engines disposed on opposing sides of the vehicle body proximate to a rear end of the vehicle body.

13. The transportation system according to claim 12, wherein the engines comprise electric motor-driven ducted propeller engines.

14. The transportation system according to claim 12, wherein the engines are selected from electric motor driven engines, high-bypass turbo fan engines, internal combustion engines, and hybrid gasoline and electric powered engines.

15. The transportation system according to claim 14, wherein the engines are electric motor driven engines, and wherein the electric motor driven engines are powered by electricity picked up along the path of travel by the vehicle body through electrical contact with conductor wires disposed along the guide rail structure.

16. The transportation system according to claim 1, wherein the second speed is at least 140 miles per hour.