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German research group completes Europe's first Hyperloop test track

2023-08-04T17:57:00-04:00

Europe’s first certified full-scale Hyperloop test track is now ready for test operations, marking a significant milestone in sustainable and ultra-fast transportation. The 24-metre-long track was developed by the Technical University of Munich (TUM) Hyperloop research group. The first successful test run with a passenger pod in vacuum conditions took place on the 10th of July 2023.

The research and development program TUM Hyperloop at the Technical University of Munich reached a milestone when it successfully conducted the first passenger ride under vacuum conditions on July 10, 2023. As reported by Innovation Origins, the group will now focus on refining their track’s drive system, levitation technology, and behavior when in vacuum conditions.

Image © Andreas Heddergott/TUM

TUM Hyperloop was founded to compete in the SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition, an annual competition from 2015–2019 that called for hyperloop transport vehicle designs and prototypes.

Image © Andreas Heddergott/TUM

TUM’s recent triumph comes following another achievement it has made in hyperloop design, in which a student team won the “Not-A-Boring Competition” with a tunnel boring machine that employs an innovative horizontal digging technique.

Video courtesy TUM Hyperloop/YouTube

"MudHoney" begins excavating tunnel for Ship Canal Water Quality Project in Seattle

2021-08-16T18:31:00-04:00

Italian construction and civil engineering company Webuild Group’s U.S. subsidiary, Lane Construction Corporation, has begun excavating a 2.7-mile, 18.1-feet diameter water storage tunnel in Seattle. The $570 million undertaking is titled the Ship Canal Water Quality Project, an environmental sustainability project that aims to prevent untreated stormwater and sewage from infiltrating major bodies of water in the region.

The tunnel will prevent up to 75 million gallons of contaminated water, known as combined sewer overflow, from flowing into the Lake Washington Ship Canal, Salmon Bay, and Lake Union every year. In addition, the tunnel will capture and temporarily hold more than 29 million gallons of stormwater and sewage during heavy rainfall.

The tunnel boring machine that is excavating the tunnel has recently been assigned its name following an online vote launched by Seattle Public Utilities. The overwhelming winner was MudHoney, which accrued more than 76% of the vote. Other ...

Elon Musk takes first steps in opening store to sell his lego-like Boring bricks

2018-11-20T13:48:00-05:00

Elon Musk has filed permits with the city of Los Angeles to launch his Boring Company offshoot, The Brick Store LLC, which would produce interlocking bricks made from dirt collected by his tunnel-digging company's operations.

As the Boring Company's LA test tunnel nears completion—an opening date has been set for this coming December 10th—the company has selected a building near the exit tunnel to locate the physical outlet for his brick making startup. Plans filed with the city of Hawthorne show the Brick Store's first brick-and-mortar will take over a humble, one story stucco building and give the former cabinet shop a fresh coat of paint.

Brick pyramid and Hyperloop tube at sunset via twitter.com/boringcompany

“The proposed colors are white, gray, and black" the planning documents read. "The proposed colors avoid monotony throughout the project site and blend well together. The color scheme does not create an incompatible look to the surrounding neighborhood."

The idea for the Br...

Boring Company to start selling LEGO-like interlocking bricks made from tunneling rock

2018-03-27T12:18:00-04:00

Elon Musk announced that the Boring Company will sell LEGO-like interlocking bricks made from rock that his tunneling machines excavate from the earth. Musk stated these bricks will be sold in "kits" and will be rated to withstand California's earthquakes.

The date of availability or cost of this latest product is unknown. While his company has only started digging shorter tunnels there is not enough upturned rock to begin making these bricks yet.

Musk claims his plans to bore a tunnel under Los Angeles are moving forward

2017-01-27T12:30:00-05:00

Elon Musk has received the go-ahead for another wild transit idea: a tunnel beneath Los Angeles. Intended to ease the city’s notorious traffic, it’s not clear where Musk intends to dig, besides that it will start near his Hawthorne office, about 5 minutes from LAX.

Musk’s been railing against the city’s traffic for months, and it seems he’s actually taking action. Apparently, he’s considered the city’s seismic instability in the planning process. “Traffic is driving me nuts. Am going to build a tunnel boring machine and just start digging,” he said on Twitter.

For the most part the news, which came from his Twitter, has been met with incredulity. The office of city planning said they were unaware of the plans, but the tech mogul said the boring would start in about a month.

The name for the new company that will be in charge of the project, should it actualize, is “the Boring Company.” “Boring, it’s what we do,” said Musk.

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