Keywords: Hyperloop, magnetically-levitated vehicles, Maglev, dynamic stability, anomalous Doppler waves, moving-load dynamics.

The Hyperloop, a developing transportation system, reduces air resistance by housing the vehicle within a depressurized tube and eliminates contact friction by using an electro-magnetic suspension/levitation system. Maintaining system stability poses a challenge due to the exceptionally high target velocities. Consequently, it is important to know apriori the velocity regimes in which the system can be unstable. The authors have recently investigated this aspect by, unlike previous studies, properly accounting for the frequency and velocity dependent reaction force provided by the infinite guideway. Furthermore, that study focused on the interplay between two fundamentally different instability sources, namely (i) the electro-magnetic suspension, and (ii) wave-induced instability, showing that stability domains drastically change above a certain vehicle velocity. The current study presents a methodology to distinguish the contribution of each instability mechanism to the overall system stability, and demonstrates that the wave-induced instability mechanism is causing the drastic stability change at large vehicle velocities. This investigation offers physical insight into the mechanisms that can cause instability in the Maglev/Hyperloop systems, and can help engineers that develop this novel transportation system to avoid excessive vibrations and, in extreme cases, derailment.

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