Hyperloop System Optimization

TL;DR

This paper introduces HOPS, a system optimization tool for Hyperloop design that employs convex optimization to effectively handle the complex, coupled design relationships, enhancing the development process.

Contribution

The work presents a novel optimization tool, HOPS, utilizing geometric programming to optimize Hyperloop system design with high fidelity and stakeholder trust.

Findings

HOPS effectively captures complex design relationships.

The tool has been integrated into Virgin Hyperloop's design process.

Stakeholder trust measures were successfully implemented.

Abstract

Hyperloop system design is a uniquely coupled problem because it involves the simultaneous design of a complex, high-performance vehicle and its accompanying infrastructure. In the clean-sheet design of this new mode of high-speed mass transportation there is an excellent opportunity for the application of rigorous system optimization techniques. This work presents a system optimization tool, HOPS, that has been adopted as a central component of the Virgin Hyperloop design process. We discuss the choice of objective function, the use of a convex optimization technique called geometric programming, and the level of modeling fidelity that has allowed us to capture the system's many intertwined, and often recursive, design relationships. We also highlight the ways in which the tool has been used. Because organizational confidence in a model is as vital as its technical merit, we close with discussion of the measures taken to build stakeholder trust in HOPS.