Most recently, the company supported the research work of young talents: for the "HyperPodX" project, students from the cooperative Engineering Physics course at Emden/Leer University of Applied Sciences and the University of Oldenburg developed a Hyperloop as part of a competition organized by the American company SpaceX. The drive is provided by a high-performance belt from Continental.

"The mobility of the future will also travel by rail. Safe, reliable and, above all, fast transportation is crucial for the logistics of the future. Increasing flows of goods will hardly be covered by today's existing infrastructure. The industry needs new, efficient alternatives," explains Hans-Jürgen Duensing, member of the Continental Executive Board. "We therefore see new rail transport solutions such as the Hyperloop as a promising technology for the future and are passing on our expertise from over 90 years of industry knowledge to the engineers of tomorrow."

Low air resistance ensures extreme speed

The Hyperloop system would make it possible to transport people and goods at speeds of more than 1,000 km/h - similar to airplanes. The advantage over air transportation is that the Hyperloop is much more environmentally friendly and could be used at the same speed as a subway. The technological concept is based on the idea of reducing the usual resistance of regular trains in tunnel-like tubes in order to achieve much higher speeds with the vehicles. Above all, air resistance is reduced to almost zero. The air pressure in the tubes is only one percent of the usual air pressure in the atmosphere. In addition, the Hyperloop does not need wheels, so there is no friction here either. Instead, the capsule-shaped vehicles use magnetic levitation technology or air cushions for locomotion.

Concrete Hyperloop projects conceivable in the near future

A distance of 1,000 kilometers in one hour? For the logistics industry, the idea of using such a means of transportation between global production sites opens up numerous new opportunities in logistics. "It will be around three to five years before the first Hyperloop is actually used to transport goods," predicts Prof. Dr. Walter Neu, Hyperloop expert from Emden/Leer University of Applied Sciences. "Various test routes are currently under construction, for example in France and the United Arab Emirates, and the Vienna-Prague route is also under discussion."

If the Hyperloop technology proves itself there and specific projects are realized, companies will not only benefit from the much faster transport of goods compared to current rail vehicles or trucks. Thanks to its low resistance, the Hyperloop requires only a fraction of the energy and is therefore both a cost-effective and sustainable solution. The system also relieves the burden on the road and rail network. In the long term, the Hyperloop will also be used for passenger transportation.