Hyperloop

2015-2016

McMaster University

Project Description

In response to a white paper released by Elon Musk, Texas A&M University organized a competition in collaboration with SpaceX and Tesla. In 2015, a small group of students from McMaster University made the decision to participate in this prestigious competition. Faced with limited funds, we opted for a theoretical submission, embarking on a comprehensive feasibility study of the project. Within this context, we diligently identified critical failure points and made efforts to rectify these issues.

My Role

This project proved to be an engaging and instructive experience, during which I had the privilege of collaborating with a multitude of talented individuals and transportation industry professionals. However, we faced a significant challenge when our vehicle was burglarized upon our arrival in Texas for the competition at A&M University. This incident resulted in the theft of numerous laptops and passports, which posed a considerable setback for our team. Managing the team's morale and productivity became particularly challenging, as the stolen laptops contained crucial project-related information. Furthermore, we had to liaise with local law enforcement and the Canadian Embassy to facilitate the team's safe return to Canada.

Knowledge, Skills and Abillities

  • Mechanical Design
  • Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA)
  • Stress analysis
  • Material Selection
  • Virtual wind tunnel analysis

Goals, Success Factors

  • Learn about mass transportation and aerospace systems
  • Understand new emerging technologies
  • Meet Elon Musk

Challenges

  • Learning about aerodynamic design
  • Arranging for funding to build and compete
  • Recovering from a theft

Reflection

This project was a lot of fun with many lessons learned. I got to work with many talented individuals and professionals working in mass trasnportation. The biggest problem we encountered with this project was that our car was broken into when we landed in texas to compete at A&M University. Many laptops and passports were stolen. It was dificult to manage the team while this happened as the laptops also contained information vital to our project. Furthermore we also had to talk to the police and Canadian Embasy to ensure our team was able to get back into Canada.