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UniModal or SkyTran (formerly known as People Pod) is a hypothetical concept by Douglas Malewicki for a 160km/h (100mph) personal rapid transit (PRT) system. The Unimodal system design includes a number of technologies which are either unproven or untried in comparable situations. Such technologies include speech recognition to interact with riders, and electric linear propulsion using a form of passive magnetic levitation called Inductrack.
No protoype exists, and Malewicki has yet to secure funding for a pilot project.
System details
The system design has few moving parts, the main ones being the pod itself, its parking-wheels and door, and fans in heating and air conditioning units. Technology with fewer moving parts has potential for being more reliable and requiring less maintenance, but actual designs may vary. The promoters refer to the system as "solid state".
Guideway
A 3D grid design avoids intersections by allowing guideways to cross above or below each other. Guideways would be mounted on poles about 30 feet above the ground and would be made of modular steel components, attached to cemented foundations.
Pods
SkyTran pods, which are suspended from the guideway, would be aerodynamically streamlined to be quieter and save energy (helped by the tandem design - one seat behind the other). Above two mph the Inductrack would lift the pod off the guideway; below two mph, wheels would support the pod.
Magnetic levitation
The magnetic levitation system would be the passive Inductrack system. Passive maglev requires no direct power to levitate vehicles, rather the lift is caused by the movement of the vehicle over the coiled wire in the track.
Controversy
UniModal, like most public transit systems and proposals, and PRT itself, is a controversial and politicised concept. Most of the coverage of UniModal presents a pro-PRT bias, and is therefore unreliable. For example, the New Haven Advocate states that "these pods exist".
References
- Lawrence Livermore national Laboratory
- newmassmedia.com Meet George Jetson, New Haven Advocate, 29 June, 2000