High-Speed Monorail Footprint/Suspension
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The High-Speed Monorail is an evolution of prior Inverted-T monorail designs. The system was designed to take advantage of two well understood technologies- high speed wheelsets (Shinkansen, TGV), and Linear Induction Motors (LIMs). This vehicle rides on flangeless (aluminum on steel rims) wheels on standard rail with a 4'11" (1.5m) gauge. The wheels are independently mounted (no fixed axles), and rotate freely as these wheels are for suspension only and not traction. For guidance and stabilization, there are horizontally mounted wheels that run against steel rails at the top of the guideway. The advantages of this suspension include:
The proposed CIFGA vehicle would be twenty segments long, weighing 210 metric tons. The guideway segments are 125 feet long and weigh about 200,000 pounds each.
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