Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1914-06-12
Plan NEW Rail-
ROAD engine
q -. r 49, II
TO Be Called the Levitated Rail-
way. Plans and Models
tsti2
Already Shown.

Much interest is being manifested
by engineers and Government officials
in a "levitated" railway, a working
model of which was recently exhibited
privately in London. The motive
power electricity, though the applica-
ton, in a commercial at least,
is quite new. 1t has been known for
years that certain kinds of currents
have a repelling force upon certain
metals, and it is this force which
Emile Bachelet, the inventor, has
made use Of.
Weight 20 Pounds.
The model consits of a miniature
car weighing some 40 pounds, con-
structed of steel with an aluminium
base, resting upon about 80 feet OF
special track. Beneath the rails are
coils which, it is explained, when
energized by an alternating current,
exercise a repelling effect upon the
cal sufficient to raise it a fraction OF
an inch above the rails. When thus
suspended in the air, the car is drawn
along by electromagnetic, or solenoids,
which span the track in the form of
arches, through which the car passes.
Although the model is raised. above
the track, four brushes attached to the
a remain in contact with the rails
and two other brushas make contact
with an overhead gro0ved rail.
The system is operated by an ordin-
airy switchboard, through which the
currents are directed at the will of
the operator. The secret of the in.
ventiol appears to lie in the ability of
the operator to cut off or break the
wave of electrical energy at precisely
the point at which it has greatest
force.
Method OF Propulsion.
Upon the charging of the electric
coils, which r placed at intervals of
2 feet, the car is driven upward and
held poised in the air (due to the re-
polling force Of the electricity upon
the aluminium base, and it is pulled
or drawn forward. by the energizing of
the s~olenoids or arches. When the
car has passed half way through an
arch the current is automatically cut
off and applied to the next arch. The
inventor claims that thera is no rea-
o why a car operated in this manner
for commercial SEES should not be
pulled through the air at a rate of at
least 300 miles an hour.
,.,.. In Operation.
The model in operation in the in
ventor's room is of a mail or par
cells car, and not for passengers. He
has constructed a passenger car which
is raised from the track in the same
manner as the ons, already described,
but in actual use he claims that the
propelliag or pulling force will be
furnished by means Of a propeller and
a motor. as in the case of an aero
plane.
The new system is stated to be
simple in construction and practically
indestructible, and the maintenance
costs would be very small as the cars
are without engines, wheels, bearings,
g%earings, armatures, or commutators,
and require no oiling and little repair
or adjustment. The distance to be
covered would not affect the running.
Each car for the mail service can be
constructed to hold so to 100 pounds
of mail, and would resemble a double
pointed p%rojectile.
Advantages Of New System.
A train can be started, checked, or
stopped by opening or closing
the electric circuits. It is claimed
that a can be started every half
minute without chance of collision,
the location of each train always
shown by al electrical indicator that
is constantly before the dispatcher at
either end of the line. The power
currents a be cut off instantaneous
ly and thu traffic on the whole length
of the line brought to a standstill.
Moreover, trains can be automatically
~sidetracked and. stopped at any sta
ton.
Engineers who. have seen the rail-
way in model form declare it is an
amazing achievement, but they natur-
ally speak with reserve as to it's prac-
,tical value, i1asmuch as what may
prove successful in model is often less
successful on a large scale.