NL2024290B1 - Transport system as well as guide and shuttle in, of or for said transport system - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a transport system, comprising a guide defined by an inner contour of a tube and a guide track and a shuttle comprising a guide follower configured to follow the guide, wherein the guide track is at least arranged at a functional section of the guide wherein the guide track provides a support to the shuttle that is complementary to a partial support provided to the shuttle by the inner contour of the tube at the functional section. The invention further relates to a guide as well as shuttle in, of or for such transport system.

Description

Transport system as well as guide and shuttle in, of or for said transport system fi] The invention relates to a transport system, a guide in, of or for said transport system and a shuttle in, of or for said transport system.

[2] Transport systems comprising a tube and a shuttle configured to move through said tube are known in the art. Such transport systems include urban underground transport networks, vacuum tube train systems and capsule pipelines, all generally envisaged to transport people and/or goods. In such known systems, the shuttle is transported from one end of a circumferentially closed tube to the other end of said tube and is supported by an inner contour of said tube. Generally, this includes pressure control of the tube to reduce frictional effects and enhance the achievable speed of the shuttle.

[3] A problem encountered in such known transport systems is that the tube on which the shuttle has its support, needs to be intact. That is, the inner contour of said tube has to provide full support throughout the path of the shuttle. This restricts the usefulness of such transport systems to, for instance, end-stations between extremities of one tube only. Furthermore, functions that require an opening in the inner contour of the tube, that would take away the support it provides, are not compatible with such known transport systems. Such functions include intermediate stops, access points or junctions between a plurality of tubes.

[4] It is an objective of the invention to solve the above-mentioned problems. This is achieved with this invention by providing a transport system according to claim 1.

[5] The invention relates to a transport system, comprising: - a guide defined by an inner contour of a tube and a guide track; and - a shuttle comprising a guide follower configured to follow the guide, wherein the guide track is at least arranged at a functional section of the guide wherein the guide track provides a support to the shuttle that is complementary to a partial support provided to the shuttle by the inner contour of the tube at the functional section.

[6] The shuttle may thus be configured to move along the guide and transport a load over the transport system. The load may be carried in a compartment of the shuttle configured to hold the load, where the load may comprise passengers and/or goods. The transport system of the invention prevents yawing, pitching and/or rolling of the shuttle by having the guide track that provides the support that is complementary to the partial support provided by the inner contour of the tube.

[7] Preferably, the guide is a fixed construction, that is, the guide is stationary relative to the shuttle which is moveable through the guide. The guide track may be limited to the functional section of the guide. However, the guide track may also extend through the tube in part or completely. In that case, the guide track is arranged at the functional section of the guide as well as in further sections of the guide at which the inner contour of the tube sufficiently defines the guide to support the shuttle. This arrangement may further stabilise the shuttle when it is moving through the further sections of the tube, even at high speed.

[8] The guide follower may be configured to support the shuttle in cooperation with the guide by generating a supporting force which stably supports the shuttle in the guide. The supporting force may be generated in various ways, including mechanically, magnetically, electromagnetically, hydraulic and a combination thereof. Suitable means as known in the art may be provided to the shuttle and/or the guide to generate such forces.

[9] Although the transport system may be embodied with tubes having a variety of inner contours, such as elliptical, egg-shaped, square, dome-shaped and polygonal, an advantageous embodiment is obtained if the tube comprises a substantially circular inner contour.

[10] A substantially circular inner contour has an enhanced strength with respect to external pressures and is therefore advantageous in, for example, an underground or underwater transport system.

[11] Preferably, a diameter of the inner contour is roughly 130 cm. This allows for easy installation under existing infrastructure, such as sidewalks, pavements and roads, while also allowing enough internal space to transport at least one passenger in a comfortable position.

[12] Preferably, the guide of the transport system, in particular its tube, is at least partly evacuated or brought to a low relative pressure. This reduces air resistance of the shuttle so that it may acquire higher speed with similar propulsion power.

[13] The functional section may provide a function from a group, comprising: - a loading bay; - a junction of the tube with a further tube; - a maintenance port; and - an emergency exit.

[14] In these functions, the guide may comprise an opening or void in the inner contour of the tube, causing the guide to be insufficiently defined by the inner contour of the tube at the functional section. The functional section may thus be configured to provide access to the guide and/or shuttle through the tube, for which the inner contour of the tube is temporarily or permanently opened. In addition, the junction of the transport system may give rise to insufficient definition of the guide by the inner contour of the tube.

[15] The loading bay may be configured for loading and/or unloading of the load of the shuttle, or for stopping of the shuttle. The loading bay may be arranged at a side of the tube and/or at an end of the tube.

[16] The junction of the tube with the further tube may be formed by, for example, a fork, a branching-off, a bifurcation or a split of the tube wherein the junction may comprise a plurality of tube branches extending in various directions, such as left and right or up and down. The junction may also be comprised in a by-pass of the tube, wherein the further tube passes by the tube.

[17] The maintenance port may be provided in the inner contour of the tube to provide temporary or continuous access to the inner contour of the tube and/or the guide track. This function facilitates maintenance of the transport system. The maintenance port may also provide access to the shuttle for maintenance or repair in situs or for removal of the shuttle from the guide to allow maintenance ex sifu.

[18] The emergency exit may be configured to allow escape of the at least one passenger from the shuttle, the guide and/or the transport system.

[19] Smaller disruptions in the definition of the guide by the inner contour of the tube may not lead to an insufficiency in the support that is provided to the shuttle by the guide. Such smaller disruptions thus do not constitute a functional section as defined in the context of the present invention. Such smaller disruptions may include vents, inspection windows and ducts.

[20] The guide may comprise a support surface and the guide follower may comprise wheels and/or sliders configured to engage the support surface of the guide and thereby support the shuttle.

[21] The support surface may be provided by both the inner contour of the tube as well as the guide track. Alternatively, the support surface may be provided by either the inner contour of the tube or the guide track. The wheels and/or the sliders of the guide follower of the shuttle may be configured to correspondingly engage the support surface, whether it is provided by both the inner contour of the tube as well as the guide track, by the inner contour of the tube only or by the guide track only. It is also envisaged that the wheels and/or the sliders are configured to alternatingly engage the support surface provided by the inner contour of the tubes and, where the guide track is present within the guide, engage the support surface provided by the guide track. In such embodiments of the invention, the force to support the shuttle may be generated by mechanical means.

[22] The wheels are preferably arranged as sets of three wheels in a planar arrangement to facilitate turning corners in the tube. For example, two wheels may be arranged at one side of the shuttle while a third wheel is arranged at the other opposite side of the shuttle in the same plane. Such set of three wheels thus forms a planar triangular arrangement between the three wheels wherein the set of three wheels is configured to move in a direction parallel to the base of the triangle. When such shuttle is to turn a corner within said plane, the wheels may effectively accommodate this turning movement and reduce the required turning radius compared to, for example, a shuttle with a set of four wheels in a conventional square arrangement.

[23] The support surface may have an outer shape that matches an outer shape of the wheels and/or the sliders configured to engage said support surface. A level of friction between the shuttle and the guide may thus be tuned and varied at the functional section.

[24] The wheels of the guide follower may be large relative to the diameter of the inner contour of the tube. A diameter of the wheels must be just under the diameter of the inner contour to allow free movement of the wheels. The diameter of the wheels may be 0.3-0.9 times, preferably at least

0.5 times, the diameter of the inner contour. This lowers a rotational frequency of the wheels and therefore lowers wear on elements of the wheels.

[25] At least one of the wheels may be driven by conventional means, such as by human physical power, pneumatics, electrical power or a fuel cell, or combinations thereof, especially physical power with electrical assistance. Such means may be comprised by the shuttle.

Alternatively, the means may be provided external to the shuttle and/or in cooperation with the guide.

[26] The sliders of the guide follower may comprise skates. Furthermore, the sliders may have various dimensions to engage with the support surface of the guide, being provided by either or both of the inner contour of the tube and the guide track.

[27] For example, the guide follower may comprise wheels configured to support the shuttle by engaging the support surface provided by the inner contour of the tube and in addition comprise sliders configured to support the shuttle by engaging the support surface provided by the guide track at least arranged at the function section of the guide. Thus, the shuttle may be adequately supported throughout the guide by means of its wheels and sliders.

[28] Other variations of the above features, such as wheels engaging the guide track and sliders engaging the inner contour, are equally possible.

[29] Additionally or alternatively, the guide may comprise magnets and the guide follower may comprise further magnets configured to suspend the shuttle in cooperation with the magnets of the guide. In this way, the transport system may be configured to achieve magnetic levitation, electromagnetic suspension and/or electrodynamic suspension of the shuttle. The magnets may be 5 permanent magnets, induced magnets, coils or combinations thereof. In this embodiment, friction between the shuttle and the guide may be reduced. In addition, the achievable speed of the shuttle may be increased. Furthermore, the shuttle may be driven electromagnetically using the magnets of the guide in combination with the further magnets of the guide follower. Particular configurations of magnets and further magnets to achieve the aforementioned effects can be taken from IO arrangements known in the field of electromagnetic transportation.

[30] The guide follower of the shuttle may comprise: - a tube follower configured to guide the shuttle along the inner contour of the tube; and - a track follower configured to guide the shuttle along the guide track. The track follower may be distinct from the tube follower. Though the track follower and the tube follower may also be the same, an embodiment wherein the track follower is distinct from the tube follower is preferred. This allows the guide follower of the shuttle to engage selectively with the support provided to the shuttle by the inner contour of the tabe, which is a partial support at the functional section, and/or with the support provided to the shuttle by the guide track, which is complementary to the partial support at the functional section. Due to such selective engagement, the guide follower may be configured to provide steering at the functional section, as detailed below.

[31] Any combination of mechanical and/or electromagnetic support is possible for either or both of the tube follower and the track follower. For instance, the tube follower may comprise wheels and the track follower may comprise electromagnets or vice versa. It is also possible that the tube follower and the track follower each comprise a set of wheels which may be identical or different. For instance, the tube follower may comprise a first set of wheels and the track follower may comprise a second set of wheels, wherein the first set of wheels comprises wheels of a larger diameter than the wheels of the second set of wheels. In this example, the wheels of the first set of wheels may be configured to guide the shuttle along and/or support the shuttle on the inner contour of the tube and the wheels of the second set of wheels may be configured to guide the shuttle along and/or engage the complementary support of the shuttle provided by the guide track at the functional section of the guide.

[32] The shuttle may further comprise an actuator configured to selectively activate and deactivate parts of the guide follower to allow the guide follower to selectively engage parts of the guide. Said parts of the guide follower may include the tube follower, track follower and/or parts thereof. Parts of the guide may include parts of the inner contour of the tube, parts of the guide track, parts of the further tube and/or combinations thereof. This engagement may be effected by generating a force in the appropriate direction mechanically and/or electromagnetically, for example by the means illustrated above.

[33] For example, the actuator of the shuttle may be configured to selectively activate and deactivate a first part of the track follower and a second part of the track follower. Additionally or alternatively, the actuator of the shuttle may be configured to selectively activate and deactivate a first part of the tube follower, a second part of the tube follower and a third part of the tube follower. The activation may relate to said part of the guide follower engaging with a corresponding part of the guide. For example, activation of the first part of the track follower may result in a first wheel of the track follower engaging with a first support surface of the guide track.

[34] The actuator may be implemented in various ways, including by means of a hydraulic cylinder, rack and pinion, a screw jack, a planetary roller screw, and these implementations may optionally differ with each part of the guide follower.

[35] The transport system may further comprise a controller configured to control the shuttle. The controller may at least control the actuator to decide what selective activation and deactivation of the guide follower has to be implemented by the actuator. The controller may further be incorporated in the actuator of the shuttle.

[36] Additionally or alternatively, the controller may be configured to control the guide track.

For example, the controller may activate the guide track at the functional section, thereby causing the guide track to engage with the guide follower thus providing the support to the shuttle. In this example, the guide track is activated to engage the guide follower rather than that the guide follower is activated to engage the guide track as described above. This allows further control of the transport system.

[37] At the functional section, the guide track may be configured to engage with the guide follower of the shuttle, irrespective of any activation of (parts of) the guide follower. This may be achieved by, for example, increasing a height and/or shape of the guide track at the functional section so that the track follower of the guide follower of the shuttle engages with the guide track in the functional section even when said track follower is deactivated. Such a guide track is particelarly advantageous at functional sections which do not comprise a change of direction, such as a loading bay.

[38] The controller may be operated via a human, mechanical, electrical or electronic driver. The controller may equally be wired or wireless distant from the shuttle and/or it may be interdependent with controllers of additional shuttles of the transport system. That is to say, the controller may be comprised within the shuttle or may be external to the shuttle. Alternatively, it may be comprised in distributed hardware that is coupled by means of wireless communication. In this way, the controller may be partly comprised by the shuttle and partly by, for instance, a central server of the transport system. The controller may in addition control further shuttles within the transport system.

[39] Decisions by the controller may be made from and/or by the shuttle and/or any driver of the shuttle. Such decisions may relate to a choice at the functional section, for example stopping or not stopping at a loading bay, choosing between the tube or the further tube at a junction and using or not using a maintenance port or emergency exit. The controller may control the actuator to implement such choice. The decisions may thus be made from and by the shuttle and/or its driver, not by the guide track as with a conventional railway system in which the guide follower is stationary and the guide track, in the form of a railroad switch, is moveable rather than the other way round as preferred in the present invention. [40} The shuttle may further comprise a suspension of the guide follower to accommodate the guide track that is arranged at least at the functional section of the guide.

[41] As the guide track may be arranged at least at the functional section of the guide, it may well be arranged only at the functional section or intermittently within the guide. The shuttle may thus engage and disengage with the guide track at various locations throughout the guide. Preferably, this engaging and disengaging is accommodated with minimal load and/or disturbance on the shuttle. The suspension may be configured to elastically move inward and outward in a radial direction relative to the guide. For instance, it may be configured to move inward when encountering the guide track and to move back to its original position after passing the functional section. It may be thus configured by means of, for instance, springs, hydraulic and/or pneumatic suspension, and the like. [42} The guide track may comprise one or more than one longitudinal abutment extending along the guide and comprising a side surface configured to provide the support. The side surface of the guide track may be comprised by the support surface of the guide. Alternatively or additionally, the side surface may be arranged at an angle with respect to the inner contour of the tabe at the location of the guide track.

[43] Preferably, wheels of the guide follower, or more in particular wheels of the track follower, of the shuttle are configured to engage with the side surface of the guide track. Further, such wheels are preferably arranged correspondingly to the angle at which the side surface is arranged. Such arrangement may lower friction and enhance the support provided to the shuttle by the guide track.

[44] The one or more than one longitudinal abutment may have various forms, possibly differing from each other when more than one longitudinal abutment is provided, such as trapezoid, rectangular, trigonal and rounded. Further examples are given below and in the figures.

[45] Atleast one of the one or more than one longitudinal abutment may protrude into the inner IO contour of the tube. The at least one of the one or more than one longitudinal abutment may be formed by a rail or a plurality of rails arranged to at least partly protrude into the inner contour of the tube and thereby, for instance, form the side surface providing the support to the shuttle.

[46] Additionally or alternatively, at least one of the one or more than one longitudinal abutment may be defined by a groove. The groove may be formed within the inner contour of the tube. The groove may form the side surface providing the support to the shuttle.

[47] The one or more than one longitudinal abutment may thus protrude into the inner contour of the tube as well as be defined by grooves in combination and separately. For example, a longitudinal abutment may protrude and comprise a groove. Additionally or alternatively, another longitudinal abutment may only protrude while yet another longitudinal abutment may only be defined by a further groove. Thus, multiple longitudinal abutments may be comprised by the guide track. Further examples are presented below and in the figures.

[48] The inner contour of the tube may be of a constant cross-section throughout the transport system but may equally vary. For example, the inner contour of the tube may enlarge at the functional section, which may provide space in which the guide track may be arranged. In such a case, the support surface provided by the inner contour of the tube may seamlessly go over into the guide track at the functional section to provide the support to the shuttle at all stages of its movement through the functional section. This may be implemented by, for example, widening a 120 cm diameter of the inner contour of the tube by 10 cm at the functional section with the guide track being arranged within the additional 10 cm circumferential space created by the diameter widening while the guide track there provides the support surface of the guide at the 120 cm diameter to wheels of the tube follower so that said wheels may run over the inner contour of the tube onto the guide track while the shuttle is continually supported by the guide as the shuttle moves through the guide.

[49] The guide may be further defined by a plurality of tubes forming a transport network.

[50} The plurality of tubes may form a transport network by mutually intersecting so that a shuttle can pass from one of the plurality of tubes to another of the plurality of tubes. This gives rise to a plurality of further functional sections. At each of the further functional sections, further guide tracks may be arranged. Alternatively, the guide track may extend throughout the transport network and through the plurality of tubes. In either configuration, the transport system allows the shuttle to move through the plurality of tubes along the guide.

[SI] Furthermore, the transport system may comprise a plurality of shuttles which may be variously configured according to the invention.

[52] The invention further relates to a guide in, of or for a transport system according to the invention. The guide may thus be defined by the tube and the guide track and optionally also by the further tube, the plurality of tubes and/or further guide tracks.

[53] The invention further relates to a shuttle in, of or for a transport system according to the invention. The shuttle may thus comprise any combination of features disclosed here.

[54] The invention is further illustrated by the following figures, in which: - FIG. } shows a transport system according to the invention in a plan view; - FIG. 2 shows a time series of plan views of the transport system of FIG. 1 in which the shuttle moves through the functional section; - FIG. 3A to FIG. 3F show embodiments of the invention in a cross-sectional view along the line 11-1 of FIG. 2 including the functional section as well as the shuttle; and - FIG. 4A shows a perspective view of an embodiment of the invention with FIG. 4B showing a corresponding cross-section along the line IV-IV.

[55] In the these figures and the detailed description thereof, the following reference numbers are used: 1 transport system, 2 guide, 3 inner contour, 4 tube, 5 guide track, 0 shuttle, 7 guide follower, 8 functional section,

9 support provided to the shuttle, 10 partial support provided to the shuttle, 11 loading bay, 12 junction, 13 further tube, 14 maintenance port, 15 emergency exit, 16 support surface of the guide, 17 wheel, 18 slider, 19 magnet of the guide, 20 further magnet of the guide follower, 21 tube follower, 22 track follower, 23 actuator, 24 part of the guide follower,

24.1 other part of the guide follower, 25 part of the guide,

25.1 other part of the guide, 26 controller, 27 suspension of the guide follower, 28 longitudinal abutment of the guide track, 29 side surface of the longitudinal abutment, 30 groove, 31 transport network, 32 drive.

[56] As illustrated in FIG. 1, the transport system 1 comprises a guide 2 defined by an inner contour 3 of a tube 4 and a guide track 5. The transport system 1 further comprises a shuttle 6 comprising a guide follower 7 configured to follow the guide 2. The guide track 5 is at least arranged at a functional section 8 of the guide 2 wherein the guide track 5 provides a support 9 to the shuttle 6 that is complementary to a partial support 10 provided to the shuttle 6 by the inner contour 3 of the tube 4 at the functional section 8. [57} Though FIG. 1 illustrates guide 2 of the transport system lin a single plane, it may equally be a purely linear guide 2 or a fully spatial guide 2 in one, respectively three dimensions. In the latter case, the guide 2 extends out of the illustrated plane. Likewise, the support 9 and/or partial support 10 provided to the shuttle 6 are thus understood to be orientated in various directions and are not necessarily restricted to the illustrated plane. For example, the tube 4 may run along a horizontal as well as a vertical plane with respect to the gravitational field, with the support 9 provided to the shuttle 6 by the guide track 5 being complementary to the partial support 10 provided to the shuttle 6 by the inner contour 3 of the tube 4 with respect to the gravitational force acting on the shuttle 6. This may be the case where the guide 2 branches off with a vertical component and the shuttle 6 is to follow an upper trajectory though experiencing the gravitational force pulling the shuttle 6 in a lower trajectory. Other examples are described below.

[58] The functional section 8 may provide various functions, examples of which are illustrated in FIG. 1, including a loading bay 11, two junctions 12 of the tube 4 with a further tube 13, a maintenance port 14 and an emergency exit 15. In the illustrated example, the loading bay 11 serves for boarding of passengers, the further tube 13 forms a bypass of the tube 4 and the emergency exit 15 is comprised with the maintenance port 14. At each of these functional sections 8 of the guide 2, the tube 4 provides the partial support 10 which is insufficient to fully support the shuttle 6. The support 9 complements the partial support 10 at the functional sections 8, ensuring that the shuttle 6 remains stable and may proceed along the guide 2 rather than crashing or otherwise prevent further movement along the guide 2.

[59] The transport system 1 illustrated in FIG. 1 comprises a plurality of tubes (4, 13) forming a transport network 31. The transport network 31 may connect a plurality of destinations via the guide 2 having the plurality of tubes (4, 13).

[60] The transport system 1 illustrated in FIG. 1 further comprises a controller 26 configured to control the shuttle 6. The controller 26 is illustrated as a wireless controller 26, communicative coupled to the shuttle 6. A plurality of shuttles may be used with the transport system 1 and each shuttle may be controlled by the same controller 26.

[61] Additionally or alternatively, the controller 26 may be configured to activate and/or deactivate the guide track 5 so that the guide track 5 engages the guide follower 7 of the shuttle 6. The controller 26 may thus enforce a particular route of the shuttle 6 through the transport system

1. acting akin to a traffic controller. [621 In FIG. 2, the shuttle 6 is illustrated as approaching and passing the functional section 8, being the junction 12 of the tube 4 and the further tube 13, as a function of time t. At a first time t;, the shuttle 6 moves along the guide 2 of the transport system 1, i.e. towards to the binding edge of the page, the controller 26 controls the shuttle 6 to continue movement along the tube 4 at the junction 12 rather than along the further tube 13.

[63] The decision to continue movement along the tube 4 may be made by a human driver in the shuttle 6 or by an autopilot. The controller 26 may be configured to default to controlling the actuator 23 so that the shuttle 6 continues movement along the tube 4 in case that no timely decision is received by the controller 26. This may increase safety of the transport system 1.

[64] Inthe embodiment of FIG. 2, the guide follower 7 of the shuttle 6 comprises a tube follower 21 and a track follower 22, which are illustrated as distinct. The tube follower 21 is configured to guide the shuttle 6 along the inner contour 3 of the tube 4 and the track follower 22 is configured to guide the shuttle 6 along the guide track 5. The shuttle 6 further comprises an actuator 23 (not shown in FIG. 2) configured to selectively activate and deactivate parts 24 of the guide follower 7 to selectively engage parts 25 of the guide 2.

[65] Ata second time t,, after the first time t,, the controller 26 controls the actuator 23 to activate a part 24 of the guide follower 7, here illustrated as the part 24 of the track follower 22. The part 24 engages a part 25 of the guide 2, in this embodiment the part 25 of the guide track 5. The part 24 of the track follower 22 thus engages the part 25 of the guide track 5 at the second time +t

[66] Ata third time (5, after the second time t,, the shuttle 6 has passed the junction 12. Here, the shuttle 6 is supported by the support 9, which is provided by the guide track 5 by means of the part 25 thereof, in addition to the partial support 10, which is provided by the inner contour 3 of the tube 4. The support 9 is complementary to the partial support 10 and the shuttle 6 passes the junction 12 safely.

[67] Ata fourth time t, after the third time t;, the shuttle 6 continues movement along the tube 4, having successfully passed the junction 12 due to continuously being support by the guide 2. At the fourth time t,, the controller 26 controls the actuator 23 to deactivate the part 24 of the track follower 22 to prepare the shuttle 6 for encountering another functional section 8 further down the guide 2.

[68] As may be gathered from FIG. 2, the controller 26 may equally control the actuator 23 to activate another part 24.1 of the track follow 22 to control the shuttle 6 to move into the further tube 13. This may be achieved by activating the other part 24.1 of the track follower 22 rather than the part 24 of the track follower. Upon activation, the other part 24.1 engages another part 25.1 of the guide track 5 thus guiding the shuttle 6 into the further tube 13. In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the actuator 23 preferably activates either the part 24 or the other part 24.1 of the track follower 22 to ensure that the shuttle 6 follows either the tube 4 or the further tube 13 while being supported by the guide 2 at all times ty, to, t3 and ty.

[69] The invention may thus be employed as a steering system for the transport system 1 and/or of the transport network 31. Such steering system may comprise the tube follower 21 configured to guide the shuttle 6 along the inner contour 3 of the tube 4, the track follower 22 configured to guide the shuttle 6 along the guide track 5, the actuator 23 configured to selectively activate and deactivate parts 24 of the track follower 5 to selectively engage corresponding parts 25 of the guide track 5, and the controller 26 configured to control at least the actuator 23 to steer the shuttle 6 along the guide 2 of the transport system 1 and/or transport network 31. The controller may further be configured to select at least one of the plurality of tubes 4, 13 along which the shuttle 6 is to move and to correspondingly control the actuator 23 to steer the shuttle 6 along the guide track 5 corresponding with the selected one of the plurality of tubes 4, 13 of the transport system 31. Various embodiments of such steering system may be considered based on the present disclosure, in which disclosed features may freely be combined.

[70] FIG. 3A to FIG. 3F illustrate embodiments of the invention in a cross-sectional view along the line I-III of FIG. 2. This cross-sectional view includes the functional section 8 of the guide 2 as well as the shuttle 6. As this functional section § is the junction 12 of the tube 4 and the further tube 13, the inner contour 3 of the tube 4 is partly absent at the junction 12 thereby providing only the partial support 10 to the shuttle 6. In these embodiments, the tube 4 comprises a substantially circalar inner contour 3, which is incomplete at the junction 12 due to the presence of the further tube 13. Furthermore, these embodiments show the guide follower 7 of the shuttle 6 with or without having the tube follower 21 and/or the track follower 22.

[71] In FIG. 3A, the guide 2 comprises the support surface 16 and the guide follower comprises sliders 18 configured to engage the support surface 16 of the guide 2 and thereby support the shuttle 6. The actuator 23 activates the part 24 of the guide follower 7 to engage with the part 25 of the guide track 5. The other parts 24.1 of the guide follower 7 are deactivated in that these do not engage the guide track 5. Thus, the shuttle 6 is fully supported by the guide 2 while moving through the junction 12 of the tube 4 with the further tube 13. The shuttle 6 may be said to steer through the tube 4 rather than into the further tube 13.

[72] The embodiment of FIG. 3A may be understood to correspond to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2. The sliders 18 may be comprised in the track follower 22 of the guide follower 7, as illustrated, with the guide follower 7 additionally comprising the tube follower 21, which may be distinct from the track follower 22.

[73] In FIG. 3B, the guide 2 comprises magnets 19 and the guide follower 7 comprises further magnets 20 configured to suspend the shuttle 6 in cooperation with the magnets 19 of the guide 2.

In the illustrated embodiment, the magnets 19 are arranged laterally on the inner contour 3 of the tube 4 and the further tube 13 at the junction 12. The guide 2 further comprises the support surface 16 and the guide follower 7 of the shuttle 6 comprises a wheel 17 configured to engage the support surface 16 of the guide 2 and thereby support the shuttle 6. Here, the support surface 16 is comprised by the inner contour 3 of the tube 4. The shuttle 6 further comprises a suspension 27 of the guide follower 7, here arranged to suspend the wheel 17.

[74] In the embodiment of FIG. 3B, the actuator 23 activates the part 24 of the guide follower 7, i.e. the part 24 of the further magnets 20, to electromagnetically engage with the part 25 of the guide 2, i.e. the part 25 of the magnets 19, in order to provide the support 9 to the shuttle 6. This support 9 is complementary to the partial support 10 provided to the shuttle 6 by the inner contour 3 of the tube 4, which is interrupted due the junction 12 of the tube 4 with the further tube 13.

[75] In FIG. 3C, the guide 2 comprises a support surface 16 and the guide follower 7 comprises wheels 17 configured to engage the support surface 16 of the guide 2 and thereby support the shuttle 6. Here, the support surface 16 is arranged laterally in the inner contour 3 of the tube 4 and the wheels 17 are comprised by the tube follower 21, The guide follower further comprises the track follower 22, which is activated and deactivated by the actuator 23. The actuator 23 rotates the track follower 22 to engage with either of the side surfaces 29 of the longitudinal abutment 28 that forms the guide track 5, arranged as protruding into the tube 4 from the inner contour 3.

[76] The support surface 16 may comprise the side surfaces 29 in any of the embodiments.

[77] In FIG. 3D, the guide track 5 comprises longitudinal abutments 28. At least one of the longitudinal abutments 28 is defined by a groove 30. In this embodiment, the guide track 5 has two different forms, one at the top of the guide 2 and another at the bottom of the guide 2. The shuttle 2 comprises the tube follower 21, here comprising a wheel 17, and the track follower 22, here also comprising wheels 17.

[78] Inthe embodiment of FIG. 3D, the controller 26 is comprised by the shuttle 6 and is configured to control the actuator 23. The actuator 23 activates the parts 24 of the track follower 22 so that these engage with the parts 25 of the guide track 5, thereby providing the support 9 to the shuttle 6. In this embodiment, the parts 24 are wheels and the parts 25 are side surfaces 29 of the longitudinal abutments 28. The wheel 17 of the tube follower is supported by the support surface 16 of the guide 2. A drive 32 is further provided to drive the wheel 17 of the tube follower 21, thereby moving the shuttle 6 through the guide 2.

[79] In FIG. 3E, the guide 2 comprises the magnets 19, arranged near the top and bottom of the inner contour 3, and the shuttle 6 comprises the further magnets 20 arranged to suspend the shuttle 6 in the guide 2 on cooperation with the magnets 19 of the guide 2. The further magnets 20 with the magnets 19 may further be comprised by the drive 32, configured to move the shuttle 6 through the guide 2. The drive 32 may thus be in the form of electromagnetic propulsion by magnetic levitation. The suspension 27 of the guide follower 7 may also be comprised by such drive 32 due to generated electromagnetic forces.

[80] In the embodiment of FIG. 3E, the guide track 5 further includes a plurality of longitudinal abutments 28 which extend along the guide 2 and comprising side surfaces 29. The longitudinal abutments 28 protrude into the inner contour 3 of the tube 4 and thus provide side surfaces 29. The side surfaces 29 provide the support 9 to the shuttle 6 when the guide follower 7 engages with these side surfaces 29. In the illustrated embodiment, the track follower 22 is distinct from the tube follower 21, with the track follower 22 being a mechanical system and the tube follower 21 an electromagnetic system. The actuator 23 activates the parts 24 of the track follower 22 while deactivating the other parts 24.1. In this embodiment, the actuator 23 may be a pneumatic system. The activated parts 24 engage with the parts 25 of the longitudinal abutments 28, in particular their side surfaces 29.

[81] In FIG. 3F, a preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated. Here, the guide track 5 of the guide 2 comprises four longitudinal abutments 28, protruding into the inner contour 3 of the tube 4. At the functional section 8, some of these longitudinal abutments 28 may be absent. In the case of a junction 12, some of the longitudinal abutments 28 may extend through the further tube 13 beyond reach of the guide follower 7 of the shuttle 6, as may be the case with other embodiments and examples illustrated in this application.

[82] The guide follower 7 of the shuttle 6 comprises a tube follower 21 with at least one set of four wheels 17, each configured to run along one of the longitudinal abutments 28. Preferably, the tube follower 21 is provided with a suspension to accommodate the longitudinal abutments 28 of the guide track 5 arranged at least at the functional section 8 of the guide 2. The wheels 17 of the tube follower 21 may thus roll over the longitudinal abutments 28 when encountering these at least at the function section 8, here the junction 12.

[83] The guide follower 7 of the shuttle 6 further comprises a track follower 22 with at least one set of four wheels 17, each configured to be activated or deactivated by the actuator 23 and to engage side surfaces 29 of the longitudinal abutments 28. As illostrated in FIG. 3F, the part 24 of the guide follower 7, being the two wheels 17 of the track follower 22, are activated by the actuator

23 and engage side surfaces 29 of the longitudinal abutments 28 of the guide track 5. The parts

24.1 of the track follower 22 are deactivated.

[84] In an alternative embodiment of that illustrated in FIG. 3F, the wheels 17 of the track follower 22 run along the side surface 29 of the longitudinal abutment 28, providing the support 9 to the shuttle 6, while the wheels 17 of the tube follower 21 run along the inner contour 3 of the tube 4, providing the partial support 10 to the shuttle 6. In this case, the inner contour 3 of the tube 4 is maintained throughout the functional section 8, that is: an inner radial distance between the longitudinal abutments 28 of the guide track 5 conforms to a diameter of the inner contour 3 of the tube 4 outside the functional section 8. The wheels 17 of the tube follower 21 thus run substantially smoothly through the functional section 8.

[85] In the embodiment of FIG. 3F, the actuator 23 is formed by two racks and a pinion as shown in the figure inset. When the pinion is turned, the two racks extend or contract thus activating or deactivating parts 24, 24.1 of the track follower 22 of the shuttle 6.

[86] In FIG. 4A, a perspective view of the transport system 1 according to an embodiment of the invention is illustrated. In FIG. 4B, a corresponding cross-sectional view along the line IV-IV is illustrated. In this embodiment of the invention, the functional section 8 is the function 12 between the tube 4 and the further tube 13. The inner contour of the tube 4 as well as of the further tube 13 is circular. The guide track 5 is arranged at the functional section 8 and tapers off into the inner contour 3 of the tubes 4, 13 outside the function section 8. The guide track 5 includes longitudinal abetments 28, each extending along either top or bottom of the inner contour 3.

[87] In the embodiment of FIG. 4A and 4B, the shuttle 6 is nearing the junction 12 and its human driver has selected to turn into the further tube 13 at the junction 12 by means of instructing the controller 26 by, for example, voice command, touch or steering action. The controller 26 timely controls the actuator 23, shown in FIG. 4B, to activate the parts 24 of the guide follower 7. The shuttle 6 thus follows a path indicated by the arrow in FIG. 4A.

[88] In this embodiment, the shuttle 6 comprises a track follower 22 and a tube follower 21, though the tube follower 22 is not illustrated here for clarity. Preferably, the tube follower 22 as illustrated in FIG. 3F is used here as well. The track follower 22 comprises a set of four wheels 17, activated and deactivated pairwise by the actuator 23. The wheels 17 are arranges at an angle with respect to side surfaces 29 of the longitudinal abutments 28 of the guide track 5. This arrangement allows a larger diameter of the wheels 17 without alteration of the circular inner contour 3. Alternatively of additionally, the side surfaces 29 may be arranged at an angle.

[89] As the shuttle 6 is to turn into the further tube 13, a centrifugal force will arise, acting on the shuttle to proceed into the tube 4 rather than turn into the further tube 13. The activated parts 24 of the track follower counteract this centrifugal force and provide the support 9 to the shuttle 6 by means of the side surfaces 29 of the longitudinal abutments 28. The support 9 complements the partial support 10 that is provided to the shuttle by the inner contour 3 on which the tube follower 21 supports the shuttle 6.

[90] Features of the above-described embodiments are to be understood as examples of the disclosed invention that may suitably be combined or mixed to provide further embodiments of the invention. For example, the sliders 18 of FIG. 3A may be combined with the magnets 20 of FIG. 3E to provide an embodiment with magnetic tube and track followers 21, 22 rather than the wheels 17 illustrated in FIG. 3E. As a further example, the guide track 5 of FIG. 3D, wherein at least one of the longitudinal abutments 28 is defined by a groove 30, may be used with the shuttle of FIG. 3F, having a set of tube follower 21 wheels 17 and a set of track follower 22 wheels 17.

[91] Additionally or alternatively, one or more than one groove 30 may be combined with one or more than one protruding longitudinal abutments 28 at various angular positions along the inner contour 3 of the tube 4. For example, a longitudinal abutment 28 may be formed by a rail or pairs of rails arranged at each of an upper position and a lower position, wherein the upper position is radially opposite to the lower position with respect to the inner contour 3 of the tube 4, and/or each of a first lateral position and a second lateral position, wherein the second lateral position is radially opposite to the first lateral position with respect to the inner contour 3 of the tube 4.

[92] The transport system 1 of FIG. 4A illustrates a functional section 8 that is a junction 12 of a tube 4 with a further tube 13, wherein the tube 4 and the further tube 13 diverge from each other sideways, that is, along a horizontal or left-right direction. Alternatively or additionally, these may diverge upwards and/or downwards, that is, along a vertical or up-down direction. The invention may equally be employed in these latter circumstances, in particular when the guide track 5 is arranged to provide the support 9 to counteract gravitational forces by, for example, changing the orientation of the embodiment of FIG. 4B by rotation over 90° with respect to an axis orthogonal {0 the plane of the paper.

[93] Furthermore, any of the features in this disclosure may be combined to form a guide 2 in, of or for a transport system 1 according to the invention.

[94] Finally, any of the features in this disclosure may be combined to form a shuttle 6 in, of or for a transport system 1 according to the invention.

Claims (15)

Conclusions A conveyor system, comprising: - a guide defined by an inner contour of a tube and a guide track; and - a nacelle comprising a guide follower configured to follow the guide, the guide track being provided at least on a functional portion of the guide, the guide track providing a support for the gondola that is complementary to a partial support provided by the internal contour of the tube for the gondola is provided on the functional part. The conveying system of claim 1, wherein the tube has a substantially circular internal contour. The conveyor system of claim 1 or 2, wherein the functional portion provides a function from a group comprising: 5 - a charging station; - a splice of the tube with an additional tube; - a maintenance gate; and - an emergency exit. The conveyor system of any preceding claim, wherein the guide comprises a support surface and the guide follower comprises wheels and/or sliders configured to engage the support surface of the guide and thereby support the nacelle. The conveyor system of any preceding claim, wherein the conductor comprises magnets and the conductor follower comprises additional magnets configured to float the nacelle in conjunction with the magnets of the conductor. The conveyor system of any of the preceding claims, wherein the nacelle guide follower comprises: - a tube follower configured to guide the nacelle along the inner contour of the tube; and - a tracker configured to guide the nacelle along the guide track, the tracker being different from the tube follower. The conveyor system of any preceding claim, wherein the nacelle further comprises an actuator configured to selectively activate or deactivate a portion of the conductor follower to allow the conductor follower to selectively engage a portion of the conductor. The conveyor system of any of the preceding claims, further comprising a controller configured to drive the nacelle. Conveyor system of any of the preceding claims, wherein the nacelle further comprises a suspension of the guide follower to make way for the guide track arranged on at least the functional portion of the guide. The conveyor system of any of the preceding claims, wherein the guide track comprises one or more elongate support beams extending along the guide and including a side surface configured to provide the support. The conveyor system of claim 10, wherein at least one of the one or more elongate support beams extends into the inner contour of the tube, The conveyor system of claim 10 or 11, wherein at one of the one or more elongate support beams is defined by a groove. The conveyor system of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the conduit is further defined by a plurality of tubes forming a conveyor network. A guide in, of or for a transport system according to any one of the preceding claims. A gondola in, of or for a transport system according to any one of claims 1 to 13.