The Theory of Hover-Crafts [another science thread]

[Maxios]

I have finally figured out how a hover-craft could work:

Reverse magnetism. By making the hover-craft (and the street) out of a certain magnetic substance can make it hover.
To make the hover-craft move, a fan can push it. Or a jet engine or something similar might be able to move the hover-craft.

Thoughts?

[Dr.Epic]

Yeah, how are we converting all our roads to metallic ones?

[Traab]

Yeah, how are we converting all our roads to metallic ones?

The entire road doesnt have to be metallic, basically put in metallic lines, almost like railroad tracks. The hovercraft can be programmed to stay between the lines so no drifting off course.

[snoopy13a]

Aren't high speed trains already doing that?

[Traab]

Roads go more places. /nod

[cattoy]

the only reason magnets would repel anything is if the other thing is also magnetic, with the same polarity.

The problem is that your hovercraft is still made of magnets, which means that any loose objects that would be attracted to magnets would end up plastered all over the tracks and your hovercraft.

[Ravens_cry]

Or you know, you could make a hovercraft out of well, a hovercraft. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hovercraft)
"Roads? Where we're going, we don't need . . . roads", indeed.

[Maxios]

Or you know, you could make a hovercraft out of well, a hovercraft. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hovercraft)
"Roads? Where we're going, we don't need . . . roads", indeed.

By hovercrafts, I mean how the hovercrafts seen in movies and video-games can be replicated IRL.

[Ranger Mattos]

What would happen if you wanted an off-road hovercraft? And wouldn't it cost a lot to replace roads with the magnetic ones, or even add magnetic rails?

[Maxios]

What would happen if you wanted an off-road hovercraft? And wouldn't it cost a lot to replace roads with the magnetic ones, or even add magnetic rails?

An off-road hovercraft using this method would be impossible. As such, drivers would have to be extremly careful when driving, or else the hovercraft would most likely collapse to the floor when it's off-road

[Ravens_cry]

By hovercrafts, I mean how the hovercrafts seen in movies and video-games can be replicated IRL.
Well, a Wing in Ground Effect Vehicle (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pd8SFCuFpk) has a lot of the look you seem to want. But don't call what you are looking for a hovercraft because that term already belongs to air cushion vehicles.

[Trazoi]

The problem is that your hovercraft is still made of magnets, which means that any loose objects that would be attracted to magnets would end up plastered all over the tracks and your hovercraft.
You would also have to be careful that your magneto-craft doesn't flip upside-down and stick the rails. :smalltongue:

[Maxios]

You would also have to be careful that your magneto-craft doesn't flip upside-down and stick the rails. :smalltongue:

If the rails were far apart, then the hover-crafts wouldn't be able to crash into each other unless they were on the same rail.
At the same time, accidents could be caused because you couldn't shift rails really fast.

[Dr.Epic]

Even with my PhD in Epicness, I don't see it happening.

[Ravens_cry]

What we have here is basically a system of one car maglev trains more then hover-vehicles of the sort seen in movies and video games.

[factotum]

I would agree. A vehicle that's confined to a metal track and hovers above it already exists--we call them maglev trains! No practical way you could make a car using the same technology--the infrastructure update alone would be enormous, and where would you get all that metal? Don't forget it's not just roads that would need to be done, driveways and car parks would have to be changed too.

I'd also ask what benefit this would offer? Sure, it might LOOK cool, but the savings on rolling resistance for the vehicles would be vastly offset by the cost of setting up the infrastructure.

[Heliomance]

Yeah, sci-fi style hovervehicles need proper antigrav. Although I suppose you could potentially do it be heterodyning with the earth's magnetic field, but you'd have to invert the polychromatic quasars and monopolise the dipoles.

[Kislath]

Yeah! What he said! ( whatever that was )

[RebelRogue]

My hovercraft is full of eels.

[MoelVermillion]

And it levitates... ME! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GF1KKAs-RmY#t=4m10s)

Okay, I'm done here, you can go back to your science now :smallsmile:.

[Mina Kobold]

Yeah, sci-fi style hovervehicles need proper antigrav. Although I suppose you could potentially do it be heterodyning with the earth's magnetic field, but you'd have to invert the polychromatic quasars and monopolise the dipoles.

Polychromatic? That means multi-coloured...

Also, it's easier said by aligning your magnetic field with the earth's which do require nothing but whatever makes compasses do the same thing.

High School science, makes it work without technobabble and twice the explosions!

I think.

[Obrysii]

Honestly, we can't even get high-speed railroads into some states - we'd never be able to convince anyone to put metal into our roads. Heck, we can't convince most of our leadership that we need to even maintain our current road system in the U.S.

That said, a "repulsorcraft" is more apt to what you're looking for, ala from Star Wars, and at present no technology exists that could provide that.

Until we find a room-temperature superconductor (such as seen in the Avatar movie), there's no viable means.