94 Ë 4 Superconducting magnetic levitation
Fig. 4.2:The first test LTS Maglev vehicle ML-500 on the
Miyazaki Test Track recorded 517 km/h on December 21,
1979 [59].primaries on-ground. Since the test line was 480 m long, its speed was limited to
65 km/h, and its levitation gap was only 6 cm [57].
In 1977, experiments began in earnest on the Miyazaki Test Track in Japan. On
December 21, 1979, the prototype ML-500 test train (Fig. 4.2) reached an unmanned
speed of 517 km/h on the 7-km track, proving the tremendous potential for high Maglev
speed [58]. Then the test track was remodeled from an inverted-T shape cross section
to the more practical U-shape, and the manned vehicle began to run in 1981. Basic
tests with four types of test vehicle were conducted over the 20-year period from its
opening in 1977 to its closure in 1996.
The construction work for the new 18.4-km Yamanashi Maglev Test line (YMTL)
was started in 1988 and was finished in December 1996. The track was modified into a
new practical U-shaped guideway. The vehicles (MLX) were of an articulated truck type
having a truck at each end (Fig. 4.3). Superconducting magnets were installed on both
sidesofthetruck,containingfourverticalsuperconductingcoilsandahelium/nitrogen
tank with built-in refrigerators, while the levitation, guidance coils, and propulsion
coils were installed in the guideway opposite to the superconducting magnet. Electric
current fed to the propulsion coils propels and brakes the trains; the system varied the
amplitude and frequency to set the velocity and the acceleration/deceleration of the
train. On December 12, 1997, a new world record of 531 km/h [58] was set for manned
train travel. The main results of the tests were the following [61, 62]: the manned five-
car train set registered a record speed of 552 km/h on 14 April 1999; a relative speed of
1003 km/h between two trains passing each other was achieved; substation cross-over
tests and passing tests with two trains at the station were demonstrated.
The maximum speed, 581.7 km/h, was attained on December 2, 2003, exceeding
the maximum designed speed on the YMTL and the potential maximum speed in
Fig. 4.3:The LTS Maglev vehicle MLX01 on the
Yamanashi Maglev Test line [60].