Transcript: Maglev train

For over 200 years, trains have changed very little - a series of carriages with steel wheels, pulled along by an engine. So maybe it's time for a complete rethink . using magnets, of course.

Magnets don't just attract things. They can also get things moving . real fast.

I'm Tristan Doust, a Windana computer systems technologist, and I am always on the lookout for new ideas in transport and energy.

We can learn a lot from the past, and this old steam train from the Powerhouse Museum is a great source of inspiration.

Steam used to be a great power source for trains, but my latest research project is a magnet-powered train.

Now, we all know magnets have a powerful force. But how do you harness that power to get a train to move? Well, with magnets, opposite poles attract and like poles repel each other. And these strong forces are used in combination to propel the maglev train.

I've made a simple model to show you what I mean.

There is a magnetised coil that runs along the track, called the guideway, which repels large magnets on the maglev train's undercarriage. This makes the train levitate up to 100 millimetres above the guideway.

And once levitating, power is supplied to the coils which run along the guideway, creating a system of magnetic fields that both pull and push the maglev train along the guideway.

Because of its aerodynamic design and lack of friction (because the maglev train literally floats on a cushion of air) we are talking serious speed here - up to 500 kilometres per hour.

The maglev train is currently cutting impressive paths through regional and urban Germany , Japan and China . Hopes are that this technology will spread to other countries, including Australia .

And, in case you were wondering, a trip on the maglev train, say from Sydney to Melbourne, at an average of 400 kilometres per hour, could take about 2½ hours, shaving hours and hours off the conventional train travel time.

Now, that sounds like a really good new idea in transport and energy.

Watch this space on any further developments on the maglev train down the track.