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Parallel Systems, a company founded by former SpaceX aerospace engineers, has raised $49.55 million from investors to build autonomous battery-electric rail freight trains. According to the company, the funds will be used to build a fleet and conduct advanced tests.
"We founded Parallel to enable railways to capture new markets, increase infrastructure utilization, and improve service to accelerate the decarbonization of freight transport," said Matt Soule, co-founder and CEO of Parallel Systems.
The hope is to shift a portion of the $700 billion American trucking industry to rail. Additionally, the autonomous battery-electric rail vehicles are expected to excel over traditional trains or trucks by offering cleaner, faster, safer, and more cost-effective transport, Soule added.
Standard sea containers are loaded and transported as single or double stack loads. The individually driven railcars can be lined up to form "platoons" or split up on the way to various destinations. Due to the limited route and centralized traffic control, the closed railway network is ideal for the safe and early commercialization of autonomous technology. Additionally, the autonomous rail vehicles can be used more flexibly than conventional trains. Unlike conventional freight trains, Parallel's platoons do not need to accumulate large amounts of cargo to operate economically. This enables faster service and a greater selection of routes. Loading times for mile-long trains are also significantly reduced.
How it works
The platoon technology pushes the self-driving rail vehicles against each other to distribute the aerodynamic load. According to Parallel, the vehicles thus consume only 25 percent of the energy compared to a semi-trailer truck and can travel up to 800 kilometers. On board is also a safety system that is designed to quickly detect dangers on the route. The railcars are equipped with a camera-based system and redundant brakes. According to Parallel, the train can stop up to ten times faster than a conventional train.
The Circumstances
The United States has the most extensive railway system in the world, with over 140,000 miles. However, it is estimated that less than three percent of this network is occupied by active trains at any given time. To make freight deliveries economical, today's railways usually focus on transporting containers over distances of more than 500 miles. Parallel aims to get more goods onto the rails by making transport profitable even over shorter distances. This is intended to reduce the pressure on road infrastructure and the trucking industry, which is facing excessive demand and a driver shortage of 80,000 Americans.
This is what Parallel wants to achieve:
- Micro-Terminals: Low-investment, zero-emission terminals are to be built closer to shippers and customers. Additionally, they are to require only five percent of the current space.
- Directly at the Seaport: Containers are to be loaded directly from the port crane onto the rail. This aims to, among other things, reduce congestion at seaports and eliminate warehousing within the port complex.
- Directly to the Warehouse: Adjacent factories and warehouses are to be directly connected, and containers are to be delivered directly to the recipient. This makes changing the mode of transport unnecessary and fully utilizes the higher tonnage of rail.
Parallel was founded in January 2020 and is led by three former SpaceX engineers:
- Matt Soule, Co-Founder and CEO of Parallel Systems; previously Head of Avionics at SpaceX. There, he was responsible for the design and testing of electronics.
- John Howard, Co-Founder and Vice President of Hardware, Parallel Systems; previously Head of Batteries at SpaceX, where he introduced lithium-ion technology into manned spaceflight.
- Ben Stabler, Co-Founder and Vice President of Software, Parallel Systems; previously Head of Avionics Software and Lead Engineer for Motorized Actuator Electronics at SpaceX.
According to the company, Parallel also has a team of approximately 25 engineers from Google, Tesla, Uber, SpaceX, and other well-known companies. The company is headquartered in Culver City, California, and has an office in Palo Alto, California. Parallel is currently testing its autonomous battery-electric rail vehicles on a closed track in the Los Angeles area.
Translated automatically from German.
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