UF Branch Officers:
President – Alexander Glotov
Vice President – Thamid Ahmed
Project Manager – Akash Boggavarapu
Treasurer – Kayla Williams
Email: gatorpodteam@gmail.com
Faculty Advisor:
Prof. John K. Schueller
Email: schuejk@ufl.edu
About
Gatorloop was founded in 2015 as UF’s entry to the SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition. The SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition was an annual competition held by SpaceX HQ in Hawthorne, California. Over 1500 teams compete annually for only 22 Semi-Finalist spots and the chance to race in SpaceX’s hyperloop track in California.
With the end of communication for the SpaceX competition, Gatorloop has shifted its sights toward the European Hyperloop Week and perfecting its prototype — Tiny Pod. The overall goal of the prototype is to establish a test bed for future technologies to be build off of instead of starting from scratch every year. As of Spring 2022, Tiny Pod’s mechanical systems have been manufactured and assembled while the electrical teams are working to implement the hardware necessary for communication and controlling the prototype.
Our Mission is to foster the growth of our students in order to create the most advanced hyperloop systems in Florida.
Our main Purpose is to serve two functions:
- Continue to build innovative and functional hyperloop pods
- Be a voice for the continued research and implementation of hyperloop technology
Research Areas: Mechanical Design, Traditional Manufacturing, Electrical Design, Software Engineering, Communication Protocol, Sensors & Controls, IoT Research, Systems Engineering, Safety Analysis, Finite Element Analysis, Circuit Design, PCB Development, Business Development
We recruit AE, EE, ME, CE, ECE, ISE, CS, Civil E, and Business students.
Achievements
- Top 20 teams worldwide in the 2017 SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition (Competition I)
- Top 50 teams worldwide in the 2019 SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition (Competition IV)
- UF Big Idea Competition competitors in 2020
- Invitation to present research at the Hard Tech Fund Symposium 2020
