2 that speed while the bucket slows down. When the bucket is moving slowly enough, it is guided around a 180° bend and returned to the starting point to pick up another payload and repeat the acceleration cycle. All guidance of the bucket is by "magnetic flight" forces that do not require physical contact between the bucket and the mass-driver structure. The acceleration and deceleration of the bucket occur by the successive action of a large number of "drive coils", each of which is given a pulse of current as the bucket goes by it. Here is a picture of the magnetic field made by one drive coil: COIL. The bucket coil is of smaller diameter than the drive coil. and is centered on the same axis, as shown in the sketch to the right. When the two coils are far apart, the magnetic field due to the drive coil at the bucket coil, is very small. Therefore it doesn't make sense to turn on (FIELD UN!S Rl.Vl.Ua IF C.UR.ll•NT rtava1.sas) The current in the drive coil pushes on the current of the bucket coil, by a fundamental magnetic interaction that was first explored by Faraday and by Henry about 130 years ago. The force of that interaction is at right angles both to the field made by the drive coil and to the current of the bucket, as shown in this drawing. '" C'1 ©-Pt\1\fE "'-~ n GOIL l""1 "-J_t I I ...,.. I the drive current when the coils are - • - • far apart, because it would just waste - I I .. r. - C.f A/'Tf.lt I 1 f ' LINR power without producing a useful amount of drive force. I I 1-J.. avc.ac&T ' ·~ 1 FIELD C.01&.. kl , LI Na!. ~~SI
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