UGRT Wheel

After the 2022 Canadian International Rover Competition (CIRC) my University's robotics team, UGRT, identified two main weaknesses, the wheels and the arm. Having proven myself to be quick and reliable in the past with both the circuit box as well as modifying and maintaining the team’s 3D printers, I was chosen to work on the new wheel design for the rover. I had two different ideas on how to accomplish the task so I made two separate prototypes as shown below.
I used my previous knowledge of wheel designs from my time on the First Robotics team 4946 and applied some of the existing concepts and ideas to quickly create a new and functional wheel design. To reduce cost as well as make the new design easy to manufacture, the only tools needed to produce the final design are a laser cutter or a band saw, a 3D printer, and a break, to bend the metal.
The team has since decided to use the prototype where the wheel is supported on one side. The design was chosen because of the it's ease of maintenance and overall strength (as tested in simulations).
Once chosen the team got the parts manufactured by Protocase. Then when all parts were received we were able to assemble all six wheels and attach them to the rover.
Currently the firmware team is working to integrate the motors with the computer system.