Justin Michaud
2025 Rover Wheel System
Initial Prototypes
Early on the team was not too sure which system would be ideal, continuous 360 rotation with no wires on the rotating portion of the module, or if a simplified version with some wires going to the rotating portion. To experiment I put together 2 prototypes, one of each system, and presented them to help in selecting the version I would continue to work on.
Simulation
As the wheels are a critical part of the rover and must not fail, I ran FEA simulations on critical parts and small sub assemblies to ensure the design stayed well under the yield strength of the metal, and maintained a minimum factor of safety of 2.
Design For Manufacturing
Before ordering the parts from Protocase ( now ProtoSpace, a sponsor of the CIRC) I went over all designs to ensure they met their manufacturing capabilities, including moving holes further away from edges, making sure slot of cutouts would not warp and made sure the thickness was within their offerings.
Final Assembly
Finally, after all the parts arrived, myself and the rest of the mechanical team set aside one of the meetings to drill the countersinks, add the rivnuts, assemble the modules and mount them all to the rover.
Gallery
