Currently working on a high load capacity omniwheel design for our circuit breaker removal robot (BreakerBot). Off the shelf omniwheels of this load capacity (750lb) are very expensive! This design is an exercise to see if constructing our own wheels is a feasible solution. Our other options are to choose an alternative drive train system that doesn't require these expensive and complex omniwheels. However, those systems are either non-holonomic (ackerman steering) or even more complex (swerve drive). I am hoping that we will be able to use these wheels with sort of H-drive system. We do not need full holonomic control, but the ability to strafe and turn on a point would be very useful for aligning the robot with the breaker's cubicle for extraction.
