pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

Any thoughts on how you would machine that? The angles look a bit tricky, almost like something you would have to mold out of plastic.

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

1.3 pounds seems a little heavy. I designed some simple 6inchers without any sprocket mounts that weighed in at around .65 pounds. Also, your exterior wall looks a little thick, how thick is it?

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

Looks like you could machine the front face of the 3 closest "spokes" and the back side of the other three in one pass. Flip it over and repeat the process.

The outer wall looks like it's recessed for the tread. Does your weight include the tread material, or is it just the wheel?

I like the wider tread. Very nice, Adam!

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

Just the wheel, but since it's just for a prototype CAD I extruded where the tread would be, so it should be about the same weight.

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

Pretty neat.

For the "free" wheel, if the hub is wider than the rim, you can attach a flat sprocket directly to the (nicely integrated) bolt pattern on the wheel without an extra spacer. I can't tell from the picture if it's already like that.

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

no way.... it would be machinable, you would just have to do 2 milling operations.... it would require flipping the wheel over to machine the back half.....

the trick with that is getting the orientation correct when you flip it, but it would not be too bad...

looks like a fun project for some students on your team to machine!

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

It doesn't look like the spokes are flat, but it may just be distortion from the render.

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

You could still machine them, you'd just need to have the z-axis be computer controlled as well.

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

Not many schools have a 3 axis cnc with all axis computer controlled. maybe he does, but even still the part wouldn't come out like that, there would be a flat spot from where the taper on the spokes trailed off from the machining bit.

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

1.3 lbs may seem a bit heavy, but with no realistic numbers to run through the ANSYS FEA I have designed it to be overly robust with a 'standard' .25x.25 square cross section for each spoke. Anyone want to help me out on getting some realistic benchmarks for moment loading, side loads and radial loads.

As for the exterior wall, it is only 3/16" thick, the extra material on the sidewalls are only 1/8" thick and are there to add side support for the treads to take some wear off of the rivets.

The machining process on the major spokes would use a Ball-Nose end mill for all of the major cuts. The first cut(s) would be a 1/4" deep pocket that creates the fillets to the outer wall and to the hub, the front face of the spokes would be flat as the material is taken out between the two fillets. The second series of cuts would use the same mill stopping at the backside of the rear spokes creating the same fillets. As the wheel is flipped and the machining process is repeated the square edges of the spokes and the fillets would be defined on the backside of the front spokes.

The smaller triangles and hub weight savings could be done with any end mill that can plunge deep enough to clear out all material left behind by the fillets on the backside of the spokes.

No the hub is planar with the rest of the wheel on both sides currently. I will take that into consideration as a way to avoid adding extra spacers.

Thank you all for the comments and question. Keep 'em coming.

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

Ok, what high school a ball milling bit? If anyone responds yes I will apply to be a super senior at your school. To me it just seems that it would be easier to design it a bit simpler so in could be made easily inhouse.

anyhow my 2 cents

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

You don't need a high end bit to cut aluminum, with the proper feed speeds and such you could use a 'cheap' bit to do the job

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

I like the wide tread design, the offset spokes give it a nifty appeal.

Many schools do not have a 3 axis cnc mill. Many teams have at least 1 sponsors who has a 3 axis cnc mill.

Re: pic: 6 inch wheel design
 

It may not be the most accurate method, but I just place a fixed constraint on the hole for the shaft and apply 300lbf to the rim.