Has anyone tested which type of wheels are best for picking up hatches off the ground?
Hooktape on rollers
OK, pedantically, hatches are field elements and should not be on the ground, nor should they be picked up.
Assuming you mean hatch covers, most solid rubber tread wheels should be able to effectively pull them. Hook tape will be greatly helpful in getting the covers off the carpet.
The star wheels work pretty well
The star wheels work pretty well
for starfish wheels to be effective, you need to grip as much surface area as possible, this works most effectively with cylinders or spheres, but with flat objects to get more surface area you have to place the starfish wheels and inch away from the ground at which point you are intaking the carpet while you aren’t intaking a panel
When designing your wheeled hatch cover intake, be sure that the intake doesn’t cause any damage. Robots that peel the loop tape off will likely incur a G15 violation.
Pedantically, hatch covers are actually hatch panels
Personally, I’ve never seen some form of compliant wheel be the wrong solution since their introduction to FRC. I like to start with as low a durometer as possible and work up to a grip you like.