Omni Wheel Robotics Platform Looks Like WWII-Era Roomba

Months ago I had the idea to make a robot based on omni wheels — devices which are circular, but have several smaller rollers that allow them to also slide perpendicular to their normal axis of rotation. With three or four wheels driving such a robot, these devices can glide forward, backward, left, right, turn either direction, and even combine these movements as required.

After the motors and mounts arrived, the build started in earnest on Fusion 360, where 12" disks were drawn out for the top and bottom of the robot, along with spacers to offer room for the electronics. With these parts manufactured using a CNC router and 3D printer, I was delighted to see that things fit together properly. What I didn't realize was that I’d created something extremely reminiscent of a Roomba painted like a WWII aircraft.

Regardless of its external appearance, it is capable of sliding around under Bluetooth or serial control, albeit in the rather halting fashion seen in the video below. An Arduino Nano is the brains of the system (code found here), while four Easy Driver boards handle the steppers directly. There a few issues that still need to be fully worked out, but once it is working the four stepper motors on the device will — hopefully — provide precise positioning for other interesting robotics projects.

While not quite at the place where I’d like to see it yet, it does move, and definitely looks like it means business. This ‘bot can also be seen on Hackster.io, where I hope to update it further as things progress.