Holy crap this is cool!

[kenjib]

Check out this new wheel technology:

http://www.osmoswheel.com/

There are some galleries with designs. This is some cool stuff. I can't read very much of it though, as I don't know French.

[noodles]

You can switch the language to english.

[yagyuninja]

New wheel technolgy? What's next, new fire technology? I think what we really need is new toilet technology. Like little belts we wear that teleport our waste into the sun.

Or something.

[AgentX-127]

Gee, those look cool, but wouldn't they be less efficient than a central hub ...

[CupidsArt]

Originally Posted by AgentX-127

Gee, those look cool, but wouldn't they be less efficient than a central hub ...

No because less rotations would be required to move the wheel, or maybe I'm thinking backwards,

However I imagine the brake systems to be very complex with a setup like this.

[LilNewbie]

I bet she gets tired spinning that wheel though...what do you think the top speed is....10 MPH?

Seriously cool pics!

Newb.

[Agent Minivann]

It's interesting. I don't know enough about physics to say whether it would be more or less efficient. I'm sure it would be lighter in the very least.

I remember seeing the beginning of a Great Biker Buildoff with two custom chopper builders who did this on the rear wheel. I think they were feuding over who came up with the idea, and who copied it.

[Rhydderch]

Well from some internet searches the actual guy to make the first hubless wheel is an Italian named Franco Sbarro who built several vehicles with it. The Osmos site actually has the word Sbarro pointing to it in Google so its a pretty good indication Sbarro is a popular name for the wheel. You can see some of the original Sbarro wheel designs here:

http://www.burningart.com/meico/moto/sbarro/

A short list of potential problems posted by someone else is located at the bottom of the page. Many of the problems could probably be addressed by technology specifically designed to work with the Orbital Wheel.

Personally I think the design looks cool and it seems like it might lower the overall weight of the vehicle. It might attract less air resistance as well though its hard to tell for sure with a picture. It seems like it would be prone to environmental effects however. Imagine what happens when you drive in the mud: lots of gummy stuff on the inside of your wheel! :P In the end they may have to place a hubcap on the wheel despite the loss of the unique look of the wheel. Actually the heavy vehicles on the site do appear to have some sort of cover.

Overall I expect the idea is either less efficient than the standard wheel or still too immature. If it were as great as the site claims I really think we'd have seen some Orbital Wheels marketed already. Instead it seems like its just a novelty. I notice the site has no product for sale and instead is formatted as an advertisement for potential developers with money to invest. Take a close look: you'll notice a number of "ads" directed towards investors and companies. Even a list of silly statistics about what % of products consumed in the future do not yet exist, as if anyone could give an accurate estimate of that :P

[kenjib]

I just think it looks cool.

[Rhydderch]

Originally Posted by kenjib

I just think it looks cool.

I'll agree with you there. I wouldn't mind having one for novelty value. Not sure I would buy one though. Depends on how much they'll cost, assuming they ever make it to market :P

[HyperactiveSloth]

Actualy, the biggest drawback to this design would be strength. The wheels would be VERY prone to deformation under stress which would not only result in a short life for the wheel, but would also have the side-effect of having small deformations to the wheel cause drastic damage to the bearings/guides. All this without any perceptible increase in performance. Yes, the design reduces weight, but the materials nescessary to produce a wheel even somewhat strong enough to be practical would be either heavier themselves (defeating the advantage by a good percentage) or exorbitantly expensive.
Another problem with the design would be increased friction in the bearings resulting in short life for the parts and/or very high-cost materials. Either way would result in unjustifiable increase in operating cost. Not to mention that even slight wear to any of the parts would immediately result in huge drops in operating efficiency.

Basically, it's a cool idea, but utterly impractical except for maybe VERY specific uses.

[HyperactiveSloth]

Just realized something else as well. This is all good for a static wheel, but what about the drive wheels? It would be a nightmare trying to transmit power to a wheel through it's periphery. Without being able to apply torque to the center of the wheel you can forget about generating anything more than low-speeds AND low-power!
Look at me! I've got a little bity gear trying to move a great big wheel by driving the periphery at 100-1. I can get it going 20mph before the drivegear reaches 80,000 RPM and rips itself apart! WHEEEEEEE!!!!!

OK, I'm done!