An omni-directional wheel for an omni-directional vehicle that exhibits
constant ride height, low vibration, and reduced maximum ground contact
pressure is disclosed. The invention consists of a wheel assembly
rotatably connected to the omni-directional vehicle chassis. The wheel
assembly comprises a hub on which free spinning rollers are rotatably
mounted at an angle to the wheel axis. Constant ride height and low
vibration operation are accomplished by configuring the rollers with an
exterior profile, thickness, material properties and surface grooving to
achieve constant deflection of the roller contact surface at all wheel
rotation angles.