Wheel

LimX launched a versatile bipedal robot last year with modular foot ends to walk or roll around as needed. Now the company has demonstrated its agility chops by having the squat bot hop over low fencing, climb stairs and clear obstacles with aplomb.

China's DEEP Robotics is about to add a new quadruped to its kennel called the Lynx. But rather than go for walkies on pads, the mid-sized pup rolls on four wheels and is built for all-terrain shenanigans – as you can see in the pre-launch promo.

Inspired by liquid surface tension, researchers have created an adjustable wheel that alters shape in real time, tackling uneven surfaces and high obstacles with ease. It’s opened the door to wheelchairs or mobile robots that can better traverse rough terrains.

Around this time last year, Chinese robotics company Unitree caught our attention with the impressive circus tricks and GPT chat capabilities of its $1,600 second-generation robot dog. Now the company has wheeled out an all-terrain upgrade.

Hyundai Mobis has been working on its rotational e-corner wheel system for several years now. At this year's CES, it's showing how the Ioniq 5-bodied Mobion prototype uses the versatile high-tech wheels to slide, glide and practically dance around.

Hyundai has presented a new wheel and tire design that incorporates built-in snow chains that deploy and retract at the push of a button, potentially putting an end to the fiddly, freezing process of wrapping and removing traditional snow chains.

Robots often struggle to adapt to changing conditions. Now engineers at Caltech have designed a new robot that can roll around on four wheels, flip them into rotors to fly, or transform for six other types of motion.

Back in 2013, California-based startup Shark Wheel hit Kickstarter with a very odd-looking cube-shaped skateboard wheel. Now the company has supersized the design for a pair of funky electric cars for kids – the Shark SUV and the Shark UTV.

Although a completely flat-surfaced wheel would be aerodynamic, it would also be hard to keep cool – especially during the braking process. An experimental new wheel rim, however, has cooling vents that open as needed … and they're activated by heat.

If you were taller than average, and had a bicycle made to fit your body size, regular 700C/29-inch wheels would be disproportionately small. That's where the DirtySixer AllRoad Mark II comes in, as it features huge 36-inch wheels.

Last year we told you about the prototype Tuck Bike, which featured both a folding frame and folding full-size 700c wheels. Well, you may soon be able to own one, as it's the subject of a just-launched Kickstarter campaign.

Hyundai Mobis moves closer to revolutionizing EV maneuverability. Three years after introducing the e-Corner Module, it's testing a working all-in-one wheel prototype with integrated intelligent steering, braking, drive and suspension hardware.