Technology
Disney’s Parks Revamp Includes Aquatic Robots and Hovering Star Wars Droids
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Disney’s Parks Revamp Includes Aquatic Robots and Hovering Star Wars Droids Inside a Walt Disney Co. research and development lab, supported by some heavy-duty scaffolding, sits a wooden manta ray prototype roughly the size of a car. If all goes according to plan, the final version will be able to transform into the Gramma Tala character from Moana, used at a lagoon in a Disney park sometime soon. Down the line, the company will add a fleet of dolphin-like robots to the experience.
Disney’s Parks Revamp Includes Aquatic Robots and Hovering Star Wars Droids
Inside a Walt Disney Co. research and development lab, supported by some heavy-duty scaffolding, sits a wooden manta ray prototype roughly the size of a car. If all goes according to plan, the final version will be able to transform into the Gramma Tala character from Moana, used at a lagoon in a Disney park sometime soon. Down the line, the company will add a fleet of dolphin-like robots to the experience.
The six-foot manta ray, which can potentially be repurposed for other franchises like Star Wars, is one of several robotics projects in development at Walt Disney Imagineering’s R&D facilities in Glendale, California — part of the company’s 10-year plan to invest $60 billion in its parks and resorts. The robot uses existing hydrofoil technology to propel itself through the water, creating lifelike aquatic characters capable of interacting and performing alongside human actors. Disney is also exploring concepts ranging from Star Wars-themed food carts with hovering droid-like robots to new projection-based effects for its Pirates of the Caribbean ride.