Audio-Animatronics

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"Animatronic" redirects here. For the album by The Kovenant, see Animatronic (album).

Audio-Animatronics is the registered trademark for a form of robotics created by Walt Disney Imagineering for shows and attractions at Disney theme parks, and subsequently expanded on and used by other companies. The robots move and make noise, generally speech or song. An Audio-Animatronic is different from android-type robots in that it works off prerecorded moves and sounds, rather than processing external stimuli and responding to them. Animatronics has become a generic name for similar robots created by firms other than Disney.

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[edit] Creation and early development

Audio-Animatronics were originally a creation of Lee Adams, who started his career with Disney as an electrician at the Burbank studio and was one of Disney's original Imagineers. The first Disney Audio-Animatronic was the giant squid in the movie 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, which was created by Adams.

The term "Audio-Animatronics" was first used commercially by Disney in 1961, was filed as a trademark in 1964, and was registered in 1967.

Perhaps the most impressive of the early Audio-Animatronics efforts was The Enchanted Tiki Room, which opened in 1963 at Disneyland, where a room full of tropical creatures synchronize eye and facial action with a musical score entirely by electro-mechanical means. The "cast" of the musical revue used tones recorded on tape which vibrated a metal reed that closed a circuit to trigger a relay which sent a pulse of electricity to a mechanism that causes a pneumatic valve to move a part of the figure's body.

The movements of the attraction's birds, flowers and tiki idols were triggered by sound, hence the audio prefix. Figures' movements had a neutral "natural resting position" that the limb/part would return to when there was no electric pulse. The animation was all on/off moves, such as an open/closed eye or beak. On/off movement was called a digital system.

Other early examples were the Lincoln Exhibit presented at the State of Illinois Pavilion at the 1964 New York World's Fair. Also at the fair were three other pavilions featuring Audio-Animatronics. They were Pepsi/UNICEF's "it's a small world", General Electric's Carousel of Progress, and Ford's Magic Skyway.

[edit] Inner workings

Pneumatic muscles were not powerful enough to move larger objects, like an artificial human arm, so hydraulics were used for large figures. On/off movement would cause an arm to be either up over the artificial man's head (on switch), or down (off switch), but no movement in between. To create realistic in-between movement in large figures, an analog system was used. This gave the figure's limbs/parts a full range of in-between motion, rather than only two positions. The digital system was used with small pneumatic moving limbs (eyelids, beaks, fingers), and the analog system was used for large hydraulic human or animal (arms, heads) moving limbs.

[edit] Variations of Audio-Animatronics

The technology of the AAs at the theme parks around the world vary in their sophistication. They range from the blinking and mouth movements at Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room to full body movement, from the mouth to the tip of the fingers at Stitch's Great Escape! At the Magic Kingdom. Current technologies have paved the way for more elaborate AA figures, such as the 'Ursula head' at Mermaid Lagoon Theater at Tokyo DisneySea, the Indiana Jones figures inside the Indy attractions at both Disneyland & Tokyo DisneySea, the 'swordfighting' pirates inside Disneyland Paris’ version of Pirates of the Caribbean, the "lava/rock monster" inside Journey to the Center of the Earth at Tokyo DisneySea, the "Yeti" inside Expedition Everest at Disney's Animal Kingdom, or the Roz figure in the Disney's California Adventure attraction "Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue!". In the case of the Roz figure, Disney makes the figure seemingly 'interact' with guests with help from an unseen ride operator who chooses pre-recorded messages for Roz to 'speak', thereby seeming to ‘react’ to individual guests' unique appearances/clothing. One of the newest figures comes with changes to the classic attraction, "Pirates of the Caribbean" at the two American resorts (Disneyland and Walt Disney World), both now featuring characters from the Pirates of the Caribbean film series. The Jack Sparrow figure is based on his portrayor Johnny Depp, even featuring his voice and facial mold.

[edit] Disney attractions that have utilized Audio-Animatronics

[edit] Disneyland Resort

[edit] Disneyland

A closeup of Disneyland's newest audio-animatronic figure based on Johnny Depp's character Captain Jack Sparrow from the popular Pirates of the Caribbean movie series
Enlarge
A closeup of Disneyland's newest audio-animatronic figure based on Johnny Depp's character Captain Jack Sparrow from the popular Pirates of the Caribbean movie series


[edit] Disney's California Adventure

Closeup of an Audio-Animatronic at the Disney's California Adventure attraction, "Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue!"
Enlarge
Closeup of an Audio-Animatronic at the Disney's California Adventure attraction, "Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue!"

[edit] Walt Disney World Resort

[edit] The Magic Kingdom

[edit] Epcot

[edit] Disney-MGM Studios

[edit] Disney's Animal Kingdom

[edit] Tokyo Disney Resort

[edit] Tokyo Disneyland

[edit] Tokyo DisneySea

  • Arabian Coast
    • Sinbad's Seven Voyages
    • Magic Lamp Theater
  • Port Discovery
    • StormRider
  • Mermaid Lagoon
    • Mermaid Lagoon Theater
  • New York Harbor
    • Tower of Terror
  • Lost River Delta
    • Indiana Jones Adventure: The Temple of the Crystal Skull
  • Mysterious Island

[edit] Disneyland Resort Paris

[edit] Disneyland Park

[edit] Hong Kong Disneyland Resort

[edit] Hong Kong Disneyland

[edit] Other uses of animatronic figures

Animatronics also gained popularity in the 1980s through use at family entertainment centers such as ShowBiz Pizza Place and Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre. They are also used in film and TV special effects.

Several passengers and crew of a Pioneer Zephyr are represented in a display of this historic train at Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry. Neatly dressed in the proper style of first class passengers of their era, one remarks upon the casual dress of the visitors.

[edit] External links

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