Ferris wheel

High Roller, in Las Vegas, Nevada, world's tallest Ferris wheel since 2014

A Ferris wheel (sometimes called a big wheel, observation wheel, or, in the case of the very tallest examples, giant wheel) is a nonbuilding structure consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components (commonly referred to as passenger cars, cabins, tubs, capsules, gondolas, or pods) attached to the rim in such a way that as the wheel turns, they are kept upright, usually by gravity.

Some of the largest modern Ferris wheels have cars mounted on the outside of the rim, with electric motors to independently rotate each car to keep it upright. These wheels are sometimes referred to as observation wheels and their cars referred to as capsules, however these alternative names are also used for wheels with conventional gravity-oriented cars.

The original Ferris Wheel was designed and constructed by George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. as a landmark for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The generic term Ferris wheel is now used for all such structures, which have become the most common type of amusement ride at state fairs in the United States.[1]

Since the original 1893 Chicago Ferris wheel there have been nine world's tallest-ever Ferris wheels. The current record holder is the 167.6-metre (550 ft) High Roller in Las Vegas, US, which opened to the public in March 2014.

Early history

Early pleasure wheels depicted in 17th-century engravings, to the left by Adam Olearius, to the right a Turkish design, apparently for adults
Dancing the hora on Dealul Spirii (Spirii Hill), Bucharest, Romania (1857 lithograph)
Magic-City, Paris, France, 1913

"Pleasure wheels", whose passengers rode in chairs suspended from large wooden rings turned by strong men, may have originated in 17th-century Bulgaria.[1][2]

The travels of Peter Mundy in Europe and Asia, 1608–1667[3] describes and illustrates "severall Sorts of Swinginge used in their Publique rejoyceings att their Feast of Biram" on 17 May 1620 at Philippopolis in the Ottoman Balkans.[2] Among means "lesse dangerous and troublesome" was one:

...like a Craine wheele att Customhowse Key and turned in that Manner, whereon Children sitt on little seats hunge round about in severall parts thereof, And though it turne right upp and downe, and that the Children are sometymes on the upper part of the wheele, and sometymes on the lower, yett they alwaies sitt upright.

Five years earlier, in 1615, Pietro Della Valle, a Roman traveller who sent letters from Constantinople, Persia, and India, attended a Ramadan festival in Constantinople. He describes the fireworks, floats, and great swings, then comments on riding the Great Wheel:[4]

I was delighted to find myself swept upwards and downwards at such speed. But the wheel turned round so rapidly that a Greek who was sitting near me couldn't bear it any longer, and shouted out "soni! soni!" (enough! enough!)

Similar wheels also appeared in England in the 17th century, and subsequently elsewhere around the world, including India, Romania, and Siberia.[2]

A Frenchman, Antonio Manguino, introduced the idea to America in 1848, when he constructed a wooden pleasure wheel to attract visitors to his start-up fair in Walton Spring, Georgia.

A much earlier description of a Ferris-type wheel can be seen in The Death of Arthur, a volume of the Vulgate Cycle dating from around 1220. The text describes King Arthur in a dream being approached by Fortuna and placed upon the Wheel of Fortune. Although the description is fictional, it is likely to be based upon real observations of a Ferris-type wheel:

When (King Arthur) fell asleep it seemed like the most beautiful lady in the world appeared … and there she sat him on a wheel. The wheel had seats, some of which rose as others sank. The king saw that his was in the highest position … “This is the Wheel of Fortune," she said... [5]

Somers' Wheel

In 1892, William Somers installed three fifty-foot wooden wheels at Asbury Park, New Jersey; Atlantic City, New Jersey; and Coney Island, New York. The following year he was granted the first U.S. patent for a "Roundabout".[6][7] George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. rode on Somers' wheel in Atlantic City prior to designing his wheel for the World's Columbian Exposition. In 1893 Somers filed a lawsuit against Ferris for patent infringement, however Ferris and his lawyers successfully argued that the Ferris Wheel and its technology differed greatly from Somers' wheel, and the case was dismissed.[8]

The original Ferris Wheel

The original Chicago Ferris Wheel, built for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition

The original Ferris Wheel, sometimes also referred to as the Chicago Wheel,[9][10][11] was designed and constructed by George Washington Gale Ferris Jr..[12]

With a height of 80.4 metres (264 ft) it was the tallest attraction at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois, where it opened to the public on June 21, 1893.[12] It was intended to rival the 324-metre (1,063 ft) Eiffel Tower, the centerpiece of the 1889 Paris Exposition.

Ferris was a graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, bridge-builder. He began his career in the railroad industry and then pursued an interest in bridge building. Ferris understood the growing need for structural steel and founded G.W.G. Ferris & Co. in Pittsburgh, a firm that tested and inspected metals for railroads and bridge builders.

The wheel rotated on a 71-ton, 45.5-foot axle comprising what was at that time the world's largest hollow forging, manufactured in Pittsburgh by the Bethlehem Iron Company and weighing 89,320 pounds, together with two 16-foot-diameter (4.9 m) cast-iron spiders weighing 53,031 pounds.[10]

There were 36 cars, each fitted with 40 revolving chairs and able to accommodate up to 60 people, giving a total capacity of 2,160.[9] The wheel carried some 38,000 passengers daily[1] and took 20 minutes to complete two revolutions, the first involving six stops to allow passengers to exit and enter and the second a nine-minute non-stop rotation, for which the ticket holder paid 50 cents.

The Exposition ended in October 1893, and the wheel closed in April 1894 and was dismantled and stored until the following year. It was then rebuilt on Chicago's North Side, near Lincoln Park, next to an exclusive neighborhood. This prompted William D. Boyce, then a local resident, to file a Circuit Court action against the owners of the wheel to have it removed, but without success. It operated there from October 1895 until 1903, when it was again dismantled, then transported by rail to St. Louis for the 1904 World's Fair and finally destroyed by controlled demolition using dynamite on May 11, 1906.[13]

Antique Ferris wheels

Wiener Riesenrad, Vienna, built in 1897, originally had 30 passenger cabins but was rebuilt with 15 cabins following a fire in 1944

The Wiener Riesenrad (German for "Viennese Giant Wheel") is a surviving example of nineteenth-century Ferris wheels. Erected in 1897 in the Wurstelprater section of Prater public park in the Leopoldstadt district of Vienna, Austria, to celebrate Emperor Franz Josef I's Golden Jubilee, it has a height of 64.75 metres (212 ft)[14] and originally had 30 passenger cars. A demolition permit for the Riesenrad was issued in 1916, but due to a lack of funds with which to carry out the destruction, it survived.[15]

Following the demolition of the 100-metre (328 ft) Grande Roue de Paris in 1920,[9] the Riesenrad became the world's tallest extant Ferris wheel. In 1944 it burnt down, but was rebuilt the following year[15] with 15 passenger cars, and remained the world's tallest extant wheel until its 97th year, when the 85-metre (279 ft) Technocosmos was constructed for Expo '85, at Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan.

Still in operation today, it is one of Vienna's most popular tourist attractions, and over the years has featured in numerous films (including Madame Solange d`Atalide (1914),[15] Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948), The Third Man (1949), The Living Daylights (1987), Before Sunrise (1995)) and novels.

World's tallest Ferris wheels

The 94 m Great Wheel at Earls Court, London, world's tallest Ferris wheel 1895–1900
The 100 m Grande Roue de Paris, world's tallest Ferris wheel 1900–1920

Chronology of world's tallest-ever wheels

Timeline

Name Height
m (ft)
Completed Country Location Coordinates Remarks
High Roller[25] 167.6 (550) 2014  United States Las Vegas, Nevada 36°07′03″N 115°10′05″W / 36.117402°N 115.168127°W / 36.117402; -115.168127 (High Roller) World's tallest since 2014
Singapore Flyer[26] 165 (541) 2008  Singapore Marina Centre, Downtown Core 1°17′22″N 103°51′48″E / 1.289397°N 103.863231°E / 1.289397; 103.863231 (Singapore Flyer) World's tallest 2008–2014
Star of Nanchang[26] 160 (525) 2006  China Nanchang, Jiangxi 28°39′34″N 115°50′44″E / 28.659332°N 115.845568°E / 28.659332; 115.845568 (Star of Nanchang) World's tallest 2006–2008
London Eye[26] 135 (443) 2000  United Kingdom South Bank, Lambeth, London 51°30′12″N 0°07′11″W / 51.50334°N 0.1197821°W / 51.50334; -0.1197821 (London Eye) World's tallest 2000–2006
Redhorse Osaka Wheel[27][28] 123 (404) 2016  Japan Expocity, Suita, Osaka 34°48′19″N 135°32′06″E / 34.805278°N 135.535°E / 34.805278; 135.535 (Redhorse Osaka)
Orlando Eye[29] 122 (400) 2015  United States Orlando, Florida 28°26′36″N 81°28′06″W / 28.443198°N 81.468296°W / 28.443198; -81.468296 (Orlando Eye)
Suzhou Ferris Wheel[26][30] 120 (394) 2009  China Suzhou, Jiangsu 31°18′59″N 120°42′30″E / 31.3162939°N 120.7084501°E / 31.3162939; 120.7084501 (Suzhou Ferris Wheel)
Melbourne Star[26] 120 (394) 2008  Australia Docklands, Melbourne 37°48′40″S 144°56′13″E / 37.8110723°S 144.9368763°E / -37.8110723; 144.9368763 (Melbourne Star)
Tianjin Eye[26] 120 (394) 2008  China Yongle Bridge, Hongqiao, Tianjin 39°09′12″N 117°10′49″E / 39.1533636°N 117.1802616°E / 39.1533636; 117.1802616 (Tianjin Eye)
Changsha Ferris Wheel[26] 120 (394) 2004  China Changsha, Hunan 28°10′56″N 112°58′48″E / 28.1821772°N 112.9800886°E / 28.1821772; 112.9800886 (Changsha Ferris Wheel)
Zhengzhou Ferris Wheel[26][31] 120 (394) 2003  China Century Amusement Park, Henan 34°43′58″N 113°43′07″E / 34.732871°N 113.718739°E / 34.732871; 113.718739 (Zhengzhou Ferris Wheel)
Sky Dream Fukuoka[26][32] 120 (394) 2002  Japan Evergreen Marinoa, Fukuoka, Kyūshū 33°35′44″N 130°19′21″E / 33.5956845°N 130.3225279°E / 33.5956845; 130.3225279 (Sky Dream Fukuoka) Closed September 2009
Diamond and Flower Ferris Wheel 117 (384) 2001  Japan Kasai Rinkai Park, Tokyo, Honshū 35°38′38″N 139°51′26″E / 35.6439052°N 139.8572257°E / 35.6439052; 139.8572257 (Diamond and Flower Ferris Wheel)
Sun Wheel[33] 115 (377) 2014  Vietnam Da Nang 16°02′24″N 108°13′35″E / 16.040070°N 108.226492°E / 16.040070; 108.226492 (Sun Wheel)
Star of Lake Tai  115 (377) 2008  China Lake Tai, Wuxi, Jiangsu 31°31′15″N 120°15′39″E / 31.5208296°N 120.260945°E / 31.5208296; 120.260945 (Star of Lake Tai) Picture
Daikanransha[24] 115 (377) 1999  Japan Palette Town, Odaiba, Honshū 35°37′35″N 139°46′56″E / 35.6263915°N 139.7822902°E / 35.6263915; 139.7822902 (Daikanransha) World's tallest 1999–2000
Cosmo Clock 21 (2nd installation) 112.5 (369) 1999  Japan Minato Mirai 21, Yokohama, Honshū 35°27′19″N 139°38′12″E / 35.4553872°N 139.6367347°E / 35.4553872; 139.6367347 (Cosmo Clock 21 (2nd installation))
Tempozan Ferris Wheel[20] 112.5 (369) 1997  Japan Osaka, Honshū 34°39′22″N 135°25′52″E / 34.6561657°N 135.431031°E / 34.6561657; 135.431031 (Tempozan Ferris Wheel) World's tallest 1997–1999
Harbin Ferris Wheel[34] 110 (361) 2003  China Harbin, Heilongjiang 45°46′40″N 126°39′48″E / 45.7776481°N 126.6634637°E / 45.7776481; 126.6634637 (Harbin Ferris Wheel)
Shanghai Ferris Wheel[35][36] 108 (354) 2002  China Jinjiang Action Park, Shanghai 31°08′24″N 121°24′11″E / 31.1401286°N 121.4030752°E / 31.1401286; 121.4030752 (Shanghai Ferris Wheel)
Igosu 108[37] 108 (354) 1992  Japan Biwako Tower, Ōtsu, Shiga, Honshū 35°07′36″N 135°55′35″E / 35.1267338°N 135.9263551°E / 35.1267338; 135.9263551 (Igosu 108 (former location)) World's tallest 1992–1997
Cosmo Clock 21 (1st installation) 107.5 (353) 1989  Japan Minato Mirai 21, Yokohama, Honshū Unknown World's tallest 1989–1992
Space Eye[38] 100 (328) Unknown  Japan Space World, Kitakyūshū, Kyūshū 33°52′18″N 130°48′36″E / 33.8716939°N 130.8099014°E / 33.8716939; 130.8099014 (Space Eye) Picture
Grande Roue de Paris[9] 100 (328) 1900  France Champ de Mars, Paris 48°51′08″N 2°17′57″E / 48.852222°N 2.299167°E / 48.852222; 2.299167 (Grande Roue de Paris (demolished 1920)) World's tallest 1900–1920
Great Wheel[16] 94 (308) 1895  United Kingdom Earls Court, London 51°29′18″N 0°11′56″W / 51.48835°N 0.19889°W / 51.48835; -0.19889 (Great Wheel (demolished 1907)) World's tallest 1895–1900
Aurora Wheel[39] 90 (295) Unknown  Japan Nagashima Spa Land, Mie, Honshū 35°01′47″N 136°44′01″E / 35.0298207°N 136.7336351°E / 35.0298207; 136.7336351 (Aurora Wheel) Picture
Eurowheel[40] 90 (295) 1999  Italy Mirabilandia, Ravenna 44°20′21″N 12°15′44″E / 44.3392161°N 12.2622228°E / 44.3392161; 12.2622228 (Eurowheel)
Sky Wheel[41] 88 (289) Unknown  Taiwan Janfusun Fancyworld, Gukeng 23°37′13″N 120°34′35″E / 23.6202611°N 120.5763352°E / 23.6202611; 120.5763352 (Sky Wheel)
Technostar
Technocosmos
[9]
85 (279) ?
1985
 Japan Expoland, Osaka, Honshū (?-2009)
Expo '85, Tsukuba, Honshū (1985–?)
34°48′14″N 135°32′09″E / 34.803772°N 135.535916°E / 34.803772; 135.535916 (Technostar)
36°03′40″N 140°04′23″E / 36.061203°N 140.073055°E / 36.061203; 140.073055 (Technocosmos)
Technocosmos renamed/relocated
World's tallest extant 1985–1989
The original Ferris Wheel 80.4 (264) 1893  United States Chicago (1893–1903); St. Louis (1904–06) Ferris Wheel coordinates World's tallest 1893–1894
Wiener Riesenrad 64.8 (212) 1897  Austria Wurstelprater, Vienna48°13′00″N 16°23′45″E / 48.2166505°N 16.3959494°E / 48.2166505; 16.3959494 (Wiener_Riesenrad) World's tallest extant 1920–1985

Future wheels

Following the huge success of the 135-metre (443 ft) London Eye since it opened in 2000, giant Ferris wheels have been proposed for many other cities, however a large number of these projects have stalled or failed.[42]

Construction in progress

Unfinished projects

Abandoned projects

Quiescent proposals

Incomplete, delayed, stalled, cancelled, failed, or abandoned proposals:

Artist's impression of the 175 m Great Berlin Wheel, a project originally due for completion in 2008, but which stalled after encountering financial obstacles

Nippon Moon, described as a "giant observation wheel" by its designers,[103] was reported in September 2013 to be "currently in development". At that time, its height was "currently undisclosed", but "almost twice the scale of the wheel in London." Its location, an unspecified Japanese city, was "currently under wraps", and its funding had "yet to be entirely secured." Commissioned by Ferris Wheel Investment Co., Ltd., and designed by UNStudio in collaboration with Arup, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and Experientia, it was expected to have 32 individually themed capsules and take 40 minutes to rotate once.[104]

The Shanghai Star, initially planned as a 200-metre (656 ft) tall wheel to be built by 2005, was revised to 170 metres (558 ft), with a completion date set in 2007, but then cancelled in 2006 due to "political incorrectness".[105] An earlier proposal for a 250-metre (820 ft) structure, the Shanghai Kiss, with capsules ascending and descending a pair of towers which met at their peaks instead of a wheel, was deemed too expensive at £100m.[106]

Rus-3000, a 170-metre (558 ft) wheel planned to open in 2004[107] in Moscow,[108] has since been reported cancelled.[109] Subsequently, an approximately 180-metre (591 ft)[110] wheel was considered for Gorky Central Park of Culture and Leisure,[111][112] and a 150-metre (492 ft) wheel proposed for location near Sparrow Hills.[113] Another giant wheel planned for Prospekt Vernadskogo for 2002 was also never built.[74]

Observation wheels

The Singapore Flyer has 28 cylindrical air-conditioned passenger capsules, each able to carry 28 people[114]
The London Eye's 32 ovoidal air-conditioned passenger capsules each weigh 10 tonnes (11 short tons) and can carry 25 people[115]

Observation wheel is an alternative name for Ferris wheel.[116][117] In 1892, when the incorporation papers for the Ferris Wheel Company (constructors of the original 1893 Chicago Ferris Wheel) were filed, the purpose of the company was stated as: [construction and operation of] "...wheels of the Ferris or other types for the purpose of observation or amusement".[9]

Some Ferris wheels are marketed as observation wheels, any distinction between the two names being at the discretion of the operator, however the wheels whose operators reject the term Ferris wheel are often those having most in common with the original 1893 Chicago Ferris Wheel, especially in terms of scale and being an iconic landmark for a city or event.

Wheels with passenger cars mounted external to the rim and independently rotated by electric motors, as opposed to wheels with cars suspended from the rim and kept upright by gravity, are those most commonly referred to as observation wheels, and their cars are often referred to as capsules. However, these alternative names are also sometimes used for wheels with conventional gravity-oriented cars.

Only four Ferris wheels with motorised capsules have ever been built.

The 167.6 m (550 ft) High Roller, world's tallest since March 2014, has externally mounted motorised capsules of a transparent spherical design,[62][118] and is described as both a Ferris wheel and an observation wheel by the media.[61][62][119][120]

The 165 m (541 ft) Singapore Flyer has cylindrical externally mounted motorised capsules and is described as an observation wheel by its operators,[121] but was also credited as "world's largest Ferris wheel" by the media when it opened in 2008.[122][123]

The 135 m (443 ft) London Eye, typically described as a "giant Ferris wheel" by the media,[124][125] has ovoidal externally mounted motorised capsules and is the "world's tallest cantilevered observation wheel"[126] according to its operators, who claim "The London Eye is often mistakenly called a Ferris wheel. This is not the case: first, the passenger capsules are completely enclosed and are climate controlled; secondly, the capsules are positioned on the outside of the wheel structure and are fully motorised; and third, the entire structure is supported by an A-frame on one side only."[126] However the Singapore Flyer subsequently billed itself as the "world's largest observation wheel", despite being supported on both sides,[127] and the official londoneye.com website also refers to the London Eye as "Europe's tallest Ferris wheel".[128]

Southern Star (now Melbourne Star), tallest in the Southern Hemisphere, in 2008

The 120 m (394 ft) Melbourne Star (previously the Southern Star) in Australia has ovoidal externally mounted motorised capsules and is described by its operators as "the only observation wheel in the southern hemisphere",[129] but also as a Ferris wheel by the media.[130][131][132]

Official conceptual renderings[133] of the proposed 190.5 m (625 ft) New York Wheel, due to begin construction in 2015,[56] also show a wheel equipped with externally mounted motorised capsules.[51]

Transportable wheels

Transportable Ferris wheels are designed to be operated at multiple locations, as opposed to fixed wheels which are usually intended for permanent installation. Small transportable designs may be permanently mounted on trailers, and can be moved intact. Larger transportable wheels are designed to be repeatedly dismantled and rebuilt, some using water ballast instead of the permanent foundations of their fixed counterparts.

Fixed wheels are also sometimes dismantled and relocated. Larger examples include the original Ferris Wheel, which operated at two sites in Chicago, Illinois, and a third in St. Louis, Missouri; Technocosmos/Technostar, which moved to Expoland, Osaka, after Expo '85, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, for which it was built, ended; and Cosmo Clock 21, which added 5 metres (16 ft) onto its original 107.5-metre (353 ft) height when erected for the second time at Minato Mirai 21, Yokohama, in 1999.

The world's tallest transportable wheel today is the 78-metre (256 ft) Bussink Design R80XL.[134][135][136][137]

One of the most famous transportable wheels is the 60-metre (197 ft) Roue de Paris, originally installed on the Place de la Concorde in Paris for the 2000 millennium celebrations. Roue de Paris left France in 2002 and in 2003–04 operated in Birmingham and Manchester, England. In 2005 it visited first Geleen then Amsterdam, Netherlands, before returning to England to operate at Gateshead. In 2006 it was erected at the Suan Lum Night Bazaar in Bangkok, Thailand, and by 2008 had made its way to Antwerp, Belgium.[138]

Roue de Paris is a Ronald Bussink series R60 design using 40,000 litres (8,800 imperial gallons; 11,000 US gallons) of water ballast to provide a stable base. The R60 weighs 365 tonnes (402 short tons), and can be erected in 72 hours and dismantled in 60 hours by a specialist team. Transport requires seven 20-foot container lorries, ten open trailer lorries, and one closed trailer lorry. Its 42-passenger cars can be loaded either 3 or 6 at a time, and each car can carry 8 people.[139] Bussink R60 wheels have operated in Australia (Brisbane), Canada (Niagara Falls), France (Paris), Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur & Malacca), UK (Belfast, Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield), US (Atlanta, Myrtle Beach), and elsewhere.

Other notable transportable wheels include the 60-metre (197 ft) Steiger Ferris Wheel, which was the world's tallest transportable wheel when it began operating in 1980.[140] It has 42 passenger cars,[141] and weighs 450 tons.[142] On October 11, 2010, it collapsed at the Kramermarkt in Oldenburg, Germany, during deconstruction.[143]

Roue de Paris, a Ronald Bussink R60 transportable wheel, at Geleen in the Netherlands in 2005
Notable transportable Ferris wheel installations
Name Years Country Location Coordinates
Belfast Wheel 2007–2010  UK Belfast 54°35′48.77″N 5°55′45.06″W / 54.5968806°N 5.9291833°W / 54.5968806; -5.9291833 (Belfast Wheel)
Brighton Wheel 2011–  UK Brighton 50°49′09″N 0°08′04″W / 50.8191°N 0.1344°W / 50.8191; -0.1344 (Brighton Wheel)
Delhi Eye see article  India Delhi 28°32′46″N 77°18′31″E / 28.5460153°N 77.3086802°E / 28.5460153; 77.3086802 (Delhi Eye)
Eye on Malaysia 2007–2008
2008–2010
 Malaysia
 Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur
Malacca
3°10′39.2″N 101°42′15.68″E / 3.177556°N 101.7043556°E / 3.177556; 101.7043556 (Eye on Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur installation))
2°11′23.4312″N 102°14′29.00″E / 2.189842000°N 102.2413889°E / 2.189842000; 102.2413889 (Eye on Malaysia (Malacca installation))
Royal Windsor Wheel various   UK Windsor, Berkshire 51°29′04″N 0°36′43″W / 51.4845°N 0.6119°W / 51.4845; -0.6119 (Royal Windsor Wheel)
Wheel of Birmingham various   UK Centenary Square, Birmingham 52°28′44.04″N 1°54′32.49″W / 52.4789000°N 1.9090250°W / 52.4789000; -1.9090250 (Wheel of Birmingham)
Wheel of Brisbane 2008–  Australia South Bank Parklands, Brisbane 27°28′31″S 153°01′15″E / 27.4751833°S 153.0209333°E / -27.4751833; 153.0209333 (Wheel of Brisbane)
Wheel of Dublin 2010–2011  Ireland North Wall, Dublin 53°20′50″N 6°13′39″W / 53.3472°N 6.2276°W / 53.3472; -6.2276 (Wheel of Dublin)
Wheel of Liverpool 2010–  UK Liverpool 53°23′54″N 2°59′27″W / 53.39824°N 2.99083°W / 53.39824; -2.99083 (Wheel of Liverpool)
Wheel of Manchester various   UK Manchester multiple locations – see article
Wheel of Sheffield 2009–2010  UK Fargate, Sheffield 53°22′52″N 1°28′12″W / 53.3810°N 1.4699°W / 53.3810; -1.4699 (Wheel of Sheffield)
Yorkshire Wheel various   UK York multiple locations – see article

Double and triple wheels

Giant Wheel, a double wheel
Sky Whirl, a triple wheel
Hermann Eccentric Ferris Wheel with sliding cars, from US patent 1354436, 1915; forerunner of the 1920 Wonder Wheel, there is no record of it ever being built[7][144]
Wonder Wheel, a 45.7-metre (150 ft) tall eccentric wheel at Deno's Wonder Wheel Amusement Park, Coney Island, was built in 1920 by the Eccentric Ferris Wheel Company[145]
Disney California Adventure Park's Mickey's Fun Wheel, an eccentric wheel modelled on Wonder Wheel, was built in 2001 as Sun Wheel and became Mickey's Fun Wheel in 2009[146]
Big O, a 60-metre (197 ft) tall centreless wheel at Tokyo Dome City in Japan

In March 1966, Thomas Glen Robinson and Ralph G. Robinson received a patent for a ride they developed, called a Planetary Amusement Ride.[147]

Robinson sold two of these rides – Astrowheel, which operated at the former Six Flags Astroworld, Houston, Texas, from 1968 until 1980,[148] and Galaxy, which operated at Six Flags Magic Mountain, Valencia, California. Both were manufactured by Astron International Corporation.

Swiss manufacturer Intamin produced a similar series of rides comprising a vertical column supporting multiple horizontal arms, with each arm supporting a Ferris wheel. The first Intamin produced was Giant Wheel at Hersheypark in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Others include Zodiac (Kings Island, Mason, Ohio), and Scorpion (Parque de la Ciudad, Buenos Aires, Argentina).

A triple variant was custom designed for the Marriott Corporation, each ride had three main components: the wheels with their passenger cars; a set of supporting arms; and a single central supporting column. Each wheel rotated about the end of its own supporting arm. The arms in turn would either pivot or rotate together as a single unit about the top of the supporting column. The axis about which the rotating arms turned was offset from vertical, so that as the arms rotated, each arm and its corresponding wheel was raised and lowered. This allowed one wheel to be horizontal at ground level, and brought to a standstill for simultaneous loading and unloading of all its passenger cars, while the other wheel(s) continued to rotate vertically at considerable height.

Sky Whirl was the world's first triple Ferris wheel, debuting at both Marriott's Great America parks (now Six Flags Great America, Gurnee, Illinois, and California's Great America, Santa Clara) in 1976. Also known as a triple Ferris wheel,[149] Triple Giant Wheel,[150] or Triple Tree Wheel, it was 33 metres (108 ft) in height.[151] The Santa Clara ride, renamed Triple Wheel in post-Marriott years, closed on 1 September 1997. The Gurnee ride closed in 2000.[152]

Eccentric wheels

An eccentric wheel (sometimes called a sliding wheel[155] or coaster wheel[156]) differs from a conventional Ferris wheel in that some or all of its passenger cars are not fixed directly to the rim of the wheel, but instead slide on rails between the rim and the hub as the wheel rotates.

The two most famous eccentric wheels are Wonder Wheel, at Deno's Wonder Wheel Amusement Park, Coney Island, US, and Mickey's Fun Wheel (previously Sun Wheel), at Disney California Adventure Park, US. The latter is a replica of the former. There is a second replica in Yokohama Dreamland, Japan.[145]

Mickey's Fun Wheel is 48.8 metres (160 ft) tall[155] and has 24 fully enclosed passenger cars, each able to carry 6 passengers. 16 of the cars slide inward and outward as the wheel rotates, the remainder are fixed to the rim. There are separate boarding queues for sliding and fixed cars, so that passengers may choose between the two.[146] Inspired by Coney Island's 1920 Wonder Wheel, it was designed by Walt Disney Imagineering and Waagner Biro, completed in 2001 as the Sun Wheel, and later refurbished and reopened in 2009 as Mickey's Fun Wheel.[155]

Wonder Wheel was built in 1920, is 45.7 metres (150 ft) tall, and can carry 144 people.[157]

Major designers, manufacturers, and operators

Allan Herschell Company (merged with Chance Rides in 1970)[158]

  • Seattle Wheel (debuted 1962): 16 cars, 2 passengers per car[159]
  • Sky Wheel (debuted 1939; also manufactured by Chance Rides): a double wheel, with the wheels rotating about opposite ends of a pair of parallel beams, and the beams rotating about their centres; 8 cars per wheel, 2 passengers per car[160]

Chance Morgan / Chance Rides / Chance Wheels / Chance American Wheels[161][162]

  • Astro Wheel (debuted 1967): 16 cars (8 facing one way, 8 the other), 2 passengers per car[163]
  • Century Wheel: 20 m (66 ft) tall, 15 cars, 4-6 passengers per car[162]
  • Giant Wheel: 27 m (89 ft) tall, 20 cars, 6-8 passengers per car[162]
  • Niagara SkyWheel (2006): 53.3 m (175 ft) tall, 42 air-conditioned cars, 8 passengers per car[164]
  • Myrtle Beach SkyWheel (2011): 57 m (187 ft) tall, 42 air-conditioned cars, 6 passengers per car[165]
Eli Bridge Company[166]
Contemporary models include:
  • Signature Series: 16 cars, 3 passengers per car; transportable
  • Eagle Series: 16 cars, 3 passengers per car; transportable
  • HY-5 Series: 12 cars, 3 passengers per car; transportable
  • Aristocrat Series: 16 cars, fixed site
  • Standard Series: 12 cars, fixed site
  • Lil' Wheel: 6 cars, 3 passengers per car; transportable and fixed site models

Great Wheel Corporation[167] (merged with World Tourist Attractions in 2009 to form Great City Attractions)[168]

Intamin / Waagner-Biro[169] (Rides brokered by Intamin — manufactured by Waagner-Biro)[170]

Mir / Pax[171]

  • Moscow-850, a 73-metre (240 ft) tall wheel in Russia; Europe's tallest extant wheel when completed in 1997, until 1999
  • Eurowheel, a 90-metre (300 ft) tall wheel in Italy; Europe's tallest extant wheel when completed in 1999, until the end of that year

Ronald Bussink[172] (formerly Nauta Bussink; then Ronald Bussink Professional Rides; then Bussink Landmarks since 2008)

Wheels of Excellence range (sold to Vekoma in 2008) has included:
  • R40: 40-metre (131 ft) tall fixed or transportable wheel, 15 or 30 cars, 8 passengers per car
  • R50: 50-metre (164 ft) tall fixed or transportable wheel, 18 or 36 cars, 8 passengers per car
  • R60: 60-metre (197 ft) tall transportable wheel, 21 or 42 cars, 8 passengers per car[139]
  • R80: 80-metre (262 ft) tall fixed wheel, 56 cars, 8 passengers per car
Bussink Design:
  • R80XL: 78-metre (256 ft) tall fixed or transportable wheel, 27 16-person cars, or 54 8-person cars

Sanoyas Rides Corporation (has built more than 80 Ferris wheels[173])

  • Melbourne Star: 120 m (394 ft) tall, completed 2008, rebuilt 2009–2013
Senyo Kogyo Co, Ltd.
World Tourist Attractions / Great City Attractions[175] / Wheels Entertainments[176] / Freij Entertainment International[177]

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