Hidden deep in a California valley near Walt Disney Animation Studios is the testing ground for all the technology on display there Disney parks and experiences around the world. It’s a top secret area, but io9 and other members of the press were recently invited to take a close look at the animatronics Tiana’s Bayou Adventure– and to get a preview of the latest technology from Walt Disney Imagineering that may or may not be coming to a theme park or cruise near you.
While guests were not allowed to record videos or take photos, WDI conducted National Inventors Hall of Famer Lanny Smoothosted a presentation of the immersive HoloTile and demonstrated the capabilities of the “omnidirectional floor.”
Smoot and his team demonstrated how they can walk through rooms in any direction they want using AR screens and the sensory tiled floor. He explained that it will remain a tool for now: “So that we as Imagineers can design the things that exist in theme parks… We often need computer-aided design diagrams – rather than just looking at diagrams, [we figured], why don’t we walk through the things we’re going to build? We have the drawings for it.” As he said this, he pointed to the mapping screens and went on to describe how they can walk through the virtual construction of what they are working on and understand what it will be like when it is built in reality becomes.
He continued. “There are 19 tiles here. To create a larger floor, simply push the tiles together. Everyone has the power to move anything on their surface in any direction. Together they create a HoloTile floor. So it’s modular. The ground needs to know where my feet are. We use lidar here; These are rays or beams of light that reflect off my legs and tell the ground where I am; You can see me running on the screen. If I want to make a bigger floor, I’ll just put more tiles together.” The lidar also works by moving hands across the room, which we were able to personally test by moving an object across the HoloTile floor – an experience that is not dissimilar to the use of power. (I was so excited to show off my Jedi sensibilities and confirm, “I am one with the Force, the Force is with me.”) We can already imagine rooms in a galaxy far, far away at Disney Parks that using these interactive components, but it definitely feels like something that could be years away.
Amazing again war of stars The main technical moment we got to experience firsthand was Smoot’s retractable laser lightsaber. The moment when it was handed to me to try it out as the first in our group remains deeply etched in my memory. It felt like a dream to activate it and hear the hum as the lightsaber emanated from the kyber crystal (or tech magic in this case) forged by Smoot. It is difficult; As is tradition, you need two hands to wield it. And since we weren’t allowed to take photos or film video, everyone watched in awe as I moved it back and forth, completely tense at the honor. (I’m currently expecting a baby, so it will be exciting to tell my future child that this is one of the first things she ever did because it was a team effort; her power helped too).
It really was as surreal a moment as a lifetime war of stars fan – like my father before me – and I wasn’t the only one who felt that way; The person who tried it after me actually had tears in their eyes. While the retractable laser lightsaber has so far only been used by Rey aboard the now-closed Galactic Starcruiser, we’re hoping it makes its way to a display at Galaxy’s Edge. It’s a miracle to behold.
And finally, we got to meet the adorable BD-X droids just before their debut in Season of Power. The Imagineering team behind them shared that it was a commission from Lucasfilm to be created specifically for interactive purposes. They feel so lifelike when you approach them; The way they react to people is curious and moody. Since they are just under child size, they are so adorable and pet-like. Currently you can only see this version of the droids in their daily appearances at war of stars Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland (although you can purchase a lower-tech toy from the park’s Droid Depot store). Our io9 colleague Germain Lussier recently saw her in action in her Season of the Force debut:
The Season of Power runs until June 2nd. You can only see the droids wandering around the Black Spire Outpost at Galaxy’s Edge at the Disneyland Resort (sorry, Walt Disney World).
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