Engineers make wonderful world of Disney possible

The curtain masking the elaborate behind-the-scenes technology that creates the fantastic illusions enjoyed by the crowds that flock to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., was lifted slightly for attendees of the 2000 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition by keynote speaker Greg Hale, Disney World's vice president of design and engineering and regulatory compliance.

In his November presentation to a packed house at Disney World's Dolphin hotel, Hale described some of the technical feats that have kept Disney at the forefront of the entertainment industry since the doors to the Magic Kingdom originally opened in 1971.

Hale, whose group designs everything from Disney's buildings and transportation systems to the rides and attractions that bring the crowds, spoke to the Congress theme: "Beyond Traditional Boundaries."

Discussing the many occasions Disney engineers are called upon to go beyond those boundaries, Hale cited the time they were given three days in which to convert a 40-foot castle spire into a retractable 40-foot castle spire, to make sure it would not interfere with the view of a giant Mickey Mouse balloon during a fireworks show.

Congress keynote speaker Greg Hale.

Hale also emphasized the fact that Disney is frequently at the cutting edge of applying technology to enhance the public's experiences at entertainment venues. He spoke, for example, of the organization's innovative FastPass system, designed to reduce the time guests must spend waiting in lines. This system allows guests to insert their ride tickets into a machine that prints out a range of times during which they can return to the ride and go to the front of the line.

Instituting this system involved developing complex algorithms that take into account the length of lines and the number of people who opt to return later, so that FastPass can assign return times that alleviate the congestion rather than merely transferring it from one time period to another.

The Disney engineer also spoke about the use on two of Disney's cruise ships — the Disney Wonder and Disney Magic — of wireless technology that allows passengers to avoid waiting in line while boarding and debarking. It also exchanges passenger and reservation information with the port before the ship arrives. These tasks are accomplished through a ship-wide Ethernet system and special antennas.

Technology to make attractions more accessible to the disabled was also broached by Hale. He spoke of a new kind of amusement-ride car included in several Disney attractions, that is capable of carrying people in wheelchairs. The car has a wide drop-down door and a turntable mechanism that swivels the rider into position.

Hale also stressed the importance he places on finding time to inspire children about engineering and science. The Disney engineering crew helps in this regard through its involvement with FIRST (For the Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), an annual competition that brings together professional engineers and high school students to create robots that compete in an exciting, sporting-event-style format. ASME has actively supported FIRST since 1996.

"FIRST has been more rewarding for me personally than any [other outreach programs] that I've been involved with, and it's something all of you can do," said Hale, who hosts the program's annual culminating event, a national competition at Disney's Epcot Center.

The 20,000 participants and viewers who descended on Epcot last April presented Hale's engineering teams with fresh challenges. To accommodate the competition, they erected a structure longer than three Boeing 727s, laid down 270,000 square feet of artificial turf and provided enough power to the contest venue to supply 700 homes.

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