Originally Posted By knightnfrees <<The happiest place on Earth (Disneyland, not Las Vegas during CES) just got a little happier this week, thanks to a new exhibit called the Muppet Mobile Laboratory that roams the park and delights visitors with inane banter and sprays of water. ...Disney decided to eschew flesh and bone for metal and silicon when it tasked the Imagineering studio with whipping up California Adventure's newest residents, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and his always chipper, possibly speed-addicted friend Beaker. The two wacky companions approach groups of visitors in their remotely-controlled, cartoonish rocket ship, and thanks to operators monitoring embedded cameras, microphones, and speakers, are able to to carry on eerily-realistic conversations that incorporate actual traits of the audience members. Disney expects the new tech -- which enables remote operation from as far away as Glendale -- to eventually expand its stable of characters to include some of the Muppets who are too small to be played by actors (as opposed to mice, dogs, and ducks, which are just the right size), so next time the kids finally wear you down and win another trip to the Magic Kingdom, at least you'll be able to pass the time by chasing around little Chip 'n Dales or wirelessly hacking Kermit to tell the kiddies what he really thinks of that flaky pig.>> <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2007/03/02/disneyland-intros-roving-animatronic-muppets-mickey-and-friends/" target="_blank">http://www.engadget.com/2007/0 3/02/disneyland-intros-roving-animatronic-muppets-mickey-and-friends/</a> It looks like a great idea, especially when they get all the bugs out. It's probably in a Beta Test right now. There's a little video of it in action when you click the link then scroll to the bottom of the page. <<Disney expects the new tech -- which enables remote operation from as far away as Glendale>> Why Glendale? It seems so random. This is a nice crossover between Imagineering and classic Muppets. I believe this a be a good step forward for the park and guests alike.
Originally Posted By knightnfrees <<There's a little video of it in action when you click the link then scroll to the bottom of the page.>> That should be about a third of the page down, below the article.
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA This is very cool. There's even a YouTube video at that link above. Seems they had a few technical issues the day it was filmed. But still well done. <<Disney expects the new tech -- which enables remote operation from as far away as Glendale>> <Why Glendale? It seems so random.> My thought is because WDI is in Glendale. [*shrug*]
Originally Posted By DlandDug I have seen the Muppet Mobile Lab in action. It is very charming. What I like about it is that the tech is very matter-of-fact. The characters interact with the guests in a very natural manner. There are two pictures linked to LP Live. (And yes, Glendale was chosen because that is where the main offices for WDI are located.)
Originally Posted By knightnfrees <<<<Disney expects the new tech -- which enables remote operation from as far away as Glendale>> <Why Glendale? It seems so random.> My thought is because WDI is in Glendale.>>>> I realize WDI is in Glendale, I'm wondering why one city was singled out and not saying, "It can be operated from 40 miles away". I would think the distance it could be operated from would matter and not an actual location.
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA <I realize WDI is in Glendale, I'm wondering why one city was singled out> I'm irritated that Merced wasn't referenced, so I feel your pain.
Originally Posted By berol It's where the most distant controls are located I would imagine, could be Orlando or Hong Kong if they shipped the controls there.
Originally Posted By DlandDug >>This is cool. How long has it been around?<< I first heard an inkling of this last December. It was sneaked at DCA on Thursday, and will be gone by Sunday. When it returns is anybody's guess.
Originally Posted By eww4 I saw it in action just between the Hollywood Pictures entry and the Sun Plaza yesterday at about 11 a.m. We weren't allowed to get right up to it, as they were filming, but it was real neat to see.
Originally Posted By DlandDug The Muppet Mobile Lab rolled out several times today, with the last show (I believe) at 4:30. I understand it is heading back to WDI in Glendale for evaluation. This is a really cool attraction. There were several of the designers watching today. (One brought his 90 year old grandmother in to see his work.) It was nice to be able to compliment them directly on this fun, character driven invention.
Originally Posted By bean rumor is that it might head out to another park next. wether it returns or not is not known
Originally Posted By SIR at X-S Tech I wonder if what the article meant was that if it was in Florida, it could still be operated from Glendale. It works via wireless internet, so I wonder if that would be possible.
Originally Posted By cstephens I'd heard about them so we made it a point of seeing them at DCA on Sunday since a newspaper article had mentioned they'd be going back for more research and testing after that. We saw them for a few minutes, and they were really fun to see. It's not a "show" per se - it's really just testing and being able to marvel at what the AA's can do. Beeker mostly does his own kind of talking and pedals his bike on occasion. His head pops up and down. Honeydew is pretty impressive with the range of movement of his head. The crowd seemed to really enjoy it, and I liked the little touches of sayings on the device (e.g., "requires 4 AAA batteries"). There are various times when Honeydew squirts water and shoots out confetti. The husband said he saw three places on the device where he saw cameras, which is how Honeydew "sees". As much as I liked watching them, I was mostly just really jealous that they were able to ride a Segway. We did the Segway tour of Epcot when we were in WDW in early January, and I absolutely loved it. /cs
Originally Posted By Darkbeer Here is DlandDug talking to Dr. Honeydew... <a href="http://darkbeer.smugmug.com/gallery/2544109/1/133883668/Medium" target="_blank">http://darkbeer.smugmug.com/ga llery/2544109/1/133883668/Medium</a>
Originally Posted By retlawfan I saw it for a couple of outings on Sunday, and that thing is very cool. It's kind of like a mix of PUSH, a Segway, and the muppets. It's nice to see the Muppets getting some exposure in DCA again. Hopefully, it will return to DCA, once it has gone back to Glendale for it's 2.5 mile check up.
Originally Posted By Darkbeer ^Very doubtful, some folks are saying Orlando and the Studiop Park (whatever they are calling ti nowadays), or Hong Kong. DCA was just a easy place to test the new "thing" before shipping it off, just like Lucky.....
Originally Posted By Terminus We thought it was really cool when we saw it yesterday... Pretty impressive. I was impressed that the voice was so well done, and then read in the Orange County Register aritcle that they actually hired the guy who voiced Honeydew for the Muppets to do this. Pretty cool overall.
Originally Posted By Ryuki >>DCA was just a easy place to test the new "thing" before shipping it off, just like Lucky.....<< Yeah, since they no longer have an empty Super Star Limo building, and DCA is just about as empty, they test everything there now instead. PS: I actually like DCA. I just couldn't help saying it.
