INTERACTIVE INTERFACE MOUNTING ASSEMBLY FOR AMUSEMENT AND THEME PARK RIDES

• US 20090277295A1
• Filed: 07/22/2008
• Published: 11/12/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Original Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Inventors: WILZBACH, GREGORY A., FRANKENBERGER, JAMES STEPHEN, BRYAN, SUSAN M.
• Granted Patent: US 8,025,581 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 74/469
• CPC Class Codes: G05G 7/02 characterised by special provisions for conveying or converting motion, or for acting at a distance
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 74/20 Control lever and linkage systems

Abstract

A ride vehicle for use in amusement park rides with interactive game or show equipment. A vehicle body is included with a passenger seat and an interactive device operable by a passenger to interact with the interactive game. A mounting assembly is provided in or on vehicle body and is configured for pivotally mounting the interactive device on the vehicle body. The mounting assembly may be adapted such as with a cam or guide plate to rotate or otherwise position the interactive device through a range of positions at varying distances from the seat. Further, A passenger restraint assembly is provided and is used to determine a size of the passenger in the seat. The passenger restraint is linked to the mounting assembly to drive the mounting assembly so as to place the interactive device at a passenger-use position that is selected based on the defined size of the passenger.

Claims

1. An apparatus for providing mounting an interactive device in a ride or show vehicle that includes a passenger restraint to protect a passenger of the vehicle, comprising:

a support frame rigidly attached to the vehicle;

an attachment mechanism for pivotally attaching the interactive device to the support frame; and

a drive mechanism for linking the passenger restraint to the attachment mechanism, wherein movement of the passenger restraint from a loading and unloading position to a position to restrain a passenger within the vehicle drives the interactive device from a loading and unloading position to an interactive use position.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drive mechanism comprises a guide element causing the interactive device to move at a first rate relative to the passenger restraint during a first portion of a travel path of the passenger restraint and at a second rate relative to the passenger restraint during a second portion of the travel path, the second rate being greater than the first rate and the first portion of the travel path being proximate to the loading and unloading position of the passenger restraint.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the guide element comprises a guide plate with a guide slot having a first region associated with the first portion of the travel path and a second region associated with the second portion of the travel path.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the passenger restraint is pivotally mounted to the support frame and connected to the guide plate such that the guide plate moves concurrently with the passenger restraint.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the drive mechanism includes a driver linkage connected at a first end to the guide plate via the guide slot and at a second end to the attachment mechanism of the interactive device, whereby the interactive device is positioned concurrently with the passenger restraint.

6. A vehicle assembly for use in an interactive ride, comprising:

a body with a seat for a guest;

a mounting assembly attached to the body a distance from the seat;

a lap bar restraint pivotally mounted to the mounting assembly and including a lap bar positionable in a load and unload position and in a guest restraint position; and

a guest interactive device pivotally mounted to the mounting assembly, wherein the mounting assembly comprises an interconnection assembly connecting the lap bar restraint to the guest interactive device such that when the lap bar is moved through a path from the load and unload position to the guest restraint position the guest interactive device is concurrently moved from a load and unload position distal from the seat to a guest interaction position proximate to the seat.

7. The assembly of claim 6, wherein the path of the lap bar includes a first portion proximate to the load and unload position and a second portion distal to the load and unload position and wherein the lap bar and the interactive device are spaced apart a separation distance that varies over the path of the lap bar and is greater in the first portion.

8. The assembly of claim 7, wherein the interactive device is moved laterally at a first rate during the first portion and at a second rate during the second portion, the second rate being greater than the first rate.

9. The assembly of claim 6, wherein the interactive device includes a planar base pivotally attached to an arm extending from the mounting assembly, the arm being providing the pivotal mounting the mount assembly, whereby the planar base is maintained in a substantially consistent position relative to a platform or floor supporting the body during movement of the lap bar along the path from the load and unload position to the guest restraint position.

10. A ride vehicle for use in an amusement or theme park ride with interactive game or show equipment, comprising:

a vehicle body with a seat for receiving a passenger;

an interactive device operable by the passenger to interact with the interactive equipment;

a mounting assembly pivotally mounting the interactive device on the vehicle body, wherein the mounting assembly is operable to rotate the interactive device through a range of positions at varying distances from the seat; and

means for defining a size of the passenger in the seat, wherein the size defining means provides input to the mounting assembly to drive the mounting assembly to place the interactive device at a passenger-use position within the range of positions selected based on the defined size of the passenger.

11. The ride vehicle of claim 10, wherein the size defining means comprises a passenger restraint linked to the interactive device by the mounting assembly, whereby movement of the passenger restraint to a passenger restraint position proximate the passenger drives the interactive device to the passenger-use position.

12. The ride vehicle of claim 11, wherein the passenger restraint comprises a lap bar-type restraint pivotally connected to the mounting assembly, whereby rotating the lap bar-type restraint into the passenger restraint position at least partially concurrently rotates the interactive device via the mounting assembly into the passenger-use position.

13. The ride vehicle of claim 12, wherein the mounting assembly comprises a variable drive element configured to rotate the interactive device in response to rotation of the lap bar-type restraint at two or more rotation rates relative to movement of the lap bar-restraint.

14. The ride vehicle of claim 13, wherein the variable drive element comprises a guide plate with a guide slot with at least two portions each associated with the two or more rotation rates and initial rotation rates associated with a load and unload position for the lap bar-type restraint are smaller in magnitude than later rotation rates associated with the passenger restraint position for the lap bar-type restraint.

15. The ride vehicle of claim 14, wherein the portion of the guide plate slot associated with the initial rotation rate is oriented at an angle less than about 30 degrees from vertical.

16. The ride vehicle of claim 10, wherein the size defining means comprises a passenger restraint pivotally connected to the mounting assembly and wherein the input provided to the mounting assembly from the size defining means comprises a restraint rotation amount.

17. The ride vehicle of claim 16, wherein the mounting assembly includes a linkage assembly that links the passenger restraint to the interactive device such that interactive device rotates a device rotation amount in response to the rotation of the passenger restraint, the device rotation amount differing in magnitude from the restraint rotation amount.

18. The ride vehicle of claim 17, wherein the linkage assembly is configured to provide an at least partially non-linear relationship between the rotation of the interactive device and the rotation of the passenger restraint, the interactive device rotating at two or more rates during the rotation of the passenger restraint.

19. The ride vehicle of claim 18, wherein a first of the two or more rates is associated with a first portion of the rotation of the passenger restraint from a load/unload position toward the seat and a second of the two or more rates is associated with a second portion of the rotation of the passenger restraint more proximate to the seat, the first rate being less than the second rate of rotation for the interactive device.

20. The ride vehicle of claim 10, further comprising a mounting plate for the interactive device and a support pivotally mounted to the mounting plate at a first end and to the mounting assembly at a second end, wherein the support is linked to the size defining means via the mounting assembly to cause the support to rotate as the interactive device is placed in the passenger-use position and wherein the mounting plate is maintained in a planar orientation through the support rotation to maintain the interactive device in a device use position.