Animatronics refers to mechatronic puppets.

[1] They are a modern variant of the automaton and are

often used for the portrayal of characters in films and in theme park attractions.
Before the term "animatronics" became common, they were usually referred to as "robots". Since
then, robots have become known as more practical programmable machines that do not necessarily
resemble living creatures. Robots (or other artificial beings) designed to convincingly resemble
humans are known as "androids".[2]
Animatronics is a multi-disciplinary field which
integrates puppetry, anatomy and mechatronics.[3][4] Animatronic figures can be implemented using
both computer control and human control, including teleoperation. Motion actuators are often used to
imitate muscle movements and create realistic motions in limbs. Figures are usually covered with
body shells and flexible skins made of hard and soft plastic materials and finished with details like
colors, hair and feathers and other components to make the figure more lifelike.
The term Audio-Animatronics was coined by Walt Disney in 1961 when he started developing
animatronics for entertainment and film. Audio-Animatronics does not differentiate between
animatronics and androids.
Autonomatronics was also defined by Disney Imagineers, to describe a more advanced Audio-
Animatronic technology featuring cameras and complex sensors to process information around the
character's environment and respond to that stimulus.[6]

Timeline[edit]

The Enchanted Tiki Room

Tyrannosaurus animatronic, the largest animatronic, used for Jurassic Park

 1939: Sparko, The Robot Dog, pet of Elektro, performs in front of the public but Sparko, unlike
many depictions of robots in that time, represented a living animal, thus becoming the very first
modern day animatronic character,[7] along with an unnamed horse which was reported to gallop
realistically. The animatronic galloping horse was also on display at the 1939 World's Fair, in a
different exhibit than Sparko's.[8], 1939 New York World's Fair
 1961: Heinrich Ernst develops the MH-1, a computer-operated mechanical hand.[9]
 1961: Walt Disney coins the term "Audio-Animatronics" and his WED Enterprises team begins
developing modern animatronic technology.[10]
 1963: The first Audio-Animatronics created by Disney, the Enchanted Tiki Birds of Walt Disney's
Enchanted Tiki Room, debut at Disneyland., Disneyland
 1964: In the film Mary Poppins, animatronic birds are the first animatronics to be featured in a
motion picture. The first animatronic figure of a person is created by Disney and is Abraham
Lincoln, featured at the Illinois State Pavilion of the 1964 New York World's Fair.[10]
 1968: The first animatronic character at a restaurant is created. Goes by the name Golden Mario
and was built by Team Built in 1968.[10]
 1977: Chuck E. Cheese's (then known as Pizza Time Theatre) opens its doors, as the first
restaurant with animatronics as an attraction.
 1980: ShowBiz Pizza Place opens with the Rock-afire Explosion
 1982: Ben Franklin is the first animatronic figure to walk up a set of stairs.[11]
 1989: The first A-100 animatronic is developed for The Great Movie Ride attraction at the
Disney-MGM Studios' to represent The Wicked Witch of the West.
 1993: The largest animatronic figure ever built is the T. rex for the movie, Jurassic Park.
 1998: Tiger Electronics begins selling Furby, an animatronic pet with over 800 English phrases
or Furbish and the ability to react to its environment., Vernon Hills, Illinois
 May 11, 1999: Sony releases the AIBO animatronics pet., Tokyo, Japan
 2005: Engineered arts produced the first version of their animatronic actor, RoboThespian
 2008: Mr. Potato Head at the Toy Story exhibit features lips with superior range of movement to
any other animatronic figure previously.[12], Disney's Hollywood Studios
 October 31, 2008 – July 1, 2009: The Abraham Lincoln animatronic character is upgraded to
incorporate autonomatronic technology.[10], The Hall of Presidents
 September 28, 2009: Disney develops Otto, the first interactive figure that can hear, see and
sense actions in the room.[10], D23 Expo

History[edit]
Origins in automata[edit]
Main article: Automaton
Animatronics stand in a very long tradition of mechanical automata, that could be powered by for
instance hydraulics, pneumatics or clockwork. Early descriptions are found in Greek mythology and
ancient Chinese writings. The oldest extant examples date to the 16th century.
Modern attractions[edit]
See also: List of Disney attractions using Audio-Animatronics and Category:Animatronic attractions

Sparko the Robot Dog from 1940s

The first animatronics characters to be displayed to the public were a dog and a horse. Each were
the attraction at two separate spectacles during the 1939 New York World's Fair. Sparko, The Robot
Dog, pet of Elektro the Robot, performs in front of the public at the 1939 New York World's Fair but
Sparko is not like normal robots. Sparko represents a living animal, thus becoming the very first
modern day animatronic character,[7] along with an unnamed horse which was reported to gallop
realistically. The animatronic galloping horse was also on display at the 1939 World's Fair, in a
different exhibit than Sparko's.[8]
Walt Disney is often credited for popularizing animatronics for entertainment after he bought an
animatronic bird while he was vacationing, although it is disputed whether it was in New Orleans[13] or
Europe.[14] Disney's vision for audio-animatronics was primarily focused on patriotic displays rather
than amusements.[15]
In 1951, two years after Walt Disney discovered animatronics, he commissioned machinist Roger
Broggie and sculptor Wathel Rogers to lead a team tasked with creating a 9" tall figure that could
move and talk simulating dance routines performed by actor Buddy Ebsen. The project was titled
'Project Little Man' but was never finished. A year later, Walt Disney Imagineering was
created.[16] Disney used a supposedly animatronic bird in 1962 for the film Mary Poppins (released in
1964). This was actually controlled fully by bicycle cables.[citation needed]
After "Project Little Man", the Imagineering team at Disney's first project was a "Chinese Head"
which was on display in the lobby of their office. Customers could ask the head questions and it
would reply with words of wisdom. The eyes blinked and its mouth opened and closed.[16]
The Walt Disney Production company started using animatronics in 1955 for Disneyland's ride,
the Jungle Cruise,[17] and later for its attraction Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room which featured
animatronic Enchanted Tiki Birds.
The first fully completed human audio-animatronic figure was Abraham Lincoln, created by Walt
Disney in 1964 for the 1964 World's Fair in the New York. In 1965, Disney upgraded the figure and
coined it as the Lincoln Mark II, which appeared at the Opera House at Disneyland Resort in
California.[15] For three months, the original Lincoln performed in New York, while the Lincoln Mark II
played 5 performances per hour at Disneyland. Body language and facial motions were matched to
perfection with the recorded speech. Actor Royal Dano voiced the animatronics version of Abraham
Lincoln.[15]
Lucky the Dinosaur is an approximately 8-foot-tall (2.4 m) green Segnosaurus which pulls a flower-
covered cart and is led by "Chandler the Dinosaur Handler". Lucky is notable in that he was the first
free-roving audio-animatronic figure ever created by Disney's Imagineers.[18] The flower cart he pulls
conceals the computer and power source.[19]
The Muppet Mobile Lab is a free-roving, audio-animatronic entertainment attraction designed by
Walt Disney Imagineering. Two Muppet characters, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and his
assistant, Beaker, pilot the vehicle through the park, interacting with guests and deploying special
effects such as foggers, flashing lights, moving signs, confetti cannons and spray jets. It is currently
deployed at Hong Kong Disneyland in Hong Kong.
A Laffing Sal is one of the several automated characters that were used to attract carnival and
amusement park patrons to funhouses and dark rides throughout the United States.[20] Its
movements were accompanied by a raucous laugh that sometimes frightened small children and
annoyed adults.[21]
Film and television[edit]
The film industry has been a driving force revolutionizing the technology used to develop
animatronics.[22]
Animatronics are used in situations where a creature does not exist, the action is too risky or costly
to use real actors or animals, or the action could never be obtained with a living person or animal. Its
main advantage over CGI and stop motion is that the simulated creature has a physical presence
moving in front of the camera in real time. The technology behind animatronics has become more
advanced and sophisticated over the years, making the puppets even more lifelike.
Animatronics were first introduced by Disney in the 1964 film Mary Poppins which featured an
animatronic bird. Since then, animatronics have been used extensively in such movies as Jaws,
and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, which relied heavily on animatronics.[23]
Directors such as Steven Spielberg and Jim Henson have been pioneers in using animatronics in
the film industry.
The 1993 film Jurassic Park used a combination of computer-generated imagery in conjunction with
life-sized animatronic dinosaurs built by Stan Winston and his team. Winston's animatronic "T. rex"
stood almost 20 feet (6.1 m),[24] 40 feet (12 m) in length[25] and even the largest animatronics weighing
9,000 pounds (4,100 kg) were able to perfectly recreate the appearance and natural movement on
screen of a full-sized Tyrannosaurus rex.[26]
Jack Horner called it "the closest I've ever been to a live dinosaur".[25] Critics referred to
Spielberg's dinosaurs as breathtakingly — and terrifyingly — realistic.[27][28]
The 1999 BBC miniseries Walking with Dinosaurs was produced using a combination of about
80% CGI and 20% animatronic models.[29] The quality of computer imagery of the day was good, but
animatronics were still better at distance shots, as well as closeups of the dinosaurs.[29] Animatronics
for the series were designed by British animatronics firm Crawley Creatures.[29] The show was
followed up in 2007 with a live adaptation of the series, Walking with Dinosaurs: The Arena
Spectacular.
Geoff Peterson is an animatronic human skeleton that serves as the sidekick on the late-night talk
show The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. Often referred to as a "robot skeleton", Peterson is a
radio-controlled animatronic robot puppet designed and built by Grant Imahara of MythBusters.[30]
Advertising[edit]
The British advertisement campaign for Cadbury Schweppes titled Gorilla featured an actor inside a
gorilla suit with an animatronically animated face.
The Slowskys was an advertising campaign for Comcast Cable's Xfinity broadband Internet service.
The ad features two animatronic turtles, and it won the gold Effie Award in 2007.[31]
Toys[edit]
Some examples of animatronic toys include Teddy Ruxpin, Big Mouth Billy Bass, FurReal, Kota the
triceratops, Pleo, WowWee Alive Chimpanzee, Microsoft Actimates, and Furby. Well-known brands
include Cuddle Barn, Gemmy Industries, and Dan Dee.

Design[edit]
An animatronics character is built around an internal supporting frame, usually made of steel.
Attached to these "bones" are the "muscles" which can be manufactured using elastic netting
composed of styrene beads.[32] The frame provides the support for the electronics and mechanical
components, as well as providing the shape for the outer skin.[33]
The "skin" of the figure is most often made of foam rubber, silicone or urethane poured into moulds
and allowed to cure. To provide further strength a piece of fabric is cut to size and embedded in the
foam rubber after it is poured into the mould. Once the mould has fully cured, each piece is
separated and attached to the exterior of the figure providing the appearance and texture similar to
that of "skin".[34]

Structure[edit]
An animatronics character is typically designed to be as realistic as possible and thus, is built
similarly to how it would be in real life. The framework of the figure is like the "skeleton". Joints,
motors, and actuators act as the "muscles". Connecting all the electrical components together are
wires, such as the "nervous system" of a real animal or person.[35]
Frame or skeleton[edit]
Steel, aluminum, plastic, and wood are all commonly used in building animatronics but each has its
best purpose. The relative strength, as well as the weight of the material itself, should be considered
when determining the most appropriate material to use. The cost of the material may also be a
concern.[35]
Exterior or skin[edit]
Several materials are commonly used in the fabrication of an animatronics figure's exterior.
Dependent on the particular circumstances, the best material will be used to produce the most
lifelike form.
For example, "eyes" and "teeth" are commonly made completely out of acrylic.[36]
Latex[edit]
White latex is commonly used as a general material because it has a high level of elasticity. It is also
pre-vulcanized, making it easy and fast to apply.[37] Latex is produced in several grades. Grade 74 is
a popular form of latex that dries rapidly and can be applied very thick, making it ideal for developing
molds.[38]
Foam latex is a lightweight, soft form of latex which is used in masks and facial prosthetics to
change a person's outward appearance, and in animatronics to create a realistic "skin".[38] The
Wizard of Oz was one of the first films to make extensive use of foam latex prosthetics in the
1930s.[39]
Silicone[edit]
Disney has a research team devoted to improving and developing better methods of creating more
lifelike animatronics exteriors with silicone.[40]
RTV silicone (room temperature vulcanization silicone) is used primarily as a molding material as it
is very easy to use but is relatively expensive. Few other materials stick to it, making molds easy to
separate.[41][42]
Bubbles are removed from silicone by pouring the liquid material in a thin stream or processing in a
vacuum chamber prior to use. Fumed silica is used as a bulking agent for thicker coatings of the
material.[43]
Polyurethane[edit]
Polyurethane rubber is a more cost effective material to use in place of silicone. Polyurethane comes
in various levels of hardness which are measured on the Shore scale. Rigid polyurethane foam is
used in prototyping because it can be milled and shaped in high density. Flexible polyurethane foam
is often used in the actual building of the final animatronic figure because it is flexible and bonds well
with latex.[38]
Plaster[edit]
As a commonplace construction and home decorating material, plaster is widely available. Its rigidity
limits its use in moulds, and plaster moulds are unsuitable when undercuts are present. This may
make plaster far more difficult to use than softer materials like latex or silicone.[42]

Movement[edit]
Pneumatic actuators can be used for small animatronics but are not powerful enough for large
designs and must be supplemented with hydraulics. To create more realistic movement in large
figures, an analog system is generally used to give the figures a full range of fluid motion rather than
simple two position movements.[44]

Emotion modeling[edit]
Mimicking the often subtle displays of humans and other living creatures, and the associated
movement is a challenging task when developing animatronics. One of the most common emotional
models is the Facial Action Coding System (FACS) developed by Ekman and Friesen.[45] FACS
defines that through facial expression, humans can recognize 6 basic emotions: anger, disgust, fear,
joy, sadness, and surprise. Another theory is that of Ortony, Clore, and Collins, or the OCC
model[46] which defines 22 different emotional categories.[47]