This page shows some "Behind the Scenes" images. Listed are different types of show control programming systems and playback modules. The Animated head (top left) is one I built in my spare time. The head took only 16 hours to make and has all the basic face functions. The images (top right) are random shots of Animatronic and static figure heads from Disney and Universal Studios Florida. Some people tell me I look like one of them! I see no resemblance.
This is one of a few programming consoles for Disney Animatronics. Each knob and button activates the corresponding body part as indicated on the console. The knobs are used for precise analog movement and positioning while the buttons are used for digital on/off activation's. An entire show can be programmed in real time, played back, synchronized to a soundtrack using SMPTE timecode, downloaded to a playback only rack system and stored to disk.
The computer being held above is a Gilderfluke MiniBrick 8 show controller. It has 8 digital outputs for controlling on/off functions and 2 digital inputs for triggering It's many internal functions. This unit is programmed by any personal computer running Windows 9X using Gilderfluke's free proprietary programming software. It costs around $120.00 and can be bought directly from Gilderfluke & Co.
The unit above is an Alcorn McBride IO64 show controller. It has 32 digital inputs and 32 digital outputs. This has basically the same capability as the MiniBrick 8 but as a much larger scale. To program this controller, you need Alcorn McBride's free Proprietary programming software and Windows 9X. Cost is about $600.00 and can be purchased from Alcorn McBride.
Some show control computers operate much
like a sophisticated multi-track tape recorder. This one on the right has 32
digital outputs triggered by 32 toggle
switches which can control different movements or effects. The show can be recorded in
real time and played back while you record other things. The black buttons on the lower right side of the unit are simply marked PLAY -
RECORD - STOP. Nothing could be simpler! If you make a mistake recording, no
problem. Simply go back to the address where you screwed up using the 3 digit hex
display and correct the problem one frame at a time. I've had a blast using this
unit during Halloween shows! This unit costs about $1,200 and can be
purchased directly from R.A. Gray Inc.
Continue on down and take a peek at some animatronics before showtime!
This is an
animatronic bird I constructed for Rainforest Cafe - Downtown Disney. The head has a
nod and two side tilt movements. The bird is in it's lean forward position but can
stand fully upright. This figure can operate using any show controller but an Alcorn
McBride IO64 controller handles the job quite nicely.
This is what
T. Bone the singing
skeleton looks like without any clothes on. Pretty strange looking huh? The
unit you see here was my first full sized animated skeleton. Later models are
fabricated with a more rigid steel framework and have many more movement features.
Here is T. Bone in my garage during a quick programming session for a last minute public appearance. Equipment shown in this picture include: Laptop (for audio and show sync), Amplifier and Show Controller (motion control and lighting).
Who's the geek with the cap on?! It's me working with an early model animated human figure. This unit had just about every possible movement. For example It could sit down and stand up with the assistance of high tension springs mounted in it's knee joints. Sometime before this photo was taken, this animated figure was used as an animatronic Roy Rogers at Six Flags Over Texas theme park in Arlington, Texas.
This is a convict body I built for Walt Disney World. This poor guy is in a jail cell and attempts to free himself from his chains by pounding them with a hammer and yanking on them with the other hand. Shown here are two black 6 volt batteries on the right and the gray box on the left houses the show controller. The figure operates on Co2 pressure supplied by one large tank mounted inside the float. It performed for 3 years in the Mickey's not so scary Halloween parade before it was re-themed for another type of float design. Click below for a short video! Real Video Format.
Well, here's that
goofy guy again. This time he's repairing a sick crocodile. Actually, the
cylinders that control the eye blinks needed replacement so the skull was cut and the
cylinders replaced. While the croc was out, we gave it a fresh paint job and fed it
a parrot.
Oh My GOD!!
While trying to get it delivered back to it's home, I was attacked! Good
thing it only has rubber teeth!
Adding a few new movements to a parrot.
If you are interested in creating your own
animatronics, I can give you a little help to get started. 
for the ingredients page.
