Disney, Universal file new advanced ride system patents

New patents from Disney Enterprises and Universal City Studios give tantalizing clues about what they have on the drawing boards. This week, we've seen both theme park titans filing patents for new advanced ride systems.

ORLANDO, Fla. - New patents from Disney Enterprises and Universal City Studios give tantalizing clues about what they have on the drawing boards.

This week, we've seen both theme park titans filing patents for new advanced ride systems.

Disney filed a patent for a system that lets riders affect the speed or direction of a ride based on which way they lean, or apply pressure, inside the ride vehicle.

"Dumbo has always allowed little guests to rise and fall as they go around in a circle, similar to the Astro Orbiter, the rocket jets back in the '70s, where you could go up and down," said theme park expert Seth Kubersky, from TheUnofficialGuides.com. "This looks like it might be a next level of that sort of thing."

At the same time, Universal filed an application for a "round ride" system that looks like an enormous carousel, but with bigger vehicles on arms that can be controlled separately from the center wheel.

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"Not only could all the vehicles go around in a circle but each vehicle can turn left and right, all the arms can go up and down. So it's really just an amplification of what we've already seen for an original, tried-and-true classic," said Tharin White, a theme park expert with EYNTK.info. "If you're able to stick 10, 20, 30 people into one of those, this could be a showstopper of a center of a park."

Disney & Universal file new patents for unique rides

FOX 35's Matt Trezza joins FOX 35's Garrett Wymer to break down the latest patents filed by Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando which showcase Disney's user-controlled ride concept and Universal's Round Ride system which looks like an enormous carousel.

Theme park experts say these patents were part of the continuing race between these two huge theme parks to lure visitors. White said the winners were the fans.

"The arms race in the theme parks keeps going and going, and us as theme park fans are absolutely the biggest benefactors of that. Disney and Universal are always looking to upgrade their tech, offerings, grabbing new intellectual properties."

Both parks are already undergoing major expansions, with Universal soon to open Epic Universe, and Disney announcing Villain's Land, plus new attractions at Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios.

"There is much more spending to come. They're putting billions of dollars into R&D and construction, and I expect to see that escalate over the coming years, assuming Epic Universe brings more people to town like both sides expect," Kubersky said.

Industry observers also point out, while this tech may lead to some amazing new rides and experiences, it may be years — if ever — that the parks actually use it on their rides.

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