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The Omnimover is an
amusement ride Amusement rides, sometimes called carnival rides, are mechanical devices or structures that move people especially kids to create fun and enjoyment. Rides are often perceived by many as being scary or more dangerous than they actually are. This ...
system used for
Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...
attractions. Roger Broggie and Bert Brundage developed the system for WED Enterprises, which patented Omnimover in April 1968. The term was coined by Imagineer
Bob Gurr Robert Henry "Bob" Gurr (born October 25, 1931 in Los Angeles, California) is an American amusement ride designer and Imagineer. His most famous work was for Walt Disney's Disneyland Park, and its subsequent sister parks. Gurr is said to have de ...
. Outside of Disney, it is sometimes known as an Endless Transit System. The ride system was descended from the PeopleMover ride system developed for Ford's Magic Skyway at the
1964 New York World's Fair The 1964–1965 New York World's Fair was a world's fair that held over 140 pavilions and 110 restaurants, representing 80 nations (hosted by 37), 24 US states, and over 45 corporations with the goal and the final result of building exhibits or ...
. It featured continuously-moving ride vehicles like its predecessor, but also had the ability to swivel each car 360 degrees so that riders would see what the ride designers intended them to see. The first Omnimover was developed for
Adventure Thru Inner Space Adventure Thru Inner Space was an attraction in Disneyland's Tomorrowland, presented by Monsanto Company. It was the first attraction to utilize Disney's Omnimover system. The ride simulated shrinking guests to the size smaller than an atom (th ...
, a
Disneyland Disneyland is a amusement park, theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney in ...
attraction that opened in 1967. It was then used in Disneyland's
Haunted Mansion The Haunted Mansion is a dark ride attraction located at Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, and Tokyo Disneyland. The haunted house attraction features a ride-through tour in Omnimover vehicles called "Doom Buggies", and a walk-through show is displaye ...
attraction, where the clamshell-shaped cars were nicknamed Doombuggies.


Description

The Omnimover system was created by
Roger E. Broggie Roger Edward Broggie (October 2, 1908 – November 4, 1991) was an American mechanical engineer who worked with Walt Disney and the Walt Disney Company. He is considered the first Disney Imagineer. Early life Broggie was born in 1908, in Pittsf ...
and Bert Brundage to provide a ride system capable of providing passengers with a motion-picture-type experience by controlling the line of sight. This concept also allows the designers to be able to place infrastructure elements of the attraction, such as lighting and projectors, behind the vehicles without concern for having the illusions of the attraction revealed to the riders. The system consists of a chain of vehicles operating on a track, usually hidden beneath the floor. The chain of vehicles maintains constant motion at a specific speed (usually about per second) throughout the entire course of the attraction. To facilitate boarding and disembarking from the vehicles, a
conveyor belt A conveyor belt is the carrying medium of a belt conveyor system (often shortened to belt conveyor). A belt conveyor system is one of many types of conveyor systems. A belt conveyor system consists of two or more pulleys (sometimes referred to ...
moving at approximately the same speed as the ride vehicles parallels the track at the loading and unloading areas. Passengers step from the moving belt into the vehicle or vice versa. One of the features that differentiates this system from other ride systems is the ability of the vehicle to be rotated to a predetermined orientation. Previous ride conveyor systems, such as
Futurama ''Futurama'' is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of the professional slacker Philip J. Fry, who is cryogenically preserved for 1000 years a ...
at the
1939 New York World's Fair The 1939–40 New York World's Fair was a world's fair held at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York, United States. It was the second-most expensive American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchas ...
and Ford's Magic Skyway at the
1964 New York World's Fair The 1964–1965 New York World's Fair was a world's fair that held over 140 pavilions and 110 restaurants, representing 80 nations (hosted by 37), 24 US states, and over 45 corporations with the goal and the final result of building exhibits or ...
, were not designed to allow the individual ride vehicles to rotate. In addition to the main ride rails, each vehicle also has two control rails attached to a wheel: one controls swiveling, allowing the vehicle to face in any direction at any point on the track, and the other allows the vehicle to tilt in relation to the inclining and declining portions of the track. Early Omnimovers such as for Adventure Thru Inner Space at Disneyland were manufactured by
Arrow Development Arrow Development was an amusement park ride and roller coaster design and manufacturing company, incorporated in California on November 16, 1945, and based in Mountain View. It was founded by Angus "Andy" Anderson, Karl Bacon, William Hardiman ...
, with later systems such as the
Buzz Lightyear attractions Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin (also known as Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters at California, Tokyo and Hong Kong, Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast at Paris and Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue at Shanghai) is an interactive shooting dark ride attractio ...
being manufactured by
Sansei Yusoki Sansei Technologies, Inc. (formerly Sansei Yusoki Co., Ltd.) is a manufacturing firm based in Osaka, Japan. The company specialises in the manufacturing of amusement rides, stage equipment, and elevators. History Sansei Yusoki was founded on Fe ...
. Two Omnimover systems have been in continuous use since their debut but have featured different attractions: *
Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin (also known as Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters at California, Tokyo and Hong Kong, Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast at Paris and Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue at Shanghai) is an interactive shooting dark ride attractio ...
at
Tomorrowland Tomorrowland is one of the many themed lands featured at all of the Magic Kingdom styled Disney theme parks around the world owned or licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Each version of the land is different and features numerous attractions t ...
in the
Magic Kingdom Magic Kingdom Park, previously known as Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom (1971–1994) and The Magic Kingdom (1994–2017), is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando, Florida. Owned and operated by The W ...
uses the Omnimover ride system of two former attractions. The first attraction to occupy this space was
If You Had Wings If You Had Wings was an attraction at Walt Disney World. It was a two-person Omnimover dark ride in Tomorrowland in the Magic Kingdom, sponsored by Eastern Air Lines. It featured travel destinations throughout the Caribbean and elsewhere, all of ...
, which was sponsored by
Eastern Airlines Eastern Air Lines, also colloquially known as Eastern, was a major United States airline from 1926 to 1991. Before its dissolution, it was headquartered at Miami International Airport in an unincorporated area of Miami-Dade County, Florida. Ea ...
from 1972 to 1987, when they dropped sponsorship. The ride then was known as
If You Could Fly If You Had Wings was an attraction at Walt Disney World. It was a two-person Omnimover dark ride in Tomorrowland in the Magic Kingdom, sponsored by Eastern Air Lines. It featured travel destinations throughout the Caribbean and elsewhere, all ...
until it was closed in January 1989. Six months later, the ride system was reused and transformed into
Delta Dreamflight Delta Dreamflight, renamed Dreamflight and then Take Flight during its final two years of operation, was an attraction located in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom inside the Walt Disney World Resort, and was sponsored by Delta Air Lines. Dreamfl ...
, which was sponsored by
Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the List of airlines by foundation date, world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atla ...
until 1996. The ride vehicles were reprogrammed in 1989 to alter their viewing direction. In 1996, the ride became known as Take Flight and closed on January 9, 1998. Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin uses the very same Omnimover ride system of If You Had Wings/Delta Dreamflight, except for having new third-generation vehicles that can be rotated by the riders to any angle to shoot at various targets. This variant and that used for The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Undersea Adventure use electric motors on the individual vehicles to rotate, instead of fixed control rails. Space Ranger Spin also uses two of the speed tunnels from If You Had Wings. *
The Seas with Nemo & Friends The Seas with Nemo & Friends (formerly The Living Seas) is a pavilion located in the World Nature section of Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. The pavilion is themed as an oceanic exploration base called ...
used to be home to
The Living Seas ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
, which used a different attraction theme and a different Omnimover vehicle design. Although
Journey Into Imagination with Figment Journey into Imagination with Figment is the third and latest incarnation of a dark ride attraction located within the Imagination! pavilion at World Celebration at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. Origi ...
in
Epcot Epcot, stylized in all uppercase as EPCOT, is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division. Inspired by an unreal ...
is now an Omnimover basis track, the original incarnation of the ride was a continuously moving vehicle system.


Current attraction series using the Omnimover system

*
Haunted Mansion The Haunted Mansion is a dark ride attraction located at Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, and Tokyo Disneyland. The haunted house attraction features a ride-through tour in Omnimover vehicles called "Doom Buggies", and a walk-through show is displaye ...
Series ** Disneyland ** Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World ** Tokyo Disneyland ** Disneyland Paris * Buzz Lightyear Astro Blaster Series ** Disneyland ** Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World ** Tokyo Disneyland ** Disneyland Paris ** Shanghai Disneyland * The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Undersea Adventure ** Disney California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort ** Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World


Current individual attractions using the Omnimover system

* Epcot ** Spaceship Earth **
The Seas with Nemo & Friends The Seas with Nemo & Friends (formerly The Living Seas) is a pavilion located in the World Nature section of Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. The pavilion is themed as an oceanic exploration base called ...
System recycled from a previous attraction * Hong Kong Disneyland ** Ant-Man and The Wasp: Nano Battle! (originally opened as Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters)


Omnimover attractions no longer in operation

This list includes all Omnimover attractions that have been permanently removed and not recycled. * Disneyland **
Adventure Thru Inner Space Adventure Thru Inner Space was an attraction in Disneyland's Tomorrowland, presented by Monsanto Company. It was the first attraction to utilize Disney's Omnimover system. The ride simulated shrinking guests to the size smaller than an atom (th ...
(replaced with
Star Tours Star Tours was a motion simulator attraction at several Disney theme parks, based on the successful ''Star Wars'' film series created by George Lucas. Set in the ''Star Wars'' universe, the attraction sent guests on an excursion trip to Endor, ...
in 1987) *
Epcot Epcot, stylized in all uppercase as EPCOT, is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division. Inspired by an unreal ...
**
World of Motion World of Motion, sponsored by General Motors,"GM's World of Motion Exhibit opens in Epcot Center at the Walt Disney World Resort. Before the year is out, the one millionth visitor to the exhibit is recorded." http://www.gm.com/company/corp_info/ ...
(replaced with
Test Track Test Track is a high-speed slot car thrill ride located in World Discovery at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. The ride is a simulated excursion through the rigorous testing procedures that General Mot ...
in 1999) ** Horizons (replaced with Mission: SPACE in 2003. Homages to Horizons can be found in both Mission: SPACE and in the Magic Kingdom's
Space Mountain Space Mountain is a space-themed indoor roller coaster attraction located at five of the six Disneyland-style Disney Parks. Although all five versions of the attraction are different in nature, all have a similar conical exterior façade that is ...
.) **
Journey Into Imagination Journey into Imagination with Figment is the third and latest incarnation of a dark ride attraction located within the Imagination! pavilion at World Celebration at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. Orig ...
* Hong Kong Disneyland ** Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters (rethemed into Ant-Man & The Wasp: Nano Battle! in 2019)


Current attractions using the Endless Transit System

*
Carnival Festival Carnival Festival (or "Carnaval Festival" in Dutch) is a dark ride in amusement park Efteling in the Netherlands. It was designed by Joop Geesink and opened its doors in 1984. History and details The ride system was built by Mack Rides, the ...
- Efteling * Geister Rikscha - Phantasialand * Batalla del Alcazar "Adelante" - Shima Spain Village - Parque Espana * Abenteuer Atlantis - Europa-Park * Geisterschloss - Europa-Park * Madame Freudenreich Curiosités - Europa-Park * Hershey’s Chocolate Tour -
Hershey's Chocolate World Hershey's Chocolate World is the name of five visitor centers that started in Hershey, Pennsylvania, United States. Open year-round, Hershey's Chocolate World offers marketplace shops and restaurants, specializing in Hershey's chocolate products. ...
*
Boo Blasters on Boo Hill Boo Blasters on Boo Hill is an interactive family dark ride designed and manufactured by Sally Corporation. The ride is located at four Cedar Fair amusement parks — Canada's Wonderland, Carowinds, Kings Dominion, and Kings Island. The ride was ...
(formerly
Phantom Theater Phantom Theater was a dark ride located at Kings Island amusement park in Mason, Ohio. The ride was manufactured by Morgan Manufacturing and was similar to Disney's Omnimover ride system, with a continuously moving chain of vehicles. The attract ...
) -
Kings Island Kings Island is a amusement park located northeast of Cincinnati in Mason, Ohio, United States. Owned and operated by Cedar Fair, the park first opened in 1972 by the Taft Broadcasting Company. It was part of a larger effort to move and expan ...
* Spirit Of London Ride - Madame Tussauds, London * Ramses: il risveglio -
Gardaland Gardaland Resort is an amusement park located in northeastern Italy. Opened on 19 July 1975, the resort includes Gardaland Park, Gardaland Sea-Life, Legoland Waterpark, Gardaland Hotel, Adventure Hotel and Magic Hotel. It is adjacent to Lake Ga ...
* Yoshi's Adventure -
Universal Studios Japan is a theme park located in Osaka, Japan. Opened on March 31, 2001, it is one of six Universal Parks & Resorts, Universal Studios theme parks worldwide and was the first to open outside the United States. The park is owned and operated by a whol ...
* The Secret Life of Pets: Off the Leash! -
Universal Studios Hollywood Universal Studios Hollywood is a film studio and theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusemen ...


Variations

* Horizons at EPCOT is notable for being the only attraction to utilize an inverted Omnimover. The vehicles did not rotate, but instead traveled sideways during the entire attraction. *
The Living Seas ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
at EPCOT featured a short "sea-cab" trip that traveled through a tunnel into the pavilion's main aquarium. When the attraction was re-themed into
The Seas with Nemo and Friends The Seas with Nemo & Friends (formerly The Living Seas) is a pavilion located in the World Nature section of Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. The pavilion is themed as an oceanic exploration base called ...
, the opening ride-through portion utilizing "clam-mobiles" was extended. Although visually similar to the Omnimover system, these vehicles do not tilt or rotate away from parallel to the track. This is due to the lack of space below the track for the mechanics and space in the ride area to place anything behind the vehicles for them to turn around to face. *
Buzz Lightyear Buzz Lightyear is the main character in the ''Toy Story'' franchise created by Disney and Pixar mainly voiced by Tim Allen. He is a Superhero toy action figure based on the in-universe media franchise consisting of a blockbuster feature fi ...
is the only Omnimover-style ride where riders spin the vehicles manually. *
Journey Into Imagination Journey into Imagination with Figment is the third and latest incarnation of a dark ride attraction located within the Imagination! pavilion at World Celebration at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. Orig ...
at EPCOT used multiple individual trains of Omnimover-like cars. While the cars do rotate, they come to a full stop for loading and unloading of guests.


References


External links

* {{Commonscatinline Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Amusement rides based on rail transport Disney technology