A patent filed by Disney shows how they plan to improve flying theater attractions like Soarin’ with a greater range of motion.

New Soarin’ Patent

Disney Imagineer Mark Sumner designed the original Soarin’ mechanism with an Erector Set. The new mechanism references Sumner’s original patent, aiming to improve upon the original design.

The updated flying theater attraction would be “more aggressive” with heaving, pitching, and rolling to simulate turbulence.

One iteration is similar to the current versions of Soarin’, with guests loading when the seats are on the ground. The system would then raise guests into the air thanks to retracting cables that propel them along a curved rail track.

Another iteration described in the patent shows loading taking place above and guests then being launched downwards.

The above figure shows how, once in the show position, the seats could pitch back and forth.

And this figure shows the row of seats rolling.

These improvements are “intended to replicate the motion of a non-specific flying machine, having the ability to replicate motions that are more aggressive than the traditional floating or gliding experience.”

What do you think about Disney potentially introducing more thrilling Soarin’-like attractions in the future? Let us know in the comments.

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