Disney has filed a patent for a new two-dimensional guiding system that could change points of view on a water flume ride. The patent’s images hint at a possible “Moana”-inspired ride.
Potential ‘Moana’ Water Flume Ride Patent
The patent, named “Guided boat with external discrete yaw control,” was filed in 2020 and published in 2024. It’s from inventor Kristopher M. Laffin. The technology described will allow boats to change points of view as they’re being propelled through the water. At the moment, U.S. Disney water rides utilize a single forward-facing ride system that only allows guests to view what is in front of them without turning their heads (Tiana’s Bayou Adventure) or a water raft ride that turns with no view control (Kali River Rapids).
Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure at Shanghai Disneyland is a water ride that allows for controlled turning but with a more complicated dark ride system.
Here is the patent’s abstract:
A water ride system configured to provide passengers of boats new and exciting experiences via enhanced storytelling opportunities. The water ride system is designed to allow ride designers to provide 2-dimensional guiding of the boat traveling in a flume in a direction of travel (DOT) coinciding with the direction of water flowing in the flume. The water ride system uses a combination of a guideway (or track) within the flume and a new guide bogie. The guide bogie has a square body and four corner-mounted guide wheels, and the bogie is mounted on the bottom of the boat so as to ride within the guideway to provide guided boats with various headings. Specifically, the boats can be oriented in many different directions rather than having a single fixed orientation, such as with a front of the boat facing in the DOT, as was the case with traditional water rides.
This new system will allow Imagineers to create story scenes, and then turn guests in a manner that allows them to see a scene they may have missed if they were only looking straight ahead. This turning is similar to the system used in Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind.
While this patent will affect the views that guests have, the rest of the attraction will operate with a standard flume ride system. This means that the water-propelled boat will move along as normal but the direction that the boat is facing as it moves will be changed by an underwater guide. Guests may not always be traveling in the direction that they’re facing.
The images in the patent depict an outrigger canoe similar to the one that Moana uses. Perhaps this means that a “Moana” water ride could be coming to Disney Parks after all. In 2022, Disney patented a water ride motion simulator that was thought to be for a Moana attraction. A “Moana” ride was previously considered as part of a Dinoland U.S.A. replacement at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
While those plans have been abandoned for the Tropical Americas land, this new patent makes it seem as though a “Moana” ride is still in the works. It could be part of the “Beyond Big Thunder” expansion planned for Magic Kingdom. Journey of Water, Inspired by “Moana” is a walkthrough attraction that opened at EPCOT last year.
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