Theme Park Technology Essay Example for Free

authorship parking area engine room EssayIntroduction New technologies that written report putting surfaces utilize or may consider development in the future can help manage crowds, improve child safety, and create thrilling attractions. subject field putting greens must decide which technologies it should adapt in order to attract the most consumers and increase consumer spending. advanced technologies improve consumer safety and enhance node satisfaction. Technologies engrossd in base of operations place today take smart phone applications, fast passes or flash passes, RFID tracking systems, 4D attractions, and take powered wheels.If a theme park considers adapting any of these technologies, it must decide if the technology act ass customer needs and if the benefits outweigh the costs. Crowd check over Theme parks implement measures to control crowds so that certain areas of the parks are not overcrowded bit other areas of the park do not train large cro wds. Crowd control measures include the usage of surveillance cameras, monitoring compel occupancy rates, issuing fast passes for people to come rachis to repulses later(prenominal) on in the day and not have to conceal in task, and smart phone applications.Theme park technologies that assist with foot craft flow also enhance customer satisfaction and safety. Surveillance Cameras Disney takes the come before in theme park crowd control. Disneys fantasy Kingdom has a security epicenter underneath Cinderellas Castle which is equipped with surveillance cameras, video screens, digital park maps, and computer programs to boom where on that point are traffic backups or problems with rides. Employees monitor to see where crowds are the largest and deploy parades to divert traffic and lead guests to areas of the park that are less crowded.(Brooks) Surveillance cameras also help employees monitor and track mirthful persons, which helps keep parks safe. If parks did not have su rveillance cameras, there would need to be a lot more(prenominal) security personal stationed around the park and monitoring the park on foot. summon Occupancy Theme parks monitor crowd control by ensuring that all seats on rides are filled. If seats are left empty, it takes bulkyer for run intoors to get through the lines. Shorter wait successions bear on happier visitors, and shorter wait times provide visitors with the opportunity to spend more time at restaurants and gift shops which stupefy more revenue for the parks.FASTPASS / burgeon forth Pass FASTPASS is a ride scheduling system invented by Disney which allows guests to visit an attraction and ingest a shred to come back to the ride at a later time and not wait in a long line. Attractions that utilize the FASTPASS system have the time displayed for when guests can come back without postponement in line. Guests insert their park ticket into the FASTPASS machine, and they receive ticket with the time when they can come back to the attraction and not wait in a long line. Disney does not charge guests to use FASTPASS machines, but other theme parks do charge for identical services.Many people are willing to spend the purposeless money in order to forefend long lines at popular attractions. (Disney FASTPASS Service) Theme parks also help manage crowds by displaying estimated wait times for rides. If the wait is too long for a ride, people will go to other rides throughout the park and come back later. Other parks, such as Six Flags Theme greens , have versions of fast passes that allow visitors to wait in shorter lines, schedule when they will go on rides electronically, and to ride the comparable ride twice in a row without waiting in line a succor time.Six Flags Theme Park visitors can purchase Flash Passes and schedule when they will go on the ride via an electronic scheduling system. Six Flags Flash Passes are more advanced than Disneys immediate Pass since visitors can schedule when t hey will go on rides electronically from anywhere in the park instead of having to go to all(prenominal) attraction they want to ride and receiving a time to come back when they turn in a FASTPASS ticket. (Flash Pass Six Flags dissimulation Mountain) Six Flags allows visitors to purchase Regular, Gold or Platinum Flash Passes which have greater reductions in wait times.The Regular Flash Pass provides guests with a limited number of Flash Passes that allow them to wait in a shorter line. The Gold and Platinum Flash Passes allow visitors to electronically schedule when they will visit an attraction. Visitors are given an electronic device called a Q-Bot, which guests use to check electronically schedule when they will be able to visit the ride without waiting in line. (Q-Bot) The Platinum Fast Pass provides the added benefit of being able to go on the resembling ride twice in a row without getting off and waiting in line once more.Flash Passes bring in additional revenue to parks a nd prices vary depending on the park. For example, Flash Passes blow from $31 $86 per person at Six Flags Over Georgia and $41 to $99 at Six Flags semblance Mountain. (Flash Pass Six Flags Magic Mountain) and (Flash Pass Six Flags Over Georgia) runny Magic APP Theme Parks are innovative and have technologies that help them learn active customer preferences enchantment making consumers experiences at the park more enjoyable. Walt Disney World has a mobile application for Verizon Wireless customers called Mobile Magic.Mobile Magic allows customers to view line wait times, bring in restaurant reservations, play games while waiting in line, view the weather forecast and events taking place in the park, and find Disney characters for children to get autographs. Disney receives teaching from Mobile Magic users that allows them to analyze which restaurants and rides are the most popular and can help Disney gain insights as to how to make consumers experiences at its parks more enjoy able. (Mobile Magic Application) Child Safety RFID Tracking System.Theme parks such as Dollywood, Legoland, and Wannado use RFID fallals to keep track of guests and to protect lost children. RFID bracelets transmit a intercommunicate to computer system which keeps track of each persons location. If a child wearing a RFID bracelet becomes separated from his parents, then the parents send a text message to guest services stating, help. Parents receive a text message in response with the location of the lost child and directions to get to the childs location. If a lost child gets too close to park exits, authorities are contacted to discover the child does not exit the park.(Sturgen) RFID bracelets provide increased safety for children, and they allow groups of people to locate each easily if they are separated. The bracelets also track and store culture about what foods people eat, what rides they visit first gear or most frequently, and what items they purchase. The information helps theme park management tailor the parks to outdo meet consumer preferences. Some guests may view the RFID bracelets as an invasion of privacy, but others feel that the benefits outweigh the risks. (Sturgen) At Wannado and Dollywood, the RFID technology is taken a step further than at Legoland.Visitors are provided with a bracelet containing a RFID tag. Then, groups of visitors point their names in the SafeTzone Real-Time Locating System which links each groups bracelets together electronically. Visitors can then track the location of people in their group by scanning their bracelet at SafeTzone kiosks. (Sullivan) According to the New York Times article, Disney Tackles Major Theme Park Problems Lines, Disney may start to use bracelets and take the technology one step further. Bracelets would store consumer credit card information so park guests can purchase items with the swipe of the bracelet.Also, the bracelets would store information such as the customers name, when they oddment visited the restaurant, how frequently they visit the restaurant, and the customers preferences. This technology would lead theme parks to be the best in class in customer satisfaction. However, it may not invoke to some people who may view it as an invasion of privacy and like there is someone watching over them at all times. Ride Technology 4D Attractions Theme parks have implemented a new direct of technology to make attractions seem like they are in 4D.For example, Dollywood has a Polar Express ride during the winter that combines a 3D movie with seats that move like you are actually go the Polar Express train, different smells and temperatures and other effects to make 3D movie scenes seem more realistic. (Dollywoods Polar Express Creates 4D Viewer Experience) Islands of Adventure also employs 4D technology with its Harry monkey around and the Forbidden Journey ride. Visitors watch a 3D movie screen while riding on conjuring trick benches that drop, lean back, spi n, twist, and turn to make it feel as if visitors are flying through the earth of Harry Potter.(The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universals Islands of Adventure) Kuka Robot Group developed the magic benches which are also known as Robocoasters. (Kuka Arm) Theme Park Technology Summary Theme parks utilize tip edge technologies to improve customer safety, better understand customer preferences, and make customers experiences at the park more enjoyable. RFID bracelets improve customer safety and provide parks with information about customer preferences.Investment in RFID technology would pay for itself, because many parents would be willing to pay extra to rent bracelets in order to keep traffic of their children and people in their group. Traffic flow and ride wait times are improved through video surveillance, ensuring each ride is at upper limit occupancy, fast passes, wait times posted by each ride, and wait times and park information transmitted to peoples smart phones via applications like Disneys Mobile Magic. Disney was able to create a smart phone application in conjunction with Verizon wireless by charging customers to purchase the application. Customers are happier when there are shorter wait times and the park is not as crowded.Theme parks improve customer satisfaction through the use of 4D technology on rides. Theme parks work to improve telephone line by utilizing and developing new technologies. Theme park technology constantly evolves. In addition to the technologies mentioned above, Maurer Rides is in the testing stages of LED-powered wheels for roller coasters. The wheels are powered by light emitting diodes (LEDs) and rotation of the wheels creates a generator dogma with the rotating movement being converted into energy, and thus light. The key benefit is that, apart from saving power, no batteries or excessive wiring is needed. (Theme Park Post Amusement Theme Parks diligence Business News) The LED wheel lights will show up during the day and night and create an interesting visual effect. Maurer plans to raise the first firewheels, which can travel up to 80 mph, at a theme park in Germany. If this technology works, it may be adapted by other theme parks since it creates visual appeal and uses less energy. (Theme Park Post Amusement Theme Parks Industry Business News) The most of the essence(predicate) technologies for theme parks improve customer satisfaction and the likelihood that guests will return to the parks again or recommend the parks to other people.4D Technology, RFID tracking bracelets, Flash Passes, and smart phone applications are leading edge technologies for theme parks that accomplish the task of improving customer satisfaction. Technology is constantly evolving, and theme parks are destined to invent more advanced technologies that improve business operations and customers experiences. flora Cited Barnes, Brooks. Disney Tackles Major Theme Park Problem Lines. The New York Times. The Ne w York Times Company, 28 Dec. 2010. Web. 22 may 2011. . Disney FASTPASS Service. Walt Disney World Resort. Disney. Web. 30 whitethorn 2011. .Dollywoods Polar Express Creates 4D Viewer Experience Amusement Parks. Amusement Park Industry-Theme Park Business Directory Amusement Park. Blooloop, 18 Feb. 2009. Web. 31 May 2011. . Flash Pass Six Flags Magic Mountain. Six Flags. Web. 30 May 2011. . Flash Pass Six Flags Over Georgia. Six Flags. Web. 30 May 2011. . Kuka Arm. Harry Potter Wizarding World Theme Park in Orlando, Florida. Web. 31 May 2011. . Mobile Magic Application Verizon Wireless Disney Parks. Mobile Magic Disney Parks. Web. 22 May 2011. . Q-Bot. Web log post. Theme Park Review. 17 Mar. 2010. Web. 30 May 2011. . Satchell, Arlene.Wannado City Moves up Closing to Jan. 2 cheer Sentinel. Featured Articles From The Sun Sentinel. The Sun Sentinel, 21 Dec. 2010. Web. 22 May 2011. . Sturgeon, Will. RFID Chips on Kids Makes Legoland Safer Protecting Your ID Silicon. co m. Silicon. com Technology Strategy for CIOs and Business Executives. Silicon. com, 24 June 2004. Web. 24 May 2011. . Sullivan, Laurie. How RFID Will Help Mommy Find Johnny infoWeek. InformationWeek Business Technology News, Reviews and Blogs. Information Week, 15 Sept. 2004. Web. 22 May 2011. . Theme Park Post Amusement Theme Parks Industry Business News. Web. 22 May 2011. .