A Technology Concept to Increase User Experience for Disabled Guests
Introduction:
My name is Stacia Meconiates, I’m finishing up a master’s at Arizona State University in Interdisciplinary Digital Media Composition, and I have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. This genetic condition affects how my body creates collagen, and leads to frequent pain, joint dislocations, heart issues, and difficulty in standing for long periods of time. You can imagine that these symptoms make visiting and riding theme park rides difficult, so I frequently utilize an Electric Conveyance Vehicle (ECV) while out at a theme park. While I deeply appreciate how far theme parks have come in terms of accessibility, there are aspects I feel like are still lacking. The two largest difficulties I notice as both a guest and an interactivity maker being pre-ride elements and the ability to interact with those elements as a disabled person, and the interactivity surrounding RFID bracelets that have begun to be rolled out at certain parks. I believe that certain aspects of both these issues can be solved by adding gyroscopic sensors to the bracelets.
Recognizing the problem and drafting a solution:
I have been to two parks in the last year that utilize RFID bracelets, one in Florida and one in California. In both instances there were interactive statues, and there were interactive statues in both that I personally could not interact with due to disability. There were two categories these un-interactable statues fell into: the first being ones my ECV could not get close enough to, and the second being ones where my range of motion was not adequate to activate the statue. These experiences followed me home from both parks, and deeply influenced my thesis work. I decided to use a MEMS gyroscopic sensor device to create an adaptive user controlled experience that can work off of the user’s personal range of motion.

A screenshot of the main Max project used in the implementation of my user controlled range of motion device
To perform this project I bought a nine-axis gyro device called a Mugic. This device was created by a musician named Mari Kimura to encourage electro-acoustic performance. I decided to attach the device to the wearer via an crocheted armband and program it in a software called MaxMSP. The device is able to send data from the yaw (x), pitch (y), and roll (rotation) axes. I use this data to track the range of motion the user is showcasing, and have those motions trigger various effects.
An example of the Mugic device coded to work for dancer Valkyrie Yao. In this example the Y axis controls pitch and triggers sound files, the X axis controls waveform, and the rotation controls volume.
How to expand the use of gyro sensors to increase disabled guests’ experience:
The Themed Attraction Industry could use this technology in a variety of fields, from guest experience to having performers trigger audio and visual effects from their motions. The gyro technology is small enough to be worked into an RFID bracelet without increasing its bulk too substantially, and could allow for greater interaction by disabled guests. This would allow for guests with limited ranges of motion, such as people with cerebral palsy, to be able to ‘wave’ to a statue to the degree they can move. For guests with chronic pain, being able to limit the amount of movement we do is one of the key ways to conserve energy we need for the high energy event that going to a theme park is. Implementing these sorts of upgrades to the currently available RFID bracelets would mean that no longer do I have to put myself into a greater degree of pain to interact with character statues or other interactive statue elements.
These gyro RFID bands can also be worked into existing pre-ride elements. Some pre-ride elements in certain lines are inaccessible if you are seated; either by height or how the housing is built and angled. Having currently inaccessible pre-ride elements be retrofitted with RFID receivers that are able to pick up movement from users would increase the experience not only for disabled guests, but would also add a greater level of interactivity for the general population. An example would be for a guest ‘slapping’ their hand down near a drum they cannot reach from their ECV triggering a drum sound from the nearby instrument. I’m sure that smaller guests can also experience issues with interactive pre-ride elements that could be mitigated by including gyro and increased RFID usage. By including gyro accessibility in pre-ride elements a park is able to gain not only a higher rate of satisfaction from disabled guests, but also increase the total amount of guests that are able to experience and interact with certain pre-ride elements of the ride experience. This sort of technology can easy increase the ‘wonder’ surrounding a ride.
Other Considerations
Another avenue this technology can be used in is by the park performers in shows, parades, and performer-guest interactions. As showcased in the video above, dance and motion can be used to trigger and control any sound needed. In my video the performer is generating all of the sounds heard, but gyro devices can be easily sewn into clothing and costumes and used to activate specific audio and lighting events. Having a thunderclap sound when a performer raises both hands up, or having a quick downward motion be used to dim the lights, are two examples that quickly come to mind. These sorts of effects being triggered by a performer in a show would allow for the audio visual engineer to have the space and focus to program and execute more involved AV effects. This sort of gyro integration will allow for greater malleability for performances, and can be integrated into direct performer-guest interactions. Imagine a character being able to trigger lighting sewn into their costume by sweeping their arms out, wowing the child at the table the character is visiting. Or for a character placed above guests to be able to control their voice projection simply by twisting their arm, adding a level of minute control and showmanship.
Conclusion:
The Themed Attraction industry is evolving to be more accessible for disabled guests. One of the unique challenges of introducing new technologies is seeing how certain populations interact with what you’ve created, and then base improvements off of their experiences. I believe that the incorporation of gyroscopic MEMS sensors in RFID bracelets currently being used by certain parks will greatly increase the opportunities that disabled populations will be able to interact with audio and visual elements throughout the parks.
Team:
Stacia Meconiates (Masters): Project creator, coder, crocheter, and owner of terrible collagen
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