Why Do We Like Animatronics?

I. Animatronics Drawbacks

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http://www.catsandbeer.com/uploads/2007/12/death/human_skull-skin_hair.jpg

A. Scary-ness
The drawback of today's animatronics technology is the emerging makeup & creature effects. The animatronic materials uses Silicone Rubber to make masks and gel-filled appliances. According to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLICio_YdS8&feature=related, the materials- Dragon Skin^TM, Slackersk^TM Tactile Mutator, Pyscho Paint^TM, SkinTite^TM- used to make skin like human skin. The whole drawback of that is simply it looks scary, and it makes people of other ethnicities do not like Halloween anymore because now Halloween is too scary-- That is just my guess, but I know that I am a person who can stand many scary things because I am not even scared of tigers. However, no one will get near to the tiger to prove their braveness because that's too sacrificing our lives. My point is that not every culture likes scary things. Fear is obviously a negative result that can be caused by these technologies. People get shocked by that, and many people cannot take fear like this and really scared to death. "Scared to death", sounds like a weak person, but let's not mess with people's fear too much.

B. Might Portray People in Negative Way
People use animatronics to defame someone someday, and the issue is already existing right now. The animatronics have an animatronic of your face, but they make your face talk bad words, roll your eyes, all sorts of negative things-- We never know, due to the human animatronics. Luckily, the Albert Einstein hasn't talk any bad words.
(http://www.androidworld.com/einstein1.jpg, http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Einstein-Hubo.jpg)

http://www.androidworld.com/einstein1.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Einstein-Hubo.jpg

http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/0ee675P1y23nF/610x.jpg

Based on www.daylife.com/photo/0ee675P1y23nF, Bill Hicks, a robot builder, pulls the face over the head of a robot made in the image of Albert Einstein at Hanson Robotics in Dallas, Sunday, Nov. 19, 2006. Hanson Robotics owner David Hanson says he makes "conversational character robots", which are are mostly human-looking heads, using a skin-like material that he invented called Frubber, are battery-powered, walk and are expressive. (AP Photo/Ron Heflin)
C. Human-like Animatronic House Slaves?
Animatronics of human figures might become house slaves. Robots are different from this drawback because it looks like a robot. But now, the human animatronics look human, not robot: if were were used as robots do at home, they are like humans slaves. The drawback is that in the future children get inspired by this idea about it is coool to treat a human as a robot. That is when humanity is starting to get complex. The true definition of humanity is generalized when people judge us visually.
(http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/04_02/gemanoid_468x312.jpg)

http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/04_02/gemanoid_468x312.jpg

II. Suggestions:
A. Sell Animatronic Materials cheaply at every university.
The material of the skin and others are too hard to get for ordinary people to experiment and make something productively, even for artists. Stores shall sell them cheap tham in every university or school in general so students can have new equippment for their robotic type classes.
(http://www.instructables.com/files/deriv/F59/Y1QL/F1U9XT7X/F59Y1QLF1U9XT7X.MEDIUM.jpg)
(http://www.instructables.com/files/deriv/F8K/KUND/F1U9XT46/F8KKUNDF1U9XT46.MEDIUM.jpg)
(http://www.instructables.com/files/deriv/FID/OHJH/F1Y7H0K5/FIDOHJHF1Y7H0K5.MEDIUM.jpg)

http://www.instructables.com/files/deriv/F59/Y1QL/F1U9XT7X/F59Y1QLF1U9XT7X.MEDIUM.jpg

http://www.instructables.com/files/deriv/F8K/KUND/F1U9XT46/F8KKUNDF1U9XT46.MEDIUM.jpg

http://www.instructables.com/files/deriv/FID/OHJH/F1Y7H0K5/FIDOHJHF1Y7H0K5.MEDIUM.jpg

B. Teach Animatronics in School.
More likely, I hope there are many animatronic courses being taught at every school. It is the future for the children to learn ahead to reach their interests and knowledge to understand how things work. The animatronic technology is pretty new and many children want to learn how they work. Same suggestion to other technologies: Computers, tv, wireless robotics, etc., schools shall start educating children how technicians do it. Now technologies are hiding intelligence. For example, even though most of us see inside the computer and how it is wired, we don't know how to value the structural reason why they are wired in this way and how the electricity of the computer runs.

C. Allow only animals for the public.
Make animatronics of human figures be bordered within those large corps, like the Cinemas. The fields will then be responsible to protect the portrayal of human. It is not illegal to sell these electronic humans to the public, of course but it is better organized to let the fieild take care of the electronic humans so that they can take care of protecting the right definition of "human" to the public. Humans struggle about the future when right definition of humankind being tweaked. Children are one of those whose shouldn't be mistaught what human is. I suggest that animal electronics are more safe for children to play with and learn from because there is not confusion to treat an it as an it, basically. People like me enjoy having animatronic pets like the dinosaur one because because we do not have to spend a lot of money to take care of it since our humans are already very busy: on supplies and food, trouble-get-rid-of-ers. Unlike human animatronics, there is no confusion to treat an animal animatronic a toy as a toy. If it's the other way around, there is confusion between a human animatronic a humankind as a toy. To me, that's no good.
(http://www.loadedshopper.com/entry_images/0907/06/First_Animatronic_Dinosaur.jpg)

http://www.loadedshopper.com/entry_images/0907/06/First_Animatronic_Dinosaur.jpg

D. Take animatronics further as for medical care and surgery needs.
Use this technology to to replace those body parts of many athletes that got hurt with their hands and legs if possible. Move the technology further for medical needs and better surgery if possible. This way, animatronics is not just for commericals, films, museums, and fun, but it can save people.
(http://www.notablebiographies.com/news/images/unmk_0000_0006_0_img0106.jpg)

http://www.notablebiographies.com/news/images/unmk_0000_0006_0_img0106.jpg

(Despite having undergone leg surgery just weeks prior, Terrell Owens played well during the 2005 Super Bowl, with nine receptions. © Mike Blake/Reuters/Corbis.)
E. Touch animatronics on biotechnology and life
Now that animatronics can almost reanimate the species with great appearance details and physical behaviors and were reanimated with good materials, here is a good start to move the technology further. Making life sounds hard but now, there is intelligent autonomous audio-animatronics technology today. We discover more about using animatronics to create life. The Mr. Potato Head, for example, answers to our questions and sings, too (See http://disneyandmore.blogspot.com/2008/04/first-videos-of-mr-potato-head-audio.html).
(http://bp1.blogger.com/_OO7WbmARD08/R_a8EM7NbfI/AAAAAAAAGiQ/QJpHPenZLwE/s1600/IMG_0608.jpg)

III. MY PROPOSAL:
A. Take my "Trimercies Life Reincarnator" theme to move to my new theme.
My goal for my final project is to create life. Recently, my professor went to a funeral last week and he asked if I would speed up working on my "Tri-Mercies Life Reincarnator"Project technology and get it going. He hope to bring the person whom he wanted to bring back to life back to life. What I did was I expanded my "TriMercies Life Reincarnator"project and rethinking a more specific technology that I can go with. Recently, I found the animatronics technology as very suitable theme that close to hand puppets in terms ot sculpture; that it is about recreating what we see and being prototype the lifeforms we see deeply into copies of the figures but with live movement, expression, animation, etc. visual life components. My dream and approach is to bring our favorite pets alive, too.
My final project has a history. I started with my "Trimercies Life Reincarnator" project for my second proposal which ïs a machine system that uses everyday technology: infrared, tv, ultraviolet, x-ray, biomedical engineering, robotics, robotic surgery, computer, etc. to works three things: 1) to detect anywhere that a species had been affected by or die from (cameras detect how he or she it or it died), 2) to provide medical care including surgeries with certain parts like like heart, lungs, bones, skin, etc. (Robot generates electricall shocks to generate blood flow, breathing, and life patterns back from the person or animal), and 3) to reincarnate life-- certain fossils get together by bone fixationby the robot hands, skin recovery, breathe generating, natural resources offerings, time comsumings--> life after life (Robot takes care of the nonliving like robots take care of plants before plants grow, and it provides certain things that life needs and that life can be born from.)

Here, my final project background has a heavy serious debate about what's life. The debate for my "Trimercies Life Reincarnator" project was about basically the definition about how life works. The definition varies- technologically, visually, physically, theoretically, biologically, musically, artistically, chemically, historically, generally, specificly, religiously, etc. For my second proposal project, I have been researching on Victor Frankenstein's point of view and what Frankenstein finds as truths of what life is- researching on beyond his philosophies. So I read about the famous tales about him creating a monster, but I found less about his truths beyond his philosophies about what life is and how life works. But my "Trimercies Life Reincarnator" project involves my judgement about BREATHING-- Which breathing in every English dictionary means generally to inhale, exhale, to live, to pause and rest, and to utter-- that breathing is a very open characteristic of macroscopic species like humans and animals, that breathing gives us energy endlessly because breathing goes in a cycle, and that breathing seems to be a signal for life. Although, my judgements can be wrong about life and how life works, I move my Life Reincarnator theme to my new project theme, to create convincing autonomous animatronic raptor.

B. Animatronics: Relevant to my target
1. Add breathing characteristic: (http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/1665000/images/_1665085_alligator_anatomy2_info300.gif)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/1665000/images/_1665085_alligator_anatomy2_info300.gif

The reason I shifted my final project to animatronics is that I can investigate what could be relevant about animatronics relating to my target about creating lifeform with the breathing charateristic. My concept in breathing can be added to todays animatronics.' Many robotic animals do not have a characteristic of breathing stored in them. They just mechanically look alive by whatever it was go to do. For example, my pooch dog barks, wiggles his tail and walks when I press the switches. I lookes just like a toy because of its roughness nd stiffe motions. It has no random expressions like today's animatronic dog does-- does random facial expressions, senses touch and sound, and other characteristics. What I wish to add is a characteristic of continuous breathing, touch sensing, food finding, and as Pinocchio, learning to be real.
2. Interest in realistic dinosaur animatronics: (http://animalmakers.com/Catalog/images/dinosaur_6657-01.gif)

Another reason why I think animatronics is relevant to my topic about creating life and reincarnating life is I love the idea about re-creating life I like. The life I had in mind is since my childhood: dinosaurs. Although many people do not like dinosaurs because they think dinosaurs are scary, not cute, and not part of their culture's appreciation at all, I used used dinosaurs as my example for my Life Reincarnator; creating dinosaurs back to life with it's fossils. A little different from the idea from the movie, Jurassic Park, the life came from hatches of dinosaur eggs, and my Life Reincarnator came from breathing activation and Robot's care. But with the today's technology of animatronics, I can approach on learning building blocks of life even more closer because similar fields including like Disney and Pixar are adapting this techology and studying convincing motion from animatronics as I do.

C. Research on Animatronics
1. video clips online.
Although some are realistically scary, the animatronics looks very real as if it's alive. The technology starts from simple animatronics to computer animation, from animation to today's animatronics.
a. One is the simple animatronics: By hand. ("Simple Animatronics": from http://www.metacafe.com/watch/614261/simple_animatronics/)
(http://thumbnail.search.aolcdn.com/truveo/images/thumbnails/27/F9/27F94636DC57A6.jpg)

http://thumbnail.search.aolcdn.com/truveo/images/thumbnails/27/F9/27F94636DC57A6.jpg

First, you find a plastic tube and cut the wholes for the joints like cutting the wholes of a flute. (three is enough for each finger's muscles.)
Second, take a strip of string that and poke all the way through. Once reach to the top, tape it around.
Third, wrap the tip of the finger with tape.
Fourth, curl the string left at the bottom around the bottom of the tube. Tape it around.
Fifth, repeat for the other three fingers, steps 1-4.
Sixth, stick the fingers on where the upper palm supposed to be on a hard plastic.
Seventh, finish with the thumb finger crossing dagonally the other fingers.
Eighth, use a trangular bar to tape in touch with the palm and wrap the hand all over with tape.
Ninth, unwrap the tape of the bottom of the plastic tubes and curl the strings.
Tenth, tie a knot that you can stick a finger in and pull the string so the fingers can bend in.
Eleventh, After this is ready and working, put a glove on top of the hand you made.
Twelveth, pull each finger with your finger, and hold the triangle with your other hand.
I got this from seeing the video clip the tagged, "Animatronic Hand Diy Prank Hack Scary Terminator Halloween."

b. Another is computer animation.
According to the Making of Walking With Dinosaurs video clip that tagged "The Making Of Walking With Dinosaurs: How Did They Move?", They made the actual measurements of the dinosaurs. The sculptors make sticks build the model with materials like clay, flexible rubber, and other materials. Then, the team took time shines a red light onto the piece to scan to the computer. Next, they use the computer program to transform the 3d object into live-like dinosaurs. Then, for computerized motions, they put dots onto the actors' body to send the dot information to the comptuer. Another way is the Chroma key, actors act in front of a blue/green background and their shadows are used for the animated character's motion.

http://www.exchange3d.com/cubecart/images/uploads/aff70/model_596_aae.jpg

http://science.nationalgeographic.com/staticfiles/NGS/Shared/StaticFiles/Science/Images/Content/triceratops-movement-sb4319-sw.jpg

http://palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/dinosaur/Brachiostick.gif

http://www.exchange3d.com/cubecart/images/uploads/aff70/model_596_aae.jpg
http://science.nationalgeographic.com/staticfiles/NGS/Shared/StaticFiles/Science/Images/Content/triceratops-movement-sb4319-sw.jpg
Donald Henderson's walking dinosaurs> http://palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/dinosaur/Brachiostick.gif

See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoVxlRGKvbg&feature=related, The Making Of Walking With Dinosaurs: Animal Study, as well.

c. Computer animation and animatronics.
I got interested in the making of "Walking With Dinosaurs" video clips in youtube.com. They made the actual measurements of the dinosaurs, then sculptors make sticks build the model with materials like clay, flexible rubber, and other materials. Once the head is all done, the actors then sticked their hand on the dinosaur heads inside, so they can open the dinosaurs' mouth with their fingers, just like a puppet. Moreover, the facial expressions are control by another person. That person pulles certain switches to make the the dinosaur head move it's nose, eyes, and cheeks by itself. The skin of the dinsaur must have been better than a plastic glove because it stretches like real skin. The dinosaur heads looked real and alive, which caught my interest.
The Making Of Walking With Dinosaurs: Using Animatronics:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5yN8f2gpcY

d. New animatronic technologies.
The Animatronic projects looks good. I have seen one video clip of the "Animatronic Models and FX by Adrian Parish"
I saw a talking head of the Snow Queen (bear), the Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Monster), Snuggles (porcupine), Volvic Water (Horse?), Specsavers (Sloth), Spontex, The Brotherhood Of The Wolf,
Take a look at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdjhRZOhdXU

D. Research on On Similar Fields
1.People
a) On the Royal Tyrrell Museum website, http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/events/index2.php?strSection=1, I found a few of the people, called the People Behind the Science, that studies dinosaur behavior, life, bones, time periods, kinds, etc.

I) One is Donald Henderson, the Curator of Dinosaurs (http://www.nserc.ca/news/features/images/henderson.jpg,
http://www.ucalgary.ca/oncampus/weekly/oct31-03/henderson.jpg, http://palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/dinosaur/Allostick.gif)

http://www.nserc.ca/news/features/images/henderson.jpg

http://www.ucalgary.ca/oncampus/weekly/oct31-03/henderson.jpg

http://palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/dinosaur/Allostick.gif

E-mail: dmhender@ucalgary.ca
The website says, "Donald Henderson’s current research projects include: a study of the rates of erosion in Dinosaur Provincial Park and its effect on the quantities of dinosaur fossils found there; biomechanical comparisons of the bite forces and skull strengths in ceratopsian dinosaurs; dinosaur buoyancy and flotation characteristics, and development of 3D walking models of dinosaurs. 2007 summer field work included collection of two plesiosaurs, participating in a biophysical inventory with Parks in the Willmore Wilderness Area, and collecting the last part of the skull of a ceratopsian from the banks of the Oldman River in the extreme southwest of the province." -- Seems like he can help explain to me how a raptor walks, too.

II) Another is François Therrien, the Curator of Dinosaur Palaeoecology (http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/images/staff/francoistherrien.jpg, http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/fae/trex2.gif, http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/fae/francois.jpg)

http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/images/staff/francoistherrien.jpg

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/fae/francois.jpg

The website says, "François Therrien studies not only fossil bones but also the rocks that contain them. By combining these two approaches he is able to reconstruct the habitats and climates in which dinosaurs and other extinct animals lived as well as their behavior – how they lived, walked and hunted. This research gives us insight into the consequences of climate and environmental changes on biodiversity and the possible causes of extinction of dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous Period (65 million years ago)."-- Seems like he can help explain to me how a raptor behaviors and what food they like, too.

III) Another is James Gardner, the Curator of Palaeoherpetology (http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/images/jim_gardner.jpg, http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l44/tangish/DSC02869.jpg, http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l44/tangish/DSC02871.jpg)

http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/images/jim_gardner.jpg

http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l44/tangish/DSC02869.jpg

http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l44/tangish/DSC02871.jpg

The Website says, "Gardner's research focuses on the history and relationships of fossil frogs, salamanders and other amphibians, the tiny contemporaries of dinosaurs. He has conducted research in the Arctic, Western Canada, and the United States and collaborates with researchers around the world."-- Probably he can help explain to me about a reptile behaviors.

IV) Another is Craig Scott, the Curator of Fossil Mammals (http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/images/staff/craigscott.jpg, http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v435/n7045/images/nature03646-f1.2.jpg)

http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/images/staff/craigscott.jpg

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v435/n7045/images/nature03646-f1.2.jpg

The website says, "Craig Scott specializes in research on Palaeocene age mammals (65 to 55 million years ago) from both the Red Deer and Calgary areas, particularly the evolutionary relationships of early insectivorian mammals (a group that today includes hedgehogs, shrews, and moles). He hopes to integrate his data into an expanded research program that will include an ongoing study of mammal succession in Alberta, before and immediately after, the extinction of dinosaurs."--Maybe he can help introduce to me what other mammals that I can bring life to, besides dinosaurs.

b) I founds in the we-make-money-not-art website, http://www.we-make-money-not-art.com/archives/2006/06/animatronic-tax.php, and found Erik Klarenbeek, (http://www.stylepark.com/db-images/cms/designer/img/klarenbeek_eric_973_320_336-1.jpg), a Dutch (and super talented) designer who is doing a breathing animatronic as I was hoping to do. He actually made a battery-operated stuffed cat that fitted with a mechanism that which Klarenbeek re-creates the animal's breathing and purring. His cat is called Poekie.
(http://www.we-make-money-not-art.com/yyy/poeki.jpg)

http://www.we-make-money-not-art.com/yyy/poeki.jpg

http://www.stylepark.com/db-images/cms/designer/img/klarenbeek_eric_973_320_336-1.jpg

2. Companies
a) The Character Shop Simi Valley, CA 93065 (805) 306-9441 (805) 306-9444 FAX email:lazzwaldo (at) mac.com
I) Realistic cattail movements (cattail 1: http://www.character-shop.com/tcsprojwebfiles/arbyscat/pictures/cattail1.html and cattail 2: http://www.character-shop.com/tcsprojwebfiles/arbyscat/pictures/cattail2.html)
(http://www.character-shop.com/tcsprojwebfiles/arbyscat/pictures/img_1162.jpg)

http://www.character-shop.com/tcsprojwebfiles/arbyscat/pictures/img_1162.jpg

II) Realistic FX:
A)TCS designed and created an animatronic cougar with radio-controlled, multiple-axis eye, brow, blink, nose, jaw, ear, and lip mechanisms. A slim-wristed puppeteer put her arms through the false bottom of a bed into custom-sculpted paw-sleeves, yet another puppeteer controlled the head with an external rod, while yet two more puppeteers handled its heaving, breathing chest with a large bellows and flicked its weighted tail with a long pole and invisible thread.

(http://www.character-shop.com/images/pumal.jpg)
B) An authentic-looking Galapagos Tortoise replica (actually, we built three of them!) for a new Budweiser spot. They featured hand-puppeteered head, neck, mouth, and breathing movements, and radio-controlled eyes, blinks, and brows. A urethane resin shell and a matte-finish foam latex skin complete the "look".
(Tortoise: http://www.character-shop.com/images/budtort.mov)
(http://www.character-shop.com/images/budtort1.jpg)

http://www.character-shop.com/images/budtort1.jpg

C) Life size realistic replica of "Betsy", the capuchin monkey from Warner Bros.' OUTBREAK. Made from silicone with hundreds of individually hand-punched hairs. Featured a passively jointed skeletal structure and animatronic movements of its breathing, mouth, eyes, head, and brows.
(http://www.character-shop.com/images/otbkmnk2.jpg)

http://www.character-shop.com/images/otbkmnk2.jpg

D) Three animatronic frogs built for a Budweiser commercial. They feature foam latex skins, rod-operated body and legs, animatronic eyes, blinks, smiles, breathing, and throat bloats. (http://www.character-shop.com/images/budfrgsc.jpg)

http://www.character-shop.com/images/budfrgsc.jpg

b) SALLY CORPORATION 745 West Forsyth Street Jacksonville, Florida 32204 USA Tel. +1-904-355-7100 Fax +1-904-355-7170
I) These realistic animatronic dinosaurs and prehistoric creatures are carefully researched and reproduced by the extraordinarily talented creators at Sally Corporation.
(http://www.sallycorp.com/animatronics/images/dinos_T-Rex.jpg)
(http://www.sallycorp.com/animatronics/images/dinos_deinonychus.jpg)
(http://www.sallycorp.com/animatronics/images/dinos_longnedck.jpg)
(http://www.sallycorp.com/animatronics/images/dinos_TRICERATOPS.jpg)

http://www.sallycorp.com/animatronics/images/dinos_T-Rex.jpg

http://www.sallycorp.com/animatronics/images/dinos_deinonychus.jpg

http://www.sallycorp.com/animatronics/images/dinos_TRICERATOPS.jpg

http://www.sallycorp.com/animatronics/images/dinos_longnedck.jpg

Thanks to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLICio_YdS8&feature=related
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/614261/simple_animatronics/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdjhRZOhdXU
palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/dinosaur/animation.html
http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/events/index2.php?strSection=1
http://startlingmoniker.wordpress.com/2007/04/16/lev11_20-22lol/
http://www.we-make-money-not-art.com/archives/2006/06/animatronic-tax.php
http://disneyandmore.blogspot.com/2008/04/first-videos-of-mr-potato-head-audio.html
http://www.character-shop.com/tcsprojwebfiles/arbyscat/pictures/cattail1.html
http://www.sallycorp.com/animatronics/images/dinos_T-Rex.jpg