It is difficult to miss BDX droids lately.
In March, the Droids – who welcomed customers at Disneyland Resort and aboard Disney’s wish – appeared alongside the CEO Bob Iger in the annual shareholder meeting of the Walt Disney Company; Charmed Austin, Texas at Disney’s SXSW star session With director Jon Favreau (who put them in next year Star Wars film, The Mandalorian and the Grogu)); And returned to the stage at the recent conference of developers of the NVIDIA GTC.
Droids represent the perfect marriage of Disney narration with incredible innovation. They are both realistic and technologically advanced. We spoke with Kyle Laughlin, please, Walt Disney Imagineering Research & Development, to find out more about technology behind the droids and how they were animated.
What is the technological breakthrough that BDX droids represent?
BDX droids are a big leap forward – not only for robotics, but for the way we give life to beloved characters in the real world. They are the first of a new generation of expressive and free robots that we have developed in Disney which can learn to move and balance like living things. Thanks to the learning of strengthening, they train in simulation before taking a real step. But beyond technology, what really distinguishes them is this spark of personality – they are full of life, and they make people smile. This is what we really seek: emotional connection thanks to technology.
How could your team have made them so realistic?
We always start with the character. Technology is only the tool – we use it at the service of history and emotion. With BDX, it meant thinking about how they move, how they are emotional and how guests could get involved with them. From their physical proportions to the way their heads bow or how their feet land, each choice was made to support credibility. And then we added a human touch: a puppeteer behind the scenes that brings out the nuances that make them feel alive.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzr3vwmqp7a
How does Disney develop the technology used for these droids contribute to advancing the wider robotics industry?
At Disney, we do not build robots for factories or production centers – we build robots that make you feel something. It is a very different challenge. We bring emotional intelligence in the field of robotics, and we do it on a large scale. In the process, we share new ways of thinking with the wider community of robotics. It is a reminder that the future of this industry is not only what robots can do – they are who they can be.
How was the technology that was created for droids will be applied in the future? Will technology be adaptable to future developments?
Everything we do is part of a continuum. Audio -animatronics was the tip of the tip 70 years ago – and we rely every day on this inheritance. Our robotic character platform is modular, flexible and designed to evolve. Basic technology – Learning to strengthen, expressive movement, character -oriented design – can be adapted to many different characters and experiences. We are already working on what comes next, and I think people will be surprised by the path traveled.
How is this learning to strengthen rush used for robotics create an immersive Disney narration?
Reinforcement learning allows us to do something quite incredible: we can form hundreds of versions of a simulation robot before building a physically. This means a faster iteration, a smarter movement and more time to focus on what really matters – create a convincing character. This shortens the path of the idea for emotional connection, and this is a big problem for us as a storyteller.
Disney has an innovation innovation in the service of history. How do these droids pass this innovation to the next level?
BDX is an excellent example of our ethics in action: Story First, Technology in Service of this story. What is new here is the level of responsiveness, physics and charm that we can now achieve in real -time environments oriented towards customers. It is not a unique tip – it is an evolving character platform. And we are just at the beginning.