Skyliner VENTS?!?!!!

[seashoreCM]

Roofs with side overhang on the gondolas to keep passengers shaded would be a great help. The sun shining into a transparent windowed closed space will heat up the space mighty fast. At times at WDW it is uncomfortable enough standing in the open air outside.

The term "detachable" was used to describe the gondolas. A gondola would disengage from the cable as it entered a station and be supported by an overhead rail. It could be stationary during unloading and loading.

I rode such a detachable gondola many years ago (Coney Island, New York City). Those gondolas were small enough so an attendant could pull them into position on the platform and hold them still for unloading and loading, and then push them into position to re-engage the cable for the next trip.

 

[Robo]

The term "detachable" was used to describe the gondolas. A gondola would disengage from the cable as it entered a station and be supported by an overhead rail. It could be stationary during unloading and loading.

I rode such a detachable gondola many years ago (Coney Island, New York City). Those gondolas were small enough so an attendant could pull them into position on the platform and hold them still for unloading and loading, and then push them into position to re-engage the cable for the next trip.

That is the description of the loading/unloading system formerly used for the MK and DL Skyways.

 

[rwdavis2]

I believe the Disney Dish podcast reported that the info they have is that the gondolas will be air conditioned and the loading is from a moving walkway. The gondolas will detach from the main system, move along the walk way, and then re-enter the system.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Just wait till it breaks down and you have people sitting in hot little bubbles that are only getting hotter by the minute.

 

[seashoreCM]

Some improvement can be had if there are ankle level and overhead corner vents as opposed to just shoulder level vents.

 

[neoDonald]

I have been on gondola systems similar to what I hear being described. They do have air conditioning. Look up Vinpearl gondola in Viet Nam. They've had the system running for many years and works great. The temperature in Viet Nam is very comparable to Orlando, high 90's and very humid in the summer. When loading/unloading, I believe the car goes onto a separate track so they can slow down/stop the car.

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Locat...d_Nha_Trang-Nha_Trang_Khanh_Hoa_Province.html

 

[joelkfla]

Roofs with side overhang on the gondolas to keep passengers shaded would be a great help. The sun shining into a transparent windowed closed space will heat up the space mighty fast. At times at WDW it is uncomfortable enough standing in the open air outside.

The term "detachable" was used to describe the gondolas. A gondola would disengage from the cable as it entered a station and be supported by an overhead rail. It could be stationary during unloading and loading.

I rode such a detachable gondola many years ago (Coney Island, New York City). Those gondolas were small enough so an attendant could pull them into position on the platform and hold them still for unloading and loading, and then push them into position to re-engage the cable for the next trip.

Similar modern gondola lifts do not stop for loading. The cabins come off the cable as they enter the station and follow a track where they are propelled by rotating tires (like Disney's original Omnimovers.) The tire speeds decrease into the loading area, decelerating the cabins to a mile or 2 per hour. The doors open, and the cabins continue to move thru the loading area at that speed. When they reach the end of the loading area, the doors close, and the tire speed increases until the cable rises up at the exit to the station and the cabins grip onto the cable.

What's different about Disney is a 2nd turnaround loop. We're assuming that unloading and loading will take place on the straight sections before/after the turnaround, and most cabins will continue around the inner loop unoccupied, while a few cabins will be switched to the outer loop for slow loaders. The cabins on the outer loop then can be stopped for unloading and loading without interrupting continuous loading of the majority of cabins.

The idea of synchronized moving walkways in the main unload and loading areas just came up. It makes sense, but I don't think it's been done anywhere else, so we'll see whether it's true or misinformation.

 

[seashoreCM]

Mechanical air conditioning requires lots of energy and batteries weigh a lot for the energy stored within. It would be necessary to have just a small battery to save on weight that in turn would need to be changed out with a recharged battery perhaps after every trip.

Another method is to have a box with a block of ordinary ice or dry ice, and a duct system that cools down cabin air and recirculates it. The ice also has weight and a new block of limited size and weight might need to be loaded after every trip. For dry ice the duct system has to provide an isolated channel (called a heat exchanger) through the dry ice compartment since the carbon dioxide from the evaporating dry ice cannot be allowed to be commingled with cabin air.

 

[wcw57]

Don't know where you saw this, but "vents" could include windows a few inches tall along the top of the cabin ends that are hinged to open inward or outward. In the old days, automobiles had small windows that opened outward that were called "vent windows"; they're less common now.

I'm old....We called them fly windows. Look on google for a great story about Sid Caesar and the cab driver involving a fly window

 

[seashoreCM]

Unlike all other windows and louvers that we have discussed so far or that we are familiar with, those "vent windows" or "fly windows" (a few inches wide and several inches high) on automobiles have a unique characteristic.

THey could be angled so that at moderate to high travel speeds air is scooped up and produces an extra breeze inside.

If only they could come up with a cage structure as opposed to a bubble that did not take in rain, gondolas could be made with much superior ventilation and not need air conditioning. A roof or top with considerable overhang would be a first step.

 

[joelkfla]

Unlike all other windows and louvers that we have discussed so far or that we are familiar with, those "vent windows" or "fly windows" (a few inches wide and several inches high) on automobiles have a unique characteristic.

THey could be angled so that at moderate to high travel speeds air is scooped up and produces an extra breeze inside.

But vents on the Skyliner cabins would be in line with the direction of travel, so they would naturally pull air into the cabin and discharge it at the rear.

 

[bilsLANDO]

Do you have a source for that? It's technically feasible, but not the norm. Usually they just move slowly enough thru the station that it's easy to board from a stationary platform. I haven't seen any rumors that Disney will use a moving platform.

I don’t have a source but it is common to have this loading system in modern European ski resorts.

I will be amazed if Disney don’t have this in place.

 

[joelkfla]

I don’t have a source but it is common to have this loading system in modern European ski resorts.

I will be amazed if Disney don’t have this in place.

It is fairly common for chairlifts, but I've looked at at least a dozen YouTubes of gondola lifts, and have not seen a single moving walkway in the station -- not even the current world's fastest has one. The cabins slow to a couple of mph in the stations, making it easy to just step in. None of the "urban gondola" installations in South America & Mexico use moving platforms, and Disney would fall into that classification.

 

[bilsLANDO]

It is fairly common for chairlifts, but I've looked at at least a dozen YouTubes of gondola lifts, and have not seen a single moving walkway in the station -- not even the current world's fastest has one. The cabins slow to a couple of mph in the stations, making it easy to just step in. None of the "urban gondola" installations in South America & Mexico use moving platforms, and Disney would fall into that classification.

Having been skiing many times I can happily confirm that moving gondolas exist and are installed on high volume stations. I do believe there is one in Soll for example.

It’s by no means universal or mandatory but it’s common and makes a lot of sense as it allows swift loading.

I am speculating on the Disney design but it makes so much sense to put one in I will be surprised if they don’t.

However if you can’t find it on YouTube then I must have imagined dozens of ski trips and moving walkways don’t exist...

 

[seashoreCM]

External protruding flaps could be arranged to funnel more air into vent openings to further improve "natural" ventilation.

In the typical gondola operation or for Peter Pan, a walking rider has to subordinate to the vehicle and time his entrance to get aboard properly.

But the vehicle has to subordinate to a wheelchair and have its movement timed so the rider gets aboard properly.

The wheelchair will be moving at right angles to the gondola and its door opening. At one half MPH along a fixed platform it will be something like three seconds before the gondola door jamb T-bones an object the size of a wheelchair if the latter has not fully entered. Some of that 3 seconds will be consumed as reaction time of the rider just starting his entrance.
.

 

[joelkfla]

External protruding flaps could be arranged to funnel more air into vent openings to further improve "natural" ventilation.

In the typical gondola operation or for Peter Pan, a walking rider has to subordinate to the vehicle and time his entrance to get aboard properly.

But the vehicle has to subordinate to a wheelchair and have its movement timed so the rider gets aboard properly.

The wheelchair will be moving at right angles to the gondola and its door opening. At one half MPH along a fixed platform it will be something like three seconds before the gondola door jamb T-bones an object the size of a wheelchair if the latter has not fully entered. Some of that 3 seconds will be consumed as reaction time of the rider just starting his entrance.
.

The gondola lifts are marketed by the manufacturer as wheelchair-compatible without having moving sidewalks. But moreover, and perhaps in recognition of the inexperience of many wheelchair users at WDW, it is believed that Disney has made an additional accommodation by adding a 2nd loop to most stations, where cabins could be further slowed or stopped for wheelchair boarding. The only exception is Riviera, where loading and unloading logistics remain somewhat of a mystery.

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

.

The wheelchair will be moving at right angles to the gondola and its door opening. At one half MPH along a fixed platform it will be something like three seconds before the gondola door jamb T-bones an object the size of a wheelchair if the latter has not fully entered. Some of that 3 seconds will be consumed as reaction time of the rider just starting his entrance.
.

Isn't there going to be a 2nd platform where the gondalas can completely stop for wheel chairs and ecvs?

Will strollers be able to use the platform with moving gondalas? The world seem to be enough time, but what if a wheel gets caught between the vehicle and platform? How small stil the gap be?

I've gotten my stroller stuck quite a few times getting on and off the monorail, for example.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Isn't there going to be a 2nd platform where the gondalas can completely stop for wheel chairs and ecvs?

Will strollers be able to use the platform with moving gondalas? The world seem to be enough time, but what if a wheel gets caught between the vehicle and platform? How small stil the gap be?

I've gotten my stroller stuck quite a few times getting on and off the monorail, for example.

The gap should be so small that a stroller wheel can't get stuck. The key will be the timing though and navigating the natural movement of the gondola car as you enter it, as it causes a bit of movement as they are hanging if that makes sense