Patent Publication Number: US-2023149821-A1

Title: Modular Experiential Water Tunnel and Method Thereof

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present patent application claims the benefits of priority of American Provisional patent application No. 63/264,265, entitled “Experiential Water Tunnel and Method Thereof”, and filed at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Nov. 18, 2021, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention generally relates to modular ride installations. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Water parks typically seek to offer guests new and exciting attractions to provide them memorable experiences. These attractions often desire to provide participants increasingly engaging rides by offering multisensory experiences. 
     To do so, the rides offered by water parks are typically custom installations capable of providing a distinctive and unique experience. The custom nature of the rides typically leads to increased costs and installation times. Moreover, any future adjustments or modifications to the rides may be equally complicated and/or costly. 
     There is therefore a need for a modular and cost-effective multisensory ride for water parks. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The shortcomings of the prior art are generally mitigated by a modular experiential water tunnel comprising arches and experiential modules capable of being easily installed and modified on a water ride. 
     Other and further aspects and advantages of the present invention will be obvious upon an understanding of the illustrative embodiments about to be described or will be indicated in the appended claims, and various advantages not referred to herein will occur to one skilled in the art upon employment of the invention in practice. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The above and other aspects, features and advantages of the invention will become more readily apparent from the following description, reference being made to the accompanying drawings in which: 
         FIG.  1    is a perspective view of a modular experiential tunnel in accordance with the principles of the present invention. 
         FIG.  2    is a perspective view of exemplary arches and experiential modules as used in the modular experiential tunnel of  FIG.  1   . 
         FIG.  3    is another perspective view of exemplary arches and experiential modules as used in the modular experiential tunnel of  FIG.  1   . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     A novel modular experiential water tunnel will be described hereinafter. Although the invention is described in terms of specific illustrative embodiments, it is to be understood that the embodiments described herein are by way of example only and that the scope of the invention is not intended to be limited thereby. 
     Referring to  FIG.  1   , an embodiment of a modular experiential water tunnel  100  for providing participants a multimedia passageway is illustrated. The modular tunnel  100  generally comprises one or more support structures  200  and one or more experiential modules  300  adapted to create an immersive and interactive experience within the modular tunnel  100 . The modular experiential water tunnel  100  may further comprise an exterior structure or shell  150  adapted to enclose the interior space of the modular experiential water tunnel  100 . 
     Broadly, the support structures  200  are adapted to support some or all of the experiential modules  300  and may comprise any shape suitable for providing adequate support and placement of the experiential modules  300 . In certain embodiments, the support structures  200  may further support a portion or the entirety of the shell  150 . Referring to  FIGS.  1  to  3   , the support structures  200  are embodied as arches  200  although it may be appreciated that the support structures  200  may comprise any other suitable shape without departing from the scope of the invention. 
     In certain embodiments, the modular tunnel  100  may be constructed on top of or as part of a water ride  10  such as, for example, a lazy river. To that end, participants on the water ride  10  may be conveyed through an entrance  110  and out of an exit  120  of the modular tunnel  100 . 
     Broadly, the size of the modular tunnel  100  may be defined by the size and number of arches  200 . In the embodiment illustrated in  FIG.  1   , the modular tunnel  100  comprises ten arches  200 . Understandably, the modular tunnel  100  may comprise any other suitable number of arches  200  in order to extend any desirable length of the water ride  10 . For example, the modular tunnel  100  may comprise a higher number of arches  200 , in association with a slower water conveyance speed through the water ride  10 , to provide a lengthier experience for participants. 
     In a preferred embodiment, the modular tunnel  100  may comprise a suitable number of arches  200  for creating a dark environment within the modular tunnel  100  and to provide participants sufficient time within the modular tunnel  100  to experience the experiential modules  300 . 
     Referring now to  FIG.  2   , the width of the arches  200  may be configured to receive the water ride  10  in the interior space defined by the arches  200  with one or more feet  210  of the arches  200  being in contact with and supported by the floor or a base  140  of the modular tunnel  100 . In other embodiments, the arches  200  may have a width being substantially similar to the water ride  10  with the one or more feet  210  being in contact with and supported by side walls  12  of the water ride  10 . 
     In certain embodiments, one or more of the arches  200  may be positioned at an angle relative to an adjacent arch  200  such as to create a curvature of the multimedia passageway. The modular tunnel  100  may therefore comprise any desirable number of curvatures. Understandably, the modular tunnel  100  may curve in the vertical plane, horizontal plane or a combination thereof. In other embodiments, adjacent arches  200  may be positioned at differing heights relative to one another in accordance with variations in the topography of the base  140 . The modular tunnel  100  may further comprise arches  200  of varying size relative to one another thereby creating one or more restricting or expanding spaces within the modular tunnel  100 . 
     Broadly, the experiential modules  300  may provide projection mapping, lighting, water effects, visual effects, music, soundscapes or any other suitable experience within the modular tunnel  100 . To that end, the experiential modules  300  may therefore comprise lasers  320 , LED lighting modules (not shown), water curtains  330 , speakers  340 , fog generator  360 , a projector  310  and/or any other suitable system. 
     In certain embodiments, one or more of the experiential modules  300  may conjointly operate to provide a desired experience. For example, the projector  310  may project an image or video on the water curtains  330  or a fog generated by the fog generator  360 . Alternatively, the speakers  340  may emit sounds or music in accordance with the LED lighting modules, the fog generator  360  or the projector  310 . 
     The modular tunnel  100  may further comprise one or more sensors  400 . In certain embodiments, the sensors  400  may activate one or more of the experiential modules  300  when a predetermined condition is met such as, for example, when a participant is detected at or near the entrance  110  of the modular tunnel  100  or when a predetermined lighting is achieved. 
     In certain embodiments, one or more of the experiential modules  300  may be integrated into the arches  200 . For example, the arches  200  may comprise LED lighting modules integrated in an inner surface thereof. The arches  200  may further comprise speakers  200  integrated therein. 
     It may be appreciated that the modular tunnel  100  is constructed in a modular fashion to allow the arches  200  and experiential modules  300  to be installed in any desirable configuration in accordance with the requirements of the water ride  10 . For example, the modular tunnel  100  may be configured with any desirable number of arches  200  and experiential modules  300  affixed to the arches  200  or to any other structure therein. 
     To control the motion and/or operation of the of the experiential modules  300 , the modular tunnel  100  may comprise a controller  500  (not shown), such as a CPU or a computer or any computerized device. The modular tunnel may further comprise a manual user input device or user interface  510  (not shown), such as, but not limited to, a a touch screen, a keypad, a keyboard, a computerized device connected to the apparatus, a mouse, a voice or movement recognition system or a scanner or touch screen in order to control the experiential modules  300 . In another embodiment, the controller  500  may act as a client to retrieve instructions regarding the operation of the experiential modules  300  from a remote server  600  (not shown) through a network connection. 
     While illustrative and presently preferred embodiments of the invention have been described in detail hereinabove, it is to be understood that the inventive concepts may be otherwise variously embodied and employed and that the appended claims are intended to be construed to include such variations except insofar as limited by the prior art.