An animatronic Killer Whale animation for production company Mannetron. Moving the internal frame to create a lifelike movement profile for an exhibition in a Japanese Aquarium.

Mannetron – Based in Battle Creek, Michigan with a focus on products that communicate, interact with audiences, and create unforgettable experiences. From giant motion video walls to 3D character casting they continue to build a reputation of making the most impossible ideas work, in a beautiful way.

Creating a life-size animated Killer Whale that recreates the lifelike swimming action of a wild animal.

Mannetron first considered hydraulics to move the hefty hulk. But leaking hydraulic oil can ruin moulded skin and paint. “That happened to one of the robotic dinosaurs when filming Jurassic Park,” says Mannetron CEO Mike Clark. “They had to scramble Learjets to an off-island location to mould a replacement skin.”

Heat and noise were other concerns with hydraulics because the large whale consumes about 15 kW during operation. The hydraulic power unit required to run it would have been housed in a separate air-conditioned, sound-proof room along with refrigerated oil coolers, all of which were unacceptable

A little research located a suitable replacement – brushless servomotor-powered linear actuators from Exlar Corp., Chanhassen, Minn. Five of the three-phase actuators move the tail and one controls the mouth. The actuators eliminated the support equipment and equally important, the noise. Making the whale run silent was one of Mannetron’s key goals.

The finished Orca is so lifelike that leading Japanese whale authorities signed off on its authenticity, a prerequisite for delivery to the Nogoya Port Public Aquarium in Japan.