RoboScreens on Royal Caribbean cruise ships to add visual intrigue

RoboScreens on Royal Caribbean cruise ships to add visual intrigue

Robotics Online has a great piece about the new RoboScreens coming to Royal Caribbean's Quantum-class cruise ships. 

Six 100” video screens attached to six industrial robots that were developed by ABB RoboScreens are a big reason Royal Caribbean will be taking on-board entertainment on its newest class of cruise ships to the next level.

Onboard it's upcoming Quantum-class cruise ships, guests will find these amazing innovations in the Two70 signature venue. 

A RoboScreen is a graphical screen mounted to the arm of an ABB articulated arm robot, which creates a unique viewer experience by bringing virtually unlimited, 6-axis movement to the video media. Available in various sizes, the Two70° RoboScreens feature six ABB IRB 6620 robots, each holding a 100” diagonal Daktronics LED screen.

On Royal Caribbean's Quantum-class ships, the RoboScreens are stored in the ceiling when not in use but during shows in Two70, the RoboScreens extend down on the gantry to a position above the stage, displaying unique video and imagery while performing choreographed movements, all custom produced for the specific performance.  

The RoboScreens were developed by Andy Flessas and were first introduced in 2010 as part of the Bon Jovi Circle Tour. They have also been a part of concerts and shows for Kis-My-Ft2, a Japanese Pop band; the Las Vegas house show for deadmau5, world famous music producer and performer; and the Ultra-Music Festival in Miami. 

On the Quantum-class, the RoboScreens will periodically assemble in various formations, such as six screens in a row to form one continuous, long screen; a three by two stack to form one big square screen; or a serpentine row, much like a ‘W’ and a ‘V’ strung together.

The project involves the close collaboration of a number or parties, both within ABB and externally. Being the first installation of an ABB robot on any ship, the ABB Marine Power Group in Helsinki, Finland and the ABB Robotics North American team in Auburn Hills, Michigan worked together for the first time. The ABB PC software team in Gothenburg, Sweden is also involved, working on the programming software and addressing the unique challenges of operating robots at sea.

The external partners include Royal Caribbean, andyRobot, Daktronics, Waagner Biro, the gantry provider, Coolux, the video server manufacturer, and Meyer Werft, the shipbuilder based in Papenburg, Germany.