Dinosaurs at the Zoo

[Patrx]

Hey, all! I just thought I'd share some photos from "Dinosaurs Alive", evidently a kind of traveling exhibit featuring animatronic saurians. These have recently appeared at the Henry Doorly Zoo.


This toothy little demon is labeled "Juvenile Carnotaurus". Though they're pretty laughable from a paleontological standpoint, most of these machines have some cool movements - even blinking and breathing.


A "Juvenile Spinosaurus" - looks like it was based on the Jurassic Park version.


An, er, interesting take on Amargasaurus.


The plaque for this little theropod claims it's a Yangchuanosaurus, but it looks to me like a re-purposed allosaur of some kind.


The plaque says "Panoplosaurus", but I'm quite sure it's based on Ankylosaurus or Euopocephalus.


Pachycephalosaurus. This one shows off a problem that many of these models have - really stocky legs with inexplicably humanoid musculature 


Ouranosaurus. I've seen worse.


A rather 80's-looking Parasaurolophus. Its eyes kind of scare me...


Evidently, this stegosaur is meant to be Tuojiangosaurus, but the shoulder spikes say it's probably a Kentrosaurus model with a new name.


This massive Omeisaurus certainly could be worse. That's me there in the plaid 


A surprisingly nice Quetzalcoatlus. It even has fuzz!


Mojoceratops.


Kosmoceratops. Neat to see such recently-discovered animals, even if they look a bit, well, wrong.


It seems the herbivores generally turned out a bit better than the theropods - probably because there's less pressure to make them look "scary" or "cool".


Despite its flaws - long tail, rhino feet, etc - I like this big Triceratops. I think it's probably one of the better-looking beasts here.


Tyrannosaurus - this one's pretty quirky. As well as the usual problems, it's got massive jaw that reminds me of the 1998 Godzilla - right down to the tiny little teeth.

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Ah yeas the Dinosaurs Unearthed animatronics again.  I've seen a lot of issues with these guys in the past, but a few do look better. I believe I like the Ouranosaurus best here...though the Trike is pretty good as well...nice pics of them too.

Your right about re-purposing..Dinamation, Billings and DU all do it. They create one base model skin and animatronic frame then either make different heads or just alter parts.  It's all in effort to seem newer and more up to date then they really are..and save money as well.

The stocky legs are most likely due to the same sized metal frame at the attachment point being used..it makes them more sturdy and abuse resistant. I do the same thing with many of my pieces..opting for a full 2x4 instead of  a 2x2 or something more fragile.

If the exhibit is still there in another month or so you should take a trip back and get some images when all the trees and such are in full foliage..really adds to it.

[Patrx]

I thought you might know who made them, Blade! As far as amimatronic theme-park dinosaurs are concerned, there are definitely uglier ones out there - but I'm sure there are nicer ones as well. Probably in Japan 

The re-purposing thing doesn't bug me much on principle. For example, I suspect that the Kosmoceratops and Mojoceratops are the same basic structure with a new head, and I think that worked out just fine. However, Panoplosaurus doesn't have a tail club, and Tuojiangosaurus probably didn't have those extra spikes. There was a kid at the zoo who called the former "Ankylosaurus" - he was probably right, but his parents read the sign and "corrected" him 

Ah, that explains the legs, at least a bit. They certainly do seem sturdy. Don't your models usually include a pretty substantial metal base for stability, buried under plants and dirt and such?

I'm sure I'll be back! I'll endeavor to get some "greener" shots next time.

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

I thought you might know who made them, Blade! As far as amimatronic theme-park dinosaurs are concerned, there are definitely uglier ones out there - but I'm sure there are nicer ones as well. Probably in Japan 

The re-purposing thing doesn't bug me much on principle. For example, I suspect that the Kosmoceratops and Mojoceratops are the same basic structure with a new head, and I think that worked out just fine. However, Panoplosaurus doesn't have a tail club, and Tuojiangosaurus probably didn't have those extra spikes. There was a kid at the zoo who called the former "Ankylosaurus" - he was probably right, but his parents read the sign and "corrected" him 

Ah, that explains the legs, at least a bit. They certainly do seem sturdy. Don't your models usually include a pretty substantial metal base for stability, buried under plants and dirt and such?

I'm sure I'll be back! I'll endeavor to get some "greener" shots next time.

lol yep.  

This is DU :  http://www.dinosaursunearthed.com/

Yeah there are certainly worse ones out there and some better ones as well, like Kokoro ( Japan/USA )

: http://kokoroexhibits.com/

They have some of the best animatronic ones..especially they're newer pieces with motion / color tracking, scents, breathing, ect..

Oh yeah..mine have fiberglass base frames under all the dirt, rock, ect...some of them quite large.

[ZoPteryx]

Thanks for the pics Patrx!  Some of those are kind of goofy, but I really like the Quetz and Ourano,

[tyrantqueen]

Uglyyyyyy

[amargasaurus cazaui]

I appreciate your sharing them. I am not much for criticizing things I could not do better so I find them very unique and interesting. I especially like the Ouranosaurus......it seems nicely done. Just something about dinosaurs people are drawn to..........

[DinoToyForum]

Thanks for sharing  The Ouranosaurus looks pretty decent!

[Patrx]

Some of those Kokoro models look pretty up-to-date, but I can't seem to find any videos showing the way they move. Hmm.

Of course, glad to share The coloration of the Ouranosaurus seems familiar to me, but I can't recall where else I'd have seen it.

[tyrantqueen]

Some of those Kokoro models look pretty up-to-date, but I can't seem to find any videos showing the way they move. Hmm.

Of course, glad to share The coloration of the Ouranosaurus seems familiar to me, but I can't recall where else I'd have seen it.

Personally it reminded me of the Kinto Spinosaurus statue

[Gryphoceratops]

These robot dinosaurs are rarely very accurate.  I want to cut the horns off the Kosmoceratops and re-apply them facing out haha. 

[Seijun]

I likes Blade's models better.

[Patrx]

I likes Blade's models better.

Me, too! Have you ever considered attempting some animatronic movements for your dinosaurs, Blade? I bet you could achieve some simple motions, for a small animal, using something like a Lego Mindstorms kit.

[Takama]

Yess lego mindstorms can produce some incredible things.     Dispite the prices

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Thank you all.

I think it matters whether you are creating dinosaurs as a job or because or in addition to truly loving them.

I did consider animating some of these..it's really hard to so with the materials I use though and considering they are outdoors..any holes would be the perfect place for wasps, spiders and snakes.  Maybe at some point I will be able to combine accuracy with realistic movements.

Here is Kokoro's youtube channel : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpADX5nxn2kgtptjurKa0Nbl-b--S1nnj

[Jetoar]

Wonderful dinosaurs  !