Disney just got a new patent granted, and if it ever actually makes it into the parks, this one might genuinely change how a lot of us approach ride-picking.
Making even more progress toward a system that lets guests set specific preferences and aversions, then get real-time alerts about them during an attraction.
The patent, titled “Personalized Notification of Attractions Including User Preferences or Aversions,” was filed back on February 14, 2025, and officially granted on August 20, 2026. And it’s a lot more detailed than the generic ride recommendations already built into the Disneyland and Walt Disney World apps.
Here’s the core idea: guests would input specific likes, dislikes, and even physical or medical considerations into a preferences database. As the patent explains, existing warning systems have some real limitations…you can’t realistically list every possible concern on a sign or in an audio announcement without either overwhelming guests or scaring them off an attraction entirely with an intimidating wall of text. Worse, static signage doesn’t update easily as new concerns get identified, and none of it accounts for exactly where a guest is inside an attraction at any given moment.
This system is designed to fix all of that dynamically. Once your preferences are set, the system would compare a ride’s actual characteristics against your personal list, then send a visual, audio, or haptic alert through a device like your phone or smartwatch — including mid-ride, letting you know a specific trigger is coming up before you actually hit it.
The intensity-rating detail is honestly the cleverest part of the whole system. Aversions would get scored on a one-to-ten scale — a single motionless spider prop might rate a one or two, while a full swarm of aggressively moving spiders could hit an eight or higher. That gives guests with something like arachnophobia actual nuance to work with, rather than a blanket “this ride has spiders, proceed at your own risk” warning. Some people might be totally fine with the low end and want a heads-up only for the more intense moments.
And the patent goes even further than alerts alone! It describes the potential for real-time content substitution during a ride, syncing a guest’s changing location through an attraction with alternate visuals, audio, or effects to actually swap out a concerning stimulus rather than just warning about it. That part wouldn’t apply to everything (you can’t exactly swap out a physical animatronic mid-scene), but for screen-based or audio elements, it’s a genuinely fascinating bit of forward-thinking tech.
Worth remembering, as always with these patent stories: a granted patent doesn’t mean implementation is imminent, or even guaranteed. Disney patents plenty of concepts that never make it past the paperwork stage, and if this one does eventually show up in the parks, it could be years away.
Still, for anyone who’s ever hesitated on a ride because of an unclear warning sign, or wished they could get a heads-up before a specific jump scare, this is a genuinely exciting glimpse at where Disney’s thinking might be headed.
Would you actually use a personalized ride-aversion alert system if Disney rolled this out? Let me know what preferences you’d want to set!
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