Patent Published for Disney Weather Warning System

[Randy Jennings]

With summer coming up hot and fast, Walt Disney World guests may soon receive customized environmental warnings within the My Disney Experience app based on their location and plans, according to a new patent. Disney Enterprises initially filed the patent with the vague title of “Predicting and Mitigating Effects of Environmental Conditions,” with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on September 30, 2024, but it was only recently published on April 2, 2026.

Full story:
Disney Files Patent to Add Environmental Warnings for My Disney Experience App - WDWNT

 

[Warren Faidley]

Goofy Risk: Some storms expected but none severe.
Mickey Risk: Severe storms expected. Weak tornadoes and moderate hail possible.
Pluto Risk: High risk of severe weather including violent tornadoes and destructive hail.

 

[AmboyRoy]

As if people don't already get that information on their phones...definitely seems a bit goofy to me.

 

[Randy Zipser]

As if people don't already get that information on their phones...definitely seems a bit goofy to me.

I agree. This whole Disney weather-warning app thing seems a bit of an overkill, as the same information for daily/trip planning is available for free at the local NWS app (either MCO or TBW, if Orlando is the destination).

In fact, for any day in interior Central Florida from June through September, just stay indoors in the A/C to avoid heat prostration or stroke. The high heat/humidity combination which persists here nonstop in all daylight hours is a silent killer, especially if one is not used to it and does not keep properly hydrated. But the real show may not be in the attractions of Disney World at all (sorry, Walt!!), but rather the spectacular Cbs that blow up pretty-much daily during the summer months in that part of Florida, with "hardened" anvils, fabulous CG lightning and booming thunder, and occasionally some small hail or a quick tornado spin-up! The west-coast seabreeze front can get quite far inland and initiate these storms as far east as Orlando, but they usually migrate westward toward sunset, giving the Tampa Bay area a daily show.

In the fall-winter-spring (October-May), the daily high temps are normally more moderate and dewpoints are lower, so being outside during daylight hours is much more bearable for sightseeing at the theme parks. That's about all you'd need to know, so why mess with this Disney World Weather Warning System app?

 

[AmboyRoy]

I agree. This whole Disney weather-warning app thing seems to a bit of an overkill, as the same information for daily/trip planning is available for free at the local NWS app (either MCO or TBW, if Orlando is the destination).

In fact, for any day in interior Central Florida from June through September, just stay indoors in the A/C to avoid heat prostration or stroke. The high heat/humidity combination which persists here nonstop in all daylight hours is a silent killer, especially if one is not used to it and does not keep properly hydrated. But the real show may not be in the attractions of Disney World at all (sorry, Walt!!), but rather the spectacular Cbs that blow up pretty-much daily during the summer months in that part of Florida, with "hardened" anvils, fabulous CG lightning and booming thunder, and occasionally some small hail or a quick tornado spin-up! The west-coast seabreeze front can get quite far inland and initiate these storms as far east as Orlando, but they usually migrate westward toward sunset, giving the Tampa Bay area a daily show.

In the fall-winter-spring (October-May), the daily high temps are normally more moderate and dewpoints are lower, so being outside during daylight hours is much more bearable for sightseeing at the theme parks. That's about all you'd need to know, so why mess with this Disney World Weather Warning System app?

Yup....Disney has ZERO experience with weather forecasting....even if they hired people from AccuWeather...still can't be trusted....anyone that claims they can forecast the weather 6 months out...nope...not buying it.

 

[AmboyRoy]

I agree. This whole Disney weather-warning app thing seems a bit of an overkill, as the same information for daily/trip planning is available for free at the local NWS app (either MCO or TBW, if Orlando is the destination).

In fact, for any day in interior Central Florida from June through September, just stay indoors in the A/C to avoid heat prostration or stroke. The high heat/humidity combination which persists here nonstop in all daylight hours is a silent killer, especially if one is not used to it and does not keep properly hydrated. But the real show may not be in the attractions of Disney World at all (sorry, Walt!!), but rather the spectacular Cbs that blow up pretty-much daily during the summer months in that part of Florida, with "hardened" anvils, fabulous CG lightning and booming thunder, and occasionally some small hail or a quick tornado spin-up! The west-coast seabreeze front can get quite far inland and initiate these storms as far east as Orlando, but they usually migrate westward toward sunset, giving the Tampa Bay area a daily show.

In the fall-winter-spring (October-May), the daily high temps are normally more moderate and dewpoints are lower, so being outside during daylight hours is much more bearable for sightseeing at the theme parks. That's about all you'd need to know, so why mess with this Disney World Weather Warning System app?

Btw...I was raised in the TBA area....we knew what was coming on spring and summer days....like clockwork...central fla...nooooo....

 

[Randy Zipser]

Btw...I was raised in the TBA area.

So was I...welcome to ST!! You're absolutely right about the "clockwork" with the daily seabreeze thunderstorms...so regular you could set your watch by them at 6:00pm everyday! Having grown up there, I can honestly say that Tampa Bay has some of the most amazing summertime storms in the world, particularly with respect to the blinding CG lightning bolts followed by deafening thunder. I grew up right on Tampa Bay, and I can recall many times when the entire house and windows shook after lightning strikes nearby over the bay. Great waterspouts, too!! BTW, most of those storms actually blew up nearer to the west coast, usually on or just east of I-75. The ones that developed further inland were more known for flooding than lightning, hail, or funnels. Funny what one remembers from those adolescent years so long ago...

 

[AmboyRoy]

Dude....I LOVED the tropical weather we had there...torrential downpours were sooo amazing....the severe, rare tornadic stuff we got was wild....I was only a kid, at the time.....my parents bought meva NOAA weather radio for one of my b-days....I was hooked

 

[AmboyRoy]

So was I...welcome to ST!! You're absolutely right about the "clockwork" with the daily seabreeze thunderstorms...so regular you could set your watch by them at 6:00pm everyday! Having grown up there, I can honestly say that Tampa Bay has some of the most amazing summertime storms, particularly with respect to the blinding CG lightning bolts followed by deafening thunder. I grew up right on Tampa Bay, and I can recall many times when the entire house and windows shook after lightning strikes nearby over the bay. Great waterspouts, too!!

Not new on here...just been a bit silent....but thanks

 

[Randy Jennings]

Patents are written to cover as much intellectual property (IP) space as possible and that makes it very hard to understand what something really is and what the intent is, but I could see Disney adding weather alerts to their parks app as a good thing.

First we have to keep in mind that Disney parks, and Walt Disney World in Orlando especially, get a ton of visitors from outside the US. Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) is a US system. While some other countries have similar systems, these systems don't all work together from what I can tell reading online and there is no guarantee that all visitors from outside the US would get a WEA sent in the US when they are visiting the US. Even if they are received, WEAs may not be in a language the visitor understands.

Second, WEAs are either triggered by tags in NWS warnings or sent manually by local EM/Fire/Police officials. Local officals control what they say and the action instructions in them (and as Rob Dale often points out many do a very poor job with WEA messages). If Disney sends their app users in their parks a warning they can provide property specific instructions on what to do and control the message.

Finally, it also looks like this system cold cover more than just tornados and hail. You are not likely to get a WEA about a heat index or lightning. These are very real threats to their park guests, and something as simple as reminding guests the heat index is high and to drink a lot of water could cut down on first aid station visits. The vast majority of their park guests these days use their app, and this could come in handy.

The thing that surprised me the most is the fact they filed for a patent on it. Why would Disney care if Universal did the same thing? I think the real reason they filled for a patent is legal protection for themselves. There is a saying in business that the main purpose of having patents is to keep yourself from being sued or to at least have a counter claim if you do. Businesses that don't have much IP can be targets of those that do. A business with a lot of patents is rarely sued by a business with a lot of patents. The goal here may be just to protect them from being sued by someone else and they could care less if another theme park did the same thing.

 

[Mike Smith]

The thing that surprised me the most is the fact they filed for a patent on it. Why would Disney care if Universal did the same thing? I

I think you are in the ball park but it might be more nefarious. Disney is a highly litigious company. Throughout Hollywood there is a saying, "Don't mess with the Mouse."

The actual purpose of a patent is it gives you the right to sue someone for intellectual property infringement. As this is a very broad patent application on what is not really novel technology, I'm hoping the PTO rejects this. But, Disney has the very best patent attorneys. It is entirely possible, if the patent is granted, they will be suing people for things they've always done. Your choices then will be to pay for an attorney to defend your rights or pay to take a license from Disney to use the IP.

 

[Randy Jennings]

I took a quick look at the patent app itself and I am certain it will eventually get granted. Having been thru the patent process a dozen times myself with one of the best patent firms in the world, I can tell you it is a big myth that something has to be novel to get granted. Good patent attorneys can get anything approved. It typically takes several rejections, but good attorneys almost always get the patents granted. This patent app is clearly written by very good patent attorneys. I should also note that nothing in the application seems to indicate they plan to use this in their theme park app for guests. While they could, it also could be used for employees who work outside.