So I hope everyone can bear with me, I'm trying to keep my thoughts in check here.  So, I love the castle show "Dream Along with Mickey" in Disney World.  I have seen how they operate the mouths and eyelids of the characters (it is with the fingers in the gloves).  So I had heard this was called the WALDO system but I was corrected that it wasn't.  Does anyone know the name of this system or does it have a name?  I have also heard that, with the new Wii and the XBox Kinect, that people have made homemade versions of this sort of thing.  Is it possible?  I would like to at least try and work something but I have never used anything electric or automated.  So I am interested in how, if possible, anyone has done this and how it might be done. 
Lastly, I am wondering if anyone has worked with those types of characters before.  So in a normal mascot character, usually the mouth is a normal place to see out of.  In some cases, it is also the eyes of the characters.  When there are moving mouth characters, the natural position is closed, which effectively closes off that sight area.  So then it is just the eyes.  If those eyes blink, are the performers just plunged into momentary darkness? I realize those are aged performers in terms of abilities but.....That is a whole new level of not being able to see as you run upstairs and around a 5 foot tall stage......
I hope this kind of makes sense....I posted on a few other boards and am just hoping I can get some help here.  Thanks in advance!!
Alan

Alan,
Well the system that Disney uses may not be called "waldos" but I have heard the term used in reference to moving mechanisms in the past.  The Wii and WBos Kinect are different things really they are translating movement of the body to an animation.

If line of site is not available via moth or eyes, then more then likely they are using monitors inside of the body character to see.  That is how Big Bird is operated. For live shows I think they try to stay away from monitors in the costume though.  It is possible that there are screens in other parts of the face/body that are allowing the performer to see out.  Don't forget though that you blink all the time and don't loose sight of where you are going.

Wish I could give you an easy answer on how these are done but it involved electronics and that is not my bag. The same "stuff" that is used in RC cars and planes can be found in these puppets. Do you have any clubs or stores in your area that deal with these. Best way to learn would be to get in contact with them and pick their brains. Radio Shack is another place where you can often find the components for the circuit boards used for these.

P.S. Start looking at information on animatronics. Even check your local library for books. There are also quite a few sites out there on the subject.
Link no longer available. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animatronics
http://www.animatronics.org/
http://www.garnerholt.com/
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-create-simple-animatronics-using-the-MAKE-c/
http://www.bpesolutions.com/
http://www.nastypixel.com/prototype/workshops/usable-witchery-venice/animatronics
http://www.buffingtonfx.com/j1432/animatronics/arvid.html