[Narrator] BB-8 was birthed like many great works

of engineering before him

as a crude sketch on the back of a napkin.

Director J.J. Abrams drew two circles

one on top of another

with a tiny dot for an eye.

Basic, but the core concept was there.

In total, the team made seven BB-8 droids

for various uses.

It took twelve people four months

to complete the work.

The BB-8 versions include a stunt BB-8

and a bowling ball version,

in case they needed a madcap BB-8

to whiz through the frame.

Puppeteer BB-8, a functional robot

operated by up to three roboticists.

There was also a lightweight BB-8

which could be carried by the actors if necessary.

He weighs approximately 40 pounds

and stands at two feet two and a half inches tall.

That makes him shorter than R2-D2.

His head swivels a full 360 degrees,

and he has six swapable circular tool-bay disks.

When he does get going, watch out

because his top speed is just under 7 miles per hour.

You may think BB-8 is powered by pure cuteness

but its N-I-M-H batteries might be part of the equation.

It takes two hours to fully charge him.

Speaking of high powered machines,

the Japanese Airline ANA has decked out

three commercial jets in Star Wars livery

including one plane themed after BB-8.

BB-8 uses a gyroscope to determine which way is down

and two wheels to move the sphere from inside.

The base plate serves as a counterweight,

to keep the wheels acting against the lower half

of the sphere.

Yeah, that might be an over-explanation.

Some machines are just a couple spheres

on top of each other with some wires inside.

Thanks, J.J.

(droid beeping)