Did ever wonder how your cat or dog is being treated when you board it? Pete Cross decided to answer that question with technology.
He created the PetInspect gadget, which records data on how a pet is being treated while it is boarded. The data-logger and wireless communications device lets you track your pet's environment -- hot or cold -- and whether the pet is getting exercise. This gadget consists of a 16-bit microcontroller with 256K of flash memory and sensors for pressure, temperature, activity, light, and proximity.
Pete Cross' cat Elmo shows off the PetInspect, a data-logger and wireless communications device that lets you discover what environment your pet experiences and how it behaves while you're not around.
The PCB has dedicated power and ground planes on each board. The electronics package, including batteries, fits into a cylinder 28mm (1.1 inches) in diameter and 23mm (0.9 inches) in length.
The editors of Design News have handpicked your favorite Gadget Freak cases from over the years, bringing them together in a dynamic digital edition, complete with videos, which you can view here.
Yes, I can understand what you're saying about cats, Naperlou. Over the years, my dogs have been fine with collars, but I've never even tried to get one of my cats to wear a collar. It will be interesting to hear what our gadget maker says about this.
Yes, it is a very cool gadget. The only thing I can say is that our cats would not wear it. They have destroyed all the collars we have gotten them. We also don't board the cats. They are easy to care for and we can get neighbors to come over and feed them.
Yes, Andrew, I was also impressed by the complexity of this gadget. As for the pdf, we actually asked for a shorter version. In the end the production folks decided they could post the entire novel-length code.
What a sophisticated gadget. Extremely well documented with a 504 page pdf file. A huge amount of work went into this. How long did it take Mr. Cross to develop this?
Andrew Morris designed a circuit that could detect a stroke victim's groan and convert the sound into a signal so caregivers would know when help was needed.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 5
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
For industrial control applications, or even a simple assembly line, that machine can go almost 24/7 without a break. But what happens when the task is a little more complex? That’s where the “smart” machine would come in. The smart machine is one that has some simple (or complex in some cases) processing capability to be able to adapt to changing conditions. Such machines are suited for a host of applications, including automotive, aerospace, defense, medical, computers and electronics, telecommunications, consumer goods, and so on. This radio show will show what’s possible with smart machines, and what tradeoffs need to be made to implement such a solution.
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
0 
