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.
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?
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.
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, 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.
If you want your cat to wear a collar, then it's best to start with them when they are young. They just expect that to be normal from then on.
If you try anything like this at home, then please do use a proper collar bought from a pet store. Cats can be strangled in the event they get it hooked up on a branch. That's extremely rare and can be avoided entirely by buying one designed to break when that happens. I just bought a cheap flea collar for this project. It is designed to expand and break under the weight of the cat.
@pete.cross: That's a very interesting master's thesis ("Control, communication and monitoring of intravaginal drug delivery in dairy cows"). I'd imagine that getting a cat to wear a collar is very simple in comparison.
I'd bet money this could be a successful product. Dog and cat owners now spend fairly large amounts of money for shots and veterinary bills. This cost of this product might be small by comparison.
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.
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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.
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