Schlagwort: dogs

  • Translate dog barks with Raspberry Pi

    Translate dog barks with Raspberry Pi

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    I speak English. Super well. And I can read the rough, overall vibe of writing in French. I can also order beer and taxis in Spanish. Alas, my dog can do none of these things, and we are left in communication limbo. I try asking them (in English) why they’re so mean to that one Cockapoo who lives across the road, or why they don’t understand the importance of the eyedrops the vet insists I have to hold their eyelids open to administer. They just respond with a variety of noises that I cannot translate. We need to fix this, and thankfully NerdStoke has harnessed Raspberry Pi to build a solution.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GY33kZbClow?feature=oembed&w=500&h=281]

    NerdStroke’s YouTube channel is new, but good. Subscribe to it!
    (Video features some bleeped-out strong language, as well as one unbleeped mild swear)

    How does it work?

    The dog wears a harness with a microphone that picks up its barks. The barks get processed through a device that determines what the dog is saying and then outputs it through speakers.

    Raspberry Pi Zero is the affordable brain powering NerdStoke’s solution to this age-old human-and-pup problem. But writing code that could translate the multitude of frequencies coming out of a dog’s mouth when it barks was a trickier problem. NerdStoke tried to work it through on Twitch with fellow hobbyists, but alas, the original dream had to be modified.

    dog bark translator hardware
    The kit worked fine – it was the coding challenge that changed the course of this project

    Spoiler alert: fast Fourier transforms did not work. You would need a clear, pure tone for that to work in a project like this, but as we said above, dogs bark in a rainbow of tones, pitches, and all the rest.

    So what’s the solution?

    Because of this, a time-based model was devised to predict what a dog is likely to be barking about at any given time of day. For example, if it’s early morning, they probably want to go out to pee. But if it’s mid-morning, they’re probably letting you know the postman has arrived and is trying to challenge your territory by pushing thin paper squares through the flap in your front door. It’s a dangerous world out there, and dogs just want to protect us.

    Nerdstoke had his good friend record some appropriate soundbites to go with each bark, depending on what time of day it happened. And now, Nugget the dog can tell you “I want to cuddle” or “Why aren’t you feeding me?”

    Same, Nugget, same

    While the final project couldn’t quite translate the actual thoughts of a dog, we love the humour behind this halfway solution. And we reckon the product name, Holler Collar, would definitely sell.

    Follow NerdStoke’s future projects

    NerdStroke is all over the socials, so follow them on your platform of choice:

    TWITCH – twitch.tv/nerdstoke
    INSTAGRAM – instagram.com/nerdstoke
    TWITTER – twitter.com/nerdstoke
    GITHUB – github.com/nerdstoke
    EMAIL – nerdstoke@gmail.com

    Website: LINK

  • Raspberry Pi dog detector (and dopamine booster)

    Raspberry Pi dog detector (and dopamine booster)

    Reading Time: 2 minutes

    You can always rely on Ryder’s YouTube channel to be full of weird and wonderful makes. This latest offering aims to boost dopamine levels with dog spotting. Looking at dogs makes you happier, right? But you can’t spend all day looking out of the window waiting for a dog to pass, right? Well, a Raspberry Pi Camera Module and machine learning can do the dog spotting for you.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UUEO6Xv1OM?feature=oembed&w=500&h=281]

    What’s the setup?

    Ryder’s Raspberry Pi and camera sit on a tripod pointing out of a window looking over a street. Live video of the street is taken by the camera and fed through a machine learning model. Ryder chose the YOLO v3 object detection model, which can already recognise around 80 different things — from dogs to humans, and even umbrellas.

    A hand holding a raspberry pi high quality camera pointing out of a window
    Camera set up ready for dog spotting

    Doggo passing announcements

    But how would Ryder know that his Raspberry Pi had detected a dog? They’re so sneaky — they work in silence. A megaphone and some text-to-speech software make sure that Ryder is alerted in time to run to the window and see the passing dog. The megaphone announces: “Attention! There is a cute dog outside.”

    A machine learning image with a human and a dog circled in different colours
    The machine learning program clearly labels a ‘person’ and a ‘dog’

    “Hey! Cute dog!”

    Ryder wanted to share the love and show his appreciation to the owners of cute dogs, so he added a feature for when he is out of the house. With the megaphone poking out of a window, the Raspberry Pi does its dog-detecting as usual, but instead of alerting Ryder, it announces: “I like your dog” when a canine is walked past.

    Raspberry Pi camera pointing out of a window connected to a megaphone which will announce when a dog passes by
    When has a megaphone ever NOT made a project better?

    Also, we’d like to learn more about this ‘Heather’ who apparently once scaled a six-foot fence to pet a dog and for whom Ryder built this. Ryder, spill the story in the comments!

    Website: LINK

  • Meet your new robotic best friend: the MiRo-E dog

    Meet your new robotic best friend: the MiRo-E dog

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    When you’re learning a new language, it’s easier the younger you are. But how can we show very young students that learning to speak code is fun? Consequential Robotics has an answer…

    The MiRo-E is an ’emotionally engaging’ robot platform that was created on a custom PCB  and has since moved onto Raspberry Pi. The creators made the change because they saw that schools were more familiar with Raspberry Pi and realised the potential in being able to upgrade the robotic learning tools with new Raspberry Pi boards.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNYB5PaR6KE]

    The MiRo-E was born from a collaboration between Sheffield Robotics, London-based SCA design studio, and Bristol Robotics Lab. The cute robo-doggo has been shipping with Raspberry Pi 3B+ (they work well with the Raspberry Pi 4 too) for over a year now.

    While the robot started as a developers’ tool (MiRo-B), the creators completely re-engineered MiRo’s mechatronics and software to turn it into an educational tool purely for the classroom environment.

    Three school children in uniforms stroke the robot dog's chin

    MiRo-E with students at a School in North London, UK

    MiRo-E can see, hear, and interact with its environment, providing endless programming possibilities. It responds to human interaction, making it a fun, engaging way for students to learn coding skills. If you stroke it, it purrs, lights up, move its ears, and wags its tail. Making a sound or clapping makes MiRo move towards you, or away if it is alarmed. And it especially likes movement, following you around like a real, loyal canine friend. These functionalities are just the basic starting point, however: students can make MiRo do much more once they start tinkering with their programmable pet.

    These opportunities are provided on MiRoCode, a user-friendly web-based coding interface, where students can run through lesson plans and experiment with new ideas. They can test code on a virtual MiRo-E to create new skills that can be applied to a real-life MiRo-E.

    What’s inside?

    Here are the full technical specs. But basically, MiRo-E comprises a Raspberry Pi 3B+ as its core, light sensors, cliff sensors, an HD camera, and a variety of connectivity options.

    How does it interact?

    MiRo reacts to sound, touch, and movement in a variety of ways. 28 capacitive touch sensors tell it when it is being petted or stroked. Six independent RGB LEDs allow it to show emotion, along with DOF to move its eyes, tail, and ears. Its ears also house four 16-bit microphones and a loudspeaker. And two differential drive wheels with opto-sensors help MiRo move around.

    What else can it do?

    The ‘E’ bit of MiRo-E means it’s emotionally engaging, and the intelligent pet’s potential in healthcare have already been explored. Interaction with animals has been proved to be positive for patients of all ages, but sometimes it’s not possible for ‘real’ animals to comfort people. MiRo-E can fill the gap for young children who would benefit from animal comfort, but where healthcare or animal welfare risks are barriers.

    The same researchers who created this emotionally engaging robo-dog for young people are also working with project partners in Japan to develop ‘telepresence robots’ for older patients to interact with their families over video calls.

    Website: LINK

  • Project Floofball and more: Pi pet stuff

    Project Floofball and more: Pi pet stuff

    Reading Time: 2 minutes

    It’s a public holiday here today (yes, again). So, while we indulge in the traditional pastime of barbecuing stuff (ourselves, mainly), here’s a little trove of Pi projects that cater for our various furry friends.

    Project Floofball

    Nicole Horward created Project Floofball for her hamster, Harold. It’s an IoT hamster wheel that uses a Raspberry Pi and a magnetic door sensor to log how far Harold runs.

    Project Floofball: an IoT hamster wheel

    An IoT Hamsterwheel using a Raspberry Pi and a magnetic door sensor, to see how far my hamster runs.

    You can follow Harold’s runs in real time on his ThingSpeak channel, and you’ll find photos of the build on imgur. Nicole’s Python code, as well as her template for the laser-cut enclosure that houses the wiring and LCD display, are available on the hamster wheel’s GitHub repo.

    A live-streaming pet feeder

    JaganK3 used to work long hours that meant he couldn’t be there to feed his dog on time. He found that he couldn’t buy an automated feeder in India without paying a lot to import one, so he made one himself. It uses a Raspberry Pi to control a motor that turns a dispensing valve in a hopper full of dry food, giving his dog a portion of food at set times.

    A transparent cylindrical hopper of dry dog food, with a motor that can turn a dispensing valve at the lower end. The motor is connected to a Raspberry Pi in a plastic case. Hopper, motor, Pi, and wiring are all mounted on a board on the wall.

    He also added a web cam for live video streaming, because he could. Find out more in JaganK3’s Instructable for his pet feeder.

    Shark laser cat toy

    Sam Storino, meanwhile, is using a Raspberry Pi to control a laser-pointer cat toy with a goshdarned SHARK (which is kind of what I’d expect from the guy who made the steampunk-looking cat feeder a few weeks ago). The idea is to keep his cats interested and active within the confines of a compact city apartment.

    Raspberry Pi Automatic Cat Laser Pointer Toy

    Post with 52 votes and 7004 views. Tagged with cat, shark, lasers, austin powers, raspberry pi; Shared by JeorgeLeatherly. Raspberry Pi Automatic Cat Laser Pointer Toy

    If I were a cat, I would definitely be entirely happy with this. Find out more on Sam’s website.

    And there’s more

    Michel Parreno has written a series of articles to help you monitor and feed your pet with Raspberry Pi.

    All of these makers are generous in acknowledging the tutorials and build logs that helped them with their projects. It’s lovely to see the Raspberry Pi and maker community working like this, and I bet their projects will inspire others too.

    Now, if you’ll excuse me. I’m late for a barbecue.

    Website: LINK

  • VERLOSUNG: ISLE OF DOGS – Ataris Reise Premiere Tickets (VERLOSUNG GESCHLOSSEN)

    VERLOSUNG: ISLE OF DOGS – Ataris Reise Premiere Tickets (VERLOSUNG GESCHLOSSEN)

    Reading Time: < 1 minute

    „ISLE OF DOGS – Ataris Reise“ Premiere Tickets gewinnen!

    „Wir verlosen 2×2 Premiere Tickets zu ISLE OF DOGS – Ataris Reise“

    Was ihr dafür tun müsst findet ihr weiter unten.

    Kurzinhalt: (englisch)

    ISLE OF DOGS tells the story of ATARI KOBAYASHI, 12-year-old ward to corrupt Mayor Kobayashi. When, by Executive Decree, all the canine pets of Megasaki City are exiled to a vast garbage-dump called Trash Island, Atari sets off alone in a miniature Junior-Turbo Prop and flies across the river in search of his bodyguard-dog, Spots. There, with the assistance of a pack of newly-found mongrel friends, he begins an epic journey that will decide the fate and future of the entire Prefecture.

    Details zur Filmpremiere:

    Es wird die Originalversion mit dt. Untertitel gezeigt.

    8.Mai 2018
    Filmbeginn: 19:30 Uhr

    Premiere in Wien

    (weitere Infos folgen dann , per E-Mail / WhatsApp / FBMessenger an den Gewinner.)

    Folgt uns auf Instagram und taggt eure Freunde bei unserem ISLE OF DOGS Posting! So einfach gehts..

    Die Verlosung geht bis 4.Mai.2018 11:00 Uhr!!! 

    (VERLOSUNG GESCHLOSSEN) Die Gewinner wurden von uns bereits benachrichtigt. Danke allen fürs mitmachen.

  • Our Dog Was Getting A Human Sister, So I Built Her A Room Under The Stairs – It Turned Out Better Than Expected

    Our Dog Was Getting A Human Sister, So I Built Her A Room Under The Stairs – It Turned Out Better Than Expected

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    Molly the Westie found out she was going to be a big sister to a little human so I decided to build her a room of her own under the stairs before the baby arrived.

    Nothing existed there before, it was walled-in. I wasn’t sure how big the space was, or if it would even be possible, so was very happy with the end result… as was Molly!

    We are currently doing well in the myBuilder ‘Project of the Year 2017’ competition and you can vote for me here if you like it!

    More info: mybuilder.com

    Molly in her new, finished room

    She is the best wee dog who had been very spoiled up to this point, so we didn’t want her to feel less important when the baby arrived!

    And here is the proud big sister with baby Catelyn!

    Starting point… I thought there might be dead space behind the stairs, but wasn’t sure. Trying to sneak a look

    If it was going to work I also needed to move the wiring for the house alarm system. Decided to update the kitchen at the same time, by adding tongue & groove panels

    Space cut out… I can now see what space we have to play with

    Bigger than I thought, around 4 square metres

    Most importantly… don’t want Molly to be scared of the space, so in for an early look. Definitely going to be big enough!

    Door frame fitted in keeping with the internal joinery, base of frame kept in place as integral to support staircase

    Plasterboard fitted, starting to look like a room

    In for a sniff and helping with the plastering/sealing

    Feature wallpaper gives an idea of what’s coming next

    View from inside the room

    Colour changing mood lighting installed

    Molly waiting patiently as I had to finish the tongue and groove outside her room first

    Flooring goes down

    And skirtings for the awkwardly shaped walls!

    Custom signs

    Molly still waiting patiently, has taken the new couch in the meantime

    So I bought her one for her new room

    Finishing touches, photo frames and luxury bed

    Pictures of Molly at school with her friends

    All moved in, proud as punch!

    Posing in her new space

    Loves the cosy corner

    Finishing touches with her sign and peronalised leash/harness hook

    Luckily she likes her new home better than the one in the garden!

    Website: LINK

  • Entertainment Robot „aibo“ Announced – Sony aibo 2017 Announcing Trailer – AI Dog Robot

    Entertainment Robot „aibo“ Announced – Sony aibo 2017 Announcing Trailer – AI Dog Robot

    Reading Time: 6 minutes

    Sony Corporation (Sony) is today proud to announce „aibo,“ the evolution of its autonomous entertainment robot that brings fun and joy to the entire family.

    aibo can form an emotional bond with members of the household while providing them with love, affection, and the joy of nurturing and raising a companion. It possesses a natural curiosity, and we hope it will bring joy into the everyday lives of our customers while growing alongside them as a partner.

    As the latest iteration of the beloved robotic companion, aibo features an adorable appearance, vibrant movements, and a responsiveness that is sure to delight. It will also develop its own unique personality through everyday interactions as it grows closer and closer to its owners.

    Primary Features

    1. Irresistible Cuteness, Rich Expressiveness, and Dynamic Range of Movements

    Its cute, rounded appearance makes you want to reach out and pet it, while its seamless design is captivating and brimming with life.

    aibo shows its love for its owners through lifelike expressions and a dynamic array of movements. Its body language is expressed through a combination of eye, ear, and tail movements as well as different voice sounds. This lovable behavior brings warmth and delight to the everyday lives of its owners.

    In order to bring aibo to life and allow it to express its emotions, Sony developed ultracompact 1- and 2-axis actuators. These give aibo’s compact body the freedom to move along a total of 22 axes and make its smooth, natural movements possible. Furthermore, its eyes utilize two OLEDs to allow for diverse, nuanced expressions.

    2. The Ability to Bond with its Owners, Leading to Constant Fun and Discovery.

    Not content with merely waiting around to be called, curious little aibo will actively seek out its owners. What’s more, aibo can detect words of praise, smiles, head and back scratches, petting, and more, allowing it to learn and remember what actions make its owners happy. Slowly but surely, aibo will also become more aware of its environment, and as it gains confidence it will learn to walk around an increasingly wider area and respond to situations accordingly.

    This adaptable behavior is made possible through Sony’s well-cultivated deep learning technology, in the form of inbuilt sensors that can detect and analyze sounds and images. aibo also comes with fish-eye cameras that utilize simultaneous location and mapping (SLAM) technology, allowing it to lead its life in close conjunction with its owners.

    3. Changes Over Time, Maturing and Growing into a One-of-a-kind Companion

    As it interacts with people over time, aibo’s behavior slowly changes and adapts in response to its unique environment. It eventually becomes able to respond to its owners‘ affection in kind, and when it feels loved, it will display even more love and affection in return, nurturing a bond that only deepens as time goes on.

    These perpetual changes are brought about through Sony’s unique AI technology, which allows aibo to interface with the cloud. aibo’s AI learns from interactions with its owners and develops a unique personality over time. Further, with its owners‘ permission, aibo can collect data from these interactions, then connect to the cloud and access the knowledge accumulated from interactions between different owners and their aibo to become even more clever.

    We at Sony hope that our customers will develop precious and deeply personal bonds with their aibo and create cherished stories that will last a lifetime.

    Related Services and Accessories

    „My aibo“ App* *Service scheduled to start from January 11, 2018

    „My aibo“ is an app designed to help owners enjoy life with their aibo by providing support and convenience. In addition to accessing system settings and owner information, other features include „aibo Photos,“ which lets users view any pictures taken, a feature to „Play“ with a virtual aibo inside the app, and the „aibo Store,“ where users can add additional Tricks to their aibo. Some of these features are also accessible to users who do not own an aibo.

    • *1: „My aibo“ can be downloaded from Google Play and the App Store. A web browser version is also available at http://aibo.com
    • *2: aibo and „aibo basic plan“ subscription required to fully enjoy all features of „My aibo.“

    aibo exclusive accessory „aibone“* *Release scheduled for January 11, 2018

    Model Number ERA-1020   Sony Store price (tax not included): 2,980 yen (tentative)
    A bone-shaped toy accessory that spices up your life with aibo.

    aibo Basic Plan

    An aibo Basic Plan subscription is necessary to utilize aibo. By subscribing to the aibo Basic Plan, you can use a Wi-Fi connection at home or a mobile connection on the go to enjoy the full arrange of aibo features. These include aibo being able to access information stored in the cloud to grow and learn as well as the „My aibo“ app (aibo Photos, aibo Store). Additionally, your aibo’s data will periodically be backed up in the cloud. A planned future service will allow owners to restore this backed up data onto a new aibo even in the event of an accident resulting in irreparable damage.

    aibo Support Care

    Sony is also providing aibo Support Care, which offers discounts on repair fees in the event of damage or malfunctions. Subscription to this service is optional.

    • 50% discount on repair fees (incl. examination fees, part replacements, and exchanging of broken or depleted components).
    • 50% discount on checkups and inspections
    * All above fees do not include shipping or taxes

    Pre-orders and Availability

    • aibo will be available for purchase exclusively through the Sony Store, Sony’s direct retailer.
    • Pre-orders will be available starting from 11:01 P.M. on Wednesday, November 1, 2017 through the Sony Store website(Some parts of website only accessible in Japanese, pre-order numbers are limited).
    • More information about aibo will be made available through http://aibo.com/en and Sony Store Online.
    Product/Service Sony Store Price (tax not included) Release Date
    aibo Entertainment Robot (ERS-1000) 198,000 JPY January 11, 2018
    aibo Basic Plan 3 Year Subscription One-time Price Monthly Plan
    90,000 JPY
    (approx. 2,500/month)    		 2,980 JPY/month
    (x 36 months)
    aibo Support Care 3 years 1 year
    54,000 JPY
    (1,500 JPY/month)    		 20,000 JPY
    (1,667 JPY/month)

    * As of the time of this release, product launch is only scheduled for Japan.

    Product Details

    Note: Information is current as of the day of the announcement. Please note that product and service details are subject to change without notice.

    Product Name aibo
    Color Ivory White
    Model Number ERS-1000
    Processor 64bit Quad-Core CPU
    Freely Movable Parts Head:3 axes、Mouth:1 axis、Neck:1 axis、Loin:1 axis、
    Forepaws/Back paws:3 axes per leg、Ear:1 axis per ear、
    Tail:2 axes (Total of 22 axes)
    Display 2 OLEDs (eyes)
    Sound Speaker, 4 Microphones
    Camera 2 Cameras(Front camera, SLAM camera)
    Sensors ToF sensor、2 PSD sensors、
    Pressure sensitive/capacitive type touch sensor(Back sensor)、
    Capacitive type touch sensor(Head sensor, jaw sensor)
    6 axis detection system(3 axis gyro/3 axis acceleration)×2 (Head、Torso)
    Motion sensor, Light sensor, 4 Paw pads
    Switches Power button, Volume button, Network switch
    Indicators Status LED, Network LED
    Terminals Charging pins, SIM card slot
    Communications Mobile Network Communication Function(Data transmission):LTE
    Wi-Fi:IEEE 802.11b/g/n
    Outside dimensions Approx. 180 × 293 × 305 mm
    ((While standing: width×height×depth *Not including protruding parts)
    Weight Approx. 2.2 kg
    Power Consumption Approx. 14 W
    Battery Duration Approx. 2 hours
    Recharge Time Approx. 3 hours
    Main Accesories Charging Station (Charging stand, Charging mat)、AC adapter, Power cord, Pink ball,
    SIM card, Printed Materials

    Please visit the product website http://aibo.com/en for more details.

    • *1: „aibo“ and „aibo logo“ are trademarks of Sony Corporation.
    • *2: All other listed companies and product names are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

    Website: LINK

  • WATCH_DOGS® 2 Gameplay PS4 CyberDriver

    WATCH_DOGS® 2 Gameplay PS4 CyberDriver

    Reading Time: < 1 minute

    WATCH_DOGS® 2 Gameplay PS4 CyberDriver

  • Stormtrooper Corgi May be the Ultimate Star Wars Fan!

    Stormtrooper Corgi May be the Ultimate Star Wars Fan!

    Reading Time: < 1 minute

    „Winston the White Corgi“ has quite the following on Instagram, and for Halloween, the famous pup dressed up as a stormtrooper, but one thing you can’t get him to wear is the helmet.

    „For Halloween, the corgi engaged in a little Star Wars cosplay, hitting the streets in a tailor-made stormtrooper costume that would undoubtedly cause Comic Con to shut down from a cute overload,“ said Melissa Locker of TIME.

    stormtrooper-corgi

    Source: LINK

  • 5 Funny Picture Mashups of Dogs and Their Owners Captured by Photographer

    5 Funny Picture Mashups of Dogs and Their Owners Captured by Photographer

    Reading Time: < 1 minute

    Toronto-based photographer Zach Rose has seen plenty of dogs and their owners mashups online, but wanted to do it a different way. So, he started the Instagram series „Petheadz“. According to My Modern Metropolis, he „even got to shoot one of today’s most famous dogs, Maddie the Coonhound, with her owner Theron Humphrey. In one of his most recent shots, Toronto-based actor Charlie Hamilton is seen sporting his dog’s cute head while riding a bike.“

    KBnSiIK

     

    Official Source: http://instagram.com/zachdriftwood

    http://api.ning.com/files/mO-49dZ1V036-taOXjUVhZQQyNocVfUtdQQZBQnJZeWejTVS0T5ls41hWH4z9*pT1-wutCv6F6UorY-u2tss7Tu*rrDBREx2/petheadz00.jpg