CATSBY
CATSBY is a sustainable emotional support companion cat. The aim for this project is to explore the capability of technology and Arduino together with up-cycled materials to mimic the human-cat interaction, aiding loneliness and anxiety commonly found among the elderly population.
Tangible Interaction Design
2024
UX
CATSBY
CATSBY is a sustainable emotional support companion cat. The aim for this project is to explore the capability of technology and Arduino together with up-cycled materials to mimic the human-cat interaction, aiding loneliness and anxiety commonly found among the elderly population.
Tangible Interaction Design
2024
UX
CATSBY
CATSBY is a sustainable emotional support companion cat. The aim for this project is to explore the capability of technology and Arduino together with up-cycled materials to mimic the human-cat interaction, aiding loneliness and anxiety commonly found among the elderly population.
Tangible Interaction Design
2024
UX
Project Overview
Project Overview
Project Overview
Discover
Identify the Problem & target audience
Secondary research
Define
Unpack assumptions
Validate Hand Gestures
Design
Plan prototype design
Crochet w/ T-shirt yarn
Assemble Arduino components
Deliver
User testing
'Microsoft Reaction Card Method'
Discover
Identify the Problem & target audience
Secondary research
Define
Unpack assumptions
Validate Hand Gestures
Design
Plan prototype design
Crochet w/ T-shirt yarn
Assemble Arduino components
Deliver
User testing
'Microsoft Reaction Card Method'
Discover
Identify the Problem & target audience
Secondary research
Define
Unpack assumptions
Validate Hand Gestures
Design
Plan prototype design
Crochet w/ T-shirt yarn
Assemble Arduino components
Deliver
User testing
'Microsoft Reaction Card Method'
Challenges
I struggled with finding a way to 'package' outputs i.e. 'Purr' sounds played by the MP3 player, vibration sequences from the vibration motor, and appropriate colour displayed by the LED light. At the end i decided to use a Switch Case Statement, defining responses for each case.
The components like the vibration motor and servo drew excessive current, needing an additional power source. I soldered a power and ground pin to a USB cable which could supply the current intensive components separately from the rest.
Challenges
I struggled with finding a way to 'package' outputs i.e. 'Purr' sounds played by the MP3 player, vibration sequences from the vibration motor, and appropriate colour displayed by the LED light. At the end i decided to use a Switch Case Statement, defining responses for each case.
The components like the vibration motor and servo drew excessive current, needing an additional power source. I soldered a power and ground pin to a USB cable which could supply the current intensive components separately from the rest.
Challenges
I struggled with finding a way to 'package' outputs i.e. 'Purr' sounds played by the MP3 player, vibration sequences from the vibration motor, and appropriate colour displayed by the LED light. At the end i decided to use a Switch Case Statement, defining responses for each case.
The components like the vibration motor and servo drew excessive current, needing an additional power source. I soldered a power and ground pin to a USB cable which could supply the current intensive components separately from the rest.
Goals
To create a tangible low-fi/mid-fi interaction prototype that applies to one of the following contexts of use: Play, Fun, Gardening and Emotions. Integrate physical computation layers and to critically assess the social meaning of touch and gestures in different contexts, and demonstrate basic technical principles involved in the artefacts’ implementation.
Goals
To create a tangible low-fi/mid-fi interaction prototype that applies to one of the following contexts of use: Play, Fun, Gardening and Emotions. Integrate physical computation layers and to critically assess the social meaning of touch and gestures in different contexts, and demonstrate basic technical principles involved in the artefacts’ implementation.
Goals
To create a tangible low-fi/mid-fi interaction prototype that applies to one of the following contexts of use: Play, Fun, Gardening and Emotions. Integrate physical computation layers and to critically assess the social meaning of touch and gestures in different contexts, and demonstrate basic technical principles involved in the artefacts’ implementation.
Arduino Components
Capacitive Touch Sensor
A touch sensor is soldered to a wire and copper tape (image 13) for touch detection on CATSBY's back (image 4), The default signal is LOW, switching to HIGH on touch, triggering the outputs – purring sounds from the MP3 player and the vibration motor.
Microphone Sensor
An electret microphone attached to a breakout board was used instead of the voice recognition module as a more affordable alternative. The sensor detects sounds like hand clapping or a voice nearby which triggers the outputs, the MP3 player playing the ‘meow’ sound and the servo motor. Moreover, the board comes with a threshold potentiometer allowing sound sensitivity adjustments.
Servo motor (180 degrees)
A servo motor is used to facilitate CATSBY’s head-turning movement. It is programmed using the Servo library to respond to data collected by the microphone sensor, the head turns 45 degrees. Tutorials and instructions for programming the Servo Motor are provided on the official Arduino website.
Serial MP3 Player (UART) with Speaker
To facilitate cat sounds like purring and meowing, a Serial MP3 Player (UART) attached to a speaker is used. Tutorial and development documentation from (TheAmplituhedron, no date) is used to program the Arduino code which included appropriate commands such as play song files 1 and 2 written in HEX code. Moreover, the audio editing software Audacity was used to adjust the volume of the audio files formatted in MP3 and WAV, downloaded from Sound Bible (no date) and stored in a micro-SD card formatted from ex-FAT to 62FAT.
See my Arduino Code here
Arduino Components
Capacitive Touch Sensor
A touch sensor is soldered to a wire and copper tape (image 13) for touch detection on CATSBY's back (image 4), The default signal is LOW, switching to HIGH on touch, triggering the outputs – purring sounds from the MP3 player and the vibration motor.
Microphone Sensor
An electret microphone attached to a breakout board was used instead of the voice recognition module as a more affordable alternative. The sensor detects sounds like hand clapping or a voice nearby which triggers the outputs, the MP3 player playing the ‘meow’ sound and the servo motor. Moreover, the board comes with a threshold potentiometer allowing sound sensitivity adjustments.
Servo motor (180 degrees)
A servo motor is used to facilitate CATSBY’s head-turning movement. It is programmed using the Servo library to respond to data collected by the microphone sensor, the head turns 45 degrees. Tutorials and instructions for programming the Servo Motor are provided on the official Arduino website.
Serial MP3 Player (UART) with Speaker
To facilitate cat sounds like purring and meowing, a Serial MP3 Player (UART) attached to a speaker is used. Tutorial and development documentation from (TheAmplituhedron, no date) is used to program the Arduino code which included appropriate commands such as play song files 1 and 2 written in HEX code. Moreover, the audio editing software Audacity was used to adjust the volume of the audio files formatted in MP3 and WAV, downloaded from Sound Bible (no date) and stored in a micro-SD card formatted from ex-FAT to 62FAT.
See my Arduino Code here
Arduino Components
Capacitive Touch Sensor
A touch sensor is soldered to a wire and copper tape (image 13) for touch detection on CATSBY's back (image 4), The default signal is LOW, switching to HIGH on touch, triggering the outputs – purring sounds from the MP3 player and the vibration motor.
Microphone Sensor
An electret microphone attached to a breakout board was used instead of the voice recognition module as a more affordable alternative. The sensor detects sounds like hand clapping or a voice nearby which triggers the outputs, the MP3 player playing the ‘meow’ sound and the servo motor. Moreover, the board comes with a threshold potentiometer allowing sound sensitivity adjustments.
Servo motor (180 degrees)
A servo motor is used to facilitate CATSBY’s head-turning movement. It is programmed using the Servo library to respond to data collected by the microphone sensor, the head turns 45 degrees. Tutorials and instructions for programming the Servo Motor are provided on the official Arduino website.
Serial MP3 Player (UART) with Speaker
To facilitate cat sounds like purring and meowing, a Serial MP3 Player (UART) attached to a speaker is used. Tutorial and development documentation from (TheAmplituhedron, no date) is used to program the Arduino code which included appropriate commands such as play song files 1 and 2 written in HEX code. Moreover, the audio editing software Audacity was used to adjust the volume of the audio files formatted in MP3 and WAV, downloaded from Sound Bible (no date) and stored in a micro-SD card formatted from ex-FAT to 62FAT.
See my Arduino Code here
Reflections
The project successfully facilitated a basic but beneficial human-cat (robotics) companion experience for the user. On reflection, more planning and testing in the design process would have contributed to a better prototype. The following areas have the potential for improvement and further exploration in future work:
The current design faces hardware accessibility constraints, hindering access to CATSBY’s components. A more modular hardware layout could simplify repairs and enhance accessibility.
Due to resource constraints, not all planned features were implemented. However, exploring functions like the heart rate detector, simulating a cat’s heartbeat with solenoids, and incorporating voice commands holds potential. This extends to experimenting with different colour combinations and effects for the LED string, particularly calming colours during purring.
Conducting additional user evaluation research earlier in the development process can validate assumptions about enjoyable interactions with a cat, guiding feature implementation.
Reflections
The project successfully facilitated a basic but beneficial human-cat (robotics) companion experience for the user. On reflection, more planning and testing in the design process would have contributed to a better prototype. The following areas have the potential for improvement and further exploration in future work:
The current design faces hardware accessibility constraints, hindering access to CATSBY’s components. A more modular hardware layout could simplify repairs and enhance accessibility.
Due to resource constraints, not all planned features were implemented. However, exploring functions like the heart rate detector, simulating a cat’s heartbeat with solenoids, and incorporating voice commands holds potential. This extends to experimenting with different colour combinations and effects for the LED string, particularly calming colours during purring.
Conducting additional user evaluation research earlier in the development process can validate assumptions about enjoyable interactions with a cat, guiding feature implementation.
Reflections
The project successfully facilitated a basic but beneficial human-cat (robotics) companion experience for the user. On reflection, more planning and testing in the design process would have contributed to a better prototype. The following areas have the potential for improvement and further exploration in future work:
The current design faces hardware accessibility constraints, hindering access to CATSBY’s components. A more modular hardware layout could simplify repairs and enhance accessibility.
Due to resource constraints, not all planned features were implemented. However, exploring functions like the heart rate detector, simulating a cat’s heartbeat with solenoids, and incorporating voice commands holds potential. This extends to experimenting with different colour combinations and effects for the LED string, particularly calming colours during purring.
Conducting additional user evaluation research earlier in the development process can validate assumptions about enjoyable interactions with a cat, guiding feature implementation.