Connecting pets

Changing environment

To entirely understand the huge potential of the Internet of things (IoT), we have to go back to the time before the internet. Back in the 1980s, our best way of doing ‘electronic commerce’ was by calling someone or sending out a fax. 

Marketing and sales changed dramatically when the internet became a trading channel featuring web shops and eMarketplaces. Consumers could easily be reached via e-mail newsletters, social media and so on. On the down side, competitors were suddenly just one mouse-click away.

The internet changed the world in a way we have not seen in many generations. And now the IoT has arrived. The impact of the IoT will be much and much larger than the impact of the internet from the mid-nineties. All objects around us will become active and start sharing data with other objects in its environment. A tremendous amount of data will become available. A very conservative estimate shows that the number of IoT devices worldwide will grow from 8 billion in 2016 to at least 24 billion in 2019 (source: BI Intelligence). These numbers will result in $1.7 trillion (€1.5 trillion) in value added to the global economy. We will see that in reality the numbers will even be much higher.

Internet of animals

25% of the numbers described above concerns IoT devices at home, including the ‘Internet of Animals’. So, if you do not jump on the opportunity, you will miss the boat. 

At this very moment the first IoT devices are already available in stores. Their main goal seems to be connecting pets to their owner and devices that surround them.

Connected collars

So far connected collars are the most popular IoT devices: DogTelligent is a smart dog collar with a virtual leash and fence technology based on 

ultra-sonic frequencies, for a simulated leash tug and vibrations. The dog’s activity and GPS location is registered and the owner can talk to the dog through a smartphone. The collar also sends the owner reminders of when to vaccinate etc.

MyDogsVoyce is a similar product. It is ‘a Health Monitor and Wellness Management System for every stage of your dog’s life’. This IoT device registers resting heart and respiratory rate, activity and intensity, calories burned, distance travelled and quality of rest.

Devices like DogTelligent, MydogsVoice, WüF and others all come with a smartphone app to visualize the measurements.

Training, entertaining and rewarding

Another category of IoT devices is designed for the ‘home alone pets’. Electronic products such as CleverPet; PetBot; PupPod and others provide automated training and entertainment while the owner is at work or elsewhere. By playing with the device, the pet will be rewarded with treats. 

All these activities are shared with the owner (and in most cases with the ‘data cloud’ of the manufacturer) via webcam and visualized statistics. Some devices even have the option of remotely giving a dog or cat treats. Pets can also make automated selfies with face recognition, which their owners can view at another location.

Business opportunities

You can imagine how all data could be shared with marketers over the internet to provide them with information on behaviour patterns of pets and their owners. This makes the IoT a major business opportunity, such as upselling and cross-selling food and accessories for pets.

When thinking out-of-the-box, IoT could in the years to come provide us better ways to communicate with our pets and make them even communicate with other pets remotely.

IoT connected robotics

Fully automated pet robots will also be connected to the IoT, and will become a serious alternative to living animals. It may be hard to imagine at this moment, but if you realise that robots are already taking over production plants, construction, healthcare, education and the moment when self-driving cars even start to appear in our streets, artificial pets will not be far behind.

In fact, some elderly people already have robotic companion cats or hug ‘Paro’, a robotic seal with its own character covered in artificial fur that imitates animal behaviour and responds to light, sound, temperature, touch and posture.

The future is here to stay and the Internet of things for pets will be a part of it!