You know, there are times when you have to part ways with your adorable kitties at home, and you might not be so keen on getting a cat sitter in case he or she
touches your precious game consoles (even if it's an
old granny). We've seen the
lazy man's solution before, but Britain's Mathew Newton has brought us a new DIY internet-enabled cat feeder just in time for a new decade. Rather than using a CD-ROM tray to push-release unknown quantities of cat food, Mathew's version has a motor-driven cereal dispenser controlled by signal from port status LEDs on a Cisco switch -- an ingenious way to avoid expensive Ethernet relay units. When it's feeding time the user logs onto a web interface to choose the dispensing quantity, or you can also have an automatic feed schedule set up if you trust the system -- Mathew said he "can rely on it 100%," and his cats do appear to be healthy. Fortunately, you can always check the live video stream just in case you have doubts. All is explained in the video after the break.
posted November 30th 2009 11:58PM
Cute cat ASCII art, there.
Better a granny touch the xbox than ur gf...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtWurY7wtpc
@MJGAMER 1991 XBL no way that's real, they even link to a video of him "getting her back". Their acting is pretty terrible too haha
that already happened to me few years ago :-(
AW IS SO CUUTE ^_^
http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1925421
@einhanderkiller
I just saw that video for the first time earlier today. Ridiculous.
The LED thing is really clever. I think I'm going to try this with an old router I hae lying around (unfortunately, not a cisco 2XXX series).
But does it blend (cats)?
@Rizzo
My cat just facepalmed...
lazyness.
@(Unverified) Yah because the countless hours to build such a device proves how lazy this guy is. How do you know he doesn't do a lot of traveling?
Do people ever think anymore? Seriously there are countless possibilities beyond just being lazy.
Why not just open the cat food's bag?
some cats don't stop when they're full.
How do you fill the water dish?
What happens if the internet crashes?
ded cat
@jamesFF
you can put a controlled valve line like the ones used for watering plants but it's probably best to have a sensor to tell when switch when to turn off to prevent flooding the kitchen floor
@jamesFF it says in the original article that the cats don't drink from bowls, they drink rainwater, ponds etc. this is pretty common for cats.
I tried something similar but the power went out and the cat starved.
I has extra portion through haxors?
The cat isn't long enough.
Won't they get bored and use it as a scratching post? He should protect the wiring on that motor and put some plastic over the electronics.
In fact when you leave them alone they will probably jump on that switch then after a nap start playing with that cable.
Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur...
Diced kitty, sliced kitty, whir whir whir...
@Samurai Jack
wtf?
@Samurai Jack
omg omg i loled so hard amazing sheldon is the best
This is perfect for eliminating the one task that forces you to spend time with your pet.
@Dante of the Inferno
Well the thing is your pets need food/drink every day, and a human sometimes wants to take a trip you know, visit someone, maybe sleep over.., and it's a pesky task finding a reliable person (would need the keys) that's available and willing to do it for you.
So this gives breathing space.
This has been done many times, so it's not news. +it has been done in simpler ways.. Sooo you guys suck
@LowestRanked
I am commenting you from the void!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No way in hell am I gonna have electronics easily accessible to my cat. He'll hax0r it and the next thing I know he's built himself a megajoule laser.
Still need to dispense water. How 'bout something to clean the litter box too?
Neat application...
The WinMo app may be the best part.
@sitruc
I don't think he wrote the browser himself.
@sitruc Sure, that WinMo "app" is really advanced... it takes a lot of effort to open a webpage.
Well, actually on WinMo I suppose it does.
Meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow....
Very nice pet project.
i can't see the video coz i am at my work but i believe the config will go like this.
CatSwitch>en
CatSwitch#conf t
CatSwtich(config)#interface 0/1
CatSwitch(config-if)#cat feeder enable
CatSwitch(config-if)#ip address 192.168.1.2 255.255.255.0
CatSwitch(config-if)#encapsulation 801.cereal
CatSwitch(config-if)#port security no food overload
CatSwitch(config-if)#no shutdown
more option/features can be added later :)
@Sor1
Apparently you can't see the picture either, as it is a 2924 switch, not a router, so going under the interface and trying to put an IP on it would be futile since it is a layer 2 switch. Then of course is your issues with the encapsulation without a VLAN assuming you were trying to program it for a router. Also you would need a subinterface since you are using a trunk to the port. Then doing port security while apparently setting up a routed interface, very interesting indeed and you messed up the syntax as it should start with switchport. Your Cisco programming could use some polishing for sure, but I guess that is why I have a job.
@Rugglebum666
OK mate with your mighty Cisco knowledge, I guess in the internet we don't have only Grammar Nazis but also Cisco Config Nazis Associates/Professionals. (CCNA/P). But you obviously you FAIL to see a joke. At least lot's people in my work had a good laugh with this and i don't even brake a sweat or worry for likes like you that can come and criticize a JOKE.
@Sor1
A poorly constructed joke. Also, it is break, not brake. Brake is something you would do in your car. Apparently the people at your work are equally inept when it comes to Cisco. Also, "worry for likes like you"? I truly hope this was a mistake and you didn't read that in your head and think that was even close to a proper sentence. I'm not even sure what you were trying to write...
I'm sure butchering things is frowned upon in any field, which is why you get people correcting grammar and other mistakes they see. I'm sure if you made a stupid joke around the pretense that the world was flat or some other silliness, you would get someone correcting you as well. How about you just say you were wrong and move on?
@Rugglebum666
Yay, Mighty Rugglebum666 strikes again with a Grammar Nazi reference again, tell me mate is English your primary language? Because mine isn't. If you want an equally level syntax/grammar try to learn a difficult language for once, like Greek that i know and THEN let's see who can speak more fluently. Before you making ignorant and stupid comments, like you do, perhaps you should check the video of the guy that made this device to just see in your first reply your first mistake.
I don't want to continue to correct you with all your mistakes in your first reply because i am not that *** like you are and try to be a down to the bottom nerd that tries to look smarter than others while he is sad.
Tell me in your "job" does anyone speak to you or your are the guy that sits in the corner that even your manager doesn't know your existence? Perhaps the only people that talk to you at work are the ones that are the same as you arrogant and ignorant.
By the way to try to look smarter with a "666" devilish number in both of your nicknames, is beyond hope and really funny. What you age are? Or you maturity stopped when you were 16/18 years old?
To be honest I enjoy that you get even angrier as this continues, i really do :)
Whatever i have to configure an ASA box. I can't spend too much time for this now :)
@Sor1
I notice that the dumber someone is, the more offended they are by someone correcting them. How dare I give you the proper answer to something that you presume to be true. Shall we all just let everyone stay ignorant so as not to offend the small minded like yourself? Ad hominem is a fallacious argument, maybe you should refrain from it. I'm sure you will try to say I used ad hominem in my small minded remark, so to nip that right now, I didn't use that to link to a premise or the validity of said premise, so it doesn't fall into that fallacy.
Let me know when you grow up to accept criticism and be corrected. Also let me know when you can actually point out things that are wrong, rather than just playing the Red Herring game and have a hissy fit over a bad joke.
And if you turn it upside down you have a flux capacitor.
me want 5 of these for my 10 cats... Really hand when I'm out of town...
Looking forward for the automated litter box cleaner too :P
That is defiinately on my top ten of cool things I have to build.
(My girlfriend has 4 cats and she has somehow managed to train them to bother ME for food rather than her...)
I think i'd rather use a somewhat less item than a Cisco switch though.
Yes, but does it tweet?
Using a Cisco switch is not a cheap way to do anything.
@(Unverified)
Apparently you have never priced out a 2924 switch, they are like $50 or less in most places.