[Cagdu] FW: [seeing-eye] harness monitors health of dog

[Tina Thomas]

Here is an interesting article. 

Enjoy, 

S

 

ubject: [seeing-eye] harness monitors health of dog

 

Harness monitors health and well-being of guide dogs
http://www.treehugger.com/gadgets/harness-monitors-health-and-well-being-guide-dogs.html

There is an image of the harness handle. The prototype handles looks 
like it's made of PVC, but I wonder what sort of weight the two motors 
will add to it.

TEXT for the article:

Guide dogs andservice dogs 
<http://www.treehugger.com/slideshows/endangered-species/amazing-dogs-save-species-and-ecosystems/>are 
wonderful healthcare companions for people who live with a range of 
disabilities or illnesses from blindness to seizures. They help people 
navigate their way through the world and alert them if they need to seek 
medical attention or find a safe spot in the case of a seizure or blood 
pressure drop.

They do a lot for their owners, but they have needs of their own too. 
For blind caregivers it's difficult to notice the signs of stress or 
heat exhaustion in a dog and even for owners whose sight is fine, the 
signs are not always obvious because guide dogs are bred and trained to 
remain outwardly calm and to blend in with their surroundings.

Researchers atNorth Carolina State University 
<https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/11/roberts-guide-dog-2015/>wanted to make 
monitoring a service dog's wellbeing easier for its caretaker, so they 
invented a harness that monitors the heart rate and breathing of the dog 
and communicates to the owner when signs of stress are detected. The 
handler can then remove the dog from the stressful situation, or in the 
case of heat exhaustion, move them out of the heat and find water.

guide dog handle/©North Carolina State University 
<https://news.ncsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Roberts-Sidebar-FULL.jpg>/

The harness has a specialized handle that attaches to the 
health-monitoring harness that is equipped with two vibrating motors. 
One of the motors is in the handle by the owner's thumb and it vibrates 
in time with the dog's heart rate so that the handler can quickly detect 
an increase caused by stress. The other motor is located on the other 
end of the handle by the owner's pinky finger. That motor vibrates in 
synch with the dog's respiration, increasing and decreasing in intensity 
to simulate the in and out breaths.

In tests with blind handlers using simulated data, the users were able 
to effectively notice the signs of stress from the vibrations.

Repeated stress can lead to the early retirement of guide or service 
dogs, so having a way to monitor and communicate the wellbeing of those 
dogs to their handlers means a longer beneficial relationship between 
the dog and the person it's helping.

The researchers now plan to tweak the design of the handle and do more 
testing with guide-dog handlers. Lead researcher Sean Mealin, who is 
himself blind and uses a guide dog, hopes that they'll have this 
technology ready for people to use in the near future.

 

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