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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72"><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><b>Here is an interesting article. <o:p></o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal><b>Enjoy, <o:p></o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal><b>S<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal><b><o:p> </o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal><b>ubject:</b> [seeing-eye] harness monitors health of dog<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-family:"Helvetica","sans-serif";color:black'>Harness monitors health and well-being of guide dogs<br><a href="http://www.treehugger.com/gadgets/harness-monitors-health-and-well-being-guide-dogs.html">http://www.treehugger.com/gadgets/harness-monitors-health-and-well-being-guide-dogs.html</a><br><br>There is an image of the harness handle. The prototype handles looks <br>like it's made of PVC, but I wonder what sort of weight the two motors <br>will add to it.<br><br>TEXT for the article:<br><br>Guide dogs andservice dogs <br><<a href="http://www.treehugger.com/slideshows/endangered-species/amazing-dogs-save-species-and-ecosystems/">http://www.treehugger.com/slideshows/endangered-species/amazing-dogs-save-species-and-ecosystems/</a>>are <br>wonderful healthcare companions for people who live with a range of <br>disabilities or illnesses from blindness to seizures. They help people <br>navigate their way through the world and alert them if they need to seek <br>medical attention or find a safe spot in the case of a seizure or blood <br>pressure drop.<br><br>They do a lot for their owners, but they have needs of their own too. <br>For blind caregivers it's difficult to notice the signs of stress or <br>heat exhaustion in a dog and even for owners whose sight is fine, the <br>signs are not always obvious because guide dogs are bred and trained to <br>remain outwardly calm and to blend in with their surroundings.<br><br>Researchers atNorth Carolina State University <br><<a href="https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/11/roberts-guide-dog-2015/">https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/11/roberts-guide-dog-2015/</a>>wanted to make <br>monitoring a service dog's wellbeing easier for its caretaker, so they <br>invented a harness that monitors the heart rate and breathing of the dog <br>and communicates to the owner when signs of stress are detected. The <br>handler can then remove the dog from the stressful situation, or in the <br>case of heat exhaustion, move them out of the heat and find water.<br><br>guide dog handle/©North Carolina State University <br><<a href="https://news.ncsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Roberts-Sidebar-FULL.jpg">https://news.ncsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Roberts-Sidebar-FULL.jpg</a>>/<br><br>The harness has a specialized handle that attaches to the <br>health-monitoring harness that is equipped with two vibrating motors. <br>One of the motors is in the handle by the owner's thumb and it vibrates <br>in time with the dog's heart rate so that the handler can quickly detect <br>an increase caused by stress. The other motor is located on the other <br>end of the handle by the owner's pinky finger. That motor vibrates in <br>synch with the dog's respiration, increasing and decreasing in intensity <br>to simulate the in and out breaths.<br><br>In tests with blind handlers using simulated data, the users were able <br>to effectively notice the signs of stress from the vibrations.<br><br>Repeated stress can lead to the early retirement of guide or service <br>dogs, so having a way to monitor and communicate the wellbeing of those <br>dogs to their handlers means a longer beneficial relationship between <br>the dog and the person it's helping.<br><br>The researchers now plan to tweak the design of the handle and do more <br>testing with guide-dog handlers. Lead researcher Sean Mealin, who is <br>himself blind and uses a guide dog, hopes that they'll have this <br>technology ready for people to use in the near future.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>-- <br>The Seeing Eye<br>Independence with Dignity since 1929<br><br> <br>If you need to contact one of the list owners for <br>> questions or assistance, please use the following email address: <a href="mailto:seeing-eye+owner@googlegroups.com">seeing-eye+owner@googlegroups.com</a>.<br>--- <br>You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Seeing Eye Discussions" group.<br>To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to <a href="mailto:seeing-eye+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com">seeing-eye+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com</a>.<br>To post to this group, send email to <a href="mailto:seeing-eye@googlegroups.com">seeing-eye@googlegroups.com</a>.<br>To view this discussion on the web visit <a href="https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/seeing-eye/00a601d12182%24f7c4a5e0%24e74df1a0%24%40comcast.net?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer">https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/seeing-eye/00a601d12182%24f7c4a5e0%24e74df1a0%24%40comcast.net</a>.<br>For more options, visit <a href="https://groups.google.com/d/optout">https://groups.google.com/d/optout</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></body></html>