Giving commands to our smart and amazing dogs is relatively easy. Owners can condition their dogs to obey with clicks or by giving them treats. But what if it is the opposite? What if the dogs can say their requests? A research group in Georgia is hopeful that they can make this possible.
Georgia Tech’s Brain Lab, created and headed by Melody Moore Jackson, worked on a set of computerized vests that dog can wear. These vests will allow them to speak to humans. If proven successful, these vests can advance the works of therapy, service, and other working dogs.
These vests are the first-ever canine communication advancement effort from the said university. This project can be beneficial to service dogs and their owners. If proven successful, these vests can also advance the works of therapy dogs and other working dogs.
The FIDO Project, also known as Facilitating Interactions For Dogs With Occupations, produces vests for working dogs. These vests have sensors that they can reach with their noses. The jackets also have a lever that the working dogs can pull. With every pull or nose bump, a control unit delivers a message through audio or text format. The dog can say, “my owner needs help,” or “we need your attention; please come over.”
This technology can be beneficial in life situations. Say, for example, a person with diabetes becomes hypoglycemic, or someone experienced a heart attack or a person with epilepsy having seizures, his or her service dog can alert 911 about his or her human’s emergency condition. This vest can also be helpful for search dogs. They can also track missing persons or rescue those in danger.
Georgia Tech’s BrainLab hopes to complete its research as soon as possible. The excited crew wants to release these communication vests and to make it available for dog owners everywhere. According to them, understanding dogs want to say is quite easy- but with these vests, there’s no second-guessing.
credits: TEDx Talks via YouTube
