Design brief

Design blog

Meeting 1 (14.11.22) – Week 8

During this meeting, we viewed and evaluated all the design briefs available, and decided that the “Pet Toys” one was most suited to us. We then began to research into our chosen area in order to begin thinking about design considerations and concepts. We also decided that it was most suited to design our product for cats. The research conducted is shown below:

Research

The rate at which owning domestic cats worldwide is increasing rapidly, especially due to the recent pandemic and lockdown. According to a Cats and Their Stats 2021 UK report, there are 10.8 million pet cats in the UK, with 26% of households owning at least one cat. The pandemic, not only encourage people to buy pets, but the after effects means that people now stay at home more. Due to this, they spend more time with their cats, requiring forms of entertaining their cat. This has caused the cat market to increase every year, where it is now estimated that the global pet toy market will reach $3.7 billion by 2027, a 5.8% CAGR increase from $2.5 billion in 2020.

Cats are animals that can get bored quickly, therefore, designing a toy for them requires extra thought. Research shows that most cats prefer a toy that resembles prey such as mice, birds, bugs, and snakes. We instantly found that movement is an extremely important factor in toys, as cats love to chase prey. Due to this, we decided that our toy must resemble what it is like for a cat to hunt, as it is more likely all cats will be interested in this toy, and remain interested. Cats can get bored of playing, but they will not get bored of what they think is hunting. In one study, cats presented with the same toy three times, became progressively less interested. However, when they were provided with a new toy, they showed more response and were more willing to play with the toy. This lead us to think of toys that would be different every time the cat plays with it, for example, adding aspects of randomness, alternative appearances, and changing noises. In doing this, the cat would be less likely to become bored of the toy, which then makes it useless to the owner.

“The patterns of behaviour are similar, and the things that entice cats to hunt also get them excited about toys” … “What we see from research is that the more similar to realistic prey the toy is, the more of a response the cat shows.”

Mikel Delgado

One increasingly common factor that causes pet toys to fail on the market is how safe they are for the pet. Recently, there has been an increase in the reports of miliary dermatitis in cats, a skin condition caused by materials such as PET, PETE, HDPE, LDPE, PVC, PP, and polycarbonate, which are often used in pet products. This has caused owners to become more observant to the material choice before purchasing a pet toy. This is not the only health and safety risk to pets, as the RSPCA warn owners about toys which include string, rubber bands, paper clips, plastic bags, and toys with small parts. This is due to the risk of choking, suffocation, ingestion, or any other types of injury that must be avoided. When designing our product, we must ensure that it is safe for cats to use, by following advice given by the RSPCA, and use materials that are suitable for all pets.

Meeting 2 (17.11.22) – Week 8

Now that we had a greater idea on the area of pet toys, and who we were designing for, we began sketching and modelling potential ideas. We then evaluated them, looking at their advantages and disadvantages, which assisted us in developing a final design. We created a few concepts, evaluated them, then created a final design which is all shown below.

Design 1 – Randomised laser

Design 2 – Spinning feather wand

First final design – Remote control mouse

As we thought this was going to be our final design, we created a low fidelity prototype win order to gain a better understanding on dimensions and functionality. This helped us to see where and how this idea was not going to work, and why it was better to re group and evaluate the design.

Meeting 3 (21.11.22) – Week 9

After careful consideration, we decided that this final design was not suitable as there were many similar products on the market. In addition to this, we believed that a cat would quickly become less interested in this product, as it did not follow our design brief and research. Having done this, we then had to quickly develop a new final design which covered all design brief points, with little disadvantages. Once we had a new design, we prepared sketches and researched into how to make the idea possible.

Final design: Remote control pointer

Meeting 4 (22.11.22) – Week 9

We continued our research into parts and mechanisms for our idea to work efficiently. After confirming this new idea, we created a full scale low fidelity prototype using cardboard. This helped us to explore dimensions, structure, aesthetics, and how to make it as functional as possible.

Meeting 5 (28.11.22) – Week 10

Once we knew exactly what we needed to assemble this product, we ordered our parts (Host shield, USB Bluetooth dongle, and a pan-tilt HAT). Whilst we didn’t have our parts, we prepared sections of the code and tested elements of the design that we had parts for. For example, we were able to use two servos to test the vertical and horizontal rotating mechanism.

Meeting 6 (5.12.22) – Week 11

Out of the three parts we ordered, only the host shield arrived, therefore, we were unable to begin assembling our product. Instead, we continued working on the code so that when the parts arrived, only the assembly was required. We tested that the host shield was working fully with our Arduino uno and an LED, which were already available to us.

Meeting 7 (8.12.22) – Week 11

On this day, all of our parts arrived, therefore, we were able to begin testing the parts to ensure they were working, as shown in the “Testing conducted” section. To hold the circuit, we decided to place the board in the base of the product. In order to make it durable and aesthetically pleasing, we decided to use MDF, to create a boxed shape base. MDF is also safe for pets, following our design brief points. We also found that part of the host shield needed soldering, therefore, we were able to use the soldering kits in lab to complete this.

Meeting 8 (11.12.22) – Week 11

As we had all the necessary parts, we began assembling our product. With small refinements to the code, we were able to connect the parts to the completed code, and test that everything worked correctly. We then showed our product to various people for feedback, whilst adding final touches to the design.

Meeting 9 (12.12.22) – Week 12

PRESENTATION!!!

Project task list

Task to complete	When?	Who?
Research area to create brief	Week 8	Yaseen
Sketch initial concepts	Week 8	All members
Develop concept into final design	Week 8	All members
Create prototype	Week 9	Ouafi
Order parts	Week 10	All members
Writing code	Week 10	Yusuf
Assemble parts and test with code	Week 11	All members
User feedback and final touches	Week 11	All members

We followed this project task list throughout the full process, however, due to us altering our final design following further evaluation, there were more steps that were not included in this task list. These tasks are shown below:

Research parts	Week 9	Yusuf
Sketch new design	Week 9	Yaseen
Create new prototype	Week 9	Ouafi

Maker manual

Final outcome

Final outcome in automatic mode, where the servos move randomly, at random intervals.

Tools and supplies used

• Arduino software
• Pan-tilt, consisting of 2 servos
• 1x host shield
• 1x USB bluetooth dongle
• 1x controller + it’s charging cable
• Soldering station
• Laptop
• Connector cable

In order to create the base of the product, in addition to the holder for the toy, we had to go to the Makerspace, as we required materials and tools including:

• MDF sheet
• Hot glue gun
• Scroll saw
• Hand saw
• Sanding machine
• Rectangular file
• Screws
• Screwdriver

Circuit layout

How we built this product

Below describes the steps we took to build the circuit for our product:

1. Order parts including: 1x host shield, 1x pan-tilt, 1x usb dongle
2. Attach host shield to Arduino UNO Board
3. Connect the 5V pin on the host shield to the power rail on the breadboard
4. Connect the GND pin on the host shield to the ground rail on the breadboard
5. Attach a wire from the ground rail on the breadboard to the ground (brown) wire on the servo
6. Attach a wire from the power rail on the breadboard to the 5v (middle/ red) wire on the servo
7. Attach a wire from pin 9 on the host shield, to the signal(orange/ yellow) wire on the servo
8. Repeat steps 5,6, and 7 for the other servo on the pan-tilt, but ensuring a different pin is used in the host shield

This diagram shows how the base that holds our circuit was built:

The full product was then finalised by combing the circuit with the holder by screwing the pan-tilt onto the top of the holder, creating durability and stability.

Code

Code for automatic mode:

Code for controller mode:

Testing conducted

Testing that the host shield was working:

Testing the servo pan tilt with host shield:

Testing controller connected to board using the serial monitor:

Testing controller with pan tilt servos

Shortcomings and evaluation

As shown in the testing conducted section, we managed to get both servos in the pan-tilt working at the same time. However, once we connected the controller to the board, we found that only one servo moved at a time. After research into the reason for this, we found that the maximum of 5 volts on the Arduino Uno was not sufficient to power both servos in addition to the controller. As there was a delay due to Royal Mail strikes for the arrival of our parts, we began assembling later than we would have liked. Due to this, there was no time for us to order and get the parts on time to make our initial concept possible.

When designing and ordering our parts, we aimed for the user to control the movement of the servos using a controller. To improve this further, we decided it would be ideal for the controller to be wireless, which lead us to order a USB Bluetooth dongle. Despite attempting this method of connecting the controller to the board multiple times, we unfortunately did not manage to make it work, meaning we had to connect the controller using a cable. This meant the product had another cable to store in the holder, however, we didn’t design the hole in the holder for an additional wire.

When creating the MDF holder for our boards, we did not take into consideration us having to have a wire for the controller, as we initially wanted it to be wireless. Due to this, the wire could not fit through the whole we created, hence some wires had to be connected through the bottom of the casing. This design does not look like what we wished, however, it is still functioning and looks neat from the front. In addition to this, after connecting the controller to the host shield, it initially worked. However, after longer use we found that it would often not work properly and was extremely inconsistent, despite everything being connected properly.

Despite these shortcomings, we believe that our product is still suitable for users to entertain their cats, especially while using the automatic mode. The outcome still covers all our design brief points, as our research showed cats were still very interested in playing with the toy, without the user having to use much effort whilst it was moving automatically. We believed that despite the product being very simple, the product is actually very efficient and useful for many users.

If we were to repeat this project in the future, there would be many things we would do differently. The first mistake which we could have easily avoided with better preparation is when we used only the Arduino Uno as a source of power when it wasn’t enough. With more time, we could have ordered an external power source and use that instead of, or with, the 5 volts that the Arduino Uno provides. In doing this, the product would be able to function as we would have liked by the user being able to control both servos at the same time with a controller. Another mistake which could have resolved with more time would be the design and fitting of the case. As our parts arrived very late, we were forced to carry out many of our tasks within a short amount of time, including the making of the holder which was not sized correctly. An easy solution could have been easily producing another holder, but taking into consideration additional wires and dimensions. The last alteration we would have made was the method of controlling the servos. Instead of using a controller, we could have ordered an IR receiver, and used an infrared remote, which would have been a lot simpler than using a controller. Due to this, there would have been a lower chance of failure, whilst still allowing to control the servos away from the product.