How IoT helped Gus the cat become a social media star

13 May 2015

IoT helped create a smart cat door

Once again, Intel’s VP of the internet of things (IoT), Philip Moynagh, returns to tell us of its real-world applications with the adventures of Gus the cat and Kimberley Nixon’s smart cat door.

Last week, Philip had shown us the five easy steps to take an idea for IoT and running with it, but now we are shown it applied to even the smallest things around us.

Much cited by Philip as a perfect example of IoT, Kimberley’s idea came from a basic need, that being, to stop cats in her neighbourhood using her cat door, put there for her cat Gus, and causing havoc as a result.

With the help of a sensor placed on Gus, Kimberley was able to turn her dumb door into a smart one that would only allow Gus to enter the cat door and not any of the other troublesome neighbourhood felines.

By connecting her smart door to Twitter and Facebook, Kimberley was able to keep track of Gus using the power of social media.

Kimberley even highlighted Gus’s adventures and her experience of setting up an IoT smart door on her website explaining the entire process. and while Gus has since sadly died, Penny has taken up his mantle.

Stay tuned for more videos explaining IoT provided by the talented folk at Think Visual each Wednesday morning over the coming weeks.

Cat at door image via Shutterstock

Colm Gorey was a senior journalist with Silicon Republic

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