Catterbox – A Smart Collar That Translates Cat Meows into Human Speech
By Sumitra on May 4th, 2016 Category: Tech
Cat lovers of the world, rejoice! You
finally have the chance to understand what your pet is saying thanks to
a smart collar that can interpret feline meows and translate it into
human speech. Aptly named ‘Catterbox’, the collar supposedly has a
digital sensor that detects meows, and uses a special program to
decipher the meaning behind them.Developed by London ad agency adam&eveDDB, for Temptations cat treats, the invention comes preloaded with a dictionary of cat purrs, meows, and several other sounds to make the interpretation as accurate as possible. “We’re fascinated by cats, so we set out on a mission to get to know them better,” said Pete Simmons, global brand director of Temptations.
The promo video for the device claims that Catterbox, the world’s first talking cat collar, is designed to finally help humans understand the meaning of meows. “Cats are often perceived as quite hard to get to know, independent pets, so we set up The Temptations Lab to find innovative ways to inject even more fun into a cat and owner’s relationship,” said Richard Brim, executive creative director of adam&eveDDB.
“Studies show they only meow in order to communicate with humans,” the video adds. “So we set out on a mission to get to know them better. By analysing different cat noises, we’ve designed a digital sensor that detects a cat’s meow and uses a unique program to turn it into a human voice.”
So by using the collar, owners can speak to their cats and expect a meaningful response – well, about as meaningful as a cat’s meows can get. The sassy responses are delivered in a British accent, in a voice of the owner’s choice, selected through a smartphone app paired with the collar. A few sample responses are demonstrated on the company’s YouTube channel – they are quite hilarious, but obviously not very convincing.
In all probability, Catterbox is just a tongue-in-cheek albeit very clever marketing gimmick. If you really want to learn the meaning of cat meows, you’re better off keeping an eye on ‘Meowsic’ (short for ‘Melody in Human-Cat Communication’), a Swedish study carried out over the next five years.
Photos: Catterbox/Temptations
At last! A cat collar that translates meows into human speech
Technically Incorrect: The Catterbox sounds wonderful. You might ask, however, how the collar knows what the cat is saying.
Cats cuddle up to you when they want something. But when you want something from them, they can show a tinge of divaesque reluctance.
What about when they meow?
Have you truly any idea what they're trying to communicate?
The Catterbox uses a digital sensor to detect a meow; then, thanks to a special program, it translates the mew into human language for all to hear.
Please let me add to it. The Catterbox was created by an English ad agency. It must be horrifically authentic, then.
Moreover, it was created on behalf of Temptations cat treats, which happens to have a Temptations Lab.
Some might translate this highfalutin name as "fluff and nonsense created to sell cat food."
I confess that I found some of the human voices emitted by the cats far more disturbing than, say, Siri's. One sounds like a snooty actor from a British farce in which breast-jokes are supposed to be funny.
This isn't even the first time someone has claimed to translate cat into human. In 2007, a Japanese company launched the Meowlingual Cat Translation Device. I fear it didn't translate to the wider world.
I feel less sure the cats will feel the same way.
No comments:
Post a Comment