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Ooo, I dunno. I tell you!
Pete, my adolescent cat, has recently learnt how to climb out of my garden which gives him fine access to the entire world.
When he was home based, I'd know what he'd been up to, but these days, I just have no idea. I'm not the least concerned, but rather intruiged
as the wee fella often returns exhausted from his days travelling.
A simple collarbased camera is my preferred solution. Toshiba have produced a tiny 40GB hard drive that could comfortably store 8 hours cat roaming on film.
When the .mpg is retrieved, we can play it on the telly to Dud, Pete's lovely but scared brother, to show him that the big bad world is actually jam packed full of things to play with, like leaves. Bless them both.
Tiny hard drives, for video cat tracking
http://news.bbc.co....hnology/3381997.stm
[jonthegeologist, Oct 05 2004]
Deja View
http://www.mydejavi...m/pages/2/index.htm
Add the tiny hard drive to this, and you're done. (well, still a bit bulky but I think you could strap this to the back of your cat*)
*honestly I didn't plan that [Worldgineer, Oct 05 2004]
Pete and Dud - the Furry Travelling Wilberrys
http://www.chm.bris...glhrm/cats/cats.htm
[jonthegeologist, Oct 05 2004]
Two Cats Mad
Two_20Cats_20Mad
a classic! [Madai, Jan 11 2005]
cat diaries
http://www.youtube....watch?v=k0PduP7PXx0
[po, Dec 11 2010]
Not porn, nor the animal channel...
http://netwrok.us/v...e-falcon-a-goshawk/
[normzone, Dec 14 2010]
Now on TV
http://www.bbc.co.u...nvironment-22567526
Now on TV! [jonthegeologist, Jun 13 2013]
Chatty Cat Records Outdoor Adventures With a GoPro
https://laughingsquid.com/cat-with-gopro/
"An adorably chatty cat in rural Hong Kong recorded all sorts of adventures outside with a GoPro. The moving camera captured the sight of other felines, some of whom stopped to talk. There was also the spotting of a bird, which led to some chattering and a wide open area for the cat to explore." [Dub, Jul 28 2022]
[link]
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You would need some sort of stabilizing system for the camera. Which would translate into more equipment to burden your beast with. Which could in turn wear the cat our prematurely, and make for some pretty boring video. |
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Cat leaves, naps, makes it back panting. |
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Mmmmmm...........Jacques Brel! |
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//You would need some sort of stabilizing system for the camera.// Do that at home with image processing. |
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erm.. I recall a conversation recently where I came up with a similar (the same) idea, but suggested a GPS device, or a radio transponder (you'd obv need a few to triangulate!). |
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Magic the cat (who alas still live in the UK where I am not) spends a lot of her time in and around the town infirmary which is behind my mum's house. The security guards often tell us tales of her escapades which they watch on their CCTV screens. I was deeply impressed when they told us she catches rats. She's only tiny and a rat would be easily half as big as her. Go, Magic! She is also often seen in the psyche- wards where she enjoys the status of being an unofficial therapy cat. |
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As long as there's something moving on that ther screen, the cat can see it. Mine always like wildlife programs, especially if they're about something small and squeaky.
She has been known to circle the tv, looking for the weasel or similar behind it. |
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Pete and Dud watch TV from time to time, but are far more obsessed with PC screens, especially the more expensive TFT type. If we needed to show Dud what Pete had been up to, he'd watch it on the PC no problem. Of course, in reality this is of far more interest to [jonthegeologist] who seems convinced they have another house somewhere... |
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P&D are Watford fans, naturally... |
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Dustin *looks* like a soccer ball! |
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semi-baked. there was an article on NPR today about a tv network devoted to "documentaries" that were filmed directly from cameras on animals. They hooked up cameras to a bunch of different animals for scientific research, then decided to air the tapes after they were done looking at them. Pete could be on a network reality show. |
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BBC tried a similar experment a while ago i think. Anyway i have seen it on tv. |
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I cannot resist linking to the "Two cats mad" idea, considering how this idea is for people who want to spy on their cats. |
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Instead of a camera, you could mount a tank of blue paint, which would trickle down onto the cat's paws. You could then track him and experience the wide world yourself, instead of just on video. No doubt it will be more satisfying for your cat to leave tracks on everything he crosses as well. |
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[bungston] .. .it'll work of course, but your solution lacks the technical complexity that seems so desireable here! |
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Bungston and I have seen the same episode of Macguyver it seems. I remember the using paint to track thingie. |
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"Hmm. Fluffy seems to go to this little brown hole shaped like an asterisk a lot." |
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Tape length of Det cord to cat's tail. Allow to reel out. If curious as to whereabouts of cat, cut cord, attach det and initiate. Scan horizon for gently rising cloud of atomized cat. |
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//using paint to track thingie//
MacGyver used a tin of yellow paint, which he punched a small hole in the bottom of with the can-opener on his famous pocket-knife, then hung it under the bad guys car. "Follow the yellow brick road", he said.
//stabilizing system//
I think you'll find a cat's head is remarkably stable all by itself, if you can find a small enough camera for a cat-head-mount. |
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// a small enough camera // |
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Size is't that much of an issue; just use larger screws. |
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Ah yes, I remember seeing on TV (back in the days when I owned such a device!), footage from an inward-facing wingtip-mounted camera on a buzzard or eagle. |
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My cats like porn and the animal channel (link). |
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It took a decade, but this idea goes on TV in the UK
today. See link in links. |
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Copyright MMXIII, Cat-a-Mount Pictures. |
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Uh, that was written nearly ten years ago. Both
storage density and video compression rates have
increased significantly since then. Nowadays, if you're
not overly concerned with quality, 40GB could fit
perhaps a week or so of H.264 video. It'd be useable
but not fantastic. On the other hand, if you used a
64GB MicroSD card, you could probably get about 24
hours worth of HD video that would be decent enough
to broadcast. |
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hi [jon] did you ever catch James May's Man Lab where he employs cats as part of neighbourhood watch? |
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hi [po]. I did! My idea predates the program by a
mere decade... |
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