The Dogosophy Button is the latest product from the Open University Animal-Computer Interaction Laboratory. Designed to fit dog physiology, the button allows furry companions to control appliances more easily.
The laboratory says that environments working dogs share with us are not always friendly for them. The overall goal is to allow working dogs to more easily assist their partners in day-to-day life by rethinking the way dogs interact with devices in our homes and cities.
Dog-Centric Design
Using what the laboratory calls a dog-centric design philosophy – or Dogosophy – the designers’ decisions make it as simple as possible for working dogs to use the button. Even details like the button’s dimensions and colour are optimised.
Dogs are easily able to see blue, especially against the contrasting white casing. The convex casing is easy to interact with for dogs, and the button is responsive to both gentle and energetic touches for both nose and paw interaction.
The interface is the result of years of interaction design research with dogs, for dogs.
Connectivity
The Dogosophy Button is wireless. The button itself can be mounted somewhere convenient for the working dog, while the receiver plugs into mains power, making it suitable for plug-in household devices.
It can connect to its receiver from up to 40 metres away, meaning there’s plenty of flexibility for placement in the average home.
Availability
Currently the Dogosophy Button is only available in the United Kingdom, but the design seems easily adaptable to other markets. For more information, check out the laboratory’s website and the Dogosophy Button page.
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