Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a harness for dogs designed to let their owners understand what they are saying when they bark.
The current version of the harness is a prototype and features a range of technology that allows humans to communicate with their canine friends, according to Phys.org. Such tech includes physiological sensors for keeping track of the dog's temperature and heart rate, as well as the animal's emotional state, such as if it is stressed or excited.
Owners will be able to customize the harness based on the dog. For example, search-and-rescue dogs can use environmental sensors, cameras and microphones to identify hazards and collect information for missions.
Guide dogs can also make use of the harness, as they can let their owners know when they are stressed, Discovery News.
The research team also designed the harness to work with speakers and vibrating motors that allow dogs to understand requests from owners by translating them into signals.
Dr. Alper Bozkurt, assistant professor of electrical and computing engineering at NC State and co-lead author of the study, said that communication technologies come in two forms: one that lets humans communicate with dogs, and one that lets dogs communicate with humans, Phys.org reported.
"Dogs communicate primarily through body language, and one of our challenges was to develop sensors that tell us about their behavior by observing their posture remotely," said Dr. David Roberts, assistant professor of computer science at NC state and co-author of the study. "So we can determine when they're sitting, standing, running, etc., even when they're out of sight- a harness-mounted computer the size of a deck of cards transmits those data wirelessly."
Sean Mealin, NC State Ph.D student and co-author of the study, said the harness could be especially helpful for guide dogs because they are trained to not display signs that they are stressed.
The research team is currently refining and miniaturizing the technology for the final version, Discovery News reported. The goal for the team is to make the harness available first for animal shelters and hospitals.
