Automated Pet feederPresented by: Carl Skeene
OUTLINEMotivationIntroductionProblem statementAssumptionProposed solutionResults ConclusionFuture workReferencesAcknowledgements
MOTIVATIONCats waking me
up too earlyRegular feeding
scheduleNot being home
for days at a time
INTRODUCTIONMy cats always wanted to eat at 5:30 am
every morning. Not needing to get up until 6:15 it became a pain, because they are relentless when they want me to get up.
New work schedule keeps me away from home quite a bit. I need a solution to allow me to keep them on a regular feeding schedule without over feeding.
Tried store bought feeders that allow for food to refill itself.
INTRODUCTION Cont.Feeder that refills
doesn’t work due to one of my cats abusing the endless food.
Got the idea for my feeder from Mathew Newton who came in second in Mac|Lifes: Top Ten Wonders of the Home Automation World. http://www.maclife-digital.com/maclife/201003/?pg=33#pg33
PROBLEM STATEMENTNeed a feeder automatically
operate at two specific times in the day
Ability to control the feeder from locations away from home
Assumptions That my cats will let me sleep as long
as they have food at the right time. That I will be able to stay away from
home when needed without worry
PROPOSED SOLUTIONSteps taken to solve the problem of the
cats feeding time: Deciding to use microcontroller or PLCWent with the PLC after doing internet searches and found the Nano-10 PLC
Nano-10 offers what I needed regarding onboard server for web apps and Ethernet connections for network communication
PROPOSED SOLUTION Cont.
PROPOSED SOLUTION Cont.
PROPOSED SOLUTION Cont.Assembly had a few difficult parts, filing the
rod and coupling to connect the dispenser and the motor
PROPOSED SOLUTION Cont.
RESULTSFunctioning pet
feederAutomatically
feeds twice a dayAbility to
control feeder manually from inside or outside of home network
CONCLUSIONSThe results are very significant for
my personal use, I have already been actively using the feeder
I have learned a lot regarding the PLC that I purchased as far as programming and capabilities.
FUTURE WORKRedesign the exit rampAddition of water refillMake it less bulky, take up less
spaceAddition of a network video camera
to be able to monitorFood level indicator
REFERENCESNewton, M. (2012). Internet-Enabled Cat Feeder-
Mark 2. Retrieved on March, 2012, from http://www.newtonnet.co.uk/catfeeder/
Top ten wonders of the home automation world. Mac|Life.com 30-31. Retrieved Mar. 2010, from Top ten wonders of the home automation world. Mac|Life.com 30-31. Retrieved Mar. 2010, from http://www.maclife-digital.com/maclife/201003/?pg=33#pg33.
Triangle Research Int'l Inc. (2010, Nov.). In Nano-10 User Manual. Retrieved Mar. Day, 2011, from http://www.tri-plc.com/documents/Nano-10-UserManual.pdf
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSI would like to acknowledge my
father Mike Skeene and my brother Shawn Skeene with all the help in the physical construction of the feeder.
Thanks for watchingEmail: [email protected]
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