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Presented at CES last January, the Smart Dog Collar connected biometric dog collar was once again the star of Invoxia’s stand at IFA. The opportunity to discover it a little closer, and to learn more about its release date.
Our four-legged friends also have the right to biometric sensors to better monitor their health. Already known for its GPS collars, Invoxia no longer stops at simply tracking the movements of dogs and cats. With the Smart Dog Collar, the French company also promises permanent monitoring of dogs’ heart and respiratory rates, to detect the warning signs of physical failure or illness.
The Invoxia Smart Dog Collar prototype dog collar presented at IFA 2022.
First promising clinical results
A first clinical study of the Smart Dog Collar carried out on a panel “representative of all dog breeds” (Labradors, Dalmatians, Beagles, Fox Terriers, etc.), according to Invoxia, demonstrates a heart rate detection accuracy of 99%, while that of the respiratory rate would reach 97%. Excellent results that are therefore reassuring as to the operation of such a device on animals whose hairiness could make measurements difficult.To disregard hair, the Smart Dog Collar incorporates a miniaturized radar sensor detecting the micro-movements of the animal’s skin. An algorithm then “cleans” the acquired signal to deduce the heart and respiratory rates.
Invoxia also specifies that its algorithms trained by deep learning (deep learning) are able to measure different daily activities of the dog, such as the number of barks, scratches and meals, as well as the duration of walks and runs. The Smart Dog Collar also provides sleep tracking.
A necklace that can still evolve
The Smart Dog Collar prototype presented at IFA does not seem to have evolved since CES. It is still a textile collar integrating a relatively light plastic case, but still a little thick and wide for our taste. Given the compactness of our current connected watches and activity bracelets, we could hope for miniaturization, so that the collar looks a little more like a classic dog collar and can be adapted more easily to small doggies. cut.
A prototype Smart Dog Collar still a bit thick.
A good place must be reserved for the battery, however, with Invoxia promising “several weeks of autonomy“, which means that you don’t have to handle the collar too often to recharge it.
If our interlocutors at the IFA told us that they were still working on the design of their Smart Dog Collar, in particular to offer a less messy material, it is hard to imagine that the collar could really change shape less than 6 months from its release, Invoxia now announcing it for this winter – it was initially expected for this summer. Its price of 99 € has not changed despite the price increases of the components in recent months, but it will be necessary to pay a monthly subscription of 12.99 € to take advantage of it, which will unfortunately inflate the bill. This subscription nevertheless includes the 4G mobile plan (LTE-M connection) necessary for the proper functioning of geolocation.
A textile cover houses the waterproof plastic box containing the electronic components.