The Petserciser

As an individual project for MAE 3780: Mechatronics, I invented a device that motivates your small animals to exercise and provides them with enrichment. This device uses 2 ultrasonic sensors to detect if the pet is near in 2 directions. If they are not, the device will shake a treat bin intermittently to entice the animal to approach, and when they do, as read by the sensors, it will catapult a small amount of food far away. This encourages the animal to run there to consume them. This sequence requires three motors, one to shake the treats, one to put tension on the catapult, and one to release the catapult. The mechanical design consists of a structure of acrylic and cardboard and uses an acrylic gear for the shaking mechanism. It also uses a catapult that consists of an acrylic base and acrylic arm rotating on a paperclip pin and tensioned with a rubber band. The device is controlled by a program on an Arduino Uno R3 based on the ATmega328p.