CHAPTER 1- INTRODUCTION

1.1PROJECT OVERVIEW

Automation or the process of executing a task automatically is now considered

a prominent technological revolution for industrial purposes and even for almost

everyone’s lifestyle[CITATION Yue18 \l 13321 ]. This automation process was made

possible using the concept of the Internet of Things (IoT) as this technology allows

the communication and association between physical objects and virtual ones to

happen[ CITATION Bay17 \l 13321 ] . Automation with IoT has been successfully

implemented and applied in different sectors of society such as industry

production, businesses, medical and healthcare, education, and security [ CITATION

Tza18 \l 13321 ]. People are attracted to this technology because of how it completes

the task in an efficient, convenient, and faster manner[ CITATION Lak20 \l 13321 ].

Consequently, researchers are gearing towards the development and improvement

of IoT-based devices to achieve the objective of being able to automate any piece

of work.

Manual monitoring and feeding pets are considered tedious tasks for pet

owners. From time to time they have to check the pet to assure that the pet is in

good condition. Such work requires a lot of effort and time from the owner
[CITATION Bab19 \l 13321 ]. They need to make sure that the pets are eating a proper and

adequate amount of food and water [ CITATION Dod20 \l 13321 ] . That the pets are

comfortable in their respective cage or pet house [ CITATION Tur12 \l 13321 ] . This

laborious work can be considered a problem, especially to pet owners who are

working, studying, and have busy schedules. In the case of every worker in an

animal shelter, this situation is even worse because they do not only feed and

monitor one to two pets.

To address such a problem, the purpose of this capstone is to create and design

a smart cage for toy dogs with the functions of feeding and monitoring system

integrated with technology using IoT. The system includes (1) monitoring the pet

through a camera, (2) checking the temperature inside the pet house or pet cage,

(3) setting a schedule of when to give a set amount of food and water to a toy dog,

(4)alerting the pet owner when the amount of food and water is low, and (5)

locking and unlocking the pet cage or house. Because of these, pet owners can still

accomplish their work appropriately without exerting so much effort as compared

to doing all mentioned processes manually.

1.2 SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS

Since civilization started, humans have learned how to domesticate animals

either for pets or food. Animals then became human companions in hunting,

foraging, and cultivating the soil for agriculture. This bond between humans and

animals deepened through the years and animals became part of the household and

even a sign of prosperity for some (i.e., horses.)[CITATION Zed12 \l 13321 ]. However,

raising a pet requires a lot of effort from the owner as these pets require special

treatment and care for them to live longer. In today’s time, the lifestyle of people

tends to get busy because of work, studies, and many more that causes pets to be

not properly taken care of. Some tend to forget to feed their pets on time and

monitor and regulate the amount of food they give to their pets [ CITATION End19 \l

13321 ]. This practice can impose health disorders on the pet such as obesity which

can lead to other concerning diseases like cancer and diabetes, and worse the death

of the pet[ CITATION Dow17 \l 13321 ].

Pets in the cage or crates – would help the pet’s instincts. Sometimes putting

the pet in a cage being comfortable and feel safe – sometimes an environment

could be overbearing or overwhelming. Pets in a cage can prevent furniture from

being destroyed or chewing items in your household, putting pets in a cage could

be used for training a pet when – being newly bought or recently adopted. To

ensure the safety of your pet – the cage should be enough for them.
 Because of all the mentioned problems, this project aims to lessen the effort or

to reduce the human work of taking care of pets by creating a pet cage or house

integrated with IoT technology and devices. With this system, pet owners can

monitor what the pet is currently doing without physically going where the pet

cage or house is located. Hence, the pet can be monitored even if the owner is not

at home. The system will also lessen the labor of feeding and giving water to the

pets and making sure that they intake the right amount by setting the feeding

schedule and the amount of food and water to be given.

1.3PROJECT FRAMEWORK

To create a digital classroom management software the study will use the input-

process-output (IPO) framework. In the input section, the researchers will present

the features of the software and these are:

In the process section, the researchers will do coding regarding the features of

the software. The programs that will be used… Hence, the output is a prototype

digital classroom management software.

The study follows the indicated project framework:

 INPUT PROCESS OUTPUT
 Feeding Scheduler
CODING
 Monitoring system  Application of the
Smart Cage
 Humidity Checker MVC framework
for Toy Dogs
 Automated Lock using C# for the

and unlock of the website

cage  C++ for the

 Logs Adruino/Raspberry pi

1.4STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES

1.4.1 General Objectives

The main objective of this study is to create a smart pet cage integrated with

IoT technology that monitors toy breed dogs in an automated manner – that can be

developed and attainable. Furthermore, the accompanying web application will

give the user easier accessibility in controlling the actual pet monitoring device.
1.4.2 Specific Objectives

To following are the specific objectives of the study.

1. To create an Arduino/Raspberry pi device that will let the user monitor the

current state of pets.

2. To create a pet cage or house integrated with time scheduled for the meal of

the pet.

3. To create an andruino/ Raspberry pi device that can lock and unlock the cage

through the web application.

4. To create an andruino/ Raspberry pi that can monitor and humidity of cage/

surroundings.

5. To design a user-friendly web application that will allow the user to control

and manage the pet monitoring device and system.

1.5 IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY

The significance of this project is to lessen the human effort of the end-user

specifically owners of pets and animal shelter workers and to make sure that the

pets are feed on time and also to monitor the pets’ status without going to their

cage one by one. The result of the study will benefit the following:
1.5.1 Admin Side

Admin Side of the project can help the Pet Owners to manipulate the

amount of food or water given to a pet because every Pet has a different diet

or Temperature maintenance

1.5.2 Individual Pet Owners

It will lessen the pet owners' time and effort of taking care of their pets by

assisting them to feed and monitor their pets remotely. They will be able to

lessen the time on doing chores of taking care of their pets.

Veterinarian/ Dog Hospitals

Researchers

1.5.3 Future Researchers

This study would be beneficial to the researchers as it could serve as

references for related topics and more areas needed for improvement.

1.6SCOPE & LIMITATIONS

1.6.1 SCOPE OF THE PROJECT

The scope of the study is to create a smart cage with a device and a system

that will let the user monitor the real-time status of the pets inside the cage through
a CCTV camera. Furthermore, the system will allow the monitoring of the

temperature and humidity inside the pet cage. The user can schedule the feeding

and drinking time using the web application, at the same time set the amount of

food and water to be given to the pets. The system will also allow the user to lock

or unlock the pet cage through the web application.

1.6.2 LIMITATIONS

1. The user can only control the monitoring device through the web application

if it is connected to the internet, hence Wi-Fi-dependent.

2. The system can only schedule the feeding and drinking time of pets but it

will not track the time of when the pet was fed.

3. The food container inside the pet cage or house can only accommodate dry

pet foods.

4. The system is only limited to monitoring and feeding toy dogs.

5. The temperature sensor will only monitor the temperature around the cage

6. The smart cage is only for toy dogs

7. Ten (10) pet owners of Toy Dogs from Angeles City

1.7. DEFINITION & TERMS

Operational Terms

 Pet – is an animal kept by a person as a companion.

 Pet Cage - it is a structure of steel or bars that can keep animals or pets

in a certain location.

 Scheduled feeding – it schedules the time feeding of the pet.

 Security – it secures the pet's status and health and being protected

from any kind of danger.

 Temperature checking – It is a device that can monitor the humidity

of a certain place whether it is hot or cold.

Technical Terms

 Arduino – It is a board that can read inputs to make another device

move, rotate, sense, and turn on.

 CCTV Camera – It is a small device that can record or monitor within

a range of areas that is usually used for security and monitoring.

 IoT (Internet of Things)- interconnected computing devices that can

process data over the internet with less human interaction.

  Raspberry Pi – it is a small single-board that can use to control

devices and electric components for exploring the physical things of

the internet of things (IoT).

 Toy Dog –are very small dog breeds that can be left at home.

 Web Application – a web application that can be saved in a remote

server and can be delivered using a web browser over the internet.

 WI-FI – It is a facility that can allow end devices like computers,

laptops, mobile phones, and alike. To communicate or access

wirelessly with one another.

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