RFID collar tag helps dog owners meet new friends

It’s a well-known fact that dogs can be conversation starters that help break the ice with people their owners meet. Taking the notion a step further, a new collar tag from Boston-based SNIF Labs lets pet owners forge new connections with fellow dog-walkers, both online and off. Available in a range of colours and patterns, the SNIF Tag is a small RFID device that attaches to a dog’s collar and records his or her daily movements and social encounters. On the social side, each SNIF Tag emits a unique signal that is sensed by the SNIF Tags worn by other dogs. When Fido meets such tag-bearing playmates during a jaunt to the park, his collar stores that information and later uploads it automatically into the accompanying base station, which stays plugged into the owner’s PC at home. The dog’s owner can then log in to view the profiles of the owners of those other dogs and decide if they want to connect online as well. In addition to monitoring social interactions, the SNIF Tag also uses an accelerometer and motion-analysis software to record a pet’s activity. Owners can monitor the dog’s movements in real time while he’s home but they’re at work, for example; alternatively, when Fido is out with the walker, information on his activities will be automatically uploaded when he returns. Activity levels can be reviewed by the hour, day or month, and owners can compare them with those of the other SNIF Tag-wearing dogs in the neighbourhood. The SNIF Tag Starter Kit is priced at USD 299, which includes one year of web services; thereafter, premium features on the SNIF Tag website are USD 89 per year. Where is the line that separates the online and offline worlds? Answer: It’s disappearing. More on that in trendwatching.com’s OFF=ON briefing. Go fetch–and be inspired! 😉 (Related: Connecting online & off with RFID for the masses — Dating cards fuse physical & virtual connections — T-shirts that talk code.) Spotted by: Computerworld.com via Roberta Steinberg