My final year design project was to design a device or system, aimed at residents in urban areas, that is capable of reducing or eliminating the presence of unwanted animals in a garden, courtyard or other private outdoor space. The aim was to produce a full working prototype and perform real-world testing in an urban garden to determine its effectiveness.
Product development work was carried out during a 7-month period, consisting of research, concept design, detailed mechanical, electronics and software design, prototyping, and testing. The prototype was tested in real-world conditions over a period of several weeks, during which time it successfully filmed a variety of garden animals both during the day and at night, and the software was able to recognise both humans and birds.
