Research

Our research involved looking at our project and finding items, events, or mannerisms that can be found in the present that could be indicators of our possible future. Basically, we knew where we wanted to be in the future, so what today is on the path to that future. We looked through the lens of politics, economics, society and technology. Since our project was primarily technological, we were able to find plenty of precedents that also looked at smarter pet products, such as the Link Smart Collar, an IoT training device, or the iFetch system, which takes the human aspect out of playing with your dog. Additionally, there were a lot of societal shifts that would be great indicators of our product potentially becoming a reality. Especially when it comes to pets, the market has been steadily increasing, and people are starting to treat their pets more like family or children, leading to an increased willingness to spend money on pets.