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Militarizing Your Backyard With Python and AI

Posted by timothy on from the it-puts-the-squirrel-in-the-bucket dept.

mikejuk writes "Kurt Grandis took some cutting edge and open source AI tools, Python, an Arduino and a SuperSoaker and built the (almost) perfect squirrel hosing machine. The project involved Open Computer Vision (OpenCV), an a SVM learning procedure that he trained to tell the difference between a squirrel and a non-squirrel. After 'perfecting' the classifier the hardware came next — a SuperSoaker Mark I was used as the 'water cannon.' A pair of servos were used to aim the gun and a third to pull the trigger."

2 of 112 comments (clear)

  1. Re:PITA Time? by SuricouRaven · · Score: 4, Insightful

    You miss a vital question: Are grey squirrels cute? Hurting non-cute animals will cause little if any public outrage, but even causing a little inconvenience to the cute ones will summon an angry mob. People are stupid that way.

  2. Re:Need some kind of disincentive in the water. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    "Add a little ammonia or cat pee, or methyl mercaptan to the water, or maybe some kind of stuff that gets sticky as it dries, to keep the squirrel occupied for a while."

    Except that it would get all over the feeder and potentially discourage the birds.