Militarizing Your Backyard With Python and AI

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."

Comments

Re:PITA Time?

[sideslash]

No, no no. PITA is the kind of bread you wrap your roasted squirrel meat in. _PETA_ is what you're thinking of.

The first law of squirrels

[Anonymous Coward]

Squirrels are persistent.

If you have something they want, they will find a way to get it. If it takes you 3 weeks to build a cage to keep them out, they will search for 3 days until they find or make a hole in the cage. If you put the desired item on top of a slippery pole, they will jump from surrounding objects hundreds of times until they finally get there. If you cut down all the trees around the item, they will try going up the pole until they rub all the slippery stuff off. If you put the item on the moon, they will invent the rocket.

So I would advise against this escalation of the arms race against Rodentia. If we build electronic weapons to keep them away they will probably develop electronic countermeasures, and we don't want that.

Re:The first law of squirrels

[CaptBubba]

I've had really good luck with a commercial "Squirrel Buster" tube bird feeder which has a spring-suspended cage around the entirety of the tube. They jump on and their fat ass pulls the cage down to where they cannot get the seed. They can see the seed, they can smell the seed, but they cannot eat the seed. They get so pissed off at that thing and it is wonderful.

Grackles however are an entirely different matter and I'd love to have this water gun setup for them. I imagine a large black bird would be pretty easy to target too.

Re:PITA Time?

[ColdWetDog]

Anyway if this guy gets dinged, maybe he just needs to replace the Super Soaker with a .12 gauge...

And shoot the PETA people?

I approve of this message!

Re:PITA Time?

[jamstar7]

The People for Eating Tasty Animals? Why would they have a problem with this? Squirrel, the other white meat...

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Before you try to reproduce this...

[jafo]

I saw his presentation at PyCon a few weeks ago. During Q&A I asked: "My experience with OpenCV has been that it's nearly impossible to use, poor documentation, documentation of a different version of the API, build issues with the libraries. Was I just on the wrong track, or is this a common experience?"

His answer was that it's true that it's very hard to get OpenCV working.

Also note that after a while the squirrels stopped being annoyed by the water gun and would just sit there while getting sprayed.

He did a very nice job of it though! I particularly like the part about using the bushy tail to tell a squirrel from a bird.

Re:PITA Time?

[colinrichardday]

PITA?

People for the Intelligent Targeting of Animals?

Make it say things like...

[shippers]

"I see you", "there you are", and "no hard feelings" in a soft robotic voice.

NI instead of AI?

[Nkwe]

Why not just use the reptilian version of python and skip the AI?