Doggone it... headset to translate dog’s thoughts

A company has launched a crowdfunding campaign for a canine headset that will translate what man’s best friend is thinking into spoken English.

No, it’s not a joke and no, its inventors aren’t barking mad. What they are is a small research lab called NSID and based in Sweden. It believes it can monitor, isolate and translate a dog’s thought patterns.

So far, NSID claims it can identify the pattern for “I’m hungry”, “I’m tired”, and “who are you?” And, following this early breakthrough, the team is seeking $10,000 (€7,358) from crowdfunding site Indiegogo to help it develop an EEG headset that can monitor your pet’s thought patterns and then relay them as spoken words via its integrated speaker.

Only spoken translations are only available in English, but the team is developing versions that speak Mandarin, French and Spanish. NSID also hopes to be able to isolate, identify and translate further doggy thoughts as the project progresses.

But for now, an early-bird pledge of $65 will get initial backers a single sensor version of No More Woof which will be able to identify and translate three thought patterns, which its creators hope to ship in April next year.

Meanwhile, a pledge of $300 will secure a two-sensor version of the device capable of translating “four or more” thought patterns.

This isn’t the first time a project has sought to reveal what your furry four-legged friends are feeling or thinking: in 2002 the Bowlingual gadget was awarded the Ig Nobel prize and in 2009 toymaker Takara Tomy brought it to market in Japan.