How would you build a car for a dog?

[CaseS87]

I would think to teach a dog how to drive said car you would have to implement some sort of a positive/negative reinforcer into the car. If the dog had to drive under certain guidelines, not just going nuts on like the salt flats or something, you would have to have a system of positively reinforcing it when it went in the correct direction, and punishing it when it went the wrong direction. Dogs don't have the capability to gauge cause and effect like we do which is pretty necessary for not dying while driving a car.

[CityFan]

[ QUOTE ]
I would think to teach a dog how to drive said car you would have to implement some sort of a positive/negative reinforcer into the car. If the dog had to drive under certain guidelines, not just going nuts on like the salt flats or something, you would have to have a system of positively reinforcing it when it went in the correct direction, and punishing it when it went the wrong direction. Dogs don't have the capability to gauge cause and effect like we do which is pretty necessary for not dying while driving a car.

[/ QUOTE ]

I think any system to allow a dog to drive a car on the public roads is out of the question. We should limit ourselves to designing a motorised vehicle for a dog.

The most important thing is to keep it SIMPLE.

Dogs are not going to handle gear changes, so the vehilce needs to be one-geared or automatic.

Then, the actual control mechanism needs to be simple enough so the dog can figure it out and know what it's doing.

I liked the line-of-sight idea, but I wonder if a paws-on system could work. You might have to tether the dog into the controls for it to get the idea.

[sharkbitten]

The dog has to start the car, so make the ignition look like another dog's butt. When the dog sniffs it, the car starts.
[img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[DougShrapnel]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Obviously, a stupid question. However, I went on an job interview many years ago, and I was asked this question. I think it might be a good question to look at thought processes as opposed to knowledge.

[/ QUOTE ]

The dog `drives' the car by chasing it down the road. Set up feedback loop mechanism so that the car's left rear tire is always six (+/- 1) inches from dogs gnashing jaws. The car goes wherever the dog chases it. Maybe make it a `monster truck' type vehicle so obstacles are not a problem.

[/ QUOTE ]This would work really well for dogs that want to go around in cricles. Do you see any other possiblity than that? It's the provibial dog chasing it's tail.

[DougShrapnel]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
My answer was to attemp to determine the line of sight, where ever the dog looks the car goes. If he looks far into the distance the car goes faster. If the dog is focusing on something close the car slowsdown.

[/ QUOTE ]

[img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img] I thought of this answer too

[/ QUOTE ]Why the sad face, it seems like a good answer. Of course I'm a bit biased in that belief.

[DougShrapnel]

[ QUOTE ]
I would think to teach a dog how to drive said car you would have to implement some sort of a positive/negative reinforcer into the car. If the dog had to drive under certain guidelines, not just going nuts on like the salt flats or something, you would have to have a system of positively reinforcing it when it went in the correct direction, and punishing it when it went the wrong direction. Dogs don't have the capability to gauge cause and effect like we do which is pretty necessary for not dying while driving a car.

[/ QUOTE ]Behavioral modification is a good way to train a dog to drive a car. But how would you build the car.

[DougShrapnel]

[ QUOTE ]
I think any system to allow a dog to drive a car on the public roads is out of the question. We should limit ourselves to designing a motorised vehicle for a dog.

[/ QUOTE ]This is something that I assumed when answering, after hearing some responses I'm not sure that my assumption was warrented.

[ QUOTE ]
The most important thing is to keep it SIMPLE.

Dogs are not going to handle gear changes, so the vehilce needs to be one-geared or automatic.

Then, the actual control mechanism needs to be simple enough so the dog can figure it out and know what it's doing.

I liked the line-of-sight idea, but I wonder if a paws-on system could work. You might have to tether the dog into the controls for it to get the idea.

[/ QUOTE ] Keep it simple makes sense, no gears makes sense, tethering the dog makes sense. I don't really know how much force control dogs have in there paws. I think effective the best you could do for a pedel or a buttom would be only 2 states pressed and not pressed. Leading to jerky reactions. However I think a string based pully system judging the hieght of the groud a paw is at might work fairly well.

[DougShrapnel]

[ QUOTE ]
The dog has to start the car, so make the ignition look like another dog's butt. When the dog sniffs it, the car starts.
[img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]That's pretty funny, and I didn't even think about starting the car.

[CORed]

[ QUOTE ]
The dog has to start the car, so make the ignition look like another dog's butt. When the dog sniffs it, the car starts.
[img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]
No, it doesn't have to look like another dog's butt. It has to smell like another dog's butt.

[Bill Haywood]

The dog powers a treadmill. When he speeds up, sensors on the treadmill speed up the car. Steering is hooked up to his body, not his head. If the car goes wherever he looks, it will be erratic and a menace to the road. Only if he starts turning his body does the car turn.

I'm still figuring out the blinkers.