Three IoT-connected prototypes bring concealed motion, pursuit, and capture into a compact apartment.
How can connected play fit the places a cat already uses at home?
I developed HUNT as three connected prototypes for small urban apartments: concealed movement at the window, a moving target along the wall, and something to catch near the floor. The project brings behavioral research, mechanism design, soft materials, and ESP32 control into one physical system.
Give each interaction a place in the room.
I compared selected floor toys, connected devices, and wall-mounted cat furniture, including Cheerble M1, Enabot ROLA, Catastrophic Creations, and BENTOPAL. This was an exploratory precedent review, not a representative market survey.
The design brief paired two needs: varied physical play for the cat, and a system the owner could accommodate in a small apartment. That led to three spatially distributed interactions with shared controls.
One master device schedules the experience; the three objects coordinate directly.
I separated owner control from device coordination. STIR connects to Blynk over Wi-Fi; ESP-NOW links the three ESP32 devices directly. Timing, trigger duration, and sequence order can be adjusted without reflashing the hardware, making the USB-powered prototypes easier to tune during development.
Three ways to engage with a physical target.
I used spot, stalk, chase, capture, and kill as a design model for the sequence. STIR conceals motion, CHASE exposes a moving target, and CATCH provides graspable prey. The renders show intended form; the printed assemblies and clips show the mechanisms in use.
SPOT + STALK
I paired a concealed servo arm with a soft spandex cover so movement appears through the surface. The freestanding form places that interaction on a sill or other elevated surface without adhesive installation.
STALK + CHASE
A servo latch holds the bell ball at the top of an S-curve. Releasing it lets gravity carry the target along a visible wall path. Command-Strip mounting places the track above the floor without drilling.
CHASE + CAPTURE + KILL
A wall module releases a soft bird on an elastic cord. The graspable target, vibration, and pulling motion were intended to give the cat something physical to hold at the end of the sequence.
Shared color, different forms, one room.
Pale enclosures connect the three objects visually; the soft surface, open track, and hanging prey make their different interactions legible. The apartment installation shows how the prototypes sit alongside existing furniture, with power cables still visible.
WHAT TO EVALUATE NEXTThe clips document short interactions with the working prototypes. Longer observation would be needed to evaluate sustained engagement, reset and maintenance effort, and unattended operation.