London — 8th February 2018 — Digibell, launched on Kickstarter on the 6th of February 2018, is a digital cat bell that solves the problems faced by cat owners who use traditional bells – that they simply don’t work.
Joe Hemmings, one of the founders of Digibell spotted the problem with traditional bells in the spring of 2016. “Our cat loves to go outside and hunt. We had tried everything we could think of to stop him catching so many birds. He had multiple bells hanging off his collar at one point, but nothing worked.” Joe says. “I thought, this is a problem that must have a solution, but I could find nothing. Six months later the Digibell was born”.
Cats can learn to move so they don’t create any sound at all, making traditional bells useless. Digibell senses the cat’s movements while hunting and its Dual Alert System warns the potential prey before it gets caught.
Once Joe had developed a working prototype he looked into the possibility of making it commercially available. “I was astounded that there hadn’t ever been any improvements to traditional cat bells. They have never worked for me. With Digibell I worked out I was saving an average of six birds a week in the spring. There are about 220 million domestic cats worldwide, that’s a lot of birds.” said Joe.
According to the journal Nature [1] it is estimated that domestic cats kill up to 4 Billion birds and 22.3 Billion mammals annually in the United States alone. Worldwide these numbers are thought to be significantly higher.
The UK’s RSPB estimates that 55 million birds a year are caught by domestic cats [2] , and the journal Biological Conservation estimated similar numbers for Australia [3] .
Digibell is a small, compact solution, measuring 38x19x15mm (1.5×0.75×0.6 inches) which is not much bigger than the end of a finger. It weighs in at 5 grams including the battery and has an expected battery life of up to a year.
Featuring an innovative clip design, Digibell can be attached to any collar. The Quick-Clip comes in a choice of four colours; Charcoal Black, Aquatic Blue, Serenity Rose and Spring Green. On the campaign reaching its first stretch goal, colour options will also be available for the main body of Digibell. The second stretch goal will extend colour choices to the included safety release colour, bringing the total colour combinations available to 64.
A single push button is used to operate Digibell. It has a full menu system offering adjustable sensitivity, a selection of alert sound libraries and configuration of the Visual Alert System. Digibell can be put into sleep mode for up to 24 hours by simply holding the button down. Pressing it again any time will wake Digibell back up.
Digibell will be available for pre-order on Kickstarter. The crowdfunding campaign starts on Tuesday the 6th February and runs through to Thursday 8th March. Limited special Kickstarter pricing begins at £11 ($14.30), before moving to the standard backer price of £14 ($18.30). Backers will receive a boxed Digbell, complete with battery and adjustable safety-release collar, and their choice of Quick-Clip colour. Digibell is anticipated to ship in July 2018, and will retail at £22.99 ($29.99)
Digibell is a unique product in the pet wearables marketplace, reducing cleanup for cat owners and reducing the impact on wildlife made by domestic cats.
The Company
Digibell is the first product from Digimal LTD, a UK Based company founded in 2017 by Joe Hemmings and Robin Watson. Both are accomplished designers and experienced engineers and have worked on a diverse range projects across a number of industries, from the technical world of movies and games to mechanical and electrical engineering, prototype design and fabrication.
Digimal distinguishes itself with a focus and commitment to high quality product design. As a flagship product, Digibell encapsulates these values with its sleek aesthetics, innovate design and robust functionality.
Promotional Videos
Digibell Promo : youtu.be
Digibell Features : youtu.be
Contact Information
Press: www.digibell.co.uk
Kickstarter Campaign: www.digibell.co.uk/kickstarter
Twitter: @thedigibell
Facebook www.facebook.com/thedigibell
Instagram: www.instagram.com/thedigibell
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/digibell
References:
[1] Loss, Scott R, 2013,’The impact of free-ranging domestic cats on wildlife of the United States’, Nature Publishing Group, dx.doi.org
[2] The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, 2015, ‘Are cats causing bird declines?’, RSPB www.rspb.org.uk
[3] Biological Conservation, October 2017, ‘How many birds are killed by cats in Australia?’, Volume 214, Pages 76-87, doi.org
