Features of the Automatic Pet Door

Basic Access Control

Smart Physical Barrier Management: The adjustable flap door structure allows pets to freely pass through wall/door barriers while blocking out external wind, rain, dust, and unwanted animals (such as stray cats and small wild animals).

​​Size-Adaptive Design​​: Adjustable door opening width (typically 20–45 cm) accommodates size differences from Chihuahuas to Golden Retrievers; dual-layer sealed silicone curtains replace traditional single-layer plastic sheets, enhancing thermal insulation and airtightness.

​​Identity Recognition and Access Control​​

​​Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) Technology​​: Pets wear dedicated electronic tags (collars or subcutaneous chips), and the reader automatically detects and unlocks the door within a 10-30cm range, preventing neighbouring cats and dogs from ‘tagging along.’

Biometric Recognition Upgrade: An AI visual system captures facial features (such as a cat's nose pattern or a dog's ear shape) or gait analysis via a camera, achieving 99.2% recognition accuracy (as per SurePetcare data); some high-end models support the creation of multiple pet profiles, allowing each pet to have its own designated access time.

Environmental Isolation and Energy Optimisation

​​Dynamic Airtightness Enhancement​​: The magnetic door curtain forms a negative pressure seal when closed, combined with a bottom gravity curtain design to reduce air exchange. Tests show a 68% reduction in indoor heat loss compared to traditional door openings (ENERGY STAR certified data).

​​Smart Temperature Control Integration​​: The door automatically locks when outdoor temperatures drop below 5°C or rise above 35°C to prevent extreme weather from affecting indoor temperature control.

​​Safety Protection Mechanism​​

​​Anti-pinch Slow-Close System​​: A hydraulic damping device ensures the door curtain descends smoothly at a speed of less than 0.4 m/s, preventing injuries to trailing pets.

​​Intrusion Alarm Function​​: When an unauthorised entity forces entry, the system triggers real-time alerts via a buzzer and app notifications. Some models can integrate with home security cameras for instant photo capture.

Industry Status and Pain Points

Identification Reliability Challenges: Dark-haired pets experience a 15% drop in recognition rate in low-light environments (IEEE IoT Journal test data); multiple pets entering or exiting simultaneously can cause system misjudgments.

Energy Management Bottlenecks: AI cameras operating continuously consume an average of 800mAh of power per day, and solar panels in rainy regions have a recharge efficiency of less than 30%.

Installation Adaptability Limitations: Non-standard door thicknesses (e.g., solid wood doors over 5 cm thick) require custom installation brackets, with DIY users experiencing a failure rate as high as 42% (according to Consumer Reports statistics).

Extreme Climate Resistance: -20°C low temperatures cause silicone door curtains to harden and crack, while 50°C high temperatures accelerate circuit board ageing.

Future Evolution Directions

Biometric Technology Upgrades

​​Multi-modal fusion authentication: Combining subcutaneous microchips (ISO 11784/85 standard), gait pressure sensor pads, and voiceprint analysis for triple verification, reducing the false recognition rate to below 0.01%.

​​Edge computing localisation: AI models on the edge side equipped with NPU chips can complete real-time biometric comparisons without cloud transmission, reducing response latency to within 80 milliseconds.

​​Energy revolution and new materials

​​Self-Generating Power Technology Application​​: Piezoelectric ceramic modules convert the kinetic energy from door curtain movement into electricity (0.3Wh per cycle), combined with perovskite solar film to achieve energy self-sufficiency.

​​Smart Shape-Changing Materials​​: Shape memory alloy (SMA) door frames automatically expand to fill installation gaps; phase change material (PCM) coatings maintain elasticity within the -30°C to 60°C temperature range.

​​Spatial Interaction Intelligence​​

​​3D Dynamic Obstacle Avoidance System​​: Millimetre-wave radar detects a 1.5-metre fan-shaped area in front of the door, automatically locking the door when children crawl or delivery personnel pass by.

​​AR Virtual Training Guidance​​: LED projections on the door frame display reward-based light spots, combined with vibration alerts from a smart collar, to guide pets in establishing proper passage habits.

​​Odour Mark Recognition​​: A miniature gas chromatograph analyses pet pheromones to identify physiological changes such as oestrus or stress states.

Tecoo collaborates with multiple pet product manufacturers and offers PCBA EMS Manufacturing and  One-Stop PCB Assembly Services for products such as smart feeders, smart water dispensers, smart pet trackers, and smart pet automatic doors. The products manufactured include RFID chip recognition, battery-powered electronic identification doors, smart IoT doors with WiFi connectivity, AI vision, and multi-sensor fusion, as well as high-end ecological doors integrating health monitoring and automatic feeding functionality. If you would like to learn more about smart pet products or have any collaboration needs, please click the link below to contact Tecoo.