Hug Mr. Bear to Turn on Netflix’s Fuller House

“Mr. Bear is not a toy. He’s a member of the family.”

As people we grew up watching Full House, we could never forget Mr. Bear — Stephanie’s beloved, detective coat and hat-wearing teddy bear that she received when her mother came home from the hospital with baby Michelle.

In honor of season two of Fuller House, Netflix is combining Stephanie’s stuffed animal with the IoT to enhance every family’s viewing experience. With a connected Mr. Bear in one living room and a second, paired bear in another house, their synced “cuddle sensors” blink three times and activate a Netflix-enabled device, turning on the show, so everyone can watch (and cuddle) together — no matter how far away.

Netflix’s bears feature a custom sensor made with conductive foam pads that registers hugs, cuddles, snuggles, and squeezes. There’s also a specially-sewn enclosure equipped with a Particle Photon, a battery, and IR LEDs. The bears’ illuminating hearts are 3D-printed and embedded with LEDs.

As you get ready for Friday’s season premiere, you can find instructions, code, and all of its hardware info on GitHub.