FPV Experiment
03-30-2014, 08:19 PM
#1
Thread Starter
FPV Experiment
Having seen a couple of FPV setups at Danville (PershingDriver and Mark's) and how well they worked it got me a little curious, so I have been looking on eBay for crashed Parrot Drones to salvage for their camera, and more importantly the board that streams close-to-realtime video to an Apple or Android device. It would cut down the need for dedicated FPV transmitters, receivers and monitors as well as have an entire app dedicated to running the video feed.
But today I was at the local Westfield and saw that Brookstone was closing out their Rover 2.0 for $60 each and I bought one after a bit of research:
http://www.brookstone.com/rover-20-a...L1_Electronics
- Dedicated app
- Real time 25fps video feed
- 320 x 240 resolution (bummer)
- Infra red mode
- Video camera adjusts for elevation
- Controllable lights
- Runs a 9 volt input
I plan to pull the mainboard and fit it into the hull of my tank - I had a look inside and the mainboard looks like a reasonable size that might fit into the upper turret of the Panther with some wire tucking (hopefully). The IR emitter may become the basis of the Panther G IR searchlight setup. Still undecided if I will drill a hole through the mantlet, or do a simpler clip-on mount for the camera lens itself though.
Pictures tomorrow, when there is more light.
But today I was at the local Westfield and saw that Brookstone was closing out their Rover 2.0 for $60 each and I bought one after a bit of research:
http://www.brookstone.com/rover-20-a...L1_Electronics
- Dedicated app
- Real time 25fps video feed
- 320 x 240 resolution (bummer)
- Infra red mode
- Video camera adjusts for elevation
- Controllable lights
- Runs a 9 volt input
I plan to pull the mainboard and fit it into the hull of my tank - I had a look inside and the mainboard looks like a reasonable size that might fit into the upper turret of the Panther with some wire tucking (hopefully). The IR emitter may become the basis of the Panther G IR searchlight setup. Still undecided if I will drill a hole through the mantlet, or do a simpler clip-on mount for the camera lens itself though.
Pictures tomorrow, when there is more light.
05-07-2014, 01:08 PM
#2
Thread Starter
Here's how it turned out. The boards I needed off the Brookstone Rover 2.0 were almost too big for the application. Although the Rover comes specified with a 9v power source, it worked just fine being powered by a 2S (7.4 volt) LiPo battery pack. The current setup runs one battery for the FPV and one battery for the tank itself.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlJKwbdW0F8 The lag isn't too bad, although frame refresh rate drops pretty quickly with a weaker signal. It captures IR beams on the Tamiya IR emitter wavelength, so you can see your own gun fire.
The wires for the camera are short and this is the only location I could place it. It carries the camera cables, night vision cables as well as a microphone.
Installation on the tank.
Screenshot of the iPad app interface. If it works well, I will obtain an Apple iTouch to strap onto my transmitter.
Low light conditions. This is the inside of my closet with the door closed.
Night vision mode activated - I suppose this is similar to the WW2 Vampir setup.
Actual scene.
Firing of the TBU's IR beam produces a different colored beam. Look athe the shadow below the gun barrel, though! Its no wonder thecommander always recommends gun depression during combat, you could hide a tank in that shadow at long range!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlJKwbdW0F8 The lag isn't too bad, although frame refresh rate drops pretty quickly with a weaker signal. It captures IR beams on the Tamiya IR emitter wavelength, so you can see your own gun fire.
The wires for the camera are short and this is the only location I could place it. It carries the camera cables, night vision cables as well as a microphone.
Installation on the tank.
Screenshot of the iPad app interface. If it works well, I will obtain an Apple iTouch to strap onto my transmitter.
Low light conditions. This is the inside of my closet with the door closed.
Night vision mode activated - I suppose this is similar to the WW2 Vampir setup.
Actual scene.
Firing of the TBU's IR beam produces a different colored beam. Look athe the shadow below the gun barrel, though! Its no wonder thecommander always recommends gun depression during combat, you could hide a tank in that shadow at long range!
05-07-2014, 02:23 PM
#4
Yes it is always best to keep you gun aimed lower than what you think you need. You still have a much better chance of getting a hit than if the gun elevation is too high.
I think this is a great idea too. I have been contemplating an on board camera system for some time and have been hoping some one would market a complete packaged unitized system that would work for our tanks.
I think this is a great idea too. I have been contemplating an on board camera system for some time and have been hoping some one would market a complete packaged unitized system that would work for our tanks.
05-08-2014, 07:43 AM
#6
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I have been wanting to get into this for other areas of RC I am into, both ground and air based. Pulling the guts from that Rover was a great idea. Not much of an outlay of cash to try it out. I may have to try something similar.
There are starting to be some pre-packaged FPV kits on the market, from the likes of Gaui, that bring full-blown FPV to the consumer without having to be an electronics engineer.
Do be aware though, that if the FPV equipment you are using is over 10mW, you will need an amateur radio license to be doing it legally. That is something on my To Do list, so I can dive head first into it when I get the urge.
Steve
There are starting to be some pre-packaged FPV kits on the market, from the likes of Gaui, that bring full-blown FPV to the consumer without having to be an electronics engineer.
Do be aware though, that if the FPV equipment you are using is over 10mW, you will need an amateur radio license to be doing it legally. That is something on my To Do list, so I can dive head first into it when I get the urge.
Steve
05-08-2014, 09:03 AM
#7
Thread Starter
Thanks guys.
Some things I would be testing out in Danville would be the reception range in a 2.4gHz-noisy environment. One of the guys back home couldn't get a pairing on his setup (not a Brookstone) when six different 2.4 radios were active at the same time.
Another thing I'll be testing is whether the night vision IR emitter beam interferes with battle unit IR reception. You can see it is a very wide beam covering the entire frontal hemisphere - I don't know enough about IR beams to know if that becomes a form of "IR jammer" like the AN/ALQ-144 "disco ball" you find on the spine of a Blackhawk helicopter. It is unlikely the night vision beam kills enemy tanks, though, because there's no coding in the IR beam. Nevertheless, it would not be fair at all to hamper the sensitivity of my IR apple.
Some things I would be testing out in Danville would be the reception range in a 2.4gHz-noisy environment. One of the guys back home couldn't get a pairing on his setup (not a Brookstone) when six different 2.4 radios were active at the same time.
Another thing I'll be testing is whether the night vision IR emitter beam interferes with battle unit IR reception. You can see it is a very wide beam covering the entire frontal hemisphere - I don't know enough about IR beams to know if that becomes a form of "IR jammer" like the AN/ALQ-144 "disco ball" you find on the spine of a Blackhawk helicopter. It is unlikely the night vision beam kills enemy tanks, though, because there's no coding in the IR beam. Nevertheless, it would not be fair at all to hamper the sensitivity of my IR apple.
