Mentor Name: DH
*Writing in plain text are my E-mails and writing in italics are the mentor’s e-mails
*All mentor contacts are E-mails
Date: October 16th
Question:
Dear DH,
Thank you so much for offering to be my mentor, I really appreciate it. My blog is a bit of a mess at the moment, but once it's all up to date I would like to send you a link so that you can see what my project is about.
Thanks again!
Sincerely,
MM
Response:
Not a problem. Let me know what information you need from me for your Mentor forms or whatever.
I tend to check my email in the evenings, so if you send me email in the morning I will generally see it by 9-10PM. If you need me before that ... send a text message to ***-***-****
Date: October 21st
Question:
Dear DH,
Here is a link to my blog so that you can see what I have done so far: se2glassbottomboatmm.blogspot.com At this time I am considering attaching the camera to a remote controlled ball and socket joint so that the camera can move in all directions. I have been having trouble finding anything like that, so I was wondering if you either knew of such a product or knew of a good alternative. I really don't know anything about mechanics or electronic things, so I could really use some advice.
Thanks,
MM
Response:
MM,
Will this be a video or still picture camera? If you put it on a gimbal mount (ball), how will you know which way it is pointing? Will you have to send the remote image back to the shore so you can tell what you are looking at?
You can buy a PTZ camera from multiple sources, not cheap, some deals on Ebay, but prices tend to be at a premium. PTZ stands for (Pan, Tilt, Zoom). Google "PTZ camera," to check this out. Many are remote controlled via a PC. To be remote controlled from shore ... a bit more complicated, so back to the question above.
Your requirements say the camera must move through 360 degrees. In what plane (or planes)? Very few retail PTZ cameras can do that (most can only do about 250 degrees rotation and maybe 50 degrees tilt.
If you think you need to build your own camera attachment, read up on "stepper" motors and stepper motor controls. Not easy stuff. You could "cobble" something together using simple geared down motors and some R/C controls. See
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZerlMpwaguY
What is your required field of view? What angles? Distance? Focus? Autofocus may not work through plastic or glass (water will appear to be a flat surface to the camera).
Hope you like both electronics and mechanics.
DH
Date: October 22nd
Question:
DH,
The camera will be a video camera because we planned to have a live feed so that we would know what we were filming. Also, the camera will be mounted above the flat glass bottom and it needs to be able to move around so that it can film the entire bottom of the vessel. We do not want the camera to be limited to filming only what is directly below it. A PTZ camera seems to be what I need, but the controls and price could be a problem.
Thanks again,
MM
Response:
MM,
You need to broadcast video to the shore ? In real time ?
When you say "bottom of the boat," do you really mean "the bottom of the boat?" If the camera sits above the glass bottom, how can it see the bottom of the boat?
Or, do you mean it sits down in a glass bubble under the boat above the glass bottom (ie: the glass bottom also has glass sides.
So then say the camera is sitting below the boat in the glass bottom (ball, whatever), what angle up and down does it need to see? Does it really need to see the paint on the bottom of the boat? ;-)
DH
Date: October 22nd
Question:
DH,
I found this PTZ camera on ebay. It's really cheap now but there's a little over a week left to bidding so I doubt it will stay that way. I don't really understand all the tech lingo, but it says that the camera does not need to be hooked up to a computer. We need a tether for the vessel anyway, so any wires we may end up with can be attached to the tether.
Thanks,
MM
Response:
MM,
Oh ... I thought you guys were doing radio remote control. I thought I read that in one of the blogs. Tethering makes life easier, but messy (dragging wires around in the water).
There was nothing attached to the message that I could look at. Did you send me the link to the camera ?
DH
Date: October 24th
Question:
DH,
I think originally we were going to, but the vessel needed a tether so if I can't find a wireless camera it would not be a big deal. Sorry I didn't realize I didn't include the link and now I can't find that camera, so I guess I'll just have to keep looking.
-MM
Response:
Your tether may make steering a small boat impossible. It would sink in the water and act like an anchor ... or a brake. What's the tether for?
Date: October 25th
Question:
DH,
We need a tether so we don't accidentally go out of range and then have to go retrieve the vessel because the point was to avoid disrupting the area.
I found this camera, which is good for how small the boat will be, but I think it has a wire
-MM
Response:
Nice technology. Very small and light. Price seems low. Does it really include all the receiver pieces as well?
From what I read, no, you will not need a wire (tether) to receive the video. It will broadcast some 300-400 feet to your receiver setup. Over water ? Might need to test it to be sure.
Not sure how it will focus ... that didn't seem obvious in the specs. Must be fixed focus.
You will need to design your movable camera mount as it has no positioning controls.
Tether ... a safety tether ... sure, like pulling a floating single fishing line behind it or something so you can retrieve it, but for electronic controls ??... can't see how the line won't cause you grief trying to drag it in the water. Pick your favorite wire ... get 100 feet of it, multiply by 5 or 6 conductors to control this or that ... now drag it through the water ... :-\
Date: October 26th
Question:
DH,
If the camera is radio controlled and the vessel is radio controlled then maybe all we'll need is a fishing line to keep it in range?
-MM
Response:
My thinking exactly. If you need a fail-safe, keep it simple. Haul it back with a fishing rod.
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