|
|
04-23-2014, 12:38 AM | #1 |
Lieutenant Colonel
427
Rep 1,947
Posts |
Designing A Next Generation Track Camera Setup
I wanted to share something I've been working on the the past month. This is only a prototype, but it's good enough to share. Many people have seen remote controlled airplane and helicopter rigs. But have you ever seen something like that in a car at a track event?
Most of these set up are gimbal controlled camera's. A gimbal is a gyro sensing, auto leveling camera mount. As you go around corners, over bumps, the gimbal will auto level and always keep the horizon level. I wondered if RC planes and helicopters can deploy a gimbal, then why not use one in an HPDE or Roll Race events? Why not take it one step further and make the whole thing remote controlled while sitting on the sidelines watching streaming video and controlling the cameras as they race? Why not? The goal was to create a fully remote controlled race car camera system that could stream video to us in the stands or sidelines. From there we could control the camera's to pan the camera as cars were passing each other. If it works, it should make some great racing video. So I thought I'd give it a try to see if I could make it work. There's lots materials to buy and lots of prep work. Gimbals: There are plenty of gimbals that are purpose built for the GoPro camera's. They are easy to find on the internet. 1. The Tarot T2D is probably the most popular. I used this for a two-axis gimbal pointing straight out the front of the car. 2. A three axis gimbal "Arris CM-3000" available in China. Also specially made for the GoPro Hero 3. This is the unit I used to control and pan the camera. Cameras: Two GoPro Hero 3+ Black Edition. The Black Edition has better resolution and more features. It's not easy to make these camera's turn on/off, start/stop recording via remote control. You must take them apart and modify them to do this. I made a "HowTo" video that will be soon posted on YouTube. Contact me for details if interested. Remote control: The FrSky Taranis X9D seems most popular, so this is what I bought. Lost of electronics: I also wanted to power the GoPro's while using them so I wouldn't depend on the GoPro batteries. To do this, you need 5V/1A voltage regulators. PWM controlled relay switches are required to operate the modified GoPro's. Everything else is off the shelf Turnigy components. There was at least 60-80 hours of custom wiring because I was constantly finding some limitations to wire thickness, flexibility (rigidity) that affect camera rotation. I redesigned the unit two times before this final creation. Video transmitter/receiver: Using 1.2 GHz transmitter/receiver. I'm still experimenting with this area, so it's not yet settled. I might switch to a digital system. Cost: ~ $1500 for everything (assuming my time is free) ~ $3500 for everything (if you don't think my time is free) The Limitations: I worked on this for weeks before the Shift-S3ctor event. I worked on it literally until I went to bed the night before. I had no time to test it or discover the limitations. Even if I found limitations, time was out and I couldn't fix it. As I found out, there are some limitations. 1. The range of the RC controller wasn't good enough. Even though the RC controller is supposed to be good for a mile or more, that's not what I got at the event. I'd say it was good for 500 yards, and nothing more. To fix this, I'll switch the controller to a UHF setup called DragonLink. The DragonLink plugs right into the RC controller and is seamless integration. This unit is good for 25-40 miles. DragonLink should arrive next week. Cost: $270. 2. The video transmitter couldn't transmit far enough. Even though I had a 1W transmitter and 10db gain antenna, it still wasn't strong enough to get past 300-400 yards. Because of this limitation, we had to come up with a creative solution. To solve this problem, I placed my son with the RC controller and streaming video receiver in the car racing Drew (DLSJ5). Placing my son in the car would guarantee real-time control of the cameras without any drop outs while operating. I investigated this video limitation and discovered that professional systems are cost prohibitive (starting at $6k, and up to $100k). But there may be a middle ground. An entry level professional digital video transmitter/receiver cost about $1500. This system is designed specifically for race cars. But it's only guaranteed to transmit a little over 1/2 mile (1000 yards). This spawned a hybrid idea of using the digital system and strategically place the digital receiver 800-1000 years down the track. The digital receiver would feed my 1.2 GHz analog transmitter. I could then use a high gain directional antenna pointed directly at the 1.2 GHz analog transmitter. This hybrid approach should guarantee 1-2 miles of range out of this design. But before I consider more expenses like the digital video system, I need to exhaust all other possibilities and debug the system I have. 3. Some glitches during power up/down cause the relays to trigger, which causes the camera's to turn on and record without my permission! This is more annoyance than real problem. But I have some ideas to fix it. I actually think the DragonLink UHF RC adapter might fix it because I suspect the bug is in the Taranis receiver. 4. The Tarot T2D gimbal didn't work as well as I had hoped. It may be great for quad copters and airplanes, but in a car I found that it couldn't recover fast enough to g-force changes going around corners. The Arris CM-3000 3-axis gimbal seemed to work much better than the Tarot T2D. Arris also makes a 2-axis version: CM-2000. I already ordered one, and it arrives tomorrow. The Results: The Race: Observations: The results far exceeded expectations even with the design limitations we discovered. The video speaks for itself. The video is perfectly smooth, the gimbals are doing their job of auto-leveling, and it's real fun to watch the camera panning perfectly smooth as the cars pass one another. This is definitely a technology worth perfecting. Hopefully it can be low cost enough that hard core track rats can afford it for themselves. |
04-23-2014, 09:25 AM | #3 |
Major
74
Rep 1,123
Posts |
You are a genius.
__________________
2008 E92 BMW M3 MR/BB 6MT
|Gintani Supercharged|Gintani X-Pipe|Stack Gauges|Volk TE37SL|BC Racing Coilovers|Nitto NT05R |BMW Performance Spoiler|BMW Performance Steering Wheel|BMW Performance Side Gills + Grilles|Mode Carbon V1 Endurance|IND Tri- Stitched Shift + Brake Boot - 566WHP, 371WTQ | |
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 09:54 AM | #5 |
Lieutenant General
7484
Rep 12,305
Posts |
Mighty impressive!
Oh and that wail coming from the S65... after 7 years, still never gets old
__________________
Current:
16 F82 M4 GTS, Black Sapphire/Black, DCT 08 E92 M3, Sparkling Graphite/Bamboo Beige, 6MT 07 E85 Z4M Roadster, Alpine White/Red, 6MT 99 E36 M3, Techno Violet/Dove Grey, 6MT |
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 10:34 AM | #8 |
Brigadier General
311
Rep 3,675
Posts |
well if no one decided to take the next step we wouldnt have half the tech we have now....
__________________
|
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 10:37 AM | #9 |
Banned
8
Rep 180
Posts |
So sick! Keep it up man. You never know what you have in your hands unless you go all the way...and by all the way I mean never stop because success doesn't have a destination, it is a journey.
I would buy this without a doubt. |
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 10:46 AM | #11 |
Merlin
474
Rep 730
Posts
Drives: 2012 BMW M3 6MT w/ZCP
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: United States
|
Well done !
Very nice set-up ! I think you may have a business op there..the remote control ability is fantastic..
I know you kind of listed items used, but any chance you can create a BOM for all that is needed ? ps - what is the screaming eagle avatar all about ? Are you avid SE drinker ? And by chance are you in Marin County ? Cheers, Merlin
__________________
2012 E92 M3 ZCP | 2008 E90 335xi | 2008 E90 335i | |
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 11:00 AM | #13 |
BimmerPost Supporting Vendor
8108
Rep 18,797
Posts
Drives: BMW
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Anaheim, CA
|
Got to see this in action over the weekend.
How did range end up working out?
__________________
Tom G. | european auto source (eas)
email: tom@europeanautosource.com · web: https://europeanautosource.com· tel 866.669.0705 · ca: 714.369.8524 x22 GET DAILY UPDATES ON OUR BLOG · FACEBOOK · YOUTUBE · FLICKR · INSTAGRAM |
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 11:11 AM | #14 |
Mr. Nice Says Hello
635
Rep 16,662
Posts
Drives: BMW M3 | X5 xdrive 35i MSport
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: USA
|
wow, very impressive!
|
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 11:40 AM | #15 | |
Lieutenant Colonel
427
Rep 1,947
Posts |
While it's true that my kids are all grown up and one would think I have more spare time...it's really the opposite because I've filled every hour of every day with something (work, hobbies, etc.). Oh, and the wife was never letting me hear the end of it. Not only was I consumed working on the project, but my entire kitchen and dining room was laid out with electronics gear, soldering iron, wiring, etc. By the time the event came around, I was in pretty deep in the dog house. I'm sure nobody else can relate.
Quote:
Hard wiring the camera's was another goal. Since race drivers often times have gloves and helmet's on (or just plain don't know how to use technology), I didn't want to burden the driver with operating the camera's. Drivers are so consumed with driving a race, that they might forget to switch on and record. So that's why I took the GoPro's apart and figured out how to hard wire the switches -- which could then be remote controlled. Last edited by regular guy; 04-23-2014 at 11:55 AM.. |
|
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 11:48 AM | #16 | ||
Lieutenant Colonel
427
Rep 1,947
Posts |
Quote:
Quote:
|
||
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 11:50 AM | #17 |
Lieutenant Colonel
427
Rep 1,947
Posts |
Range was very disappointing. All the gear works great for miles when up in the air. But on the ground, it was only 300-500 yards. By that standard, it was very disappointing. But I have a recovery plan to replace the RC xmit/rcvr with UHF models. That will definitely fix the RC control range issue (beyond any doubt). I'm still experimenting with streaming video however. That's going to be a much more difficult problem to solve. I hope to get time this weekend to test a few things on that front. I will keep everybody updated.
|
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 04:17 PM | #19 |
Major General
3427
Rep 6,769
Posts
Drives: 2016 BMW i8
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Monarch Beach
iTrader: (1)
Garage List 2012 BMW e92 M3 [0.00]
2021 BMW X5M [10.00] 2015 Porsche 991 Tu ... [10.00] 2015 Porsche 991 GT3 [10.00] |
That is one badass setup and the results truly speak for themselves. I'm sure you will get the limitations addressed and this thing will be a game changer. Glad I could help provide a good race to show what this system can do!
__________________
Current BMWs: 2022 X5 40i, 2016 X5 50i
2015 Porsche 991 Turbo S 1979 Porsche 911 Turbo a couple others IG: longboarder949; YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCT1...eoFBszPIK0gf9w |
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 09:00 PM | #20 |
Brigadier General
409
Rep 3,479
Posts
Drives: 19 M2C 6MT
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Los Angeles, CA
|
Cooool!
|
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 09:35 PM | #21 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Lieutenant Colonel
427
Rep 1,947
Posts |
Quote:
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Appreciate
0
|
04-23-2014, 09:38 PM | #22 | |
Lieutenant Colonel
427
Rep 1,947
Posts |
Quote:
The limitations are getting addressed. Unfortunately, that means it will be driving up the cost even higher. Hopefully I can still pull it off without a digital video system. |
|
Appreciate
0
|
Post Reply |
Bookmarks |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
|
|