In just under two months I will be heading out to Texas, hauling my horse, to compete in the American Eventing Championships (We qualified last year). We live in South Carolina so it is going to be a long trip and I plan to do it non-stop. One item that was recommended for me to use on the trip was a trailer camera so I could keep an eye on my equine star as we roll along.
I did some research and looked at options ranging from $50 to a few hundred. This is mainly a one off moment for me so I did not want to spend a lot, but the ideas and options were a little confusing. I figured I'd try the Soylentnews Mind cloud to see if y'all could MacGyver something that was cheap and easily installable.
- I have an android phone (GS4 or Nexus)
- An HP Elitebook laptop (Win 7)
- DC power in the truck.
- and too many years working in the IT programming world.
Looking at cameras like x10, they have IP capability so I was wondering if I can set up the phone as a "router" and have the camera connect up to it like a LAN.
If need be I'd spring for the traditional closed circuit cable or wireless, but I just get the feeling there is a way to get an IP camera to connect to my phone or laptop.
Any ideas?
(Score: 3, Informative) by tftp on Saturday August 02 2014, @09:03PM
Looking at cameras like x10, they have IP capability so I was wondering if I can set up the phone as a "router" and have the camera connect up to it like a LAN.
I have no idea what you are talking about here. Just buy a wireless camera [frys.com] and set it up in ad-hoc mode. Or buy a router as well, not that it makes any difference when you pull a trailer :-) You don't need any "cloud" - just use the MJPEG stream: http://ip_address/mjpeg.cgi [ipaddress]
(Score: 2) by Foobar Bazbot on Saturday August 02 2014, @10:40PM
Exactly. Note that ad-hoc will work fine, but consumes more power on clients than infrastructure; I'd spring for an AP or router, so as not to run down the battery on your phone (this may not matter if you keep the phone on the charger all the time, but IMO it's worth doing it anyway).
As to selection of IP camera, I'd be inclined to pick one with better than VGA resolution; this helpful review [merlins.org] suggests the Edimax 3115W [amazon.com], doubling the resolution to 1280x960 for only $10 more. In any case, be careful as "720p" cameras with VGA sensors and upscaling abound -- if VGA is enough resolution for your use, get a cheap VGA camera, but you don't want to pay extra for 720p and then not get it.
(Score: 1) by tftp on Saturday August 02 2014, @11:16PM
In my sad experience all these small cameras have HORRIBLE quality of the lens. Then you get eye-watering video. It might be OK to see a horse 1 meter away from the camera (to be sure that the horse is still standing.) But it's absolutely inadequate if you want to watch something more detailed.
I recently had one of Axis cameras - this one [axis.com]. The video is entirely unacceptable. I don't know if it is doing the upscaling trick that you are writing about; it wouldn't surprise me even a bit.
I know of only one camera that delivers. But it cost me $500+. When you pay 10% of that you get what you pay for. I need another surveillance camera, and I fear that I will have to spend that kind of money again - because nothing else is good enough for this job.
(Score: 2) by Popeidol on Tuesday August 05 2014, @05:20AM
And the router can be very cheap. You can get something like a TL-MR3020 [openwrt.org]. Advantages: you can flash OpenWRT, boots whenever it receives power, and runs off 5v usb. Set each device up on a static IP, plug it into a car USB port (or other 5v source) and it'll be running in about 15 seconds whenever you turn the car on. It costs about $30 online.
I have a slightly cheaper but very similar model [openwrt.org] and can confirm it has enough performance to stream video to a multiple devices...but if you want to change things up and use the router to push out video from an attached usb webcam or something, YMMV.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 02 2014, @09:16PM
If you already have a androidphone I'd take a look at the app MobileWebcam.
I figure you could activate wireless tethering, start the app and then point a browser to the phone.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 02 2014, @09:19PM
There are a ton of cheap wireless cameras. You can connect to it using your phone's web browser (thus saving wear and tear on the computer's hard disk). If need be, you could set up a router to work off of the DC power, but it shouldn't be necessary with the right camera.
(Score: 2) by cafebabe on Saturday August 02 2014, @09:33PM
You may need to power the camera without incurring significant voltage drop. From the cigarette lighter socket, connect a DC-to-DC converter to increase the voltage to 50V or more. Run this to the trailer. With another DC-to-DC converter, convert it back to 12V in the trailer and use that to power an IP camera connected to a WiFi hub. (The data between camera and hub can work over an Ethernet cable or WiFi.) Allow your laptop/phone to join the WiFi spot and you should be able to access the IP camera's web server and the view from the camera.
This setup doesn't require any software hacks, flashed WiFi hubs or jailbroken phones. It allows a stock smartphone to connect to a stock IP camera without configuring hubless modes at both ends. And it is a fairly cheap solution. For example, the DC-to-DC converters are about $5 each.
However, be careful about using this setup in different jurisdictions. At the very least, you have the mitigating circumstances of considering animal welfare.
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(Score: 2, Informative) by tftp on Saturday August 02 2014, @09:51PM
The easiest solution is to use a standard 12V to 120V AC inverter, and then plug standard power supplies of the camera and other equipment (if necessary) into that. The reason is that the +12V of the vehicle is very dirty; it can have huge voltage spikes. Car inverters have a sufficient margin, and in the worst case you can grab another inverter at any car supplies store on the way. Avoid custom solutions, as you won't be able to repair them on the road.
My in-car GPS is powered by one of those DC-DC converters that take +12V in and produce +12V out. That converter is ONLY doing the power conditioning. One could plug the GPS directly into the cigarette lighter socket... but I had equipment damaged when I was doing that. There is absolutely no guarantee on the +12V that comes in. It's not even 12V - it's usually 13.8V.
(Score: 2) by cafebabe on Saturday August 02 2014, @10:29PM
I like your idea of using an AC inverter. It will cost more than the bare minimum but everything will have a rugged box and sane power connectors. And everything is replaceable while traveling. That adds significant peace of mind.
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(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 02 2014, @09:58PM
disguised as a bag of oats or something.
(Score: 2) by Gaaark on Saturday August 02 2014, @09:59PM
^^^THIS is why i knew i would love Soylent from the (pre) beggining.... questions like this, and intelligent answers.
Man, keep it coming you people... you make me want to convert to cannibilism! :)
(I'm sure i have a nice Chianti here somewhere, lol).
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 2) by aristarchus on Saturday August 02 2014, @10:01PM
But have you considered that the said equine might want the ability to keep an eye on the human as well? Or possibly the road ahead? Maybe a trip progress graphic like those they use on airlines would make the trip more comfortable for the horse.
(Score: 4, Informative) by AudioGuy on Saturday August 02 2014, @11:18PM
I have a number of regular security cameras around the house, so this approach is what I use, slightly modified, for temporary needs such as what you describe.
Ordinary security cams cost $30-50, including some models which have night vision leds (might be useful inside a dark horse trailer?) and even mic lines.
One of those, plus a length of regular RG-59 of the type normally used for security system cameras - this comes with two additional wires attached that are used for power to the camera.
Over a short distance such as this, even ordinary cat-5 might be used for all lines (but test - cars are electrically noisy environments - I just know this will work in a house). Yeah, it won't be 'videophile quality' but you won't get that from a security cam anyway.
And here is the key: to monitor, I bought a portable dvd player - the type that comes with audio and video inputs. And these often have car power options as well. They are really handy for setting up cams, since you can plug then in right where the camera is to save having to run back and forth when positioning a camera.
Of course when not watching the horse you can listen to a cd or watch video (not while driving!).
Someone mentioned converting the power up and down but that should not be needed over this short a distance. I have cams with 100ft lines that do not need such things. What you may need is some filtering though, as I said, cars can be very electrically noisy.
This is the dvd player I use: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882136267 [newegg.com]
Just make sure you find one that has AV inputs as well as outputs (output only is more common).
As to wireless...hmmm...wireless between a metal car and a possibly completely-enclosed-in-metal horse trailer? Would definitely try some tests before buying anything wireless.
(Score: 1) by tftp on Sunday August 03 2014, @12:30AM
As to wireless...hmmm...wireless between a metal car and a possibly completely-enclosed-in-metal horse trailer? Would definitely try some tests before buying anything wireless.
There should be enough power to go through the large openings in the trailer and in the truck. The wavelength at 2.4 GHz is only 5 inches; the window would have to be 1.5" x 3" or smaller to block that. However if need be, drill a hole, install an external 802.11 antenna, and connect it with the router with a piece of cable. The router to camera link can be wired, as it's all inside the trailer. The intent here is to minimize the number of cables that you need to mess with each time you unhitch the trailer. The wireless option also allows access to the feed from both the laptop and the phone, none of which would require a wired connection.
(Score: 1) by shortscreen on Sunday August 03 2014, @06:04AM
Several years ago I had a problem with my front suspension and was having a devil of a time figuring out why (ended up rebuilding the steering rack). So I had bought a wireless camera. It was a little tiny thing which could run off a 9V battery and had a separate receiver which connected to my laptop. I mounted the camera on a framerail where it could see the control arm, tie rod, and whatnot. I had the video up in VirtualDub and recorded it to an AVI file while I drove around so I could review it later for clues.
(Score: 3, Informative) by egcagrac0 on Sunday August 03 2014, @11:39AM
Get a video baby monitor and be done. I, for one, would rather use my phone for something else.
(Score: 1) by turtledawn on Sunday August 03 2014, @05:40PM
Eventing is so challenging - congratulations on your qual and good luck at the finals!