Drop Camera Builds

Build
1

Hi all…new guy here.
I came here to check out drop cameras and learned quite a bit but i see a lot of posts about it but not a lot follow up or completed builds. Curious as to why?

2

Hi @Rovon, welcome to the forum! :slight_smile:

I don’t know that there’s a single reason for that. Inevitably some projects don’t work, while others just run out of momentum, but some finished projects may be commercial (which sometimes means they can’t be shared in too much detail), and others may have just not had many responses, so the creator didn’t post many follow-ups.

If you’re interested in a particular project you can always post a comment on that topic and ask for any extra details you’re after - the worst response you can get is silence, so there’s not a heap to lose by asking, and you might end up with all the info you wanted :slight_smile:

Is there a particular type you’re interested in? From a search of ‘drop camera’ there are heaps of posts, covering various different approaches. The following seem relevant, but there are no doubt others of interest too:

3

Thanks…i did do that. I’m pretty sure Ive read every post there is. Most seem to stay in the static camera area instead of live view.

4

Ok, that wasn’t clear from your initial post. Most of the ones I linked to are completed builds, and had several follow-ups within the topic, so I’m not really sure what information you’re actually interested in.

Not sure what you mean by this, but it seems like information you wanted but didn’t find. Are you saying you’re interested in cameras with pan/tilt/zoom support, or are you interested in systems that support controlling the motion of the enclosure holding the camera (or perhaps something else entirely)? :slight_smile:

5

Static=GoPro, paralenz etc…
I did find a lot of info and was looking camera wise, but seems it doesn’t exist in the US. We are developing a drop camera system as well. We did the enclosure thing first prototype but aced the design. It worked great and just as designed but not near what we want.

6

Right, so you’re after something you can control/record from over a tether, like the following?

Note that the first three require a computer board (e.g. Raspberry Pi) with them for interfacing control and recording, but that would also be required anyway if you’re also controlling lights, which is generally the case with drop cams.

If you’re able to describe more of what you actually want/are looking for then we can likely help you determine the information you’re after, or at least where to look for it :slight_smile:

7

A post was split to a new topic: Drop Camera Release and Recovery

8

We have an older drop/tow camera build based on a GoPro Hero4 in a Hugyfot housing. The housing has an extra battery extending recording time up to 6 hours and the image goes topside via coaxial cable that’s plugged into a map plotter screen (CVBS/BNC). Lights are external and everything (recording, lights) are turned on manually before lowering the camera into the sea. This is not as flexible as with topside-controlled systems but has been cost-effective and has functioned well working from small boats in diverse weather conditions.

Now we need to build another similar setup. But as the newer GoPros have HDMI output and Hugyfot no longer makes housings with video out, we’re going to use a BR 6" non-locking enclosure, which will house the GoPro, a HDMI-AV converter and a USB powerbank. The analog image will be transferred topside using RG59 coax cable and similarly plugged to the map plotter or a separate screen with CVBS/BNC input. The GoPro will be operated with a remote and the powerbank (Voltaic V75) has an Always On mode so there will be no need to open the enclosure during the field day.

I’ve got most of the needed parts figured out but as there doesn’t seem to be a ready-made electronics tray or enclosure clamps for the 6" enclosure I’m wondering if there is anything we need to take into account when adapting the 4" version 3D files to print ones for the 6", any ideas?