Subj : Dash Cameras To : Mike Powell From : Barry Martin Date : Sat Oct 31 2020 07:39:00 Hi Mike! -=> NIGEL REED wrote to MIKE POWELL <=- > Does anyone here have experience with using a dash mounted camera to > capture video? When I ready the inquiry yesterday I initially thought "Raspberry Pi" but then my way is a more complicated than sticking a recording device to the dash. NR> Things may have changed, but I found, when researching, dashcams NR> had very limited battery life (probably to save money and keep NR> them smaller) which is prohibitive for recording if the car is NR> off or you want to leave the car. The Raspberry Pi requires a 5v source and up to 3 A (3,000 mA) depending on the model; should be available via a USB adapter; the current portion is probably more difficult to obtain with any ol' adapter, plus a cheap adapter may supply under 5v. When the car is off usually no power to the 12v Accessory Plug; could get a UPS HAT though off-hand I don't know how long they will supply power, not how long to recharge. NR> I went with a high quality one that records both out the front NR> window and inside the car in case I get pulled over, it'll record NR> whatever is going on. I would have liked to get one that also NR> recorded out the back end for rear endings but it was hard to NR> find something that did all three. The RPi 3 has four USB ports, so I'm thinking plug in up to three cameras and the fourth port for a USB thumbdrive for the recordings. I have a 256 GB thumbdrive and it records three or four days on two cameras here (MotionEye). Transfer the videos via WiFi when parked in your garage or driveway. (That way you don't drop the thumbdrive in the snow!) NR> You'll also want to check ou the night vision on whatever you're NR> buying, since you want to make sure it'll be able to capture NR> license plates clearly in dark situations. I agreen with Nigel's nightvision suggestion, just don't know if would work with the glare of headlights. Or brakelights. Aside from that detail be sure to get a camera/s with low lux: 0.1. I'm using ELP-USB100W03M-BL36 -- about a 2" cube, plus has a little mounting bar. Not sure about the lens -- 3.6mm works nicely for monitoring the front yard from the second story window here. The camera is also HD (1080) resolution -- high resolutions have more detail but also require more recording space. Low resolutions require less space but less detail/grainy. A highter frame rate also will make for larger recodings. (I currently record at 2 fps.) NR> You'll also want to look at the ease of removing the SD card or NR> see if it has bluetooth/wifi for offloading the videos. I NR> wouldn't be without mine, it adds safety and peace of mind. Automating the process is great! There will be those times when you're running late, it's too cold, my hands are full.... I have a little script (batch file) which uses rsync to copy the files to the NAS. Another script deletes files older than two days on the thumbdrive and thirty days on the NAS. NR> Search youtube for reasons to down a dash cam. Better yet Google "Raspberry Pi dashcam"; first hit is for a "RoadApplePi". Read through various options even if 'naaah": I scanned through the one on Dride Zero and an interesting point: British law ('who cares, I'm U.S.' -- waaait!) allows the dash cam as long as it doens't block the driver's view, so behind the mirror. (Same would apply the cameras.) Semi-interesting little tid-bit on blocking view stuff. When I was working in New Hampshire in the early 70's the side window parking decal required by the company I worked for (headquartered in NH) was technically illegal by NH State Law as it blocked the view! ¯ BarryMartin3@ ® ¯ @MyMetronet.NET ® .... I had to sell my vacuum because it was collecting dust. --- MultiMail/Win32 v0.47 þ wcECHO 4.2 ÷ ILink: The Safe BBS þ Bettendorf, IA --- QScan/PCB v1.20a / 01-0462 * Origin: ILink: CFBBS | cfbbs.no-ip.com | 856-933-7096 (454:1/1) .