| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| yo_tyler |
Posted - Nov 10 2005 : 10:41:32 AM
I need to build a cheep underwater camera that can withstand being down to 66 feet (~40PSI, 3atm). I think i know how i will build a shell for it, but i need to test it to see if it will withstand the pressures. What is the best way to do this? The camera is just one of the $20 walmart vga cameras, so if it does get wet, or implode, its not the end of the world. Also, the shell will be small, only about 4x8x6 cm.
"If the women don't find you hansome, they should at least find you handy" -Red Green |
| 15 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Kale |
Posted - Nov 29 2005 : 12:33:19 PM
Watch out for heat issues with the flashlight. Incandescent bulbs will put out significant heat, and if it's in that sealed tube it MAY be a problem.
LEDs are seriously more reliable and effective. Buy them from the Chi Wing LED shop on Ebay. He's reliable, and they are VERY cheap. Takes about 1 to 2 weeks for shipping maximum. Usually about a week in my experience.
About 10 of his high-brightness white LEDs costs around $8 to $10, and that should probably be enough light for you. They're blinding! (not your daddy's LEDs)
The LEDs will also mean you'll never have to open the tube to replace a burnt-out lightbulb, and they produce almost no heat. Like Aaron says, you can just stick them right in the water too. If you want to be extra careful, sillicone caulking or other sealing goop can be globbed onto them once you've soldered the connections to them. Just glom them onto the sides of the pipe near the camera window.
Kale
quote:
I think im just going to use an incandesent flashlight buld on the inside . I don't want to spend any more mony on this, and the amount of leds i would need would cost quite a bit.
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| yo_tyler |
Posted - Nov 27 2005 : 2:03:16 PM
here are some pics:
http://flickr.com/photos/77269563@N00/67557179/
http://flickr.com/photos/77269563@N00/67557178/in/photostream/
You'll have to c-'n-p the link. if i use the url tags, it becomes a mailto, if i dont use them, only half the link is working.
"If the women don't find you hansome, they should at least find you handy" -Red Green
Edited by - yo_tyler on Nov 27 2005 2:05:12 PM
Edited by - yo_tyler on Nov 27 2005 2:10:16 PM |
| yo_tyler |
Posted - Nov 27 2005 : 1:49:27 PM
I have the end cap and the cleanout now. Yay!
Today im going to shape a piece of wood that will fit on the wall of the pipe, and witht he help of a 1/4" bolt, allow me to m,ount the camera inside with its tripod mount. Im still humming-and-hawing about the lighting. I think im just going to use an incandesent flashlight buld on the inside . I don't want to spend any more mony on this, and the amount of leds i would need would cost quite a bit.
"If the women don't find you hansome, they should at least find you handy" -Red Green |
| Aaron Cake |
Posted - Nov 21 2005 : 09:47:31 AM
You woudl just run the LEDs from a battery with a series resistor.
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| yo_tyler |
Posted - Nov 20 2005 : 2:23:21 PM
Well i found a place to get the caps. Ironically its a small local hardware shop. The end cap is $4~, and the clean out (both parts) is $8~. Even the large contractor supply in town was more than that.
How would i power the LEDs? And wouldn't it be easier to use an incandescent light, it would be cheaper, and provide much more light, at the expense of efficiency...but its only being use for less then one minit in total.
"If the women don't find you hansome, they should at least find you handy" -Red Green |
| Aaron Cake |
Posted - Nov 20 2005 : 09:43:00 AM
The LEDs can be directly in the water, they don't need to be sealed. The LEDs themselves are already sealed from the factory, and the connections are a low enough voltage that it doesn't matter unless the water is very conductive (ie. Dead Sea).
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| yo_tyler |
Posted - Nov 19 2005 : 1:54:32 PM
I was thinking of just using an inch of 3/4" pipe and glueing it onto the middle of the lexan. then take a walmart flashlight and mount it on the outside of this ring of pipe. the lense would get pushed up against the ring of pipe. this sould stop any glare. i dont want anything on the outside that isn't absolutly nessisary, becouse it only means more water proofing.
"If the women don't find you hansome, they should at least find you handy" -Red Green |
| Aaron Cake |
Posted - Nov 19 2005 : 10:26:36 AM
Sealing metal through the pipe is easy. In fact, it may be much easier then you assume. Simply drill and tap the appropriate sized hole, cover the bolt in sealant, then tighten it into the hole. It also works well if you drill the hole just slightly undersized, heat up the bolt, and then screw it into place. You can also put a nut and washer on each side, with a sealing washer underneath.
As for your lighting, what about a ring of white LEDs around the outside of the pipe? Use the outside so the LEDs won't light the Lexan.
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| Kale |
Posted - Nov 18 2005 : 11:54:58 AM
quote:
it turns out that the camera has a rediculusly sensitive light sensor, and wont take the picture if its not light enough, and it will be too dark under water for shure. Now i have to find a ways to maybe have a small led to light up the lense or something.
Are you sure the camera will be able to work at all in the light levels you are expecting underwater? Even if you override the light sensor lockout somehow, the camera probably won't work too well underwater if it's not sensitive enough. If you have control over the 'shutter' time for the camera, leaving it open longer will let you gather more light and increase the camera sensitivity.
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| yo_tyler |
Posted - Nov 18 2005 : 10:37:06 AM
I don't want to use any metal to go through the pipe than is absolutly nessisary, becouse it is exreemly hard to get a good seal.
I returned to test caps, so now i have to call around and find the real things. Sine i only have a foot of pipe to show for my efforts, i havn't posted any pictures. But....Bad news, it turnes out that the camera has a rediculusly sensitive light sensor, and wont take the picture if its not light enough, and it will be too dark under water for shure. Now i have to find a ways to maybe have a small led to light up the lense or something. Oh well, it will be worth it.
"If the women don't find you hansome, they should at least find you handy" -Red Green |
| Aaron Cake |
Posted - Nov 18 2005 : 09:26:45 AM
Wire insulation can be many things. You may just want to put a stud through the pipe, seal both ends, and then connect the wire to it as a pass-through.
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| cirvin |
Posted - Nov 15 2005 : 3:24:43 PM
I'm pretty sure most plastic insulation is PVC, but try gluing a small peice of the wire to test it. I'm pretty sure there are other glues out there that would be able to glue the wires sufficently.
http://daxter12.topcities.com <Updated:July |
| yo_tyler |
Posted - Nov 15 2005 : 11:49:06 AM
OK, I'm returning the temp caps, and I'm going to call all the plumbing stores to see what the real things will cost. The window will have a gasket between the lexan and abs, and the gasket gets put on the inside of the bolts. once bolted ill use some flexible plastic epoxy to seal all around the edge of the window. In order to control the shutter, i soldered two wires onto the switch, and will run them outside of the enclosure, onto a large button. What is the wire insulation made of? Would it be pvc? i need to figure out what kind of glue to use to seal the hole it will come out of.
"If the women don't find you hansome, they should at least find you handy" -Red Green |
| Aaron Cake |
Posted - Nov 15 2005 : 11:16:30 AM
If you are talking about the thin orange or blue plastic test caps, they won't work. They are not actually made of ABS, adn thus will not glue to the pipe. They are also very thin and too flexable to bolt on the Lexan window.
I don't know where you are shopping, but $20 for a cleanout is about $12 too much. Instead of buying at a hardware store, go to a real plumbing store that deals with contractors.
I'm not sure how you are going to use epoxy in place of a gasket. Epoxy dries hard, while a gasket must remain soft. Hard epoxy will crack if anything flexes and cause a leak. You need to use caulking/gasket, bolts, and maybe o-rings to seal the heads of the bolts. Look at how a diving bell is constructed.
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| yo_tyler |
Posted - Nov 14 2005 : 8:21:24 PM
Yup, thats why i didn't get it. $18.99 for the cap and the part the cap threds into. the regualar end caps were $8.99. So i bought the temp caps for 4.99 ea.
"If the women don't find you hansome, they should at least find you handy" -Red Green |
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