CCTV Target Monitoring

c3ppp0 and Mr. Trout, thanks for the info. That is very informative.

One thing I have found is that I use the 10X zoom on my camera otherwise, the image is too small. I set it so that two targets side by side fill the LCD monitor image. Depending on the light, you may loose a hole so more mag is better then less.

Not sure how the USB cams work but the webcams on our computers and similar would not give enough mag me thinks.

Also, and I am sure Rick can relate to this, wind vibration. My Canon digicam has an anti shake feature. Even when the winds are quite strong, the image doesn't bounce around or shake. This feature really does work.

Not sure how a non stabilized camera would work?????

I am very interested in the better RX antennae. This would make things very simple to upgrade but right now, the antennae is 'fixed' to the box. Is an antennae wired with 2 wires or it is a series of wires/connectors?

I can rig up plugs to an external antennae if a couple of wires but no electrical engineer so wouldn't want to try and figure out a bunch.

I would love to see plans on how to build a high gain 2.4Hz antennae. Thanks

JV, that looks very promising and I assume you could use it at the RX end???? What type of power source (if any) would this need?

Jerry
 
C3pppo..For both applications mentioned is the antenna the same ie a 2.4 Ghz antenna is a 2.4 Ghz antenna no matter what you are doing with it?

Jerry I do not think they are powered, do you know the connection types on your Rx/Tx antennas? It appears in the link I gave you the manufacturer will put whatever connector you want on it.
 
Is a high gain antenna required on both ends? Would a benefit be seen with it only on the RX end? I would be worried about range rules and mounting a metal antenna down range.
 
Jaunvaldez- a high gain antenna anywhere will improve the situation. If you can only put one at the receive end, so be it. All things being equal, it just means that you will not get as much range as you would with high gain antennas at both end..

Something also occurs to me. If you are using an analog system, such as the ones you and Jerry are talking about, what happens as the signal gets weaker is the picture will get snowy and poor (something that folks with cable tv don't know about, heh). However, with a digital system using routers and laptops, the signal does not degrade in the same way. It's either there or not, or sometimes skips frames of video, leading to jerky pictures if you have moving objects in the picture. Of course, for our purposes, that isn't a problem unless you want to watch the bullet hit the target, heh.

Jerry, I'll wander around them interwebtubes for a bit and see what I can dig up.
 
Ahh, missed a question. Jaunvaldez- the antenna doesn't care what kind of signal (digital or analog) is passing through it. The only considerations are antenna polarization, which means that both ends should be mounted with the same polarization ( basically mount them both so the parts that should be vertical are vertical ) and gain ( which means that they should point at each other ).

For this application, you don't want a powered antenna. That adds a complication we don't need and will probably cause more problems than it's worth.
 
In fact, with that 4 channel dongle and 4 cameras, you could monitor 4 targets, using the appropriate software on the laptop at the target end, and send the picture to the laptop at the shooters end. Just the thing for long range matches, eh.
 
Jerry, this first link has some pretty good pictures and dimensions for a 2.4 ghz helix antenna. Ignore all the math and technical chatter. This type of antenna is very easy to build, has good gain and can be very rugged. Build one for each end and you should get much better range.

http://helix.remco.tk/

The second link is for another style of antenna. Extremely simple to build but it will have less gain than the helix in the first link.

http://www.dxzone.com/cgi-bin/dir/jump2.cgi?ID=12596

The third link is to another helix antenna. Very similar to the first one, I include it just to give you another perspective of this type in case the first link was not a good enough explanation.

http://www.dxzone.com/cgi-bin/dir/jump2.cgi?ID=12598

There are other types, such as dish antennas, that are also quite simple to build, but they may be overkill for this purpose and also start to get a little ungainly to haul out on the range.
 
c3pppo pretty much has this topic covered, but i would add that the more antenna gain you have the narrower your beam width becomes ( like when you increase a scopes magnification ) and it can become tricky to aim over longer distances with out a solid mounting point. also when connecting an antenna be sure to impedance match the cable or you could do some damage to the transmitter.
 
c3pppo said:
Yep, down here in the Big Smoke, avoiding the Olympic crowd and trying to keep my powder dry.
Click to expand...

c3pppo, if you are heading up in the OK valley and want to do some LR shooting, just let me know. Be great to test some of this gear with someone who knows what this gear does.

iconfig, now you have done it... There is this black thingy that moves on the back of this rectangle that doesn't. A few ports and I know there has got to be a wire around here. Oh yeah, the cool red light - that's on the rectangle too next to the black thingy.

Yeah, that good at electronics

Help...:confused:

Jerry
 
Thanks Jerry, I might take you up on that offer in a few months. Got some family in Kelowna so it would be no problem for me to come up.

I'll have to round up some of my RF gear, now that I've shot my mouth off, and put together a system again. Got all the stuff, just haven't played with it for a few years.
 
Look forward to it.

Do you know if there any issues with STRENGTH of signal and the CRTC?

Now could be only in the US but there were warning about systems putting out too much signal interfering with local TV's thus requiring a license.

Maybe out stuff is just too weak????

Jerry
 
mysticplayer said:
Look forward to it.

Do you know if there any issues with STRENGTH of signal and the CRTC?

Now could be only in the US but there were warning about systems putting out too much signal interfering with local TV's thus requiring a license.

Maybe out stuff is just too weak????

Jerry
Click to expand...

if i remember correctly the max power is 4 watts EIRP (equivalent isotropically radiated power)

so with a 250 mw (0.25 watt ) transmitter you would be limited to about 12 dbi antenna gain (3.96 watts ), however ( ham guys and CRTC don't kill me here ) with a point to point system you unlikely to run into any problems running a 15-17 dbi antenna ( 7.9 - 12.5 watts )

i know in the US for fixed point to point they allow you more antenna gain if you decrease your transmitting power. if i remember correctly its as high as 30dbi with a 160mw transmitter ( 160 watts EIRP )

ill try to dig up the regulations for canada tonight
 
I wouldn't worry about it. The Feds are only concerned about long term interference issues with other services but the 2.4 ghz band is designated as a place where all kinds of transmitters can be used. In any case, a TV link on a range in the middle of nowhere is not going to be a problem for anybody.
 
Thanks guys, then the goal is to work on a better RX antennae so that the signal is better received, which should extend the useable range of my gear.

Hopefully, get some time this weekend to work through those links and see what I need to build a better antennae.

This spring is going to be fun...

Jerry
 
That's a good way to go, Jerry. If you are getting out to 750m or so now then getting some gain at the receiver end might be enough to give you the range you want. Looking forward to hearing more on how it works for you.
 
By the way, if you decide to build an antenna, you will need connectors. One on the antenna itself; I think they want an N type on there. Then you will need a SHORT cable to connect to the receiver. Shorter is better; I think a foot is more than enough.

There is a company called MRO Electronics in Vancouver. They can sell you connectors and also make up a cable with the appropriate connectors for the antenna and the receiver box. If you don't know what you need, send them pictures of your equipment and I'm sure they can figure it out.
 
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