Bullet Camera (non IR)--9V or 12?

[todd2 0]

My experience is that non IR cameras seem to work as well as 9V or 12V. My question

is there any difference in camera life between the two? Does running it at 9V make it

last longer? What little I've seen indicates it'll just suck more current as 9V and get just as hot.

[rory 0]

if the camera says it needs 12v, then it needs 12v.

[suky 0]

My experience is that non IR cameras seem to work as well as 9V or 12V. My question

is there any difference in camera life between the two? Does running it at 9V make it

last longer? What little I've seen indicates it'll just suck more current as 9V and get just as hot.

 

I think it largely depends on its quality, no much relation with its power supply. Just two models with different specifications.

[Soundy 1]

My experience is that non IR cameras seem to work as well as 9V or 12V. My question

is there any difference in camera life between the two? Does running it at 9V make it

last longer? What little I've seen indicates it'll just suck more current as 9V and get just as hot.

 

I think it largely depends on its quality, no much relation with its power supply. Just two models with different specifications.

 

Bingo. Some cameras will handle a range of input voltages, sometimes up to +/-20% of rated supply... some, you'd better use a regulated supply to avoid blowing it up. All depends on the particular design and quality.

[todd2 0]

Hmm. Well, I've never seen a board/bullet camera not spec'd to 12V, and all of those

will run just fine at 9V. (The only issue I've ever seen @ 9V is IR cameras, which have

greatly reduced IR output.) You won't blow it up at a lower voltage, though it's possible

it may not work.

 

Anyone have any feedback on camera life?

[rory 0]

Yeah it wont fry, right away anyway. I wouldnt expect a very long life out of it though. but then again its just a 12v bullet anyway. Either way the picture normally would be bad or non existent. Why would you only power it with 9volts though? Or you just bored tonight

 

There are 24VAC bullet cameras also.

[scorpion 0]

Are you using a 9 volt battery clip?

[todd2 0]

Good point, scorpian, most board/bullet cameras are designed so that they

can run off a 9V battery, which is part of why it should work OK.

 

As to why I asked the question, that was part of my question! I'm trying

to find out whether the cameras have extended life running @ 9V. Some

circuits, for example PC CPUs, will age faster at higher voltage. (Typically

used to make them stable when overclocked.) I wouldn't expect a *reduced*

life at a lower voltage; that wouldn't make sense from a digital circuit engineering point of view. (A motor might fry at a lower voltage if it never

started turning, but digital electronics are a different ball game.)

 

As to the general knock against bullet cameras, I'm not sure what I'm

supposed to use. I don't need SLR quality for vehicle monitoring.

[scorpion 0]

Vehicle power would dictate the design.

 

Automotive is 12volt, and therefore the perfect power source for 12 volt cameras.

 

Use a bridge rectifier to isolate your camera circuits from your automotive supply. For example when you shut off the vehicle the collapsing magnetic field may create a reverse voltage.

 

This would depend on where you are "tapped" in to the automotive electrical system. If you are behind the automotive voltage regulator then you should not have this problem.

 

Adding a large size farad capacitor would be a good idea.

[Soundy 1]

Good point, scorpian, most board/bullet cameras are designed so that they

can run off a 9V battery, which is part of why it should work OK.

 

I don't know about that... I recently "repaired" an enterphone camera for a neighboring condo building, that it turned out was suffering from undervoltage. It was someone's DIY design, a board cam with a pinhole lens mounted behind a hole in the the enterphone's front panel, and was showing poor signal, noise, and low contrast. I brought the camera home and found it worked perfectly on my bench for a week, so I reinstalled it and found the problem still there, even on my service monitor. Then I discovered the cause: there was a board regulator inside the enterphone as well, and it was providing only 10.3VDC to the camera. Then I found that it was being supplied by a 12VDC regulated wall-wart inside the building electrical room, and most of the loss was within the regulator itself. I replaced the 12VDDC supply with a 24VAC/20VA transformer and adjusted the regulator for a solid 12V, and all was good.

 

As to why I asked the question, that was part of my question! I'm trying

to find out whether the cameras have extended life running @ 9V. Some

circuits, for example PC CPUs, will age faster at higher voltage. (Typically

used to make them stable when overclocked.)

 

Overclocking is a different thing than overvoltage. The clock rate driving the CPU is increased, which generates more heat, and it's heat that will shorten the life of the CPU. That's why overclockers usually have to increase their cooling capability, getting into things like liquid cooling and what not. Usually, if anything is done with the voltage, it's DECREASED, to help reduce the creation of heat.

 

As to the general knock against bullet cameras, I'm not sure what I'm

supposed to use. I don't need SLR quality for vehicle monitoring.

 

I don't know that there's any "general knock against bullet cameras" around here. Like anything else, they have their place.

[Soundy 1]

Vehicle power would dictate the design.

 

Automotive is 12volt, and therefore the perfect power source for 12 volt cameras.

 

Not really. Vehicle power is 12V when the vehicle isn't running and you're drawing from the battery (and even then it can vary by half a volt either way, depending on the condition of the battery). When running, most vehicles' electrical systems put out anywhere from 12.5V to 15V, with 13.5-14.5V being nominal, depending on system load (lights, blower, A/C, defroster, stereo, etc.) and engine RPM. Put a voltmeter on your battery and rev the motor up and down, then start turning things on, and watch how much it changes.

 

Many cameras can handle the variation (some 12VDC wall-warts output up to 18V) but cheaper ones will blow up within hours.

 

Use a bridge rectifier to isolate your camera circuits from your automotive supply. For example when you shut off the vehicle the collapsing magnetic field may create a reverse voltage.

 

Collapsing field from what?

 

This would depend on where you are "tapped" in to the automotive electrical system. If you are behind the automotive voltage regulator then you should not have this problem.

 

A car's voltage regulator doesn't directly filter the power to the automotive systems - it controls the alternator to regulate the voltage that IT puts out. The only thing "behind" the regulator is the alternator itself.

 

Adding a large size farad capacitor would be a good idea.

 

Hmmm, wouldn't really do much. It'll smooth ripples in the voltage supply, but won't do anything to alter the wide swing of voltage you see.

 

If you're really concerned about protecting your cameras from your car's power systems, use a small board-type regulator of your own between your cameras and your power feed.

[rory 0]

As to the general knock against bullet cameras, I'm not sure what I'm

supposed to use. I don't need SLR quality for vehicle monitoring.

 

no knocking from over here .. i use them all the time. They have their issues ofcourse but they also have their place.

[scorpion 0]

Soundy

 

I did not provide a circuit to provide power to the cameras. This was already assumed on my part that one would build / buy one.

 

I was using the automotive as a source to a power supply, and not the camera supply directly.

 

You forgot to say FUSE also!

 

The collapsing field of an alternator can create spikes or a reverse voltage.

 

You do not hear of it much, but in the early days of retro audio systems there would be unexplained equipment failures. Auto sound systems are built more robust, and the changes in auto power systems have made a difference.

 

I always throw that in. I usually get heckled for the advice, but then what does a bridge cost now adays.

 

I do agree with you that a video surveillance system should be isolated from the auto power supply.

[hardwired 0]

Something like this http://www.mini-box.com/DCDC-USB would clean up the output to equipment a lot. They also make a 12VDC UPS board setup for keeping things running after the main battery runs down, but from the schematic, it doesn't have regulation / protection on the output....

 

BTW, a bridge does not cost much money, but will cost you a loss of about 1.2 volts.. sometimes you need those last few volts.

[Soundy 1]

I did not provide a circuit to provide power to the cameras. This was already assumed on my part that one would build / buy one.

 

I was using the automotive as a source to a power supply, and not the camera supply directly.

 

Fair enough!

 

You forgot to say FUSE also!

 

Yes! Especially if your feed wire is running through the car's firewall and/or under carpeting, fuse it as close to the splice point as possible - this is done to protect the CAR, not the equipment, as a short along the way to the chassis of the car can easily start a fire.

 

The collapsing field of an alternator can create spikes or a reverse voltage.

 

Wouldn't happen - a spike like that in a motor is caused by the collapsing magnetic field from the rotor cutting through the fixed magnets' lines of force. In an alternator, that field is created by powering the stator windings, and as soon as you shut off the engine, that power is cut as well - there's no magnetic field TO generate a reverse spike.

[vin2install 0]

If the camera is undervolted it will lower the life of the camera since it will pull more current to compensate for the lower voltage.

Ohms Law

 

I repair cameras and see a lot of cameras go bad quickly from power supplies going bad and only outputs like 10 vdc or lower. IR Cams are the ones that are affected most by the higher current draw.