board camera

[ljarrald 0]

i have a couple of day only static domes.

i need them to be able to see 24/7. there is some light so i don't need IR leds. i just need them to be able to switch to B+W and see under low light. they also need to drive an auto iris lens.

 

i am in manchester, UK. does anybody know where i can get what i'm looking for?

thanks!

[brianparkes 0]

What brand/model of cameras do you have? Do they have the option to put an auto iris lense on them (usually on the side of the camera there will be a square port that looks similar to the USB port on most new printers).

If the camera has an internal menu you can access, that would be where the setting to make it switch to B&W under low light conditions would be. If you have the user manual (or can find it online) it should tell you how to do it.

[rory 0]

You could see if something like this would fit inside it

This is a TDN module.

http://www.ktnc.co.kr/english/viewtopic.php?t=950

 

although its probably almost the same price just to buy a ready made dome

[ljarrald 0]

the cameras are various brands. they are colour only. no option to change that

 

the cameras do have auto iris lenses, yes.

 

that is what i'm looking for rory. do you know where i can get a couple in the uk?

[rory 0]

I couldnt find that exact model nor do I know of any dealers in the UK, but found the step up to it here:

http://www.123securityproducts.com/ace-edr380nup4.html

 

Might email them and ask them if they have the other model as it would be cheaper than the above WDR one. Also not sure if the above has the IR Cut filter built in the lens or the base, must be the base as they mention it comes with a fixed lens in that case (ask for the varifocal AI version though) and they still claim TDN. They dont always list everything on the site though, as long as KT&C make it they should be able to get it. Thats in the US though, I dont know of any UK dealers, but KT&C is a well known brand.

[rory 0]

edit, the varifocal model

http://www.123securityproducts.com/ace-edr380nuv18.html

But its expensive as its a double scan (true WDR), as well as true day night.

[ljarrald 0]

well the cameras already have lenses that i'd like to reuse to save on cost.

 

i don't need a camera with loads of features, just one that can see and identify in low light. i don't have very deep pockets you see :/

[rory 0]

Typically if your dome is a varifocal lens it would be M13 lens size, and normally a TDN dome would have the IR cut filter built into the Auto Iris mechanism. The problem is your camera is only a color camera to begin with and those typically have fixed IR cut filters, so you need a DN camera, one that switches to BW and has no fixed IR cut filter. Plus then you need the IR cut filter to be removable by a photocell or video light level.

 

So really there is no cheap cheap way to do it, something like that could be cheaper just to buy a ready made TDN dome like the CNB VBM-24VF or VCM-24VF which is one of the cheapest TDN dome in the market.

 

One DIY option though would be to physically remove the IR cut filter - depends where it is, color only cameras I dissected before that had fixed IR cut filters, it was glued right over the camera chip, and was a piece of glass that I broke in pieces to remove (accidentally).

 

But then your colors could be out of whack in the day time, especially when the sun is out.

It would then let you add IR and the camera would see it, how well depends on the camera - might not do all that great so would need to really blast the area with IR. Could pick up a cheap IR bullet and use that just for the IR, some cheap CMOS IR cameras actually have alot of IR but their camera is just awful.

 

If you wanted to add a TDN lens to that after removing the IR Cut filter, then you would need a way for it to know when to switch over, which wont be built into your color only camera. Ofcourse the AI normally uses a controller built onto the camera board as well, and the lens would also need power. All this depends on the camera and current lens size etc.

 

Other cheap option is a BW only module.

In fact that would be the cheapest route.

[Numb-nuts 1]

Eneo make board cameras that can control auto iris. You can get them from Traders Warehouse.

They are NOT cheap. If you can find the KT&C ones they are a better option.

[ljarrald 0]

i don't need IR. there is a street lamp that provides a bit of light, its just not enough light for the colour only camera to cope with.

 

all my other D/N cameras have just varifocal lenses and all the D/N, colour,B+W stuff seems to happen in the camera. i did have one camera that had an IR cut filter in the lens but the iris was broken. i tried and tried to fix it but i am not good with fiddily things and in the end broke the IR cut filter so i took a lens from another camera and put it in that camera. i ended up disabling the IR because it wasn't needed. the camera still switches to B+W in low light though and its not given me any problems

 

i think i might just get a B+W only modual. i don't have much money and B+W is good enough... and gives me a tiny bit more disk space

[rory 0]

all my other D/N cameras have just varifocal lenses and all the D/N, colour,B+W stuff seems to happen in the camera.

The switchover from Color to BW always happens in the camera but uses either a photocell or video to switch. Its the IR Cut filter I am talking about which is typically in the lens with those type of cameras.

[ljarrald 0]

does the camera only have an ir cut filter if it has IR leds? because only one of my cameras has(had) a filter and that was the one with IR. all the others don't have IR cut filters nor do they have IR leds.

[rory 0]

All True Day Night cameras will have a removable Infrared Cut Filter - when placed over the chip it blocks out Infrared for true colors - doesn't matter if it has built in Infrared or not. It removes the filter when the camera switches to BW for better low light sensitivity and sensitivity to Infrared.

 

Some cameras do better at the colors than others and so indoors or when its cloudy you may not notice it as much - it really matters when dealing with foliage such as green leaves and bushes, and especially under full sunlight. So something like the back alley of your house, or a car park, wont be as noticeable. Some cameras can be really bad though and a blue shirt could look purple or a black shirt could look blue etc.

 

If your Day Night camera has no IR cut filter, then its considered a Digital Day Night camera - they tend to cost much less. If its a Digital Day Night camera with built in Infrared, we generally refer to them as a Color IR camera.

[ljarrald 0]

thanks for that explanation rory. i found that with the heap CMOS cameras from ebay, green bushes look purple, as do black clothes :/

 

this camera looks at my next door neighbours yard.

 

i may not need anything after all. as luck would have it i passed a demolition site with a very kind site manager...

[rory 0]

For us poor folks, 2nd hand used cameras can work out great ..

Every camera I have at my appt was used or dead ..

 

[ljarrald 0]

all mine are used from ebay. never ever given me any problems

 

this one is decent. its has a fixed lens though, not the best camera out there but hopefully it'll do.

 

the four box cams... i don't think they are going to work lol. if they do i will find a use for them. or they may go on ebay.

 

http://imgur.com/a/Ci4pO#8