Video camera on antennas?

[VK2KRR]

Has anyone had any experience with mounting cameras on antenna booms or dishes so they can see what there pointing at ??

Im just wondering what type would be a good camera and where to get one from?

Thanks

[VK2JDS]

i use a small camera they use under a perspex dome for survelance in business premises etc to look at one of my 6 metre yagis, the lcd screen in the shack has n s e w written around the outside of it for navigation with the rotator.. its just crap throwouts i scrounged from work.

now the problems with it : it wont work in the dark without illumination,(no starlight sensitivity with them)
the dome fogs up in rain
you have to mount it aiming up ,but to the south so you dont get sun-burns on the ccd.

i have thought of using it on the boom, but you then have to work out known reference points to aim at for direction.
the field of view of these cams is wide, so go for something much narrower. the sony chip ccd webcams can be modded with big lenses to do moon tracking, but i havent tried one , its just what an astronomy mate told me

anyway, these cheap security cameras can be bought from DSE jaycar etc, its the lenses you will be dissapointed with Leigh, for viewing what your aiming at. now at the other end of the scale are weatherproof Bosch cameras, i manage one and what it records. its got heating and cooling in the metal box, and its got huge zoom and focus. keep a look out for them. also scrapped RTA traffic cams. unfortunatelly i only got a box-head unit minus cam..
but all the commercial units use large metal cases and often run off 24 volts
73's

[VK6ADF]

Hi Leigh...does it have to be a video camera? A friend of mine uses a Canon Still camera mounted outside in a box and connects it back to his PC USB port using a USB Extender which allows the USB signal to use a CAT5 cable up to 50 metres. By using some software it automatically triggers the Canon camera, takes the photo and then uses it on his weather page as the webcam shot. Probably much better resolution than a video camera of the cheaper varieties.

Anyhow, something to keep in mind.

73 Phil...VK6ADF

[VK6ZRY]

http://www.crazysales.com.au/index.php?productID=643
I used a colour camera up top my mast above 6M Quad, to look down at my neighbours.
I fed it with 12Volts 100 feet away, the video came down the same cable.
I used 2 core shielded cable, left over after a job, it was about 3-4 mm in diameter , it worked just fine. I fed it into a A/V connection on a TV.
The shield was earth/-ve and the other two wires were 12V and video, I had no use for audio.
Good luck.
The above camera costs for colour $20.

[VK2KRR]

Thank you for that looks good.

[VK4GHZ]

Here is something that may be of interest to those looking for a cheap LCD monitor in the shack.

I purchased one of these today from Big-W... an AWA branded 7" (17cm) LCD widescreen LCD video monitor.
(Note: this is a monitor only, no TV tuner, etc)



On sale at half price for $48.


You can mount it the other way, ie; a suspend it from something (car roof, shack shelves, etc), and invert the scans accordingly.

It comes with a video lead (2.5mm 4-pole plug > 3 x RCA plugs), 12V cig lighter lead, and a 240VAC plugpack.
There are two small speakers - STEREO!

Makes a handy surveillance or utility monitor in the shack.
Don't go comparing it to a $1,000+ screen, but not a bad picture considering.

At this price, I might get another one.

The relevant current Big-W sale catalogue page is here:
http://catalogues.bigw.com.au/portal/dy ... 5667683977

Sale runs March 27 - April 9.

[VK2KRR]

Wow Adam that would be ideal
Hopefully they have them in the local BigW I will head there ASAP today and check.

Thanks for posting that.

[VK2KRR]

Adam
Rushed into BIGW asap today and yep they have the monitors here too, I grabed one straight away. Thank you very much for posting about this BIGW special as I would not know what to get without it so thanks heaps.
Now I just need to find an appropriate CCD camera to put in the centre of the dish. Needs to be weather proof, preferrably cylindrical and fairly small to slot into the hole in the centre of the dish. Have not had a chance to have a good look around yet.

[VK4QB]

Hi Leigh,
How are you going to see at night, or ar you going to have a IR camera >Or is it for daytime QSOs ?
Brian VK4QB

[VK5BC]

Here is something that may be of interest to those looking for a cheap LCD monitor in the shack.

thanks Adam, I've gone & got one too, want to use it as a surveillance screen, but will also make a good screen to use with the IC7000.

73 Brian
VK5BC

[VK2KRR]

Brian 4QB
Its mainly to find the moon and get the dish pointing at it. So hopefully It'll be bright enough to see at night. I know others use CCD cameras for this reason. I dont need it for terrestrial QSOs.