Intro
This episode is focused on building and testing the waterproof webcam, although the system will not be ready for water tests yet.
I have also been doing a lot of work to figure out what I can use the LattePanda for. I have tried a lot of things to try to set it up as an embedded Windows development platform but the limited size of it SSD have really stymied that aspiration. I think it will end up as a temporary file transfer server on my network, since it isn't too power hungry. Bigger applications will need to wait until I get a LattePanda Sigma - which definitely has the horsepower to do what I want to do.
For this project I have it running a waterproof camera controlled by a wireless keyboard/touchpad. I had to do a deep search to find the wireless dongle for my wireless keyboard and I had to then clean off the gooey sticky guck that the surface of the keyboard had deteriorated into. Alcohol didn't work. Baking soda and water sort of work to loosen the sticky surface, but it is a lot of work to really remove the mess, especially around all the nooks and crannies on the keyboard.
The Camera Build
The camera build required designing a 3D printed bracket to mount the camera in the Hammond box plus some special handle washers. These washers have a handle which allow the screws to be easily held in position while installing them.
Both the camera and the bulkhead connector needed USB connectors installed. Fortunately I have appropriate connectors in my stash. I had this great heatshrink with adhesive to enclose the connectors, but unfortunately the adhesive leaked into the connector making it unusable. After lots of picking and fishing I got most of the glue out, but not enough to make the connector reliable. So I had to redo the connector and just protect it with (ugly) hot glue. My regular heatshrink is not large enough to cover it.
Here is a video of the build and subsequent test of the camera with a LattePanda:
The LattePanda HDMI output can of course drive my large TV and show the waterproof camera on-screen. Performance is not spectacular, but it works well enough for my application.
The good news is that I think I figured out how to set up my main camera to take video of a TV without introducing massive flicker and banding. I might even have got a handle on how to set up my dubbing microphone.
Discussion
The camera is now mounted and working with the LattePanda.
The project is moving forward slowly but it is moving. I am still not feeling very well, which severely hampers my project work, but there is some improvement in that regard.
The next episode will cover the pole mechanism and maybe the LattePanda mount. The case for the LattePanda has not arrived, and I fear it will not be here before this challenge is over, so some interim solution will need o be designed.
The following episode may see some water tests.
Links:
Waterproof Connectors - Camera Build
Pole Mechanism for the Waterproof Camera
LattePanda and LCD Pole -Mounted Chassis
Hammond and Amphenol Experience