Night Vision FPV

by ezragrothe | January 24, 2013 | (5) Posted in Projects

 The other night I decided to see if I could night equip my tri because darkness comes so quickly during the winter here in Minnesota. 

 

My cheap little 420TVL camera from HobbyKing (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__13434__1_3_inch_SONY_CCD_Video_Camera_NTSC_.html) doesn't have an IR filter, which isn't good if you're only flying in the daytime, but it's perfect for night operations! So I searched around bit and found a cheap, yet good, IR lamp. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001P2E4U4/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00

With all of the metal casing attached, the lamp weighed nearly 130g. But once stripped down it weighed a mere 22g.

I also got some LED strips from Hobby King (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__8944__Turnigy_High_Density_R_C_LED_Flexible_Strip_White_1mtr_.html) to add to the effect. They don't do much for the FPV view, but for flying by sight they look pretty cool. They also happened to be the perfect width for my 10mm tricopter arms.

One meter of the strips was enough to cover all of the arms.

 

Here's a video using the setup:

- Find this article & others like it at www.FliteTest.com -

COMMENTS

Leo82 on January 26, 2013
Now this is worth testing. Thanks for great idea, i'm off to order 100 leds for my vtail :)
I wonder if fatshark predator camera has ir filter...
Log In to reply
ezragrothe on January 27, 2013
I'm not sure if it does, but you can test it easily with a TV remote. Just point the remote at the camera, press a few buttons, and if you see a bright light coming from the remote, you're good to go. : )
Log In to reply
ABQ Bobcat on January 28, 2013
Great idea, way to think outside of the box and do something fun with those cold and dark winter months.
Log In to reply
ITCyoy543 on January 25, 2013
:47 AAHHH I'M BLIND!!
Log In to reply

You need to log-in to comment on articles.

ezragrothe

(56)

Night Vision FPV