how to: wifi + webcam on a glider?

zozo
Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
I have an odd request...



someone I know wants to broadcast the take off and landing of his flight. Being a long long flight, every kilo counts.



His idea (and mine) was to put a webcam (an iSight or Network camera whatever) to a small Wifi hub. Then from land, follow the plane with a directional WiFi antenna.



Would that work?



Any other ideas?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 6
    scottscott Posts: 7,431member
    web cam + wifi sounds like over kill. What you want is one of those mini cameras and then maybe a modem to download the signal. Or maybe a way to broadcast it as analog.
  • Reply 2 of 6
    johnqjohnq Posts: 2,763member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by ZO

    I have an odd request...



    someone I know wants to broadcast the take off and landing of his flight. Being a long long flight, every kilo counts.



    His idea (and mine) was to put a webcam (an iSight or Network camera whatever) to a small Wifi hub. Then from land, follow the plane with a directional WiFi antenna.



    but then what? Is it being further broadcast to the net? or are you merely capturing it to disk? Just bring a camera and skip the wifi...
  • Reply 3 of 6
    zozo Posts: 3,117member
    it will then be broadcast via a 2-way satellite system...



    so, imagine a plane flying around where every gram counts, and you need to get the video from it down to you... and the things is flying out over the atlantic (so, you need to get the take-off and the landing).



    Yeah... crazy, I know...
  • Reply 4 of 6
    dfilerdfiler Posts: 3,420member
    Somehow... it seems that any project with enough funding for flying drones over an ocean with a live 2-way communication link... shouldn't be looking for pointers on AI.

  • Reply 5 of 6
    curiousuburbcuriousuburb Posts: 3,325member
    There are some WiFi web cams available for remote control aircraft of the hobby variety.

    (includes video clips from the onboard camera... decent quality)



    "Real" aviation tends to be a lot more strict about spectrum use and electronic interference, at least here in North America. The FAA goes apeshit over use of electronic devices on aircraft, and WiFi can be worse than AM/FM Radio for signal strength.



    The fact you're asking about a glider may simplify the question, particularly if the analog instrumentation is relatively immune to RF interference.



    What kind of quality is your friend expecting?

    Would a cell phone camera pic of the instrument panel work?
  • Reply 6 of 6
    n2nrnn2nrn Posts: 20member
    What is the approx. range you will need this wifi signal to span? If you aren't in direct line of sight, iirc,it won't work.

    Another way to do this.

    Find some local amateur radio operators in your area who could set you up with a slow scan or fast scan tv link. Like Curiousuburb I would want to know what resolution you would need what frame rate.

    Definitely find some hams, this is the kind of project they like a lot. Also they are very knowledgeable about gain antennas, of all kinds, and probably can come up with some novel ideas for you. Hey if you're in Upstate NY, I'll help.



    N2NRN ( you can look me up at QRZ.com)
Sign In or Register to comment.