RoboRealm Forum

IR filter, remote controled compact cams

Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:11:00 EST

Wow! 0.0003 lux, that sounds good.

I'm looking for software to control the exposure time (shutter time) of webcams. And the exact timing of taking the picture too. I would need that to calculate the position and speed of moving objects in a serie of images. *** Does anyone know a good webcam/software combination that allows control over exposure time and timing of still image taking? ***

Light conditions can be improved with many webcams by removing the IR-filter in them. Google's first hit is this instruction:
http://www.hoagieshouse.com/IR/

That should improve the effect of using an IR-LED as support light too.

Ordinary compact digital cameras too have IR-filter, but without proper documentation they are best removed by professionals. It is possible to remotely control some ordinare digital cameras too. Then there would be no problem with setting the shutter time and having great performance in darkness. Google "remote control" together with canon, nikon or olympus. (I haven't tested it myself yet).

No Title

Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:11:00 EST

Other way round, the lower the lux the better. It is very loosely a measurement of how much light is needed to stimulate the ccd array.

STeven.

Lux?

Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:11:00 EST

Very interesting. What's the "Lux" of a camera. Is that how sensitive it is to light? If a camera has a lower lux, will it be less likely to perform differently in different lighting environments? Do I have this right?

No Title

Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:11:00 EST

Hi,

Not sure if you will find vendors listing the frame rate in low light situations but what you can do it look for the "lux" of a camera.

For example, we have an older version of this one

http://www.supercircuits.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=4185

which is a nice camera but you also need some sort of usb digitizer to get the image into the computer.

Or if you have closeup material you can try this one which has infrared LED's on it.

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?InvtId=1MP-988-WEBCAM&cpc=RECOM

STeven.

Recommended Webcam for Low-light fraterate performance

Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:11:00 EST

Hello.

A while back I posted a question regarding my webcam's framerate slow down. I've been searching for a webcam that doesn't slow down in framerate in low-lighting, but I have no idea which ones don't have this problem. I know they tend to be the more expensive webcams but I'd like to know from other's experiences.

Can anyone mention a specific webcam they've used that doesn't slow down in framerate much in low lighting? I'm looking for a webcam that won't go below 7 frames per second in low lighting, preferably 10.