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Cockpit video camera

Another reason the Roadhawk writes one second strips is so that it can loop constantly when the storage is full. So you’ll always have the last ‘x’ hours of video available.

This would be difficult (if not impossible) to achieve with single large files.

In order to implement video recording in a truly circular queue it would have to continuously monitor the remaining space on the SD card, and when the free space falls below the size of one strip, it would delete the oldest strip.

That way it can record continuously, and would need only a small amount of RAM, for storing the data while it is deleting the oldest strip, etc.

I now can’t remember whether it writes 1 minute or 1 second or 1MB strips but any of them would work. One could make it work with a 1GB strip too, etc. Must it must be done in strips – there is no way to record video in the form of “last X seconds” and achieve any standard (say .mp4) video format.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

The space calculation algorithm is more complex than you would think at first glance because it preserves ‘events’ that have an associated g-force disturbance with them.

The idea being that footage of an actual accident won’t get overwritten by accident due to not shutting the device down and recovering the SD card in a timely manner.

I agree but does the Roadhawk do that?

Maybe it has an accelerometer…

AFAIK one would rely on the power being shut off post-accident, manually, or by the aircraft battery running down (a few hours), or by the accident disturbing the wiring.

It’s a tricky problem in a car because you could do a “G event” (say bump into a wall) and then drive on, with the camera shut down, and then have a proper accident.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Hello folks,

Last thread on the topic is several years old, so maybe worth starting a new one.

I am looking at recording my flights for personal use mainly, together with ATC/intercom audio. I need a solution comprising:

1) Action camera (I believe the GoPro Hero 8 is the best choice here nowadays, Hero 9 not worth the extra bells and whistles?)
2) Cockpit mount solution: which is best in your experience? Suction cups, clamps etc? Also, I want to mount it so that I can see P1 instruments and external view, all with one camera if possible. I’d maybe get a second camera in the future but I really want to try and get it done with one. What is the best place to mount it and how?
3) ATC/intercom audio feed into the camera. How is this best achieved?
4) Any additional considerations? External power supply from a 24V source in the cockpit? From a power bank?

Thanks all in advance for your advice!

EDDW, Germany

How are you thinking of balancing internal v external lighting in the same shot?

France

gallois wrote:

How are you thinking of balancing internal v external lighting in the same shot?

I know what you mean but aren’t GoPro’s especially designed for this? They have very high dynamic range. Anybody can confirm?

EDDW, Germany

I am fairly sure no current consumer action cam will do what some might call a good job – see e.g. here.

It was never established how the guy discussed does it. It could be a careful choice of flying conditions, bringing up shadows in editing, or both. The thing you definitely don’t want to do is wash out highlights because that information will be lost. My Sony X3000 has probably as good a contrast range as any other – most/all action cams use Sony sensors – but if the exposure was adjusted for the bright outdoor scene, the instrument panel would be too dark to see.

That said, I have not tried in-cockpit videos in recent years.

@Alpha_Floor posts moved to same-topic existing thread.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Alpha_Floor wrote:

1) Action camera (I believe the GoPro Hero 8 is the best choice here nowadays, Hero 9 not worth the extra bells and whistles?)
2) Cockpit mount solution: which is best in your experience? Suction cups, clamps etc? Also, I want to mount it so that I can see P1 instruments and external view, all with one camera if possible. I’d maybe get a second camera in the future but I really want to try and get it done with one. What is the best place to mount it and how?
3) ATC/intercom audio feed into the camera. How is this best achieved?
4) Any additional considerations? External power supply from a 24V source in the cockpit? From a power bank?

Just to give an update, I have ordered the following components, will report back once I have flight tested them:

  1. GoPro Hero 8 seems to be the best value for money at the moment. Bought it for £290 from Amazon (as opposed to £430 of the latest Hero 9, the money saved is used for accessories.
  2. I chose the RAM-B-166-GOP1 mount, bought it for £53 from RAM UK.
  3. This seems to be trickiest part. It seems like you need two components to solve this issue: 3.5 mm audio input to USB type C GoPro adapter. This is an expensive dongle that GoPro sells at £50, seems extortionate to me, similar to what Apple do with their dongles which pisses me off… Then you need the PJ-055 male to 3.5 mm male and PJ-055 female adapter and splitter. This one is difficult to find. There is a company in the US that sells it for $40 + $40 for shipping. I believe this PA-90 sold by Pilot-Europe in the UK does the trick but the product site is so bad lacking any description that I have asked the merchant for confirmation.
  4. I also ordered a neutral density ND 8 filter (£28) which is required to filter out the propeller effect, and also to control the exposure somewhat. Additionally, I ordered a SanDisk microSD 256GB for the amazingly low price of £45.
  5. Additional requirements: potentially a carrying case. I will also need to assess whether an external battery for longer recordings will be required.

Alltogether, it adds up to about £500 considering all the extra stuff you need besides the camera itself to record decent video/audio in a cockpit.

EDDW, Germany

Peter wrote:

I am fairly sure no current consumer action cam will do what some might call a good job – see e.g. here.

I believe this guy just used a GoPro with a filter, and that’s it. :)


Last Edited by Alpha_Floor at 03 Mar 10:54
EDDW, Germany
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