My Latest Project- in-car video

Normy · 05:01 PM

I've installed a cheap video camera in my 928.

The device? I found it on eBay on the cheap. It takes a video that composes of 30 frames per second, and each is 640x480. It records the video whenever the ignition is powered, and for 10 seconds after the ignition shuts off, in case of accident.

It is attached to the windshield via suction-cup, right below the rear-view mirror. It records to a "micro-SD" card, which sits inside a standard SD adapter. This just means that it can hold an SD card, but they wanted to use a 2 gb micro SD for some reason. Anyway, the 2 gb works out to 1 hour of video. The way this works...the thing comes online whenever I start the car, and records everything it sees out the windshield, including audio. When I shut the car down, it waits 10 seconds and then shuts off. If it reaches 1 hour of video, it starts deleting the old stuff so that it can continue to record. The long and short is that I now always have the last 1 hour of 928 time documented.

Value of this: First of all, if I ever have an accident with this car [never have, knock on wooden head~], then if it is obvious that I was in the right...I probably have a pretty good record of it. If I have an accident where I am concerned that I might have screwed up [not likely~], then the first thing I do is remove the suction cup, pull the power wire, and put it in the glove compartment. Me and my attorney can review the footage at our leisure. Johnny Law and the other party don't need to know that there was a "cockpit video recorder" at my end.

And what about Johnny Law? In Florida, at least in south Florida...if you get a ticket....you generally deserved it.

[SOUTH of Orlando, that is; the area of this state NORTH of that town is utter and complete REDNECK. Though the police in Florida are probably the most laid-back in the country when it comes to "automotive performance experiences", the farther north you go in this state the more SOUTH you get and you are far more likely to encounter Buford B. Pusser in Tallahassee than you are in Tavernier.]

Then again, you never know when a redneck with a badge is going to make an appearance and pull you over for 68 in a 65 zone, [while the traffic is doing 80] just because you are driving a black Porsche 928 and he is suddenly feeling inadequate. NO, this hasn't happened to me! But if that sort of thing happens, when the MAN walks up to the car, I can tell him that:

1. My wallet is in my pants pocket, it contains my drivers licence and proof of insurance, I will reach for that first.

2. My registration is in my glove compartment, I will give that to him next.

3. I am recording our conversation for both our protection. I will have the Sony recorder sitting on my lap.

If he asks me to shut the recorder off, I will happily do it. And if he wants it, I will hand it to him with a smile. What the dumb bastard doesn't understand, is that I still have my CVR going strong...hanging from my windshield!

-If he tries to mess with me after that....I'll take his god-damn job away! That video will knock him right out of the police force because it will now be LEGAL in court, since I've notified him that I am making a recording.

=======

Sounds like fun? Yeah, I guess. I haven't been pulled over by the police in my 928 since 2001, and that was nothing. But I've dodged dozens of accidents, especially lately, and nearly ALL caused by butteaters driving their cars with their cellphones plastered to their ears. At the same time, cops, heavy with the scent of DONUTS on their breath, look at accidents typically with glazed eyes they can sometimes "decide" that the most expensive car was at fault. This video I have now? It can go a HELL of a long way toward proving just exactly what happened in an accident...and if I don't want it to, I can probably hide it away. Perfect.

The point of all this? I suspect that within 10 years, ALL cars will be built with little video cameras with lenses pointing four ways to record what goes on. The SD card will be readily available- it will probably be incorporated into the key, and the owner will be able to delete or hide it at will. I'm one of the ones who drives carefully, and I will be DAMNED if my 928 is going to get smashed, after 10 years of careful care, by some idiot on his cellphone while driving his junk 20 year-old SUV. Or picked on by some cop with penile-size issues~

That, and when I have a good time with the car, I can always pull the card and download the video to my YouTube site. Fun for everyone!

Problem: 2 gb = 1 hour of video; this can take a while to download! Anyone know a good video editing software?

N!

Normy · 07-09-2009, 05:07 PM

Here's a link to the video this thing took tonight. It isn't great video, but it works:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ECIWvkTwTk

[ignore that silver thing in the garage; sometimes, possession of the "ultimate home appliance" causes stupid things like this to appear in sacred places like garages~]

N!

TimT · 07-09-2009, 05:12 PM

Looks good, pretty annoying how the defroster vents show up from the reflection off the inside of the windshield..

Who makes it? quantos dinero?

dewolf · 07-09-2009, 05:16 PM

That is actually pretty good. Cameras are getting better and cheaper. You can also run those cameras back to a DVR mounted in the boot/trunk and get hours and hours of video. My company has done it for cabbies.

Normy · 07-09-2009, 05:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dewolf

That is actually pretty good. Cameras are getting better and cheaper. You can also run those cameras back to a DVR mounted in the boot/trunk and get hours and hours of video. My company has done it for cabbies.

The 2gb card will record 1 hour, which means that the currently available 16 gb cards will hold 8 hours. 16 g cards at Best Buy are $98, but they basically give away 2 gb.

-There have been SO many times when I have seen odd things while I'm driving! Cars crashing, doing odd things, people fighting....now everything I see will be recorded.

How many times have I come on here and other places and basically stated in posts "I can't believe what this idiot did today!"

Now I can SHOW you instead.

N!

bell · bell's Garage

please look into this.....
i believe that recording video in fl is ok, but audio is a BIG NO NO, i had this conversation with the alarm tech of the company which monitors our store and he seemed to know what was legal an not as far as recording devices go......

Normy · 07-09-2009, 05:47 PM

eBay:

Item number: 160347081855

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Normy · 07-09-2009, 05:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bell

please look into this.....
i believe that recording video in fl is ok, but audio is a BIG NO NO, i had this conversation with the alarm tech of the company which monitors our store and he seemed to know what was legal an not as far as recording devices go......

As long as the person is TOLD then there is nothing wrong. You are not required to detail how many recording devices you've employed- only that you are recording someone.

I might be wrong; I'm not removing my CVR in any case!

N!

Jakester1168 · Jakester1168's Garage

That looks pretty good...I wonder how it would fair at high speed on a bumpy track such as Sebring?

Normy · 07-09-2009, 06:10 PM

It is suctioned cupped to the window; your guess is as good as mine.

The video it produces is decent, but not movie-quality. Vibration? the mount is pretty stiff, has adjustment, and is about 4 inches wide, a huge suction cup. The camera weighs about two ounces, I think. I'm worried about it falling off, since I want to use it as a daily record of my driving, so I will put a rubber band around it and the rear-view mirror to make sure it doesn't fall off and hit the console.

I was able to hide the cable completely- around the windshield, I pushed it into the black putty. On the "A" pillar I removed the screws for the right-hand sun visor and the top "A" pillar screw and managed to push the black wire under them all, totally hiding it. Today, it runs across the passenger side tray and plugs into the lighter socket. Tomorrow I will cut off the end of the wire and wire it in, with a fuse, to the socket directly. This means that when the ignition is on, the camera is on, after a 10 second delay. The past 1.0 hours of '85 Porsche 928 #1526 is now constantly recorded.

N!