CA6 Alpha Videos

[Maurice]

I will link to several videos I've made about the CA6.

• TPB #94 - Introducing the Camera Axe 6
  
• TPB #95 - CA6 Alpha Projectile Module
• TPB #96 - CA6 Alpha Valve Module
• More to come

[Maurice]

[Maurice]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaOf2iYG3Vk

I give an early look at how water droplet photography is going to work on the CA6.

[Maurice]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxSijK3APUA

This is a video about the sound module.

[Maurice]

Here is video about the case designs I've been working on for the CA6 and modules.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSm--jKiFDY

[Maurice]

Here is a video showing how to connect to the CA6 for the first time.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nd-DuSam3dM

This isn't that interesting at this point, but I'm including it in this thread for completeness.

[dml...@gmail.com]

 The case designs look good, especially the CA6 case and the modules that are fully enclosed.  A couple of thoughts:
 -  The location of the tripod mount socket on the CA6 case is unclear to me how it would balance or work.  Might it be better near the top of the back so that with a horizontal screw (or ball head) the CA6 could hang vertically??  Just a thought.
 -  For the light module, I've always had to put it in a plastic bag since it's often raining while taking Lightning photos, so not having it fully enclosed is OK.  Just want to be sure that the top & bottom plates are supported at both ends so that squeezing it won't be a problem.
Dan

[Maurice]

Hi Dan,

The reason the tripod mount cant go where you're describing is because it would hit the batteries.  I don't think it matters much what orientation the CA6 is though because you are just plugging in cables (you won't be looking at a screen or pressing buttons on it).  Also it is light so I don't think a tripod (unless it's a really small one) would have trouble holding it.

Yes, the 2 plates over the light module will have 4 screws on the edges so you can hold it without a problem.

[Maurice]

Here's a video about photographing popping balloons with the sound module.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFF9cKTtp-4

[Maurice]

I made 2 more videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjW6VhWQUJw - This one covers the dev module and how it will allow people to access large numbers of different sensors.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCA4Ihb7q0w - This covers trigger latency on the CA6

[Maurice]

Here's a video about the code you need to add to make a new menu on the CA6.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Z59KKwJIh0

[Maurice]

Here's a video about the projectile module: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbpWfndjlEE

[Maurice]

Here's a video about the beam module: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3uVeGVce4k

[Maurice]

Here's a video about the valve module: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipopX4FZMRE

[Maurice]

Here's a video about the vibration module: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khOQayACw38

[Maurice]

Here's a video about the light module: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLI8jG16Z2E

[dml...@gmail.com]

Nice job with the light module video!  The 3-sided case looks very good and I see that it's quite sturdy, too.  I have two minor comments.

First, the last column in the PhotoMode display is really the duration of the lightning strike, not a count of micro-pulses.  The software does recognize secondary pulses and adds on to the duration since all of the pulses will be visible in the image.  I would explain that the duration (in milliseconds) is there to help you understand why the CameraAxe triggered, but you didn't get the lightning strike in the image.  The CA6 triggers in a few microseconds, but if the duration is shorter than your camera's lag, you won't capture the lightning, and the display will help you recognize that.

Second, it's hard to see in the video, but it looks like the photo transistor might be mounted just a bit back inside the tub when the tube is pushed all the way in.  I think we want the sensing portion of the photo transistor to be sticking out a little to allow it's full 60 degree (not really 180) field of view.  Maybe the inner tube needs to be just a bit longer (or maybe just hard to see in the video)?

In any case, great job with this video!
Dan

[Maurice]

Good points.  I understood the ms duration thing, but did a bad job explaining things in the video.  Someday I'll do one that just focuses on lightning and explain it better then (along with the camera settings you should be using).  Unless you want to make the video for this :-)  I was kind of in a rush to get one module video done per day so I could move on to other things.

I need to experiment some with the exact length of the tubes, but I'm happy with the design and can figure out the exact lengths of the tubes later.  I'll be sure to send you a final design for review.

-Maurice