What snipers really need...

[UncleMatt]

I have been looking at underwater viewing methods for some time now, and want to suggest a product that would be very useful in sniping, and prospecting in general. I have an android smartphone with a HD display, and a micro-USB port as well. I would like to come up with a small corded waterproof endoscope type camera that streams live 1080p video to my smartphone display, with LED lights for illumination, that plugs into my micro-USB port. It would also have a long cord, so you could reach deep underwater with this mounted on an extension rod. You could also use it to reach into crevises and small areas on dry land to check for nuggets there too.

I have been looking all over the net, and have come up empty. Several other people are working on this online, but it seems the software is not configured in the current android version to allow such a use of the phone. Of course, I would also like this hardware to work with tablets as well. If anyone has any ideas of how to get this implemented, please sound off.

 

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[Aurabbit79er]

Sounds like we just need to build robotic ROVs.
With suction tube and sample box like Oceanographers use.
I use a rope, a weight belt, and a dive mask.
I just built and field tested this 3'x 3" ABS Gold trap.
3 to 5 pulls fills the trap.
For simple op there is no flapper.
Just fill the trap, put the tip over the sluice or bucket, and flip it 180º to dump.
I made it all twist lock for easy service.

I made different tips including a 30º and a 90º to go under and down.
All from Home Depot for about $50.

 

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[vtgoldprospector]

I know some plumbers have long cameras that they use to inspect for damage, roots and such in drain lines. They are obviously waterproof but I don't know the $ of such. You can commonly find different endoscopes of all options and lengths. Some with LCD screens, some are USB and some apparently plug into the audio jack of an iPhone.

 

[TimC]

One suggestion here... what about only having the minimum parts in the waterproof enclosure, lens, conection wire? The rest can be out of the water, similar to a metal detector.

 

[UncleMatt]

I have already scoured the net for existing technology, and came up empty. Of course, you are welcome to search on your own and post what you find, but nothing so far has had it all in one package for sniping for gold nuggets in streams. This isn't a dredging or ROV concept, just a simple hand held device for visually inspecting likely areas for gold concentration on stream beds. I suggested a simple grabber or scoop so you could pluck the easy stuff right out of the stream without submersing yourself.

 

[vtgoldprospector]

I was referring to something like this unless a USB (no screen, requires a pc, slate or tablet) is enough. Search for endoscope or borescope for others.

Mini Water-Proof Endoscope Camera Requires 4 AA Batteries (VG8807AL) - China Endoscope Camera,Water-Proof Endoscope Camera

 

[UncleMatt]

That is the same type as the harbor freight one posted earlier. Note the length of the probe between camera and hand unit: three feet. Not long enough.

 

[4reale]

Uncle Matt - you're going off the deep end now. This project starts out wanting a live video feed underwater camera with no stated depth requirement, and now we're down to 10-12' or more and the ability to retrieve anything that looks interesting down there, for virtually no money invested by scabbing parts from old electronics (I like the recycling angle).

The camera you require is out there, but it costs about $250.00. I was at the fishing inlet yesterday and a guy and wife team were using on on a long PVC 3/4" pipe to check out the fish lurking around. Got to admit, the pictures were really cool! They didn't have a hook or bait on the end of the pole, so they couldn't catch what they were looking at - just as well - the camera did cost some money, and I didn't get the name of who made it. But I did see a TV ad on one of the fishing cable channels showing the same thing last week.

Next time I run into them, I'll get all the details - I never even thought about this as a use for THing. BTW - even 14' down, there was no light loss apparent in the picture.

 

[DanBrunner]

You might want to check out the GoPro waterproof camera. GoPro Official Website: The World's Most Versatile Camera It has built in WiFi with the ability to transmit to your iPhone/iPad and android devices. It can do 2k as well at 1080.

 

[Aurabbit79er]

i got my dive mask at Play it again Sports for $10.00.
My eyes and depth perception is better then any camera.
Take Take me with you I'll get wet and look for ya.

 

[UncleMatt]

As I already said, I have examined all of the available stuff online. The wireless stuff will not work because the camera will be submerged. Now if an antenna lead could be run up to above the surface, but then you might as well have a corded camera to begin with. Other cameras that look good at first glance only record to SD cards, and do not provide a live video feed to a monitor while recording. Others have no LED lights for illumination.

I wouldn't be going to the trouble of building something if I could find it on the shelf. I snipe in areas where there are very deep granite channels to probe, and the water temps are very low, so this tool would come in very handy. I need to look along the bottom of the granite channels for glory holes and cracks that are never near the surface. I understand some people snipe in shallow, rivulets, and of course a snorkel and mask would do fine in those situations. I have always planned on having such a device to be able to extend well below the surface, like ten feet, that was never in question in my mind. Sorry if I wasn't clear enough at the outset.

But I am always happy to be proven wrong, so if you see a small submersible 1080p HD corded USB camera, that has onboard batteries with LED lights and can feed a display with live video, please post a link to it. I can find many cameras that are one or two of those things, but not all.

 

[Aurabbit79er]

It sounds like you need to contact someone who does underwater research, like at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego La Jolla, California.
You are entering a world that demands cutting edge technology. You found a need for the remolding of existing technology.
What you need is a combination of components that are combined to fill your specific design.
You may be the one who develops it.
Maybe some undersea treasure hunter would have some idea of what you are looking for.
There are RC helicopters with cameras that have live video, you can fly with your I Phone.
There has got to be a way to take an RC Submarine and stick a color video camera on it.
And hell why we're at it stick a small detector coil on too.
This Idea of yours can really go somewhere.
I work in the Security Industry and I have watched a sales person tell a customer that they can provide a special type of service
and then find out from the engineers that the equipment to do it hasn't been invented yet, so they invent it.

 

[63bkpkr]

Hello Again UncleMatt,
I feel your frustration as I am usually in the same boat, I know what I want but can not find it. In my earlier post to you I had in mind a company I'd seen at an exposition that carried 'lots of' microscopes and such well, I just found their contact info: BigC | Dino-Lite Digital Microscope (BigC.com) they are in Torrance, CA 888-668-2442. I would think they have a contact overseas that makes all of this stuff as well as all sorts of imaging devices, contacting them might prove useful at least I hope so.

Much Success with your idea..........63bkpkr

 

[UncleMatt]

Transcend Wi-Fi SD cards give cameras a wireless boost

I was encouraged to see the development at the URL above, but then did a little more research, and discovered regular wi-fi has almost zero practical transmitting range in water. That question has kind of gone unanswered in this thread so far, but now I know it is not an option at all.

The hunt goes on...

 

[UncleMatt]

It sounds like you need to contact someone who does underwater research, like at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego La Jolla, California.
You are entering a world that demands cutting edge technology. You found a need for the remolding of existing technology.
What you need is a combination of components that are combined to fill your specific design.
You may be the one who develops it.
Maybe some undersea treasure hunter would have some idea of what you are looking for.
There are RC helicopters with cameras that have live video, you can fly with your I Phone.
There has got to be a way to take an RC Submarine and stick a color video camera on it.
And hell why we're at it stick a small detector coil on too.
This Idea of yours can really go somewhere.
I work in the Security Industry and I have watched a sales person tell a customer that they can provide a special type of service
and then find out from the engineers that the equipment to do it hasn't been invented yet, so they invent it.

I use high resolution digital cameras in my X8 drone for FPV flying (first person view). My drone also has a canon 12mp camera pointing straight down for terrain modeling/scanning. But none of that can be utilized for the purpose we are discussing here. I agree I will probably have to speak with someone about some custom hardware for a prototype, or learn to build it from scratch on my own.

 

[UncleMatt]

Now here is a thought: I read that some people have left an air cavity around their submerged wireless antennas, and have had some luck increasing range under water that way. BUT, what if you simply had an open, air filled cavity all the way from the camera up to above the water surface where it could propagate to the outside air? So a small housing to keep the camera dry (removes the need for a more expensive camers that can be submerged), with a pole of carbon graphite or aluminum that has its inside open to the inside of the camera housing! Perhaps this would allow sufficient signal video strength to a wireless receiver in a phone or tablet! That would also make this whole shebang easier to use, since you wouldn't have a wire from the camera pole to your phone/tablet.

Next up: I have a camera I can use, and will see if I can get one of the wireless sd cards I posted about earlier. Then I will build the pole and camera housing as described above, and test it in the field to see what happens. Stay tuned.

 

[GoldHunter24k]

Hey UncleMatt! Great idea and I'm sure there is something out there that will fit what you're trying to do. I've done my fair share of engineering with electronics and I was going to suggest what you just posted. Your best bet is to build an underwater housing for a camera similar to what divers use and attach it to a long fairly rigid cable or pole depending on how deep you want to go. It's possible to run the video cable through a waterproof hosing to get your video. The option of trying to find a submersible HD endoscope that is wireless is going to be pretty pricey. Like in the 1k+ range for an industrial type. You could possibly use that harbor freight camera and just extend the cable yourself with a similar waterproof hosing..

As for adding something to grab the object you're viewing, well that's a whole 'nother mess and I would opt out of that. That's a whole different league and I would try to keep it as simple as possible. You'd spend years designing such a device and it's certainly not something you can build with parts of anything affordable. You're better off just diving down there with some goggles and a weight belt if you see anything worth checking out. It's not as convenient but it's certainly cheaper.

 

[UncleMatt]

If I could find one that was cabled and could be seen on my smartphone = problem solved long ago. Even if you run the cable up the extension pole, and plug it into your phone, you still won't get live HD video feed on the phone's display. It is amazing to me that the phone and camera companies don't get together on this! And now that I think of it, I need to make sure a live wireless video signal can be see on the phone/tablet display too! Dangit!

And I already have a grabber designed, I just have to finish building it and then test. Hopefully you will be able to witness these tests as I will have solved the camera issue by then. Though this idea could be as simple as as a small scoop mounted just below and ahead of the camera in the field of view...

 

[UncleMatt]

As far as I can tell, all that is really standing in the way of this is the lack of a proper phone app and OS compatibility.

Goldhunter, if you know anyone in the industry who can help with this, I would love to hear about it.

 

[GoldHunter24k]

I think that interfacing it with your phone is a difficult way to go about it and there are much easier ways of getting video from a camera to view in real time. You could design a snake that would hold all the necessary cables in the same watertight hose that way all your electronics are pressurized and won't get damaged. I think a fiber optic cable would be your best bet because it's flexible and holds up to stress. You could even use a remote to move the cable around at its tip for easier viewing. Also I would think that you would want to use some kind of wide angle lens for the camera.

Programming aps isn't easy and it's very tedious but if you're serious about designing something I can probably hook you up with someone.

 

[UncleMatt]

Of course I am serious! Hook me up! And creating apps is a snap to those who are versed in the art. You can even hire app developers online for a few hundred dollars.