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Building a Gyro Cam Mount

Entoptic said:
OP if you would like me to start my own thread I will but I wanted to add my project that was inspired by you.

I mentioned earlier that I bought some Wii Motion + controllers from ebay. They finally arrived from Hong Kong and check it out! It was a total cost of 24 dollars...... so far.....

I gutted them and will be using the gyro controller inside for my build. I hopefully will have updated pictures tomorrow of the arduino/servo/gyro working as one.
Click to expand...

So I got the code and the wiring all set. I then had to remove the solder from the wii motion + which was a no go. I do not have the skill to remove the solder on such small parts :thumbdown

I did some googling and found this!

http://store.fungizmos.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=69&products_id=212

It's an adapter for everyone that can't seem to desolder those small solder points. I have 3 on order and they should be here tomorrow.
 
llenta said:
I have that mount, problem is that there is no way to attach this to the servo. I found it easier to put a universal camera screw into the RAM ball then it would be to some how find a way to secure a (mostly) rubber ball to the servo.





I tried something similar to that (not that exact mount). Problem is that it sticks out too much and puts too much weight on the servo. When the bike was bouncing up and down on the pavement it damaged the servo.
Click to expand...

Very interesting... Have you thought about using the universal screw mount for the contour and just attaching that directly to the servo with a 90 degree bracket? I would align the universal screw mount with 90 bracket so the camera is on top and the bracket is angled 90 degrees down which would then mount to the servo disc with 2 screws. It would look like a gun at that point. Camera is the barrel and the servo is the grip. I hope that poor description makes sense.

That Guy said:
I can fabricate a bracket that will and can be the same shape as the servo mount with a 90 deg bend that you can mount the camera to. Any camera.... I will see if I can get free time in the shop and make up a quick one for idea's
Click to expand...

I am interested in a bracket!
 
Entoptic said:
Very interesting... Have you thought about using the universal screw mount for the contour and just attaching that directly to the servo with a 90 degree bracket? I would align the universal screw mount with 90 bracket so the camera is on top and the bracket is angled 90 degrees down which would then mount to the servo disc with 2 screws. It would look like a gun at that point. Camera is the barrel and the servo is the grip. I hope that poor description makes sense.



I am interested in a bracket!
Click to expand...

As simple as this sounds, I couldn't figure out a simple way to do it. Due to the shape of the gear on the servo, I don't know how to connect anything to it except for the pieces that are specifically made for it. So I have to use one of the pieces off the servo (from the manufacturer) and then create my mount off that.
 
llenta said:
As simple as this sounds, I couldn't figure out a simple way to do it. Due to the shape of the gear on the servo, I don't know how to connect anything to it except for the pieces that are specifically made for it. So I have to use one of the pieces off the servo (from the manufacturer) and then create my mount off that.
Click to expand...

I had a thread away back about using servos to open a set of wings I created. I used the thick discs that came with the servo and drilled 2 holes in them on opposite sides of each other IE 12 oclock and 6 oclock. I then used a locking nut and bolt to attach my wings to each servo disc. The load the servos took was a lot but they never failed. I suggest trying the same thing. When I get home I will post up a picture of it so you can check it out. Don't mess with the little gear sticking up outta the servo but instead mess with the disc and look online for people that have modded those attachments. There are even places that sell multiple attachments just for what you are trying to do.
 
Less geek talk, more photos or diagrams and shit! :x



:twofinger
 
Entoptic said:
When I get home I will post up a picture of it so you can check it out.
Click to expand...


sinncere said:
Less geek talk, more photos or diagrams and shit! :x



:twofinger
Click to expand...

be patient fucker!!! Especially about things that you know nothing about :p btw...shouldn't you be out, oh I don't know, changing your chain and sprockets so that you can actually ride your bike :rofl
 
Please :hand. We both know that me parking the bike in my garage is the only way you can outride me at this point.

You're welcome.
 
Jeff, this is an amazing project. Would you be willing to list the items you've purchased (and source), so that some of us may pirate your idea before SOPA prohibits this from happening?
I would absolutely love to waste a day or three making a similar system.
 
Well I'm not exactly hiding any secrets here.

I took pictures of all the components that I'm using and they are listed in the first post of this thread. I have since purchased a bigger better servo and the part number for that is at the end of the second or third page I think. I got a lot of the components at a local R/C helicopter shop because the guy was cool enough to talk with me about how to make this possible. I know for a fact that you can buy these components cheaper online. But without the his help, I wouldn't have been able to do this. So I have no problem paying a little extra money because he took the time to help me out, even though I don't partake in his hobby.

Google is your friend.

Oh, and not listed (and used) are tape and zip ties :teeth
 
I haven't posted an update for a little while, so I'll fill you all in with whats been going on.

A few weeks back I was excited to give this a go at the track as I had an appointment with Sear Point on Easter Sunday. The last few times I tried to fine tune the set-up I kept breaking my camera mount. So going up to the track I had a brand new mount in my hand ready for the track. Unfortunately, as luck would have it, as soon as I tired to put the camera on it the mount split right in half (again):mad

Oh well, I enjoyed the track day anyway.

I figured that this probably wasn't the best set-up as it seemed to put a lot of stress on the mount. If it really was this fragile, I needed to re-think my design. So I started from the ground up with what I had learned. My ultimate goal is still to have a unit that can be moved from bike to bike.

First thing first, I needed to find a way to support the camera in such a way that it wouldn't stress the servo or mount. I happened to stumble upon a mount that I could build to suit my need.

This mount would not only house a servo inside, but it would support the weight of the camera on the other side. This means that there is virtually ZERO stress on the servo and the mount would be a lot stronger, so it should be able to handle a few bumps here and there. EXACTLY what I was looking for :thumbup
img1242jd.jpg


img1240iq.jpg


I had to order a new servo to fit inside the housing. I had an old servo that would fit which worked for my testing. But I had modified it, and because of my modification, it wouldn't work in this situation. The new servo is a HS-7954. Its smaller then the giant one I was previously using, but with this new mount, I won't need a large one because it won't have to support any weight. The mount, by design, will do that for me. The mount is made out of ABS plastic and it good for about 2 lbs. The contour camera weighs only about .25lb, so I have a built in cushion.

Next, I had to rethink how I was going to attach this to the other components. I no longer wanted to run without a rear cowl while I was testing. I went to tap plastics and found a "U" shaped piece of plastic (not exactly sure what kind). I measured how big I wanted it to be and I trimmed accordingly on my workbench. I attached the remaining components to the sides of the plastic with the camera mount in the middle. This is what I came up with.

img1244u.jpg


img1246xw.jpg


img1248zf.jpg


I elected to use a profile mount and have my Contour camera mount on its side. I feel that the lower profile will make for a much more stable mount and less chance of problems. I will just rotate the lens on the camera and all should be well (fingers crosses).

Hopefully I will have some footage this weekend. :cool
 
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Looks like no video will be shot today :(

Although the set-up worked really well on its own, the little servo is just not powerful enough to control the weight of the mount+camera steady. The mount can easily hold the weight, but the little servo is just not up to the task when it comes to quick back and forth movements. I am going to see if I can rebuild the mount and use the larger (more powerful) servo to control the mount from the outside (it obviously wont fit inside the mount). If I can successfully do that today maybe I can test it out tomorrow.

Fingers crossed
 
Maybe you should consider using a much smaller video recording device. Your project has been on a trend of requiring bigger and/or heavier support systems to be able to handle the stresses of your usage. I almost want to say you've long crossed the threshold of having a useable, compact unit.

Of course, the downside of going smaller and lighter on anything is their costs tend to rise, if you want quality smaller and lighter anything.

:2cents
 
I totally agree. If I could have a pencil cam that recorded 1080p, that would be ideal. I was also tinkering with the idea of taking a broken Contour camera apart to see if I could attach a small servo to the rotatable lens inside. That's exactly how Dorna does theirs. If I could do that, then mounting the camera becomes much less of an issue and supporting everything is a lot easier as well.

This whole project has become just a challenge for me. I know that there is almost "zero" practical purpose for this, but I like the challenge.
 
um...yes

i did some tinkering the other night with some spare parts and i have an even smaller set-up then before. I'll probably take it out this Sunday for a spin :teeth

This will probably be a finished product at this point. I can't see it getting much better then it is (for a reasonable amount of money).
 
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