NiteMaxx digital night vision camera - Page 22

PCModifiers · 04-19-2006, 07:05 AM

Mark, received my stuff...looks awesome I will have to play with it this weekend.

at_b · 04-19-2006, 07:11 AM

ok mark
i ll try and hit you up on msn then to arrange my order
thanks again

dtran01 · 04-19-2006, 06:34 PM

I think we have a strong number of lenses we need, mark... it might still be worthwhile to negotiate a cheaper bulk price?

NiteMax Mark · 04-19-2006, 10:30 PM

I guess I'm willing to give it a shot. Which lens are we going to try for?

at_b · 04-20-2006, 01:53 AM

the one you recommended seems the best option and of wide application, as you can tune it to what angle you want.

spaceskater · 04-20-2006, 03:00 AM

Please count me in also for a lens if this goes through!

PCModifiers · 04-20-2006, 07:03 AM

Mark I take it our choices would be the following?
http://www.nitemax-ultra.com/accessories.html
1x 3x and 6x

I assume that the they have to be manually adjusted to zoom? I noticed there is a zoom button on the camera itself does that control the lens?

Genesisfactor · 04-20-2006, 07:29 AM

doesn't work that way. The lens are set to the zoom classification. It would be like binoculars. you need something like what Shotgunefx has to accomplish what you're looking for. The zoom and the cam is 2x or 3x.

NiteMax Mark · 04-20-2006, 11:29 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by PCModifiers

Mark I take it our choices would be the following?
http://www.nitemax-ultra.com/accessories.html
1x 3x and 6x

I assume that the they have to be manually adjusted to zoom? I noticed there is a zoom button on the camera itself does that control the lens?

Actually, the range of choices is painfully large!

The cameras with the zoom button have a DSP Chip inside that digitally magnifies the image by 2x. This has nothing to do with the lens except for the fact that it will double whatever amount of magnification the lens already has.

Any "C Mount" or "CS Mount" lens is a candidate for the NiteMax cameras. These are used for Security Cameras and CCTV. (Closed Circuit Tele-Vision)

The lower the f-number of the lens, the better it will be for Night Vision. The original NiteMax lens was f/1.2 and I've tried larger numbers. The f/2.0 lenses I tried were less sensitive at night by a noticable amount. An f/1.6 lens looked nearly as good as the f/1.2, and f/1.4 was so close I couldn't tell the difference. A smaller f-number lens has a physically larger glass lens element and is therefore more expensive. The large f-number lenses have tiny glass lens elements and are the cheapest lenses you'll find.

An interesting side-effect of the f-number is the need to focus. A pin-hole lens has a tiny aperature that's a poor way to collect light and the corresponding f-number is large. In exchange for this limitation, a pin-hole lens typically requires no focus adjustment! Once this type of lens is focused, all objects are in focus from close-up to the horizon. (This would be a nice feature for a built-in camera that requires no user intervention.)

Lenses are available with Fixed, Manual and Automatic Iris. Like your eye, the iris provides a means of reducing the lens opening so less light is collected under bright conditions. Generally, the NiteMax has no use for an Iris because the CCD Camera inside is very adept at electronically adjusting to changing light levels. Any lens with an adjustable Iris adds expense that the NiteMax doesn't need and generally can't use!

The only possible benefit to an Iris is that it lets the lens behave more like a pin-hole lens when there's plenty of light. In this regard, you could have a camera system that is well focused to all objects near and far during the day. At night, the lens will be wide open and focus will become more important. However, you can't see all the way to the horizon at night so there's a smaller range where objects need to be in focus at all. The NiteMax doesn't have provisions for operating an auto-iris lens, but the CCD Boards with 2x Zoom have the provisions and we might be able to use them.

Lastly, the focal length of the lens determines the "zoom factor" or the "wide angle-ness" of a given lens. An 8mm lens is generally considered to be 1x meaning no magnification and no reduction. (This happens to be the size of the CCD chip.) A 16mm lens is therefore 2x magnification and a 24mm lens would be 3x. Any number below 8mm is wide-angle and the "fish bowl" effect becomes more obvious as the number gets smaller. A "vari-focal" lens is a "zoom" lens that can be adjusted on the fly. I am betting there's powered zoom lenses out there that could be controlled automatically. I'm also betting that these are more expensive!

greenman100 · 04-20-2006, 02:19 PM

NiteMaxx Accessories Master List

Lens
dtran01
at_b (2-3)
turner brown
bash1979
spaceskater

Battery
dmurray14

Charger
dmurray14

PCModifiers · 04-20-2006, 05:12 PM

Great info Mark!

dtran01 · 04-21-2006, 01:24 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by at_b

the one you recommended seems the best option and of wide application, as you can tune it to what angle you want.

i agree with at_b.

i think we should go with that one mark.

here's the link for the ebay auction mark referenced, if anyone is lazy to go back and search for which one we're referring to. it's adjustable 3.5-8mm !

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tem=9704839978

note that the shipping for that auction is 9 bucks! with our group of 8 or so lenses, we would have collectively spent about 70 bucks on shipping alone! (compared to about 25 bucks or so for priority usps..)

also, greenman, please update me for 2 lenses..

PCModifiers · 04-21-2006, 05:02 AM

at_b and dtran01 I like that one too.

Count me in for 2 please

shotgunefx · 04-25-2006, 07:50 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by NiteMax Mark

...
JP2 Option/Feature Connector (Ground pin to enable)
JP2-1 AES/ALC AES: Automatic Exposure Control. ALC: Automatic LEvel Control.
JP2-2 BLC Black Level Control
JP2-3 AGC Automatic Gain Control
JP2-4 ATW/AWC ATW: Auto tracking white balance. AWC: One push lock white balance.
JP2-5 MIRROR
JP2-6 2X ZOOM
JP2-7 GND
...

Did some playing with the pins. Here's my results in a somewhat well lit room.
JP2-1 AES/ALC AES: Automatic Exposure Control. ALC: Automatic LEvel Control.
Enable this and the glare of the lights become a supernova.

JP2-2 BLC Black Level Control
The only effect this seems to have, is that if it's dark and you ground this, blacks become blacker.

JP2-3 AGC Automatic Gain Control
I forget

, I'll have to go back to the drawing board.

JP2-4 ATW/AWC ATW
Basically, you when you hold it to ground, it will keep the current white balance until you open the circuit. I noticed that if you put the camera in the dark and held it to ground, the color will look much more natural in normal light (once you took it out of the dark of course ), still greenish, but much closer to normal. Release it and it goes back to being St. Patrick's Day.

JP2-5 MIRROR - predictable

JP2-6 2X ZOOM - predictable

Though I did note something interesting relating to my glare problem.

I put a different lense on it. A Cosmicar (came off the medical IR equipment) 8.5mm lens. Must be half decent as the only place I saw them wanted ~$100 for them. Anyway, it has an adjustable aperture and goes from 16 to 1.5.

Anyway, through the range, with this lens, the CCD handles the glare fine. For instance, the light in my living room is just a ball of glare no matter what I do with the F1.4 wide angle lens. With the 8.5mm, no matter what it's set to, it adjusts so I can actually see the fixture.

I wonder why that is

Genesisfactor · 04-25-2006, 11:05 AM

JP2-5 is mirror imge? that coud be highly useful...

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