During TV weather reports, you’ve probably seen landscape video along with the narration, “Today, we are reporting from ….” These weather cameras are mounted on roofs of certain buildings as well as scenic and historical spots. While cameras mounted on buildings are usually fixed, cameras at scenic and historical spots often use an extendable pole so as to capture the view. To take video, the pole is extended and the camera is raised. When the video ends, the pole is retracted and the camera is hidden in the shadows. YUASA Co., Ltd., which has its head office in Kita-ku, Okayama in Southwest Japan, is a leader in weather cameras and monitoring cameras as well as hydraulic telescoping poles mounted on broadcasting relay vehicles.
Keyword: Telematics | Embedded PC
Industry: Transportation
Purpose: Space saving | Work efficiency improvement
Conventional weather cameras sent a video signal from the camera atop a pole to a ground device via coaxial cable wound along the pole, and that signal was sent to the broadcast station. In addition, commands to control the video camera operation (start/stop) and direction (rotation/angle of elevation) were sent by communication line from the broadcast station to the camera atop a pole via control signal cable. A proprietary controller was created to raise and lower the pole and control the rotation and angle unit, but consideration was given to upgrading the system to handle digital content as a web camera, remote operation, and status monitoring. The slim embedded computer BX-100n from Contec meets these needs by having full capability of providing data communication, control, and image processing while being able to be installed in locations with limited space.
The BX-100n has a small footprint (W182 x D270 x H35 mm) with a thickness of only 35 mm and built-in LAN functions as well as both analog and digital input and output.。 This highly reliable industrial computer has a fanless, disk-free enclosed design (using a CF card) and doesn’t require maintenance, making it ideal for installation in remote, unmanned locations.
This camera pole system is not only a weather camera but has expanded applications as remote monitoring equipment. Conventionally, monitoring images recorded on videotape with an analog signal were digitized and stored on a hard disk. Today monitoring and downloading are possible over the Internet. The following functions were added based on the weather camera functions:
The live on-site video and audio you see and hear from TV reporters is sent by radio wave from an antenna on the relay truck to the broadcast station. It is key that the antenna be quickly and accurately pointed toward the broadcast station. Taking time to adjust the antenna can result in the on-site relay not connecting and missing important video.
The “automatic repositioning system” that is being developed uses the BX-100n to automate remote control operations that were conventionally performed manually. The position of the relay truck is determined by GPS, its direction is detected by gyro position sensors, and calculations are performed, enabling control of the rotation unit and quick and accurate repositioning of the antenna to face the broadcast station. The relay truck has a lot of equipment and limited space. Conventionally, a dedicated controller was used to hydraulically raise and lower the pole and jack that secures the vehicle, but with the BX-100n, a system was realized using nearly the same size.
Teiji Yasuda, Manager, Design Section, System Equipment Division
With development, there has been a need for extendable pole control, weather camera rotation control, and video monitoring all via the Internet. We went through trial and error to determine the necessary method of remote operation and wireless video transmission equipment, and then we came across the Contec BX-100n embedded computer.
It supports LAN for Internet connection and features analog and digital input and output ports in a compact, energy-saving design. It integrates everything we need in a single unit, and now we use it to construct a system with enhanced features from weather camera systems to remote monitoring systems. In the future, we will expand our system design by using embedded computers in both the upper and lower parts of the pole for individual control of upper and lower control panels and to enable comprehensive operation and monitoring by using a remote computer.