Underwater web camera at WhyteCliff?

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Great idea -- I think this would be terrific. Once I'm back in Vancouver in August I would be willing to pitch in and help out. I am not an IT guy, but I can help with the legal side, letter writing, and any negotiations/meetings.
 
We still need to identify the best place for camera installation... Not sure if WhyteCliff is the best one...

- Must be not very deep (15 m max) and have some marine life to watch.
OK

- Must be close to the shore, Internet and power. 3G and small wind turbine (like yacht's one) both doable and not TOO expensive, but complicates the system and will require some extra maintenance...
NOT OK

Any ideas?
 
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Great idea -- I think this would be terrific. Once I'm back in Vancouver in August I would be willing to pitch in and help out. I am not an IT guy, but I can help with the legal side, letter writing, and any negotiations/meetings.

Thanks Dennis! That's what we will definitely need...
 
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I don't know for a fact, but I'm pretty confident it is DFO. Certainly they are always the department taking the heat for automating light houses rather than keeping them manned.
 
That's how it looks like in Egypt... below a picture sample.

DSC07101.jpg


Savoy2_3.jpg
 
Sounds like a great project.

Some additional comments:

1. your 3G signal will not likely penetrate the surface of the water -- at least not more than a foot or two. So your "3G Webcam" will somehow need to extend its antenna to the surface.

2. "green" methods of electricity are very expensive, and likely cost prohibitive. It's a nice idea that you could use solar or wind, but the challenge becomes storing that energy for when the wind ain't blowin' and the sun ain't shinin'. Unless of course, you only want your images being uploaded when your method of power is happening.

Once you get to the stage of storing this power in batteries, you end up with some crazy-expensive power converters and regulators, blah, blah, blah... there just isn't room to do it without some box above water.

Your best bet would be to do the same thing as your Bonaire friends have -- use PoE and an Ethernet connection for your webcam, to the nearest building capable of handling that.

As for the "not bolted down" comments -- when people risk their lives to break into BC Hydro substations to steal mass amounts of copper, I think something like this (even the aforementioned antenna) is at grave risk of being damaged or removed. Never underestimate the power of stupidity!
 
Hi Kris,

Sure, in case of 3G data transfer, antenna must be fixed above high tide level.

Yacht's wind turbines, voltage regulators and batteries aren't very expensive, but definitely will add some extra costs to the project.

PoE is the standard an cheapest way, but if camera s is 100+ m far from an Ethernet switch and PoE injector - things becomes more complex and expensive too.

I agree regarding vandalism and equipment stealing... Unfortunately, it's not possible (or VERY expensive) to make the solution 100% vandal-proof.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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