Bluetooth/wifi streaming to Android tablet

[Hans2]

Brand new to the dash cam thing, and hoping someone here can answer a few Q's for me.

First, a bit about my situation-
I'm a commercial fisherman in SE Alaska, where I primarily troll for salmon on my 47' boat. Often times, the fishing consists of my boat following my plotted course on autopilot at 3-ish knots while my deckhand and I are running gear in the rear pit. Or I'm fishing solo. I have a chart and radar display, steering, and throttle controls back there, but my view forward is obscured. Sometimes the fleet is packed into pretty tight quarters, and seeing boats ahead is critical. My autopilot is great at keeping me on my desired course, but doesn't know what is in the water I front of the boat. I am setting up a dedicated Android tablet in a docking station in the pit's electronics cabinet to control a set of wireless relays I'm installing, and would like to also be able use it for increasing visibility forward while I'm in the pit.

I have both 12v dc and 110 ac available on the boat and was looking at outdoor security cams, but mounting one outside of my wheelhouse is not preferred (due to wiring run and penetrations). I'd like either bluetooth (preferred) or wireless streaming to my Android tablet.

Picture of boat attached for reference.

Any thoughts/suggestions?

Thank you,

Chris Hanson
FV Diamond Lil

 

[kamkar]

I would think a not too wide angle CCTV camera up high in the mast aimed at a slight downward angle would be the best solution. this would give you a more true to life perspective at least as far as distance to objects go.
But on the other hand this mean you do have a limited FOV, so anything coming from either side on a collision course and unaware of maritime rules of passage might be out of view.
How about radar do you have that and proximity alerts as i am used to from the Sperry gear on the commercial tankers i have been dealing with as a sailor ? those also give a audio alert if something cross over into the alarm distance.
If so a camera in the wheel house aimed at your radar screen will give you a instant remote view of that sucker, and so better situational awareness even on less than optimal conditions ( fog )
You should be able to make do with low resolution analog stuff and so fairly cheap stuff ( a camera or 2 and one or 2 LCD monitors ) but then are are of course talking about wired cameras.

You can also get wifi IP cameras no problem that you can connect to directly from your phone or tablet, but then the price are a little higher for the cameras, but you can get a fairly cheap tablet in the 10 " range.
But i am not sure if you can connect to say 2 cameras at the same time directly, so you might have to go thru a wifi router to access both / more cameras at once, but whan you can you can have several cameras on the screen at once, and a touch on the screen will make any of them go to full screen for much better detail in viewing ( after all even when i was nicknamed hawk eye by ship officers looking for detail on a 4" picture would have given me little knowledge of what is out there.

Wit the analog stuff i mentioned first you would need some form of toggle to change in between the cameras you have, but you could then use say a big old 32" LCD TV that will be easy to read even if you are not right beside it.
Of course you can do the same with the IP cameras, but no cheap TV have touch screen, so you will need some other devise to do the camera switching on, so more complicated IMO

The analog cameras just need power in ( 12 volts ) and then their output wire connected to some form of display, maybe with a mechanical toggle switch in between several cameras and the monitor if you choose several cameras..

While we are quite a few in here with home CCTV and some knowledge in that field too, if you want to go that route you might be wiser on a dedicated CCTV forum or contacting a expert / seller of CCTV gear and tell him your situation.

PS. nice looking boat, though not much larger than a life boat from the ships i am used to

 

[Hans2]

Thanks for the compliment on my boat, and the quick and thoughtful reply. She is definitely small compared to the heavy metal you're used to. But everything is relative, as the boat I started fishing on would fit neatly on the aft deck of this one. She is well suited for her work, which is what counts.

I hear what you're saying about the cctv idea. That's where I started out, but for ease of install I was thinking a wireless dash cam would likely work out well. Plus, if I decided I wanted to upgrade the dash cam could be installed in my truck and I'd go CCTV on the boat then. Pulling a dedicated power cord up the mast sounds like work to me, and not likely to happen soon! I have easy 12v power at the helm right now. If I do eventually go cctv, I definitely will go IP and stream to my tablet. The last few years has find me focusing on eliminating long wiring runs on the boat, particularly between the pit and forward areas.


Re: radar - I have a Furuno radar unit that integrates with my Nobeltec chart plotting/ depth sounding system (uses TimeZero architecture) all of which are available on a single screen in my pit's overhead electronics cabinet. I can have the radar either overlay my charting display or be viewed as a separate panel on the screen. I much prefer the separate panel, the overlay is just too busy for me. The benefit of a camera image over a radar display seems to me that at a quick glance, I recieve much more info than a radar display affords , ie., relative heading, which boat it is (I trust some other captains much more than others in close quarters), whether or not they are making a maneuver, etc. As you know, even at slow speeds a few seconds can be huge.

Maybe a dash cam isn't the right tool for the job, but if I was willing to give it a try as an intermediate step, is there a decent one that could stream to my Android tablet?

Thanks-

 

[jokiin]

I can't think of any dashcam that would suit what you want, wrong tool for the job

 

[Nigel]

The Viofo A129 has wifi and a reasonable FOV, but you would want a big screen to be able to see smaller boats at any distance.

On Android you can either use it's app to view live video, or use a video player to play it's RTSP stream which is probably the better choice.

Note that it is available as A129 or A129 Duo depending on how many lenses you want.

You could also consider an action camera such as the Gitup F1 which also has wifi, an app and RTSP, plus a 90 degrees FOV option. Although in my experience the app isn't always reliable if there is a poor connection, I think the RTSP is good.

The wifi on these is normally fairly short range, don't expect it to go through metal walls.

If you want to try something really cheep then a Blueskysea B1W has wifi and an app and good wifi range, but no RTSP.

Not sure any of these is ideal, I wouldn't like to drive using an LCD screen, but it's got to be better than driving blind!

PS. nice looking boat, though not much larger than a life boat from the ships i am used to

Big lifeboat! I don't think I've seen one nearly that big even on passenger ferries, and the bigger ships I've been on tend to have mainly inflatable lifeboats! The oil rig lifeboats were the biggest I've been in.

 

[kamkar]

Some dashcams do have a wifi out, but like all they do have a little lag, not much 1/2 second or so and i think its the same for the wifi IP cameras you can get.
But its also not a race boat you are driving so the wifi lag i cant see as a problem.
Only if you want more than one camera would the wifi route be a problem or ease of use cuz i think you would have to disconnect from one to connect to the other, and you would have to interact with a touch screen of a phone or tablet to do so, so not really handy i would say.
The route of analog cameras you just need a mechanical switch to change in between several cameras, something you can do while wearing gloves and covered in fish guts if need be.
As i recall analog cameras can also transmit via wifi, it is much used on some RC things like quadcopters / drones for long range first person view, but i am not quite sure how you would go about dealing with several cameras like that.
I would guess you need a receiver for each camera + still the manual switch to change in between feeds from cameras, but this would give you 2 less wires to route out back.
The little RC wireless transmitters are quite cheap for a 200 miliwatt one in the 2.4 or 5.8 GHZ transmission range which i think should be fine for a little fishing boat.
But these hobby Tx / Rx are usually not waterproof, and you need that, but i think you can get a waterproof CCTV wifi units, probably that plug strait into the BNC plug on a analog CCTV camera.

This is a hobby grade TX / RX kit we would use on a quadcopter / plane or RC car as i do
http://www.securitycamera2000.com/p...Transmitter-Receiver-Kit-for-CCTV-Camera.html

Not waterproof at all to the TX you would have to put in a waterproof box beside the camera on the mast or wheelhouse, both cameras and TX use 12 V for power.
The little larger RX unit are also not waterproof byt you can put it in the same waterproof place you would have your screen out back.

And here a analog camera with a 700 TV line resolution
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/700...R-LEDs-7Days-24Hours-Day-and/32307952320.html

 

[kamkar]

hehe no i was exaggerating a little on the lifeboat size, the wheelhouse are probably it, but still a long way up to the 1/8 mile long tankers i was on.
Which almost crashed with a on comming tanker in 1990 as we was coming out of the black sea ( odessa ) where we had unloaded gasoline and witnessed the death of Soviet Russia.
Damm idiot was lined up to a starboard / starboard passage, but right in front of us he changed to a port / port passage ( which i think are the way to pass a oncoming vessel )
I was on lookout and the officer almost hit the sealing in the wheelhouse, then grabbed morse lamp and morsed ASSHOLE strait into the bridge of the passing tanker as it passed us.

Normally i am not in the regular watch rotation on ships, due to my skills and other educations they pretty much just put me in the engine room to do the work of the engineers, whish are okay by me though it get dammmmn hot some times.

Been there done that.

O and that's actually a small cylinder, they get to be 2X that diameter, and normally top out at 90 - 100 RPM

 

[Hans2]

I really appreciate the education here folks, thank you for your time and input. It looks like the cctv is the way to go. I can probably easily mount one up next to my LED on the top of the house with a short cable run, giving me a fair elevation for better depth perception. Not as good as a mast-mounted unit would, but would work.

 

[kamkar]

I would go with something like a 4 or 6 mm lens.
The much wider angle lenses tend to make things appear farther way and smaller, and while fishing boats are not small i would prefer to see things in time to react instead of just brace for impact.

this is a normal wide angle lens ( 120 degrees or so ) compared to a muc narrower 12 mm lens ( fov unknown ) but it do demonstrate the difference of what you can expect to see at a distance with a wide angle Vs a not so wide lens.

you can always experiemnt with other lenses, they are not that expensive and screw in place with 12 mm fine thread.

 

[Nigel]

I would go with something like a 4 or 6 mm lens...

Boats don't always stay in lane like cars do, I think you need a wider field of view than that, more like what a dashcam normally gives, otherwise you could be on a collision course and never see the other boat.

O and that's actually a small cylinder, they get to be 2X that diameter, and normally top out at 90 - 100 RPM

Last time I saw inside one of them, one of the bolts that hold the counterweights on the bottom of the crank arms had snapped, it's partner held on and the counterweight swung around and went through the wall of the crankcase - there was a hole in the crank case big enough to walk into and look up the cylinders from the bottom, time to slot a new engine into the engine room!

 

[kamkar]

Indeed, but i think OP main concern are what is right in front and what his wheelhouse block from his view, i do think he keep a good eye on what are out to the sides when he work back there.
And i trust he are not engaged in the chaos that are north American / Alaskan herring fishing

What you can see at a distance on a wide angle camera, are still pretty small stuff on a 32" monitor, let alone a smaller monitor.
Remember he is also working back there so not really any time to go stare real good on a screen, he need to be able to see and identify a problem fast.

North sea are a danger too now, a Maersk partner dropped 270 containers in the bad weather a few days ago.
Down in Holland they have been picking up LCD TVs on the beaches

 

[Nigel]

North sea are a danger too now, a Maersk partner dropped 270 containers in the bad weather a few days ago.
Down in Holland they have been picking up LCD TVs on the beaches

I can't see those LCD TVs working, and even if they do, it wont be long before the salt kills them.

It was MSC that dumped a load of BMW motorbikes on our beach a few years ago, all perfectly dry, with keys in ignition and fuel in the tank
Maybe the reason they can't handle storms is that they are headquartered in Switzerland - a nation with a navy, but no sea!

 

[kamkar]

I sailed with a guy on my first ship, he was on a ship that dumped a open deck load of land rovers in the bay of Biscay some time in the 80ties.
I do think the flags of convenience for merchant ships are a travesty, that it still exist is to me a proof that the world still need a lot of fixing and we / i have not been a part of that ever.

I was on a ship that ditched a nice motorboat with trailer still attached in a bad storm south of Greenland, if it washed up in one pice someone did a nice score.
Not uncommon for Danes to buy motorboats used in Greenland as they have another tax level up there for those things,,,, though Greenland are sort of Denmark too.
On the other hand if you are in the market for a brand new helicopter i think we have favorable prices on those if that tax hole haven't been closed yet,,,, just another proof the elite of Danish society look out for them self first.

 

[Hans2]

Indeed, but i think OP main concern are what is right in front and what his wheelhouse block from his view, i do think he keep a good eye on what are out to the sides when he work back there.
And i trust he are not engaged in the chaos that are north American / Alaskan herring fishing

I'm actually sitting in Sitka, my homeport, right now. That is a great aerial vid of the craziness that the herring sac roe fishery can be. That fishery is managed on and hour-by-hour basis, to harvest the herring at the peak of their value (ie., % of roe by weight). Last year was a bust as the fish were too small for the market, but there were several years previous that the top boats grossed $750K-$1m USD. It can be a very high value, high stakes fishery. Thankfully, I don't participate in that one.

Kamkar1 is absolutely correct, I have good visibility out to the sides of my boat while I'm fishing, it's just the 30 degrees or so to the front that is the problem.

I do take a few vids with my cell phone when I can, here's a couple for you all to see what I get to see/do at work-

Thanks again for all the info.

Eat wild Alaskan Salmon! haha

Chris

 

[kamkar]

well i would just love to get a stab at those Alaskan salmon again with my rod, but that's a fishing trip no Danish pension can pay for.

The crab factory ship i was chief eng on did a mess of it, so one of the local fishing boats had a little problems with the motor, so the factory ship decided to pull him to port as we was heading that way anyway.
But the result was a line between his propeller and our propeller meant both ships could do nothing, thank god this was in one of the few places on the Greenland west coast where a anchor was to some use.
Took 2 days before they got a diver out to us, meanwhile i had been in a survival suit with a knife tied to a broom handle trying to saw my way thru the 2 inch nylon rope
O and the diver dident have his lead belt, so we tied some shekels around his waist, which turned out to be far too much weight so he went down like a rock before he got the line that held the weight untied ( lucky i did that on him with a slip knot and told him so )


The company ( selling the crabs to Orion seafood ) asked me to come back if i wanted to, i said hell no and hightailed it back to Denmark, and i have not sailed since then.
The salary and conditions on that ship was appalling, not least since for most of the 4 months i was there i worked like 16 hours a day and mostly only got 2 hours of sleep before the Greenlanders managed to ruin something i then had to go repair.

And now i am 52 and on a pension., as i pretty much worked myself into the ground.