Ideal number of dash cams to have

Bungus said:
What FOV are the A and C set up? I'm thinking of A narrow and C2 wide. No motion detect. Will it work?
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Yes the A is the narrowest of the Mobius and is best for capturing plate numbers and generally showing things in the same distance that I see them. The C is wide and best at showing everything around, especially side views and for low light situations.

I originally had the A set to loop while the C on Motion Detect full time. Now with the latest firmware I have it set to Motion Detect on power disconnect. Both side by side make a still discreet, well rounded set up.
 
intially i think this setup is ok
Chode said:
Here's a slightly different approach to side cam choice and logistics: two sets of dual-channel dashcams, whereby two main cams set up as front and rear, and two secondary - as side cams? Just a thought ;)
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but then came the word 'Redundancy' which makes owning 8camera seems ok.
 
I do mostly highway driving and I notice that at 1080P @ 30, its not easy to capture a driver's license plate if the other driver is accelerating. Beyond some short distance the plate is already a blur. I'd argue the same is true for 1296P @ 30.

I believe you need 60 frames per seconds and a narrow zoomed field of view to really capture the license plate of fast vehicles on the move in front of the vehicle. Though the relative difference in speed between your vehicle and the other vehicle may be small, the fact that movement is fast makes the license plate blurry. So a faster frame rate is needed.

I don't have a 1080P @ 60 fps dash cam so I cannot confirm this theory.

At the back you don't have to worry so much. If something hits your vehicle, it is approaching your vehicle and 30 frames per second even at 1080P is enough to capture something that will eventually contact your vehicle.

So at least one front facing camera has to have at least 60 fps on it at either 1080P or better yet 1296P.

Now check out this hit and run. Can you see the jeep's license plate ?

 
Stumpy said:
I believe you need 60 frames per seconds and a narrow zoomed field of view to really capture the license plate of fast vehicles.
I don't have a 1080P @ 60 fps dash cam so I cannot confirm this theory.
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My experiences suggest the same; better detail is captured with higher framerate and narrower field of view. Take a look at the first screenshot capture below, with 720p/60fps outperforming 1080p/30fps as I approached another car on the open road at a combined 120mph.
The second screenshot capture is 720p/60fps from an experimentally positioned camera which peeps through a small triangular window in A-pillar; my speed was 70mph, as shown at the top, and the lorry in the frame would have been travelling in the opposite direction at 50-something mph.

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another huge factor is that in the US, the digits on the plates are much smaller than european plates. thus making it just THAT much more difficult to capture. our plates are 12"w x 6"h, and the top and bottom are reserved for the name of the state, a slogan, or artwork.
 
Gibson99 said:
another huge factor is that in the US, the digits on the plates are much smaller than european plates. thus making it just THAT much more difficult to capture. our plates are 12"w x 6"h, and the top and bottom are reserved for the name of the state, a slogan, or artwork.
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To put that in perspective the individual letters/numbers are 2.75" high by 1.125" wide - about 7cm by 2.9cm
 
@2000rpm " The 60fps shows quite a difference. Good food for thought :)

US plates often have a background image which males them even harder to read, and the format varies from state to state. And then they change them every few years. Sometimes it seems as if nobody gives a hoot if it's readable or not as long as the Gov gets their money.

Phil
 
SawMaster said:
@2000rpm " The 60fps shows quite a difference. Good food for thought :)

US plates often have a background image which males them even harder to read, and the format varies from state to state. And then they change them every few years. Sometimes it seems as if nobody gives a hoot if it's readable or not as long as the Gov gets their money.

Phil
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texas' plates a few years ago were horrible. it had some sort of blue sky image on the background, which didn't contrast at all with the dark blue numbers/letters. if they had put a white border around the characters it might not have been so bad, but even standing still in a parking lot, looking at the plate from 5 feet away on a claer, sunny day, it was STILL sometimes difficult to make out some letters/numbers. they lightened the background significantly after a year or two, but it still sucked. the plates they released a year or two ago are a very "back to basics" plate - black characters on a white background. much more readable, but also rather bland compared to the stuff we've had in the past. before they got all fancy with the graphics, at least the texas flag was in color, or there was a red silhouette of the state in the center of the plate...
 
DT MI said:
To put that in perspective the individual letters/numbers are 2.75" high by 1.125" wide - about 7cm by 2.9cm
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that's bigger than we have here on some, there are custom versions available in different colour combinations that make things even worse, red on black, purple on black etc that are hard enough to read yourself let alone with a camera
 
This is the worst one I've seen insofar as being legible. Imagine what it looked like when a bit dirty.

MIPlate.jpg
 
the black background with coloured letters are the worst, the front plates are quite small also so catching plates in oncoming traffic can be a challenge

b3fe4ca76ff3327cce4b7d365c6a56c7.jpg
 
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