Several questions on the parking modes

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ANI

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I received my A119 v3 for a few weeks ago and have now obtained some experience on the various parking modes available in the camera. Curiously enough, it seems that none of the parking modes behave according to my expectations... :)

It may well be that my expectations were not correct, but I'd like to get a confirmation if the behaviors I have seen are really expected.

My camera has a GPS mount and it is powered via the GPS mount. I do not have the 3-wire hardwire kit but instead I use the Lukas LK-350 hardware kit which I have used for some years already along with my old Mobius camera that now got replaced with A119 v3. I have experienced with different cut-off voltages (11.8-12.4V) but have not noticed any difference. My car has a fresh AGM battery that is in good condition and the voltage very rarely goes below 12V (I can monitor the battery voltage in real time with my cellphone).

A119v3 Firmware V2.1 Build 20201113.

Then about my first impressions on some of the various parking modes:

1) Low Bitrate Recording & Time Lapse recording:

The car enters in the Parking Mode as expected, but I assumed the recording to continue in the parking mode until the GPS module detects a speed above 8 km/h. What happens instead, is that whenever motion is detected while in Parking Mode, the camera enters full recording mode for about 45 seconds. And what's worse, entering from Parking Mode to normal recording mode stops the recording for about 5-10 seconds that may be just the critical moments in the event detected!

Is it really expected that Low Bitrate and Time lapse recording should behave like this? I tried to find a way to switch off the motion detection while in these Parking Modes but have not found a way to do it.

I was under the impression that these parking modes do exist to enable a longer recording history while the car is parked e.g. on the street while working in the office. However, if the street is not quiet, the camera records practically continuously at full quality, effectively nullifying the Low Bitrate & Time Lapse recording mode advantages... And the recording breaks just after detecting motion (=when the camera switches from LBR / TL recording to full quality recording) is definitely not something I desire.

2) Auto Event Detection Parking Mode

This mode should record about 15 seconds before the event and 30 seconds after the event at full quality. It seems to do that, but when I start driving, the parking mode does not usually switch off when the GPS speed exceeds 8 km/h - which I expected based on what I read in the forum... Instead it may continue in parking mode for e.g. about 10 minutes or even the whole trip (maybe tens of kilometers driving at 100 km/h). And when the camera stays in this mode while driving, after every 45 seconds there is a pause of about 15 seconds in the recording (obviously flushing the event detection buffer into the memory card and restarting the event detection take that time). Not something I desired or was expecting...

3) Parking mode with Parking Recording Duration set to nonzero value

I also have experimented with setting the Parking Recording Duration timer to 4 hours. It seems that the parking recording stops as expected, but when I start the car after that, it occasionally (quite often but not every time!) happens that the first trip after that will not get recorded at all, i.e. the camera does not wake up and start recording. Instead the camera wakes up only during the next car startup.

I wonder if anyone has any ideas on how to get this to word as expected, too - or were my expectations just incorrect or too ambitious...?
 
Last edited:
ANI said:
I received my A119 v3 for a few weeks ago and have now obtained some experience on the various parking modes available in the camera. Curiously enough, it seems that none of the parking modes behave according to my expectations... :)

It may well be that my expectations were not correct, but I'd like to get a confirmation if the behaviors I have seen are really expected.

My camera has a GPS mount and it is powered via the GPS mount. I do not have the 3-wire hardwire kit but instead I use the Lukas LK-350 hardware kit which I have used for some years already along with my old Mobius camera that now got replaced with A119 v3. I have experienced with different cut-off voltages (11.8-12.4V) but have not noticed any difference. My car has a fresh AGM battery that is in good condition and the voltage very rarely goes below 12V (I can monitor the battery voltage in real time with my cellphone).

A119v3 Firmware V2.1 Build 20201113.

Then about my first impressions on some of the various parking modes:

1) Low Bitrate Recording & Time Lapse recording:

The car enters in the Parking Mode as expected, but I assumed the recording to continue in the parking mode until the GPS module detects a speed above 8 km/h. What happens instead, is that whenever motion is detected while in Parking Mode, the camera enters full recording mode for about 45 seconds. And what's worse, entering from Parking Mode to normal recording mode stops the recording for about 5-10 seconds that may be just the critical moments in the event detected!

Is it really expected that Low Bitrate and Time lapse recording should behave like this? I tried to find a way to switch off the motion detection while in these Parking Modes but have not found a way to do it.

I was under the impression that these parking modes do exist to enable a longer recording history while the car is parked e.g. on the street while working in the office. However, if the street is not quiet, the camera records practically continuously at full quality, effectively nullifying the Low Bitrate & Time Lapse recording mode advantages... And the recording breaks just after detecting motion (=when the camera switches from LBR / TL recording to full quality recording) is definitely not something I desire.

2) Auto Event Detection Parking Mode

This mode should record about 15 seconds before the event and 30 seconds after the event at full quality. It seems to do that, but when I start driving, the parking mode does not usually switch off when the GPS speed exceeds 8 km/h - which I expected based on what I read in the forum... Instead it may continue in parking mode for e.g. about 10 minutes or even the whole trip (maybe tens of kilometers driving at 100 km/h). And when the camera stays in this mode while driving, after every 45 seconds there is a pause of about 15 seconds in the recording (obviously flushing the event detection buffer into the memory card and restarting the event detection take that time). Not something I desired or was expecting...

3) Parking mode with Parking Recording Duration set to nonzero value

I also have experimented with setting the Parking Recording Duration timer to 4 hours. It seems that the parking recording stops as expected, but when I start the car after that, it occasionally (quite often but not every time!) happens that the first trip after that will not get recorded at all, i.e. the camera does not wake up and start recording. Instead the camera wakes up only during the next car startup.

I wonder if anyone has any ideas on how to get this to word as expected, too - or were my expectations just incorrect or too ambitious...?
Click to expand...
I only use Viofo's 3-wire kit and do not know about what would happen to V119 V3 with a third party 2-wire kit. Without a 3-wire kit, you need to enter the parking mode manually. Just need to make sure that "P" is displayed on A119 V3. According to Viofo, your current FW 2.1 should solve the issue of A119 V3 entering into parking mode without their 3-wire kit. Also, recording during parking mode is not controlled/triggered by GPS.
 
Can anyone using Viofo's 3-wire kit confirm how the parking mode recording behaves:

1) when e.g. low bitrate recording is selected, does the camera record in low bitrate mode as long as the car is parked - or does it change to full recording mode as soon as it detects motion, and after the motion is recorded it sets itself again to low bitrate recording mode?

2) when parking recording duration is set to a nonzero value, does the camera start up reliably every time the car is started - also after having been parked so long that A119V3 has stopped recording triggered by the parking recording duration value.
 
ANI said:
Can anyone using Viofo's 3-wire kit confirm how the parking mode recording behaves:

1) when e.g. low bitrate recording is selected, does the camera record in low bitrate mode as long as the car is parked - or does it change to full recording mode as soon as it detects motion, and after the motion is recorded it sets itself again to low bitrate recording mode?

2) when parking recording duration is set to a nonzero value, does the camera start up reliably every time the car is started - also after having been parked so long that A119V3 has stopped recording triggered by the parking recording duration value.
Click to expand...
Low Bitrate mode will constantly record in that mode. It does not rely on motion to record.
Yes, the camera will start back up normally once the car has started.
 
I wonder if the ferrite choke is really needed in the HK3 kit...
HK3-1.jpg
My current installation is pretty discreet and I'd like to remove the choke if I replace my current HW kit with HK3... unless it really does have a practical impact on the A119v3 operation.

I wonder if anyone happens to have any experimental knowledge on the subject?
 
The purpose of a ferrite choke is to filter and to minimize high frequency interference in power supply line. Viofo’s power line between their 12V/24V adapter and their dash cam does not have an external ferrite choke. Viofo might have an internal “filter” inside their 12V/24V adapter. My personal opinion is to leave the ferrite choke there. In earlier days, when I tried to power my CB radio directly from vehicle’s 12V, I always got static interference if no filter was used.
 
Since there is no choke in the standard USB cable that ships with the camera, and the 12/24V adapter is not integrated with the standard USB cable, I was thinking that maybe there is really no practical need for the choke in HK3 either. I mean, in many modern cars there is a built-in USB connector, so one could just plug the standard USB cable in the car without using the 12/24V adapter.

So I think that there would be a good chance that the possible choke inside the 12/24V adapter would not be used when using the camera in modern cars. (Or otherwise there would be a good chance that problems would arise when using just the standard USB cable without the 12/24V adapter).

Maybe I'm just missing something obvious...
 
First is that many cars USB ports do not have sufficient power for dashcams so it's not a recommended practice to use them this way ;) Also the car designers have shielded and choked those voltage converters and ports behind the dash where you can't see them.

EMI from a dashcam PS may or may not be a problem for someone- placement, car electronics, radio type and usage, and wireless car systems all vary considerably so you may or may not need the RF choke on the dashcam PS but it does no harm to have it. I'd leave it in place of at all possible.

Phil
 
ANI said:
Since there is no choke in the standard USB cable that ships with the camera, and the 12/24V adapter is not integrated with the standard USB cable, I was thinking that maybe there is really no practical need for the choke in HK3 either. I mean, in many modern cars there is a built-in USB connector, so one could just plug the standard USB cable in the car without using the 12/24V adapter.

So I think that there would be a good chance that the possible choke inside the 12/24V adapter would not be used when using the camera in modern cars. (Or otherwise there would be a good chance that problems would arise when using just the standard USB cable without the 12/24V adapter).

Maybe I'm just missing something obvious...
Click to expand...
First, this dash cam is not powered directly through vehicle’s 12V/24V power supply. This DVR uses 5V power supply. The adapter and the HK3 convert 12V/24V vehicle power into 5V. In most cases, the included 12V/24V to 5V adapter is just to power up A119 V3 when vehicle is started. The adapter loses power supply when the vehicle is off. The HK3 is “on” all the time. The HK3 switches A119 V3 into “driving” mode or into parking mode (through ACC). Potentially, the HK3 power supply might be “relatively” sensitive to interference in terms of controlling A119 V3. This might be the reason(s) for Viofo to put a ferrite choke just before the power supply and control signal into A119 V3. Just my speculation. Viofo should have the official explanation.
 
jokiin said:
yes, it doesn't pass EMC without it, it's there for good reason
Click to expand...
This is the reason for the choke; it's required by law. All electronic devices emit "Electro-Magnetic Interference" or EMI, which is essentially unwanted radio wave type noise. Laws limit the type and strength of the noise emitted to help assure that it does not interfere with other electronic devices. Before such items can be sold they must be tested and confirmed to be in compliance with the laws where the sales are being made to. The standards vary based on location but are actively enforced in the US, UK, EU, and elsewhere.

Here in the US the end user can legally alter the electronic devices they own so long as they do not interfere with anyone other than the owner and that they do not emit in excess of 100mW effective radiated power or interfere with any licensed communications service. You are not permitted to transfer altered devices to anyone else. I'm not certain of the legality of altered devices elsewhere, but if it's not causing problems (which in this case it probably won't) then I wouldn't be concerned about the laws too much.

Most likely is that if moving or removing the choke affects someone it will be you and your vehicle, and most likely will be discovered as interfering with key-fob unlocking, radio reception, tire pressure monitoring systems, and possibly security systems. It may also interfere with your phone or other wifi or bluetooth enabled devices. If it's snap-on choke it's easily moved or removed; I would recommend that if it's in the way you move it as little as is necessary to get it out of the way. If it's molded into the cable it will be tougher to alter. Just be aware that making this or any other change will void the warranty for your HWK, and it might also affect the cam's operation too but I think that highly unlikely.

When you make changes to something you need to be at least as smart as whoever designed it or your changes might make things worse instead of improving them.

Phil
 
Just out of curiosity, I decided to purchase one extra HK3 kit and peeled off the molded ferrite choke. I did the first test drive & parking with HK3 without the choke a couple of days ago. When checking the recordings I did not notice any problems whatsoever with them.

Also no problems while driving or using the car. Everything seems to be exactly like when I tried the cable with the choke installed: Radio & phone continue to work without problems, car's keyless entry system responds as usual etc.

If the choke is required by law and exists there to protect other devices from interference caused by the dashcam, it would seem to me that the choke should prevent the cam to use the USB cable as an "external antenna" (this would make send since the choke is molded near the camera's end of the cable). But if this is the case, I wonder why is there no choke in the cams regular USB cable... I think the camera should emit equally with the regular USB cable and with the HK3 cable...

Well, anyway, I think that unless I'm going to find some anomalies within the next few days (or read a good argument from some of you ;)), I'm gong to install the cable without the choke permanently.
 
Perhaps whatever the choke moderates is not something which would affect your car but could affect other cars and devices. As long as no harm is being done you could leave it off.

As to the differences between the regular PS and the HWK, the HK3 has just been discovered to have a huge amount of voltage ripple and that might be why it needs the choke. The regular PS will be a different type of PCB and circuit, likely an off-the-shelf board assembly bought in by Viofo as these are common and made by many, while the HWK would have little use beyond a dashcam so might be made in-house.

Phil
 
Thank you for your explanation again, Phil!

As a layman I still wonder two things however...

First, it's hard for me to figure out why the interference would affect only other cars. I mean, if we are talking about RF interference, the electronics in my car would be the closest targets, so I would expect it to affect my own car (and/or the phone in my pocket) more than to other cars and devices which are further away from the PS.

And second: yes, on the other hand it would make sense to me that the choke exists in the HK3 cable for the reason you described, but if that is the case, why is the choke at the camera's end of the cable - instead of being near the PS where I'd expect it to eliminate the interference more effectively than at the other end of the USB "antenna"?
 
Tech question- I assume the HK3 controls the parking mode by using other pins in the mini USB plug- that the normal USB power supply doesn't use? Is that correct?

I'm just wondering if there's a way to integrate such a parking kit via the standard USB power cable? To save replacing the existing hidden/ hardwired USB cable to the camera.
 
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