The wishlist for motorcycle and ridding camera

RockThinking

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Dash Cam
INNOVV C1, C2, C3
People are discussing how to make the existing cameras to work as motorcycle camera.
We know these cameras designed and developed are for its intended purpose, may no good for now what we wanted though.

Why not design and develop a camera dedicated for motorcycling?
As the developer, I am very interested and would like to learn the ideas and needs for what a professional motorcycling camera would be.
 
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Why not? that would be a good to create a professional motorcycling cam for people's need. :)
 
There is definitely a market for this and the few examples I have seen so far have not been designed correctly, they've either been designed by people that ride motorbikes that know nothing about cameras or by camera manufacturers that know nothing about motorbikes

I've ridden motorbikes for 35 years so it's something I'm very interested in doing
 
Why not? That would be a good news you have experience in ridding and like to develop a professional motorcycling cam.

Let's work together!:)
 
There is at least two types of cameras needed for motorcycling: helmet cameras and motorcycle mounted cameras.
I think that there is a good offer in helmet cameras in the market, as their use is not exclusive to motorcycling.

Motorcycle mounted cameras not so much.
A motorcycle mounted camera would be most useful as a dash cam in case of a crash, for insurance and police purposes.
The features I think are needed for motorcycle mounted camera are:
  • small and discreet (all black, no chrome, only 1 led when powered) to not draw attention and be easy to mount
  • waterproof for those rainy days
  • permanent orientable mount (allowing to be screwed in place), to avoid being robbed and allow weird mounting angles in fairing
  • external power, and auto-start when power on, essential in a dashcam
  • replaceable lens cover to avoid lens scratches when a bug/sand/small rocks hit it.
  • cheap: vibration and objects hitting it will make it's life short anyway, so better be cheap to replace.
  • wide angle and good image quality even in low light (goes without saying)
  • an external mic input to connect to the intercom system would be nice.
 
Thanks for the good input!

Yes, as you could see, there are two kinds of mounting.
So far most action camera works as helmet cameras could be used as motorcycling camera as no other better selection.
But it lacks the point you mentioned,
  • external power, and auto-start when power on, essential in a dashcam
  • an external mic input to connect to the intercom system would be nice
The current dashcam on marketing may not good to mount on bar.
 
One essential feature that is needed in a motorcycle camera would be a replaceable clear lens filter to protect the lens from sand and particles striking the lens when driven at speed. Without some sort of replaceable lens protection this will be a "disposable" camera after a relatively short amount of time. Where I live in a rural area even car windshields need to be replaced periodically as they end up covered in tiny pock marks that can obscure your vision when the sun hits the glass from an angle.
 
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Been riding about 35 years and running a camera on my bike for about 5 years now, started with a cheap digital camcorder clamped to the handlebars with a Manfrotto quick release clamp, then moved over to Contour cameras.

I have a ContourROAM2 helmetcam for use on the bike and personally it is pretty much perfect for the job:
1. The glass in front lens is removable.
2. Waterproof to 1 metre.
3. Three hour battery life, removable would be better but would probably affect waterproofness.
4. The camera body is metal so should survive an impact.
5. Because the camera is shaped like a bullet rather than a mini digital camera it is lower profile and you don't need to stick it on top of your helmet and hit door frames when you walk through them.
6. The camera within the body can be rotated to level up the image, with a laser line to check the level.

A couple of improvements I would make to the ROAM2:
7. Add a decent sized eyelet that I can attach a 'proper' safety cable to it. The original clip that comes with it feels week, instead I now have a short length of stainless steel wire with a carabiner on the end that attaches to the chin strap, so if I have an accident the camera should stay with me even if knocked off the mount.
8. A removable battery would be good.

For a fixed bike recorder I would pretty much like the same as I would like with a car but waterproof.
1. Must do 1080P recording.
2. Instead of having the recorder and camera in one unit I feel it would be better to plug the camera into the recording box, which could be hidden within the back box or under the seat. This would mean that you would have camera options to suit your needs rather than one size fits all, like widescreen or normal lens, or the camera could be drilled into a fairing. Much better for security too. I feel this solution would be good for car cameras too, heat would be less of a problem if you can make the unit a little larger and/or add a heatsink too.
3. The ability to flip the image on the horizontal/vertical axis. A friend tried to setup a camera on their bike that was based on a reversing camera which meant that the image was confusing when viewing it normally because the left/right was flipped and words were reversed, with a few simple options this wouldn't be a problem.
4. I know a few people(non-bikers) that feel GPS is a great idea, personally I am not convinced about the positives on a motorcycle. Motorcycles often exceed the speed limit, after an accident it is possible to argue that the actual speed just looks a little fast because they are not used to riding a bike. Having a video that shows you are speeding in the event of an accident I feel is a bad idea. Also in the UK at least, the police can seize the memory card if they feel that it has evidence of an offence, without GPS the speed in a video is open to argument in court and you could muddy the waters a bit arguing that TVs are 25/50fps, the camera is 30/60fps etc, it won't stop a 100mph in a 50mph zone conviction but it might save a 60mph in a 50mph zone from conviction. Having the speed on the video will just prosecute yourself.
5. Having the camera config saved as a txt/cfg file on the memory card that can be edited via a text editor if required.
6. One I have always wondered about is a feature that is on CCTV cameras, why not switch to black/white during low light recordings. In the event of an accident your main goal is to get evidence of what happened, the fact a car is dark red or blue is much less of a concern than gathering usable evidence.

As mentioned above:
7. Auto start/stop when the bike is started.
 
The good points!:)
That is the exactly right needs.

We have been working on the new development that would be right suitable for motorcycling.
We are thinking about what functions/features need to bring to the camera,
but worrying the development specification we made is not good enough.
So I tried to create the thread and asking for ideas.
To be honest, I never expect there are a list of output from people's solid experience.

Also that give me a good idea,
Why not share and discuss with people when we have the product idea in mind?
We can learn a lot from real need during the development.
Now all discussion based on the product is finished. and it is too late for improvement.
 
I've always liked the approach JVC has taken in designing their Adixxion action cam. The concept of building a rugged camera that is waterproof without the need for an additional case is unique and worthwhile. A camera designed specifically for vehicle use but with many of the features they've included in the Adixxion GC-XA2 such as WiFi, integral screen, 1920x1080 60 fps, EIS & gyro image stabilizer, flip-able camera orientation and dual tripod mounting option could make for a good motorcycle camera.

JVC-01.jpg

JVC-02.jpg
 
Sport camera always can work as motorcycling camera if you do not required more.

For the guys riding motorcycle 10 years, 20 years, the need would be different.
 
I wasn't suggesting a sports camera for use on a motorcycle, only that some of the features from the JVC Adixxion would be useful in a dedicated motorcycle camera, especially a waterproof, shockproof camera that doesn't require an external case.
 
How does it make shockproof?
I know people may use a long arm mount on bar to absorb shock.
 
How does it make shockproof?
I know people may use a long arm mount on bar to absorb shock.

I don't know the methods used but in the LINK I included in my previous post they publish the specs:

Waterproof: 5m/16.4ft, IEC Standard publication 529 IPX8
Shockproof: 2m/6.5ft, MIL-STD 810F Method 516.5-Shock
Dustproof: IEC Standard publication 529
IP6X Freezeproof: -10°C/14°F

The EIS (electronic image stabilization) and GYRO (gyroscopic image stabilization) seems very interesting too.
 
I did not test these functions, do not know how it works.

How is the mounts on motorcycle, how to absorb shock and others.
Blow is from one of motorcyclist, I would like to learn more.

INNOVV+CAM00050.jpg


The blog is below,
http://innovvactioncam.blogspot.com/2014/03/innovv-c1-motocrcyclist.html
 
Just a thought, front & rear cameras. Many people have been rear ended, sitting at a light, etc.
 
That is the idea would be thinking about it.
 
Motorcycle manufacturers go to great lengths to fit mirrors that do not vibrate. Handlebars are often fitted with weights at the ends to act as mass vibration dampers. Why not mount a camera on the mirror stem or, even better, mount a discrete camera inside a replacement purpose-designed mirror body?

Mirror bodies are large enough to take the workings of a camera plus a decent sized battery

To take it further, how about a front view camera on one side of the handlebar (or fairing), and rear view on the other?

Having said all that, I would still prefer a discrete helmet mounted system, but something that fits flip-front, full-face, and open-face helmets in one solution is quite a design problem!

PS. A helmet mounted microphone would also be ideal to make verbal notes of registration numbers, etc.
 
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