Would this wiring modification work? To enable a second dash-cam to be fitted and power both in Parking mode?

[Submariner Gold]

Could use some electrical expertise.

Current Installation:
1x Vicovation Vico MF3 1440p x 30 fps. This requires a 5V 1A USB Micro B power input.
Presently powered by the std. Cigar plug with a moulded lead terminating in a USB Micro B male.
Current Issues:
Takes up my only cigar/ power socket in the front console.
Only supports one camera. I prefer individual cameras re better image quality

Proposed solution:
Buy another Vico MF3 (or possibly even a Nextbase 612GW). To provide a front camera.

Buy One Belkin 2x Output USB Type A Plug charger. To go in the front console Cigar socket. E.g. like a :-
Belkin 2.1 A Universal Dual USB Car Charger for iPhone/iPad/iPad and Android Smartphones and Tablets - Black https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/B00J0NG3Z4
(This has two 2.1A USB outlets - enough to power both dashcams requiring 5V 1A each from the car’s Max. 15A cigar socket .)
£19

Then buy two 3 meter long USB 2.0 ‘High Charge’ Type A cables that terminate in a Micro USB plug (in order to get 5V 1A power to both dash-cams. ) i.e. discard the std. cigar plug and moulded leads that come with the MF3s.
E.g.
ULTRICS® Micro USB Cable [9ft - 3M] - Fastest, Most Durable Charging Cable, with Durable Metal Shell, Nylon Braided & 10000+ Bend Lifespan for Samsung Galaxy, HTC, Nokia, Nexus, LG, Motorola, Android Smartphones Tablets £5.99
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/B01NGZ1ZNQ£5.99 x2
As the cigar socket only works with the ign. On. This would only power the dash-cams when the engine was running.

Then for occaisional use only, if required say in rough areas, or supermarket car parks, use an external power bank, preferably with LiFePo4 internal batteries, to run the two MF3s In ‘parking’ mode. Actually I would not go for ‘parking mode’ per say, but prefer to just run the cams for a short duration, say generally 30 minutes, to 2 hours.
The car is safe at home ( famous last words) in a long, private, driveway off our quiet cul- de-sac.

So buy one of these
Tqka 20000mAh Portable Charger, 3.1A Dual USB Output Smart Charge External Battery, Ultra High Capacity Power Bank with LED Digital Display for iPhone, iPad, Samsung and More - Black https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/B073QQPKVY
£19.
Sadly this would mean manually unplugging the USB 2.0 Type A plugs and putting them into this units output ports. And swapping them back.
Not nice. but as I said for occaisional use.
The dashcams would at least come on automatically as soon as they sense power. Hopefully there is an on off switch.?? I Can’t see from the pics. :-/
Q. I assume it would be OK to just pull the USB cables out , whilst they are running ( I know when the cams loses acc. power they do shut down elegantly . And assume pulling the cables out would give the same result?

As for recharging the power Bank; This unit comes with a cigar plug charger terminating in a USB Micro B plug, so I could always top this up in the car using the cigar/power socket in the boot. I.e. when driving the boot socket tops up the power bank.
As the input is a micro B , 5V 2A I have a spare Samsung wall wart charger with those same specs.
Q I assume if the power bank’s input is a 2A USB 2 Micro B plug, then the samsung charger would be OK?

Total rewire and component cost £50. Plus another camera.

I can’t see anyway around replacing the cables i.e. the std power leads incorporating the charger plugs, as they are sadly moulded ones.
A) To support 2 cameras and B) if I want to use the Parking mode power bank.

I have discounted using the voltage limit cut off devices , as for me these are a “shutting the door after the horse has bolted” solution. I.e. you have already crucified your battery till its nearly on its knees.
Maybe fine for regular long haul drives, but problematic only doing add hoc short trips circa 2,400miles per annum
And a car laden with toys and gizmos, munching electricity.

Pros if this solution :
I can have 2 cameras , and run Parking mode off external ( safe ) battery power, and it can never degrade the cars battery voltage.

But will it work??

This all assumes that a device such as a dashcam will never draw more current than its spec. Declares. And no matter what marketing hype they spin on USB chargers it will never for the device to take in more current than is specified.
I.e. 2.1A sockets in the power bank, cant blow the cameras as they are 5V 1A.

Apologies if its long winded but the devil is always in the detail!

Any views on this proposed instalation is appreciated.

 

[jokiin]

long USB cables and a good quality double USB adapter is fine, 3M is unlikely to be long enough for the rear, may not even be long enough for the front unless you like cords dangling down, longer cables can give you a bit of voltage drop though which is something you need to take into account

 

[kamkar]

I put tree 12 V outlets in the back of my car, as problems with a long USB cable for my rear camera at the time meant i dident get direct footage of the event when i was rear ended.
This way i have 12 V right there at the back of the back seat, and no need for long cables + i can use the original power supplies that come with cameras as i also feel i am obligated to test those too.
In the front i have plenty of 2.4 A USB outlets that down the road can power cameras to make room for more in the tree 12 V outlets i also have there ( in my glove box )

 

[SawMaster]

Agree with Kamkar1 on extending the 12V instead if you can. It would be easy to use a double-pole switch to swap between a tap on the ciggie socket wire and a constant 12V source with the output going to hardwire kits for each cam. This way you have your ciggie socket back, the cams normally switch on and off with the car without your doing anything, and a flip of the switch gives parking power when you need that Pretty simple DIY and if you don't feel up to it any car audio shop or car mechanic should be able to do it economically, especially if you run the wires yourself.

Running 2 cams for 2 hours occasionally should be well within the capabilities of your car battery without stressing it much. You might lose a few weeks of it's service life which is hardly a consideration Longer than this or more frequently then you might want a BDP or powerbank but it's really not necessary here.

Phil

 

[Submariner Gold]

long USB cables and a good quality double USB adapter is fine, 3M is unlikely to be long enough for the rear, may not even be long enough for the front unless you like cords dangling down, longer cables can give you a bit of voltage drop though which is something you need to take into account

Thanks I need to check that by measurement

 

[Submariner Gold]

Agree with Kamkar1 on extending the 12V instead if you can. It would be easy to use a double-pole switch to swap between a tap on the ciggie socket wire and a constant 12V source with the output going to hardwire kits for each cam. This way you have your ciggie socket back, the cams normally switch on and off with the car without your doing anything, and a flip of the switch gives parking power when you need that Pretty simple DIY and if you don't feel up to it any car audio shop or car mechanic should be able to do it economically, especially if you run the wires yourself.

Running 2 cams for 2 hours occasionally should be well within the capabilities of your car battery without stressing it much. You might lose a few weeks of it's service life which is hardly a consideration Longer than this or more frequently then you might want a BDP or powerbank but it's really not necessary here.

Phil

Hi Phil
Thanks for the info.
Extending the 12V Sockets was my prefferred route.
As I could even use my supplied leads.
But I was stumped finding a LiFePo4 power pack with a 12V output ... they are all USB based. Well at least the > 20,000mA .. Circa £20 are.
I was amazed that none of the dashcam suppliers havent got a simple relay based box of tricks. I.e. acc. 12V live then powered by acc. Ign. If Acc. Is Off , then switched to other 12V source such as a power bank, with a manual switch to deactivate that. For when you dont need Parking mode.
Hence my compromise to use the £20 20,000mA LiFePo4 usb power bank. That has the horrible consequence of needing to manually swap out the USB cables ... and in my case thanks to the moulded cables at the cigar plug end ... needing to replace the cables for true usb ones . Due to manual intervention, it also means having them both up front as S Class Coupes are a mare to scramble into the back seat area, ref the manual swap of the USb cables.

 

[gr1nch]

Agree with Kamkar1 on extending the 12V instead if you can. It would be easy to use a double-pole switch to swap between a tap on the ciggie socket wire and a constant 12V source with the output going to hardwire kits for each cam. This way you have your ciggie socket back, the cams normally switch on and off with the car without your doing anything, and a flip of the switch gives parking power when you need that Pretty simple DIY and if you don't feel up to it any car audio shop or car mechanic should be able to do it economically, especially if you run the wires yourself.

Running 2 cams for 2 hours occasionally should be well within the capabilities of your car battery without stressing it much. You might lose a few weeks of it's service life which is hardly a consideration Longer than this or more frequently then you might want a BDP or powerbank but it's really not necessary here.

Phil

Hi Phil
Thanks for the info.
Extending the 12V Sockets was my prefferred route.
As I could even use my supplied leads.
But I was stumped finding a LiFePo4 power pack with a 12V output ... they are all USB based. Well at least the > 20,000mA .. Circa £20 are.
I was amazed that none of the dashcam suppliers havent got a simple relay based box of tricks. I.e. acc. 12V live then powered by acc. Ign. If Acc. Is Off , then switched to other 12V source such as a power bank, with a manual switch to deactivate that. For when you dont need Parking mode.
Hence my compromise to use the £20 20,000mA LiFePo4 usb power bank. That has the horrible consequence of needing to manually swap out the USB cables ... and in my case thanks to the moulded cables at the cigar plug end ... needing to replace the cables for true usb ones . Due to manual intervention, it also means having them both up front as S Class Coupes are a mare to scramble into the back seat area, ref the manual swap of the USb cables.

A 3m cable might well be too short for the front. My car (Mercedes W222) has a similarly dimensioned front compartment and I used a 5m cable, with only 10cm to spare, from the dashcam on the passenger side (so closest to the USB socket) routed down the windscreen (not down the A pillar), door, glovebox, horizontally along the armrest, then into the inside to the battery and USB socket.

Also is worth measuring the current draw on your dashcam. Mine measured 0.4A at 5V. This helps with assessing the right sized powerbank and cable ratings.

Sent from my G3112 using Tapatalk

 

[Submariner Gold]

A 3m cable might well be too short for the front. My car (Mercedes W222) has a similarly dimensioned front compartment and I used a 5m cable, with only 10cm to spare, from the dashcam on the passenger side (so closest to the USB socket) routed down the windscreen (not down the A pillar), door, glovebox, horizontally along the armrest, then into the inside to the battery and USB socket.

Also is worth measuring the current draw on your dashcam. Mine measured 0.4A at 5V. This helps with assessing the right sized powerbank and cable ratings.

Sent from my G3112 using Tapatalk

Thanks I got to the cigar lighter sockt with 4m and a bit to spare. Probably too tight to get it to the glove compartment for a power brick.