Camera Overview

Finding a good camera shouldn’t be too difficult given how many cameras exist now. They are literally everywhere.

Camera Criteria

I learned right away that the cameras were pretty much all standardized. They came in a few flavors but overall they were either too small, too wide, or too expensive. That helped me limit stuff down a lot.

  • small
  • not much distortion (fish eye is bad)
  • resolution > 720p
  • color
  • USB preferable

Preferences

  • Embeddable
  • Flush mounted
  • White
  • 1080p
  • hardened housing

Hardware Choices

First Find

I found this one right off by searching for “USB Camera”. It has a lot of good points that seem to match what I am looking for. I didn’t need the hardware shell but I can take that off I assume.

Specification:

  • Special intelligent video analysis triggering alarm
  • Imager sensor: Color 1⁄4” CMOS
  • Effective Pixels: 300K pixels
  • Resolution: 640*480
  • Frame rate: VGA/CIF@30FPS
  • Mini.Illumination: 0.5LUX
  • Lens: 3.6mm
  • White balance: Auto
  • SNR : 49Db
  • Interface: USB2.0
  • Video Format: YUY2
  • OS: Windows 2003/2008/XP/Vista/WIN7
  • Power: DC 5V, Power from PC

Second Find

This one seemed pretty cool as an option:

It also came with a mini processor to send the data out. I just didn’t need all that.

This picture specifically cracked me up.

By The Whiskey

Seriously? It’s like the whiskey mouse.

Final Choice

I wanted to have a smaller camera for a visible footprint. I also know that the image quality doesn’t have to be very good to get a face match. In fact I will probably decrease the size of the image when it comes over. If I used a 1080p camera it would be wasted data.

  • 100 degree M7 lens usb webcam for wide angle video image
  • Standard M7 mini lens with super wide angle FOV(D)138 (H)100 Degree
  • max 1280X720@ 30fps HD 720P high resolution
  • usb2.0 high speed mini size 32x32/26x26mm for small space insert
  • 1 Meter usb cord cable, support raspberry pi, opencv etc.

Specification:

  • Sensor OV9712
  • Lens Size 1⁄4 inch
  • Pixel Size 3.0um X 3.0um
  • image area 3888m x 2430m
  • Max. Resolution 1280(H)X720(V)
  • Compression format MJPEG / YUV2（YUYV）
  • Resolution & frame MJPEG：320X240@ 30fps, 352X288@ 30fps
  • 640X360@60fps,640X480@ 30fps
  • 800X600@ 30fps,1280X720@ 30fps
  • YUV： 320X240@ 30fps,352X288@ 30fps
  • 640X360@30fps,640X480@ 30fps
  • 800X600@ 15fps,1280X720@ 5fps
  • S/N Ratio 40dB
  • Dynamic Range 69dB
  • Sensitivity 3.7V/lux-sec@550nm
  • Mini illumination 0. 1lux
  • Shutter Type Electronic rolling shutter / Frame exposure
  • Connecting Port type USB2.0 High Speed
  • Free Drive Protocol USB Video Class（UVC）
  • Support OTG Protocol USB2.0 OTG
  • AEC Support
  • AEB Support
  • AGC Support
  • Adjustable parameters Brightness, Contrast, Saturation, Hue, Sharpness, Gamma,Gain, White balance, Backlight Contrast, Exposure
  • Lens Parameter Standard M7 LENS FOV(D)138 (H)100 Degree
  • LED board power connector Support 2P-2.0mm socket
  • Power supply USB BUS POWER 4P-2.0mm socket
  • Power supply DC5V
  • Operating Voltage 120mA~180mA
  • Working current -10～70℃
  • Working temperature -20～85℃
  • Board size /Weight 32X32mm（Compatible 26X26mm）/ about 30g
  • Cable Standard 1M
  • Operating system request Win7 Win8,Mac os, Linux 2.6 or above,Android 4.0 or above