1. Personal accomplishments for the week
1.1 Identification of equipment for procurement
Quantities of items below include spares
- IMX219-160 (FOV 160°) camera
Cost: $20 per unit
Quantity: 3I did some research on cameras that would be suitable for our envisioned use case. Our use case imposes the following requirements for the camera system:- High color accuracy and dynamic range
- High resolution — at least 5MP
- High field of view (FOV) — at least 120°
- Small form factor — less than 2 inches in each dimension
- Low power
- Low noise
- Low cost — less than $30 per camera
I decided that the IMX219-160 (FOV 160°) was a suitable choice of camera. In addition to exceeding cost saving expectations, it provides the added benefit of easy Raspberry Pi (RPi) integration. The possibility of adding flat ribbon connector extensions minimizes the profile of wires that are routed to the fridge exterior.
- LED Ring Light (for internal fridge lighting)
Cost: $7.50
Quantity: 1 - A4988 Stepper Motor Driver (for DIY camera slider)
Cost: $7.60
Quantity: 2 - 12V Stepper Motor (for DIY camera slider)
Cost: $13
Quantity: 2 - Timing pulley and belt (for DIY camera slider)
Cost: $12
Quantity: 2 belts, 4 pulleys
1.2 Camera Slider Design
I believed that a commercially built motorized slider might present integration issues with our RPi. This led to the decision to build the slider ourselves. I am referencing this DIY tutorial, we will only deviate from by using an RPi instead of an Arduino.
2. Progress status
I am currently on schedule and have completed the tasks set out for the week.
3. Goals for upcoming week
For the upcoming week, I would like to
- Acquire the equipment outlined above
- Test the camera within the confines of the fridge
- Develop data transmission pipeline from the camera to the RPi
- Develop transmission pipeline from RPi to cloud server (ownCloud), if time permits