My AllSky setup

[ericofpendom]

I have recently been developing my own take on the Raspberry Pi AllSky setup and would like to share it with the group. I think it is quite unconventional, although some may know different, and it was inspired a few weeks ago by a video I saw on YT. I have searched for the source of this inspiration but can't find it. Anyway, I have had a couple of goes at getting an AllSky setup going but without success and with the release of the new version I thought I would give it another go. I have had a few challenges along the way but with the help and support of a local AllSky user, I have managed to get to a point where I think it will work. All I need now are some clear skies.

I have gone against having all the kit in the same enclosure as I am able to mount the Pi and other circuitry in my loft with easy access. So all I have in the outside enclosure is the HQ camera, a temp/humidity sensor, heater ring, and a fan. All the necessary cables just run under the tiles and into the loft space.

The jar that the camera is in was from a local supermarket and came cheap because someone had removed the silicone seal from the lid. No problem, I just bought another storage jar from a bargain store and adapted the size of the lid to suit the slightly smaller jar. It helps to have a woodturning lathe :-)). I tested the rig outside for a night and it rained, the lid swelled and it took me two and a half days to dry it out so I could remove it without breaking the glass :-((

I then used the lathe again to create a lid from HDPE with two seals, now it seems very watertight.

I have used a Raspberry Pi4 4Gb with an 480Gb SSD. I have an Arduino Nano connected to the Pi via USB that controls the sensors, heater and fan. I decided to make my own heater ring from 16x 1watt, 220 ohm resistors and a bit of proto board. the fan is a 12v unit from an old small form factor PC case and I am using two SHT21 based temperature/humidity sensors, 1 inside and the other outside.

I take temp and humidity readings from the outside sensor and calculate the dew point and create a target temp that is 5 degrees above dew point. I then make sure that the inside temp is equal to or greater than the target temp. The Arduino handles all this, and I have a 5v relay to switch a 12v supply to the heater.

The Pi and heater are supplied power using an old PC PSU and the Arduino is powered via the Pi USB port.

I have included some pictures below that show my creation. I hope you like it and if you have any questions then please feel free to ask.

[Alex-developer]

Love it :-)

Its always great to see novel approaches to building these cameras.

Only a couple of observations

1. How well is it waterproofed?
2. I wonder how the ribbon cable will do exposed to direct sunlight

I also like the very neat wiring :-)

Alex

[ericofpendom]

Thanks Alex, there are two seals on the lid and it is a very tight fit. I have gone to a lot of trouble to get the umbilical's as watertight as possible. I actually passed them through a piece of silicone tubing that I inserted into the lid from the outside edge. I wasn't aware that there might be a problem with the ribbon cable but I have a spare and I could probably shield it with something. I shall do some googling re the cables limits.

[Alex-developer]

Thanks Alex, there are two seals on the lid and it is a very tight fit. I have gone to a lot of trouble to get the umbilical's as watertight as possible. I actually passed them through a piece of silicone tubing that I inserted into the lid from the outside edge. I wasn't aware that there might be a problem with the ribbon cable but I have a spare and I could probably shield it with something. I shall do some googling re the cables limits.

There may not be an issue with the ribbon cable but the Sun can be very powerful !

Can you post some images from it - would love to see how the camera copes in a cylindrical tube

I am not sure how far you can run the ribbon cable before it starts to fail but a while ago I bought one of these (https://thepihut.com/products/cable-extension-kit-for-raspberry-pi-camera-modules-v1-v2-v3-hq?variant=42883116728515) which allows you to run the camera over a cat 5 connection upto 10 meters

[ericofpendom]

Hi Alex, I am using a 2 meter ribbon cable and I have used it for a few years now without issue. This is more than long enough for my needs.
I will post some blue sky pictures that I captured.

[ericofpendom]

Here is an image from early evening yesterday.