rPi SpyCam
This idea is not original. Although I did think of it independently, I also researched it on the interwebs to see if I was the only one. Thankfully, I am not, but that doesn't mean that the idea is any less a Mad Tech Idea. (link)There are literally dozens of manufacturers that make both analogue and digital cameras for monitoring. A major player in that game is Nest for the recent acquisition DropCam. The Dropcam is small, light, and easy to setup. But it's a bit pricey at $200 and to boot it's nothing more than Network / IP Cam. Granted it does have a pretty nice cloud infrastructure to support the video feed. But that feed is closed and it is not easy to hack a Nest Cam for your own purposes.
A Raspberry Pi based camera could offer a great deal more features and add-ons. Although it would take up more room than a Nest Cam, it would offer more capacity for the user to manage if not make changes to the device.
One of the gripes that is commonly chatted in the forums for Nest is a problem with control of Night Vision. If a user mounts a Nest Cam on the inside of a window, to view the outside, at night the Night Vision (infrared LEDs) reflects back to the camera from the window. Although the LEDs can be turned off, the Night Vision is also turned off (without the LEDs).
The rPi Cam could have all sorts of applications applied to it. The previously mentioned control of Night Vision is just one. Another idea could include Internet of Things control where Zigbee or Zwave devices could have a connection to the rPi Cam for sensory inputs. Or the Cam could be controlled by the IoT. And yet another could be that rather than powered by land-based power, the rPi Cam could use batteries, or even solar.
Ideally, these inclusions would be Open Source Hardware add-ons, collected into categories like that of AdaFruit rPi add-ons. Pre-build or designed so that they are easy to connect / install. Adaptability is the key to advancement. Now to build my empire from Pi!
Source: MakeZine
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