Senior Design Projects
ECS193 A/B Winter & Spring 2019
DIY web cameras network
| ********** | |
| Shane Waddell | |
| JMIE/NRS |
Project's details
| DIY web cameras network | |
| The Quail Ridge Reserve ( https://naturalreserves.ucdavis.edu/quail-ridge-reserve ) is an outdoor research laboratory for ecologists, biologists and computer scientists. The reserve infrastructure features a wifi network allowing sensors and cameras to collect data autonomously. The network currently consists of 45 sites, most solar-powered, distributed over 3000 acres. Trail cameras are a great way to capture images of animals day or night. Motion-activation, infrared flash, and image quality are key components of a good camera. Most off-the-shelf trail cameras do not have telemetry options, requiring frequent visits to download SD cards and change batteries. These cameras can also be quite expensive and/or they do not have all of the required features of a project. We propose to develop a DIY web camera that would work with the existing wifi network on our 12V solar system to monitor wildlife at the Reserve. We would then be able to create a network of cameras throughout the Reserve. A second part of the project would be to create a framework for ingesting and archiving photos. This could include some simple image recognition to exclude photos with no animals in them and the use of a crowdsourcing site ( https://www.zooniverse.org/ ) to categorize photos. | |
| Students would research, build, and test low-cost web cameras. They will assess needs and limitations of various types of cameras, image quality, trigger speed, and network capabilities. The students would create a platform for photo organization, identifying animals, and storage. | |
| • One of more prototype cameras to deploy and test • A central data structure for organization, identifying animals, and storage • Clear documentation in Github or equivalent | |
| • Knowledge of cameras • Willingness to tinker with electronics • Knowledge or experience with database APIs ( retrieving data ), pre-processing data, and data visualization tools | |
| ********** | |
| 30-60 min weekly or more | |
| Open source project | |
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