FPV kits

davedb

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Hello I’m wanting to use a first person camera to monitor a remote controlled pump is there any kits that work well on long distances (a mile) Any recommendations suggestions much appreciated
 
You can buy a 5.8Ghz transmitter that is capable of ranges of over a few miles. Some of the more cheaper ones ..............£20.51 can transmit a distance of 2Km [1.24mile]. I've bought a few over the years for my various FPV setups. The is a legal limit in the UK for mw's, but most of mine are 200mw, 600mw and more. I use 2 x 5.8ghz monitors to view but the receiever's just plug into a TV monitor are cheap too. The transmitters will run hot as primarly there on a drone being cooled down by the passing cold air but the higher mw ones are fitted with a cooling fan. I mounted one of the TX's into a box with an ariel allowing me to connect any CCVT to it when fitting on a wall so I can see the viewing angle prior to wiring.
lr fpv.jpg
 
Here's the system I setup for remote viewing . Connect any CCTV camera to it , the white box needs a 12v power source as does the camera, link the reciever to a TV or use a separate FPV monitor. The tx's at the top are just spare ones , most are on my old drones.
cctv fpv.jpg
 
You will need a bit of height to get 2 miles from 5.8GHz. Line of sight and no interference from external sources and it's possible. This could mean 10 - 20m. Don't forget the ranges quoted on the TXs is based upon the drone being 200' - 300' in the air.

You can get 2W TXs, narrowband Yagis and diversity receivers with Yagis on the RX side as well. For a really stable picture ideally you want a digital system, but expect to pay about 5x the price...

I like @rickyt's fan housing. These TXs do run hot and and normally rely on air cooling from the drone moving.
 
Thanks for the replies would you have any links to the parts you’ve used? I can mount the camera and transmitter about 4m up in the air easily enough I have 12v at the transmitter end and also at the receiver a little monitor would be ideal
 
Are there any obstructions between the transmission and receiving sites? Even trees will block the signal. I think you will need much more height to do 2 miles. Might be worth looking at 2.4Ghz,.as this is also legal to use for ground to ground and will travel about twice as far for the same power level.
 
Yes there would be trees in the way but a mile of range would be okay if it would do this? Is 2.4 ghz better with obstructions?
 
My pump is actually radio controlled by a pair of boards on 458MHZ 500mw these work well in the terrain I work in
 
All the electrical items I buy are from the Chinese websites. My drones, CCTV camera's, action cams, FPV kits etc because the prices are very good. You would never get some of the items from British suppliers at these prices. You may to wait a little longer for delivery ,but I find it worth it.
I buy the most from AliExpress, but there are other's....GearBest, Banggood and other's
Take a look at this ,specifically for sending video signal's.
1,2Ghz sender
1.2Ghz long range sender
Cheap 5.8Ghz sender
 
All the electrical items I buy are from the Chinese websites. My drones, CCTV camera's, action cams, FPV kits etc because the prices are very good. You would never get some of the items from British suppliers at these prices. You may to wait a little longer for delivery ,but I find it worth it.
I buy the most from AliExpress, but there are other's....GearBest, Banggood and other's
Take a look at this ,specifically for sending video signal's.
1,2Ghz sender
1.2Ghz long range sender
Cheap 5.8Ghz sender
So the 1.2ghz long range sender would be best there what cameras and monitor do you recommend?
 
Basically, the lower the frequency, the longer the distance the signal will travel for a given power level. 2.4GHz is Ok through trees, but I doubt would go through a building.

1.2GHz is not legal to use in the UK and a fixed link will stand out like a sore thumb and is likely to get shut down or removed. Stick to 2.4GHz, but just cheat a bit on the power levels...

Your 458MHz telemetry kit will probably do a couple of miles at that frequency and power level, as it's very narrow band. Wide band video needs more power to do the same distance. It's all to do with modulation types, bandwidth and frequency!

For a 1 box solution, something like this: 5KM Professional Wireless Video Sender will probably do the job.
 
That kit above no doubt would do the job but see what I mean about the UK prices . There will be similar items direct from the makers overseas for a third of the price. But , you dont get the warranty and it's difficult to return items if they dont work. That's the risk you take. I've bought many,many items and been lucky not to be sent faulty items. I've bought quite a few FPV transmitters , FPV camera's ,hi gain arials ,as there cheap to experiment with. Mount them into box's , checked there ranges etc .It's more of a hobby tbh.
You mention camera's . Theres tons of them to choose from . Bullet cams, dome cams ,most with night vision ,some without. Again I've bought many over the years , all 12v [about 1amp] again prices are very cheap. Buy a few to experiment with.
 
Yep, no doubt cheaper than buying from China directly, but it depends upon your comfort level for things like ensuring you have the right connections for the antennae - SMA, SMA reverse, SMA female... or the power supply, suitable mounting, housing etc. If you are a tinkerer, then yes, it's worth looking at, but if you just want plug and play, it might not be the best option.
 
Thanks this is all new to me so appreciate the help I’ll probably buy some cheep bits and see how I go, my controller boards are only a one way link there’s no feedback which is a shame really as it would of been nice to have engine rpms ect fed back to me I bet there’s something you lads use on drones that could of done that?
 
Reading a bit more 1.2ghz is legal on ground stations so as I’m not flying would that be legal for me to use as I’m concerned with the trees and farm buildings that could be in the way
 
Thanks this is all new to me so appreciate the help I’ll probably buy some cheep bits and see how I go, my controller boards are only a one way link there’s no feedback which is a shame really as it would of been nice to have engine rpms ect fed back to me I bet there’s something you lads use on drones that could of done that?
Yep, we use the 2 way version of the telemetry you have! Mine works over a few miles and provides full feedback on what the quad is doing, including motor speeds, height, speed, batteries, control etc.
 
Reading a bit more 1.2ghz is legal on ground stations so as I’m not flying would that be legal for me to use as I’m concerned with the trees and farm buildings that could be in the way
To the best of my knowledge and unless things have changed recently, 1.2GHz cannot legally be used in the UK. It is used for a lot of radio astronomy and military stuff, so it's best not to go there, particularly with a fixed link, as you may cause interference and then the nice gentlemen from Ofcom will come calling...

 
This sort of thing. New V3 3DR Radio Telemetry 433MHz 1000mW with OTG Cable for APM Pixhawk Flight Controller RC Drone

They provide a bidirectional serial data link and just plug into the USB on my laptop or phone.
You just plug that into your flight controller then do you? My pump has a engine with oil pressure rpms and temperature gauges how would I connect them? The idea with the FPV camera is to monitor the pump maybe I’d be better just using this to give me gauges at the controller end of it’s possible
 
Hmm...
Probably something like a Raspberry Pi or even Arduino set to convert the incoming analogue and digital sensor data and write it to the serial output. You would then need to decode this as the receiving end probably directly on a PC.

Someone's done all the hard work here... Warwick Wireless | X9100-GSM-3 Telemetry Engine
 
I may go back to the camera idea then :D so what’s the highest power transmitter I can get in 2.4ghz? Really appreciate the help
 
We used a 30w ( I forgot how many dbm) amplifier to bounce a video signal from Shoreditch Church to Liverpool Street Station for an ultra low latency broadcast video link, so you can get very powerful txs, but they cost a fortune!!

I think 2w will be your limit for fpv kit and that might need some finding.

As I said before, height is your friend here. Get the antenna 10m in the air and you will dramatically improve the signal.
 

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