power a BS2 or QS for at least 10+hrs

Mike4421

I was at the sports store, and I saw one of those criter cams that you can place on a tree or were you like, thought can't it be done with a BS2 or a Propeller QS. I want to try this but in a more simple way... With just a PIR sensor,and an eeprom to keep count. I think adding a cam or wireless can strain the battery life for 10hr+ use; since it will be placed out doors I was thinking of using the BS2 OEM since it's off the shelf parts make it more rugged for the elements. Any ideas if this can be done, without going into the $150.00 mark?

NWCCTV

The cameras are most likely set with motion sensors so they set idle until they sense motion. I don't see why it could not be done.

Edit: You would still need to protect a Stamp or Prop from the elements. Electronics and water do not mix well!!!

SRLM

The requirements seem a bit vague...
- What is the maximum size/weight?
- What features do you need?
- What battery type do you prefer?

If you just want to count how many times a PIR has been triggered, you could probably use a simple counter chip and display the results on an LED array.

Mike4421

Its that simple, Microcontroller, PIR sensor, and eeprom for count... Maybe a clock chip for time of event; but I think that's pushing it on the batteries... Battery type; the more common the better.. I was thinking of a couple of D size batteries... Can it be done?

Mike4421

Adding an LCD would be nice, but it can add to the battery load, the default debug window will do fine for now, its weight has no real meaning for now that's why I go for the D size batteries, lead is fine but trying to be more environmentally friendly....

SRLM

Mike4421 wrote: »

Its that simple, Microcontroller, PIR sensor, and eeprom for count... Maybe a clock chip for time of event; but I think that's pushing it on the batteries... Battery type; the more common the better.. I was thinking of a couple of D size batteries... Can it be done?

Why not use a pair of 74HC590 chips then? With those, you can count up to 2^16-1 events. They each have 8 outputs, which you can connect to LEDs for reading the result. Of course, you would want to hook the LEDs up to a common switch, so you could turn them off.

All told, the total current consumption would be ~80uA + PIR. The PIR consumes up to 12mA, for a total of ~13mA. A D battery has about 17000mAh in it (source), the device should run for ~54 days (in theory). Simple, and meets the specifications for the cost of a PIR+ a dollar or so.

Mike4421

Thanks SRLM for the info. I also found related questions about the batteries inseries with a diode... To prevent back voltage protection.... I'll start programming and building the project, just a bare bones system to get a benchmark for D size batteries, then I'll start adding more sensors, etc...