Hi,

My friend just came up to me with a pair of video glasses he has, and he cant find the recorder that came with it. He wants me to see if I can some how make something that could possibly read the information. I have access to an Arduino Duemilanove and a new beagleboard xM. I havent worked with any video peripherals before so I'm not sure where to start and would like to have some input on if I can do it. Here is a picture of the camera and the input it has. He said it records audio and video.
Thanks for the help.

 

do the glasses contain batteries?

 

No they did not. He said the recorder that it came with had an lcd screen and when attached the video feed would play on the screen and it had a record button. So it seems like the power came form the actual recording unit.

 

No they did not. He said the recorder that it came with had an lcd screen and when attached the video feed would play on the screen and it had a record button. So it seems like the power came form the actual recording unit.

well that's 3.5mm 4 pole jack... maybe 2.5mm?
not working with a 'headphone' connector obviously.

so i guess that's one contact each for:

common, video, audio, and power.
(with certain assumptions in mind)

the main question of course would be, which is what?
you might find a "pin-out" diagram for the make and/or model number.
if the case is easy to open, a DMM could give you a very good clue also.

the other question is, how many volts does it want?
3.3? 5? etc.

the next issue has to do with video format. having already assumed that the output is analogue... what is it?
NTSC, PAL, SECAM, or one of the variants?
with one of these standards it would be simple enough to find a compatible recorder, or for even less cash, some kind of video->USB digitizer thing... something which delivers a digital format which you can actually use of course.

i suppose it could be some non-standard analogue format of video... then i guess you'd need to use a scope to figure out what it actually is..

now i can't say that i've ever seen digital connectors of that 4 pole jack style before... i'd really doubt that it's some kind of usb, but then, who knows? if that's the case then i'd just wish you luck.
whatever the case, would be good to get as much info about the specific product as you can find.

 

They look like 3D shutter glasses.

 

They look like 3D shutter glasses.

they do.
well, without the shutters

i don't think that would even be possible with curved glass come to think of it.

 

Maybe they're audio (no optics) with a mic.

edit, ahh wee camera in the frame. No idea on what it needs though.

 

I don't see why they can't be shuttered. LCD is very flexable.

 

ok so assuming that these glasses are analogue and I figure out the pin-outs.

the next issue has to do with video format. having already assumed that the output is analogue... what is it?
NTSC, PAL, SECAM, or one of the variants?
with one of these standards it would be simple enough to find a compatible recorder, or for even less cash, some kind of video->USB digitizer thing... something which delivers a digital format which you can actually use of course.

this digitizer you are talking about can this be possibly plugged into something like a beagleboard xm. Which then can decode the images and maybe out put to a smaller screen?

 

I don't see why they can't be shuttered. LCD is very flexable.

oh i just never actually seen any.
but if it's possible i'd expect it to be more expensive than the generic 'flat panel' standard cheapo shutters which i've got.

ok so assuming that these glasses are analogue and I figure out the pin-outs.

this digitizer you are talking about can this be possibly plugged into something like a beagleboard xm. Which then can decode the images and maybe out put to a smaller screen?

hmm. usb in, s-video out, on-board video decoding... i really don't see why not...
but if you only want to go camera -> screen, you might save some time by leaving the digitizer and computer out of the loop.

 

Iv been busy with school so I had to take a break from the project but I was tinkering around and I think I found the pin outs for the glasses.

| = = = >
pin 1 2 3 4

1 = ground
2 = video
3 = audio
4 = power

power is 3.5v

now that I know all the pins , how can find out what type of video the camera is outputting?

 

Hey I have a pair of video glasses, but they simply plug into the computer USB port to download the videos. Are you certain that your glasses do not have that basic facility ?

My pair are Chinese-made, and I look like Buddy Holly when I put them on, but they do work as advertised, and then some, say no more.

 

now that I know all the pins , how can find out what type of video the camera is outputting?

use a frequency counter,
or just plug it into a t.v., or video projector, or whatever.
most generally speaking:
50Hz = PAL
60Hz = NTSC

what is your location?
PAL equipment will tend to reproduce NTSC with no problems.
(sometimes only in black & white)
NTSC gear can't play back PAL signals.

 

There is some ambiguity about these glasses. If they are shuttered they do not display video. This is by far the most likely scenario, especially out the USB port. Basically one side goes dark every other frame. This will allow a conventional monitor to display 3D.

Video glasses exist, but they are a rare and expensive breed. I get the feeling from some posts people are assuming the latter. These glasses are way too small to do this function.

 

Monster Catfish:
The only connection I have is the 3.5mm headphone jack so no usb for me. But do you know where you got those video glasses?

bribri:
I live in the United States so from what Iv looked up about PAL and NTSC, so im guessing most of my things are going to be NTSC.
How easy is it to convert a ntsc signal or any analog signal to digital?

Bill Marsden:
yeah my friend said they were expensive and he bought them to record him doing his "extreme" sports through his perspective and it had a video recording thing it plugged into that broke when he fell on it

 

Perhaps, but those are not video. If they are he should be able to give us a make and brand. Again, they could be shutter, but they are way too small for true dual video. You need a substantial frame for video, as well as a feed from the video card, not the USB port. The substantial frame is need for all the wires connecting to it.

You will not get video from the USB port.

 

it's 2011 Bill.
ever seen an iphone camera?

3D shutter glasses have a 3 pole connector: L eye, R eye, and common. this example has 4: audio, video, power, common.

dta333 ,

just something like this: http://www.newark.com/lumberg/1503-10/socket-3-5mm-jack-4way/dp/31M6399
or this: http://www.newark.com/pro-signal/mj-079/connector-rca-phono-socket-4way/dp/24M4868

or whatever.
when you plug the thing into a t.v. it *should* just output normal video.
presumably

 

Camera yes, video output, never. You stated it, back it up, show me. There is a reason you see video card build into motherboards, or pay you pay high $$ for cards.

The glasses do have the connections to display video. LCD is simple, video display is not.

 

Camera yes, video output, never. You stated it, back it up, show me. There is a reason you see video card build into motherboards, or pay you pay high $$ for cards.

you're contradicting the OP.
your "video output, never" statement is false.
aptina sells system on a chip CCD's (cmos) with analogue and digital video outputs for less the $30. that's PAL or NTSC output + raw digital formats. other companies sell similar things with mpg4 output.

video output is common enough. eg:

The glasses do have the connections to display video. LCD is simple, video display is not.

i don't understand what you are saying.

 

Ok so I'm home for break and I'm working more on the project I received the parts and made a splitter for the video glasses. One end feeds power to the glasses and the other end out puts the audio and video signal. When I plugged the glasses into the tv at school I got a message on the tv that said it did not recognize the signal. I plugged the glasses into a tv at home and this is the picture i get.

Does anybody know what would cause this to happen? With the limited knowledge I have about video I'm assuming this is a PAL signal, but I dont know what to do to give me a clean picture.