Post by thread:[EE]: low power rf application

I responded to a question a few days ago about low power rf. Here is what I've got. We were recently visited by scum sucking rat bastards (pardon me, that should probably be "juvenile delinquent benevolent society") who stole a CD player out of my wifes car late at night. I have little interest in conventional shrieker car alarms that go on and on and on if you are not present to shut them off. So I bought a wireless doorbell at the local hardware store for about $20 US. It has a receiver unit that plugs into the wall. The tx part is the size of a normal doorbell button and has a 12 volt alkaline battery. It pulls 1.5mA when on. There are 8 jumpers to set the address to something different from your neighbors if they have one too. I wired it up to the interior light in my wifes car. If the door is opened, the interior light comes on and it sends it's signal to the receiver plugged in next to my bed. The system does not like being constantly triggered; the chime stops and starts and stutters. So I added a pic chip to pulse it every 4 seconds or so. "Bing bong, bing bong. Load your gun, bing bong". Aside from someone dragging the car onto a trailer and hauling it off (very difficult considering where it gets parked), this should give some advance warning of evil doers. Perhaps something for Mr. Lile to consider using to protect his car from the next set of visitors, at least until such time as he has his TOASTMASTER ROBOCOP, MARK ONE ready to roll. "All right suckas, put 'em up or prepare to be mowed down!" Best regards, Tom M. -- http://www.piclist.com hint: The PICList is archived three different ways. See http://www.piclist.com/#archives for details.

Tom, I believe I know these (Pardon The Quote "scum sucking rat bastards") or at least there relatives. I live in a small town in rural Southeast Missouri USA, I have never had anything around my house touched or bothered. However, about 6 weeks ago, I took my 1999 Dodge 3/4 ton Diesel with 52,xxx miles ("another story to rant about") to the Transmission shop for the 3rd time, after a complete $3,000 rebuild. (Sorry I got side tracked.) The shop wanted me to leave my truck overnight so they could work on it cold. The next morning I get a call from the Police department. Some one has broke out the side window, broke all of the dome lights, ripped the dash out, broke the Shift lever, (It was in there way, while removing the brand new CD Player) All in all, $1500 damage, plus $500 for the radio, they even took my leather dress jacket, from the back seat. AND I HAD TO PAY THE DEDUCTABLE!!! The sad thing is that a low power transmitter would not have worked. I am considering a digital camera, that will take snap shots and store the image to flash. About one image per 10 seconds, after the alarm has been activated, till it runs out of memory or until the alarm is reset. A JPG 640X480 image is about 40K, an 1megx8 flash is about 25 images, at 10 seconds apart, will be about 4 minutes of pictures. This should be enough to get at least one good picture. Gordon Varney Victim number 3 from the list. {Quote hidden}> > I responded to a question a few days ago about low power rf. Here is what > I've got. > > We were recently visited by scum sucking rat bastards (pardon me, that > should probably be "juvenile delinquent benevolent society") who > stole a CD > player out of my wifes car late at night. I have little interest in > conventional shrieker car alarms that go on and on and on if you are not > present to shut them off. So I bought a wireless doorbell at the local > hardware store for about $20 US. > -- http://www.piclist.com hint: The PICList is archived three different ways. See http://www.piclist.com/#archives for details.

At 08:45 PM 2/3/02 -0600, you wrote: > The sad thing is that a low power transmitter would not have worked. I am >considering a digital camera, that will take snap shots and store the image >to flash. About one image per 10 seconds, after the alarm has been >activated, till it runs out of memory or until the alarm is reset. > A JPG 640X480 image is about 40K, an 1megx8 flash is about 25 images, at 10 >seconds apart, will be about 4 minutes of pictures. This should be enough to >get at least one good picture. > >Gordon Varney >Victim number 3 from the list. I had an idea along those lines also. It occurred to me that they might want to tear the car apart trying to find the camera with their photo. So accompany it with an ISD speech chip that blares out a message like "Your photo has just been sent to the sheriffs department. Please get out of the car and an officer will be here in two minutes to arrest you." This way, they leave but get *very* worried about their picture being sent off. Also, it leaves them thinking that their picture *has* been sent off and that there is no reason to hang around and try to find the camera that took it. Tom M. -- http://www.piclist.com hint: The PICList is archived three different ways. See http://www.piclist.com/#archives for details.

My daughter has a (something like) --> Intel Digital PCcamera which has photo-on-movement capability as well as timed multi shot capability. About $US160 equivalent here. Unlike most in its class it has 16 MB internal memory, memory expansion, 1024 x 768 resolution, mpeg with sound capability and much more. Superb value compared to most in its class. Only sad lack is LCD viewer which is acceptable at the price. It does about 500 x 640 x 480 AFAIR on internal memory. Mpeg with sound would be pretty good. A BRIGHT spot in the cab would help miscreants but MAY not alert them to the idea that they were being photolit. The police caught people who broke into our car after they used the cellphone they stole and I gave the police a list of numbers called. "I'll be late in to work this morning ...." - fair go ! The Police visited him at work :-) > The sad thing is that a low power transmitter would not have worked. I am > considering a digital camera, that will take snap shots and store the image > to flash. About one image per 10 seconds, after the alarm has been > activated, till it runs out of memory or until the alarm is reset. > A JPG 640X480 image is about 40K, an 1megx8 flash is about 25 images, at 10 > seconds apart, will be about 4 minutes of pictures. This should be enough to > get at least one good picture. > > Gordon Varney > Victim number 3 from the list. > > > > > > I responded to a question a few days ago about low power rf. Here is what {Quote hidden}> > I've got. > > > > We were recently visited by scum sucking rat bastards (pardon me, that > > should probably be "juvenile delinquent benevolent society") who > > stole a CD > > player out of my wifes car late at night. I have little interest in > > conventional shrieker car alarms that go on and on and on if you are not > > present to shut them off. So I bought a wireless doorbell at the local > > hardware store for about $20 US. > > > > -- > http://www.piclist.com hint: The PICList is archived three different > ways. See http://www.piclist.com/#archives for details. > > > -- http://www.piclist.com#nomail Going offline? Don't AutoReply us! email spam_OUTlistservTakeThisOuTmitvma.mit.edu with SET PICList DIGEST in the body

I got robbed the same way a coupla months ago. To add insult to injury, they stole my car, drove it to a secluded place, and proceeded to rip out the CD player. I recovered the car, sans player. I considered a lot of security alarms, but so far I have only had tiome to add a secret kill switch on the starter, so nobody can start it without knowing where the switch is. I am going to replace the CD player with a cheap,cheap radio/casssette player. I will either fix it so it is very hard to extract, or very very easy, so they don't tear up my car again. The more expensive your radio, the more of a target it is. I will also hide a nice amplifier inside the dash somewhere, to pump good sound into the speakers. I've considered a fake alarm system, an LED that blinks on the dashboard every ten seconds or so, with an ominous looking box labeled Car ALArm. --Lawrence {Original Message removed}

>I've considered a fake alarm system, an LED that blinks on the dashboard >every ten seconds or so, with an ominous looking box labeled Car ALArm. I've always thought a single row of blue LEDs on the roof flashing once they are underway is likely to be a good attention getting thing. They may not even realise what is in that 1/2 inch high "rubber" strap across the roof. The fact that it is made from smoky plastic so you cannot see what is inside it helps. Just watch what happens when they pass a cop with this blue flashing light on the roof that they are not aware though :) -- http://www.piclist.com#nomail Going offline? Don't AutoReply us! email .....listservKILLspam@spam@mitvma.mit.edu with SET PICList DIGEST in the body

I don't think that they should know that there is a camera. Use a pin hole camera, and hide it well. Use an IR led to light up the car, and just use still capture to flash memory. What they don't know won't hurt me. Gordon Varney {Quote hidden}> > At 08:45 PM 2/3/02 -0600, you wrote: > > The sad thing is that a low power transmitter would not have > worked. I am > >considering a digital camera, that will take snap shots and store the image > >to flash. About one image per 10 seconds, after the alarm has been > >activated, till it runs out of memory or until the alarm is reset. > > A JPG 640X480 image is about 40K, an 1megx8 flash is about 25 > images, at 10 > >seconds apart, will be about 4 minutes of pictures. This should be enough to > >get at least one good picture. > > > >Gordon Varney > >Victim number 3 from the list. > > I had an idea along those lines also. It occurred to me that they might > want to tear the car apart trying to find the camera with their photo. So > accompany it with an ISD speech chip that blares out a message like "Your > photo has just been sent to the sheriffs department. Please get out of the > car and an officer will be here in two minutes to arrest you." This way, > they leave but get *very* worried about their picture being sent off. Also, > it leaves them thinking that their picture *has* been sent off and that > there is no reason to hang around and try to find the camera that took it. > > Tom M. > > -- > http://www.piclist.com hint: The PICList is archived three different > ways. See http://www.piclist.com/#archives for details. > > -- http://www.piclist.com#nomail Going offline? Don't AutoReply us! email listservKILLspammitvma.mit.edu with SET PICList DIGEST in the body

> I will either fix it so it is very hard to extract, or very very easy, > so they don't tear up my car again. The more expensive your radio, the > more of a target it is. So true. I used to do car alarms for a living. Not the pre-packaged things, but custom systems. I had a number of people after me to put systems in their convertibles, which I refused to do. If it looks expensive, it's a target. If it looks easy to get to, it's a target. Locking a convertible is silly, and will just cost you a new top. Locking a hardtop is slightly less silly, and will cost you a new window. If they start in, and can't finish the job because you made it too hard, then they will likely take out their frustrations on the rest of your interior. >I will also hide a nice amplifier inside the dash somewhere, to pump good >sound into the speakers. Good idea. What they can't see, they aren't tempted by. >I've considered a fake alarm system, an LED that blinks on the dashboard >every ten seconds or so, with an ominous looking box labeled Car ALArm. Labels not needed, and would detract from the effect. The blinking led is probably 80% of the effectiveness of the system. Use a remote disarm, and NO entry delay. You don't want them to get halfway through the job before the alarm goes off. I would be tempted to use a field disturbance sensor with some sort of quiet alerting like LEDs, or a small beeper, to indicate "I see you" when someone approaches closer than a couple feet. The thing you need to do, is encourage him to pick another target. Risk/benefit is what you're trying to maximize, in his mind, which is not the same as your mind. He dosen't care if he destroys $2-3k of your car to get a stereo that will net him $50, if he thinks he's highly likely to get away with it. -- http://www.piclist.com#nomail Going offline? Don't AutoReply us! email .....listservKILLspam.....mitvma.mit.edu with SET PICList DIGEST in the body

At 10:24 AM 2/4/02 -0600, Gordon Varney wrote: >I don't think that they should know that there is a camera. Use a pin hole >camera, and hide it well. Use an IR led to >light up the car, and just use still capture to flash memory. What they >don't know won't hurt me. Sounds like a product idea to me. :) Sugar-cube camera, with IRLEDS, and some RG-174 off to the storage box. Let them find the camera, but the storage box should be located somewhere hard to get to. Many bolts, long threads, different sizes, major PITA to dismount. You could use RF to send the picture somewhere, but that only works when you're at home, or at work. Plus the antenna becomes a vulnerable point. Storing to flash, in a 1/4 inch steel case sounds like a better proposition. Something that's not attackable by hammer, or chemicals in a short time. Also, think about a stun-gun applied to the wiring. If you store enough frames, then you're bound to get a couple useful ones. -- http://www.piclist.com#nomail Going offline? Don't AutoReply us! email EraseMElistservspam_OUTTakeThisOuTmitvma.mit.edu with SET PICList DIGEST in the body

At 04:48 PM 2/4/02 +0000, Alan B. Pearce wrote: > >Something that's not attackable by hammer, > >or chemicals in a short time. > >Probably need to make it fireproof as well, knowing the little blighters >tendency to put a petrol bomb in things to remove forensic evidence. That's not so hard, good insulation will hold the chips for quite a while. Xicor NV memory is used in aircraft black boxes. -- http://www.piclist.com#nomail Going offline? Don't AutoReply us! email @spam@listservKILLspammitvma.mit.edu with SET PICList DIGEST in the body

On Mon, 4 Feb 2002, David VanHorn wrote: > At 04:48 PM 2/4/02 +0000, Alan B. Pearce wrote: > > >Something that's not attackable by hammer, > > >or chemicals in a short time. > > > >Probably need to make it fireproof as well, knowing the little blighters > >tendency to put a petrol bomb in things to remove forensic evidence. > > That's not so hard, good insulation will hold the chips for quite a while. > Xicor NV memory is used in aircraft black boxes. > Not as hot as a petrol bomb, but my plain old compact flash card made it through the laundry the other day (washer AND dryer) and still had all the data on it! -- Mitch -- http://www.piclist.com#nomail Going offline? Don't AutoReply us! email KILLspamlistservKILLspammitvma.mit.edu with SET PICList DIGEST in the body

I put a security system in my van last summer from these people: http://bulldogsecurity.com/ There products are carried by JC Whitney (Web & Catalog) best price you will find. I selected one with a remote start so I could get in a warm/cool vehical. By the time you get this installed and working you will know most everything you need to know to rework it into exactly what you want. A tad over a $100 and a full day the first time you install one. Mine has a remote start, keyless entry, an extra channel (intended to open trunk) auto start on low battery, auto start high or low temperature. John Ferrell 6241 Phillippi Rd Julian NC 27283 Phone: (336)685-9606 Dixie Competition Products NSRCA 479 AMA 4190 W8CCW "My Competition is Not My Enemy" {Original Message removed}

David VanHorn wrote: > > At 10:24 AM 2/4/02 -0600, Gordon Varney wrote: > >I don't think that they should know that there is a camera. Use a pin hole > >camera, and hide it well. Use an IR led to > >light up the car, and just use still capture to flash memory. What they > >don't know won't hurt me. > > Sounds like a product idea to me. :) I did a similar thing using a PIC and still photos at home. http://www.bubblesoftonline.com/projects/photo.html -- Best regards Tony mICros http://www.bubblesoftonline.com spamBeGonesalesspamBeGonebubblesoftonline.com -- http://www.piclist.com#nomail Going offline? Don't AutoReply us! email TakeThisOuTlistservEraseMEspam_OUTmitvma.mit.edu with SET PICList DIGEST in the body

You could also stick a little dummy antenna on the car to help bolster this bluff. Josh -- A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools. -Douglas Adams Tom Messenger wrote: {Quote hidden}> > At 08:45 PM 2/3/02 -0600, you wrote: > > The sad thing is that a low power transmitter would not have > worked. I am > >considering a digital camera, that will take snap shots and store the image > >to flash. About one image per 10 seconds, after the alarm has been > >activated, till it runs out of memory or until the alarm is reset. > > A JPG 640X480 image is about 40K, an 1megx8 flash is about 25 > images, at 10 > >seconds apart, will be about 4 minutes of pictures. This should be enough to > >get at least one good picture. > > > >Gordon Varney > >Victim number 3 from the list. > > I had an idea along those lines also. It occurred to me that they might > want to tear the car apart trying to find the camera with their photo. So > accompany it with an ISD speech chip that blares out a message like "Your > photo has just been sent to the sheriffs department. Please get out of the > car and an officer will be here in two minutes to arrest you." This way, > they leave but get *very* worried about their picture being sent off. Also, > it leaves them thinking that their picture *has* been sent off and that > there is no reason to hang around and try to find the camera that took it. > > Tom M. > > -- http://www.piclist.com#nomail Going offline? Don't AutoReply us! email listservEraseME.....mitvma.mit.edu with SET PICList DIGEST in the body