Infrared system

Yep, i have 2 UF500s, both are 10 degree, in this case its a driveway and i could have got away with just 1 10 or even a 30 degree..like you said, lesson learned. It was my first IR purchase 3 years ago..

do you have a copy of the beam patterns? If not, i can post it here.

Rory

Yes, I've long studied the beam patterns. What's not-so-clear is the camera-exposure factor. If the center is too bright, you're going to get so much less on the perimeter.

hmmm..ok saw the typo change.

when you say too bright in the center, do you mean from the infrared, or other lighting?

Wazn't a typo: "periphery" 1 : the perimeter of a circle or other closed curve; also : the perimeter of a polygon

But selected a more middle-of-the-road term... No offense.

SammieT, how far away from the camera was the subject?

Kaysadeya - I would say it illuminated fairly well to about 50 feet or so.

Wazn't a typo: "periphery" 1 : the perimeter of a circle or other closed curve; also : the perimeter of a polygon

 

But selected a more middle-of-the-road term... No offense.

he he, no prob...

here is the beam pattern custom detailed, for a single UF500..i checked it with an ExtremeCCTV rep and they said it is pretty acurate. So take into account the words in red, and the other text below that. Also note that dual UF500s will perform better than this diagram details. This is just approximate distances, location and positioning will cause the lengths to differ in a real world application.

rory

Right. So you can see that a 30-deg unit at 50' or so, produces a pattern that is very narrow and way too bright in the middle for any practical use at that distance. As part of my on-going experiment, I moved the UF500 to my front yard to illuminate a driveway entrance approximately 90' away. Still not dark yet here in CA, but the results should be interesting...

yes, if it is bouncing off an object, like a wall, or bushes. i'd have to think the 500 is maybe TOO powerful for your needs. Though I did have it in a back yard to test first, 10 degree, 50' distance by 30' width, and worked fine, some light in the center, but still lit it all up. Did you try adjusting it at night? It has to be adjusted at night, a mm up or down makes a difference, with infrared beams.

Actually, a UF100 would work perfect there, ill do a diagram for that and once extreme verifies ill post it..

rory

Adjust what? Recall that I can't find a manual on this thing. If you have a pointer to a manual, please let me know.

After moving the UF500 to the front yard, the result is that some shrubs in the foreground wash out the subject area, which is about 40 feet beyond. However, my current view is via a B&W wide angle and I'm working on upgrading the cameras to day/night telephotos for a tighter view of the street; so the story with this unit is still unfolding.

In any event, this unit is one industrial-strength big bad boy!

Remember, the camera you use plays a big part in the IR performance also.

When I say adjust, up down, left right .. in other words, plug in a small 13" Tv, and adjust the physical position of the IR from behind it, until it is what you want it to see. Always have to adjust Infrared at night. You can install it during day light, but to do final adjustments, has to be pitch dark. You can see as you will be looking at the TV/Monitor from behind it. It will be hot, dont worry about that.

Wide angle lenses are not great for Infrared, BUT, depends on the lens and the camera. Also, some high res cameras, will not perform well under IR lighting. Sanyo's High Res worked well though. If you look at some of Extreme's Integrated IR cameras, their BW camera mode is around 420TVL. Extreme recommends medium res BW though like I said, the sanyo worked well. Now that said, it took some adjustments to make the mechanical filter from sliding back and forth, it was too much IR light on the shrubs, and confused the camera, to make it think it was still day, but it was switching back and forth until it slid offline. I fixed it myself, adjusted the UF500's so there was not too much glare off the shrubs, and then it has worked now for 3 years short of changing the bulb once in each UF500, we bought 2 Bulbs one time even though only one went out after 2 years, the other just went out a couple months ago.

There is not an actuall manual, it is like a one page thing, I can email them for a copy if you like?

Rory

Rory,

I recall you saying in some other thread (can't find it) that the UF500 filter has a limited lifespan. Do you recall what that is? Also, have you personally seen one of these units wheeze out? If so, do they go quickly or is it a slow, long, lingering, fade-to-dark type of death?

Also, it appears you can buy replacement filters for the UF100 unit. Does that mean you can keep them in service indefinately?

by Filter, do you mean the bulb?

by Filter, do you mean the bulb?

No I mean the actual filter. Check this:

http://www.cctvproducts.com/exccufunilmi.html

I don't specifically recall what part of the UF500 you said had a limited lifespan, but it was something other than the bulb. I'm just trying to get a handle on how long I can expect to keep the unit in service (assuming the need to replace the bulb every so often).

The Lifespan is the Bulb, Mine lasted 2 years on one of them, while the other lasted 3 years. Just 1 1/2 years later, I have to change the first bulb again. The filters dont go as far as I know. The UF500 Bulbs are approx $70-80 each, and you can buy them and store them for future replacements.

The replacement parts there are just incase you want to change the type of filter or lens you have. Like if you ordered a 730nm and you decide you want a 940nm, or you have a 10 degree but want a 30 degree.

Rory

Hmmmm... I'm sure you made some comment that Extreme spec'ed out the life of the unit itself, but I can't find it. Anyway, if you've never heard of anything but the bulb going, then that's great news. Do you know how long they've been making the UF500?

Derwent in the UK, was a partner with Extreme to start with, they made the UF500 and other IR LEDs, then Derwent became a whole subsidiary of Extreme CCTV. There is Extreme CCTV UK and Derwent UK, then the main Company is in Canada, with an international depot in Barbados, for obvious reasons.

Not sure about when it first came on the market, but was 2000 when it got the patent for it: http://www.extremecctv.com/press/index.cfm?press=14

I had it from 3-4 years now, and was out for a couple years before that at least.

They now have the UF600 by the way, 1200ft, and are working on the 2400ft one now.

Rory

Rory,

I'm giving serious thought to getting a UF100 and a dual power supply in case I want to add another unit in the future. However, I'd rather not be restricted to a specific distance between the illuminator and power supply.

Do the UF100 units have the same distance restrictions between the illuminator and the power supply as the UF500 units? I recall the UF500 distance as being 3 meters.

I can answer my own question. Contacted Extreme today and the tech said that 6' is the standard length and should not be exceeded. This is because the unit draws 6 amps and performance is impacted if amperage is lost in transmission. After some discussion, he reluctantly said that I might be able to extend up to 12 feet, but should expect dimmer output.

I can answer my own question. Contacted Extreme today and the tech said that 6' is the standard length and should not be exceeded. This is because the unit draws 6 amps and performance is impacted if amperage is lost in transmission. After some discussion, he reluctantly said that I might be able to extend up to 12 feet, but should expect dimmer output.

What is the interface between the PS and the lamp? You maybe able to extend the distance with larger gauge wire. But if there is some proprietary connector then that maybe difficult to do.

A really expensive power supply!

In fact that's the motivation behind my question about cable length. I'm only installing one unit. The power supply that supports one unit is $136, but the dual power supply is only $46 more. I figured buying the dual power supply would be cheap insurance in the event I wanted to add a second UF100 at some point in the future.

I suggested to the Extreme tech that a larger guage wire may allow for longer length. His response was that the wire would have to be unrealistically large just to gain a few more yards. Of course, amperage drop-off with various wire sizes is well documented, so I'll research this more if I decide to add a second unit that needs to be more than 12' away from the original.

Yeah, there are a lot of voltage drop calculators on the web. If you find a good one for low voltage stuff please let me know!

Hmmmm... I'm sure you made some comment that Extreme spec'ed out the life of the unit itself, but I can't find it. Anyway, if you've never heard of anything but the bulb going, then that's great news. Do you know how long they've been making the UF500?

Rory, I think I located the post I referenced. It appears your reference was to Extreme LED units, not the bulb units. Sorry for the confusion.