Automated Wireless File Transfers? 39
Maskirovka asks: "I'm in the process of designing a helicopter mounted compact flash reader/transmitter package to upload photos to a fileserver upon landing, probably using 802.11g. It needs to be idiot proof (ie, plug a flashcard into it, and it'll upload automatically as soon as it gets in range of the basestation), and should weigh less than 5 pounds so as not to affect the aircraft weight and balance. It could probably be built around a Via EPIA board using a PCI WiFi card and riser, but that almost seems overkill for the one specific task. Is there a more efficient way to do this with off the shelf hardware?"
Let me pop-up an answer (Score:5, Funny)
Get a wireless X-10 camera, and mount it on your helicoptor. Then a model-quality blonde who wears nothing other than bikinis will move in next door, digging out a pool in one doesn't yet exist, and spend her entire life lounging by the pool, moving only in order to keep herself centered in the lens of your camera.
It's all true, I saw it in a pop add. And another pop-up add, and another pop-up add, and then in a pop-up add.
<script language="ECMAScript"> window.open("http://www.x10.com/annoyingflashinga
I am really curious to know... (Score:2, Funny)
I can only imagine some sort of cloak and dagger digital image exchange with a gratuitous amount of trenchcoats.
Re: I am really curious to know... (Score:1)
Re: I am really curious to know... (Score:2)
I first read this as "automated fileless wire transfers", which could only mean some sort of computer bank fraud.
(Who would'a thunk that the brain could do Spoonerisms [wikipedia.org] while reading?)
- Peter
scripting & openbrick (Score:5, Informative)
1) Get OpenBrick (www.openbrick.org)
2) Install Linux w/ ftp server
3) Use heartbeat to monitor your box on board
4) when available, copy data from OpenBrick with either ftpcopy or mirroring software of your choice
5) ???
6) Profit
Re:scripting & openbrick (Score:4, Informative)
RSYNC will help you re-start the transmission from where you left if the connection breaks.
Re:scripting & openbrick (Score:2)
Re:scripting & openbrick (Score:2)
1) Get OpenBrick (www.openbrick.org)
Nope, get a Soekris board [soekris.com], save about $100, that's what I call profit.
Hmmm (Score:3, Funny)
Just before landing fold the image into the traditional paper aeroplane shape.
As you approach the base station launch the image.
The pilot may have to do some tricky flying to direct the rotor wash so that the image reaches the base station.
Some Ideas (Score:1)
From there, you could create a script that listens for when you put a CF card in. Don't ask me how to do that, I don't know a lick of any type of program language, scritping language, or just plain language.
Re:Some Ideas (Score:1)
There is an article [daemonnews.org] on Daemon News that can help with running a script using the pccard support in FreeBSD to initiate a script to copy files from a Compact Flash card to the system... but it doesn't cover using an automount daemon.
Terapan Mine (Score:4, Informative)
My plan was to use a Terapan [terapintech.com]
Mine tethered to a digital SLR with the Terapan set up as the USB master
and the SLR as the slave.
Then I would stick a wifi card in the mine and program it to continuously
download the files from the DSLR and ftp them to my server when it could.
like this? (Score:3, Informative)
while true
do
if [[ -x
server=$(nslookup <serverName>)
if [[ $server = *<serverIP>* ]];then
rsync -e ssh -az
fi
fi
sleep 60
done
anything else?
That's kinda cool... (Score:4, Informative)
Pretty slick!
Kinda curious if you've considered using a PocketPC for that. Just plug the CF card into the PocketPc that already has 802.11 going, then write a simple little app that handles the transfer bit. That'll get you into the 5lb mark, and there's no moving parts to break. The downside is that may be a little pricier than you have in mind. The plus side is that it turns on instantly and has its own display etc.
Re:That's kinda cool... (Score:2)
I can't find one that will act as a usb master.
Feel free to point one out to me.
Re:That's kinda cool... (Score:2)
*curious*
Funny that this topic came up, the company I work for has a spherical video camera that'd be of interest to helicopter pilots who want to see what's underneath the ship, i.e. power lines nad antennae.
Re:That's kinda cool... (Score:1)
Re:Rendezvous (Score:1)
ipaq (Score:5, Informative)
i'm sure you could have equal luck with a palm pilot of sorts if you worked at it hard enough.
Re:ipaq (Score:2)
Also, you'd run into a lot of reliability problems- you'd have to make some external box that would reboot the POS device whenever it wasn't responding, over serial most likely; it'd
use a pda (Score:2)
Remove unnecessary parts and it should be under
200 grams. Trick is: Your video cam is recording
to flash, and you want the flash connected to the
pda's flash adapter when it comes in range.
To do this, control SCRs from the serial port
of the PDA, to switch connections. uCLinux might
be helpful if you dislike PalmOS code.
The Business Model (Score:2, Funny)
2. Ask gullible/nice slashd^H^H^H^H^H^H free consultants to do the hard part for you.
3. Profit!!!!!
Create A script. (Score:2)
mount -t vfat
cp -R ~/whateverdata
scp
Then you can make it executable, chmod +x script.sh
then just get some gui to launch it by makeing a icon for it, so you can just double click it. And just make sure you save everything to ~/whateverdata
Nikon D2H and WT1-1 (Score:1)
For those who don't seem to understand (Score:2)
The key part about this is that it seems like a kind of surveillance ops situation in which the person is taking pictures that shouldn't be transmitted to others except when they land in a secured area.
I think in order to do this you're going to need to switches, one on the base of the helicopter (which becomes depressed upon landing) and the other inside for verification. That way you aren't trying to transmit in an emergency landing situation. While I'm not a programmer, you should be able to use those a
why i need this (Score:2)
I give my passengers a digital camera to use during the 90 minute flight.
Upon disembarking, it is nice to have them be able to pick up the photos that they took or better yet take a CD home.
Re:why i need this (Score:3, Interesting)
It might be better, then, to make it hop online whenever a CF card is inserted (that is, at the end of the trip), rather than "as soon as it gets in range". A light laptop with a PCMCIA slot running Linux should be able to run arbitrary commands at insertion just fine.
The alternative seems to be playing with war-driving tools to initiate an action when it sees the right WiFi network...
Re:why i need this (Score:1)
why? rsync over ssh (or scp) verifies that you're talking to the right server. who cares about determining if you're on the right wifi network? find out if your server is there, start syncing. If the ssh keys don't match, it just won't go.
Re:why i need this (Score:1)
Several possible solutions... (Score:2)
It'd be nice if these folks could carry a multi-megapixel digicam on the plane, snap pics of
A few questions. (Score:2)
You are not very clear beacause you are talking about a reader.
You could build a system with say an ez80 or AVR chip that has a memory card reader, memory card emulator and network connection.
You would plug the memory card into your device. Then your device into your camera. The network connection goes to a small AP. Then add the software.
You would have to have an electronc way to swap the memory card but that would not be too difi