One of Project ΣVII’s most prominent and useful features is it’s color, wide angle 720 line camera with auto-focus. The camera housing was carefully modeled in CAD, then machined by company staff from an aluminum billet. It is sealed within a 12.7 cm diameter acrylic tube, and rotates continuously by means of a slip ring and a planetary gear motor. Four 6-watt LED lights provide more than enough light to see even at great depths. To provide multiple viewing platforms, four auxiliary cameras are mounted on the frame of the ROV. Multiple mounts are incorporated into the design, so the location of the auxiliary cameras can be changed should the need arise. The auxiliary cameras have a 90 degree viewing field, and provide high-definition, color video. They are completely waterproofed, using a method developed by SIGMA and its associate, Sea-Tech of Skagit Valley. The camera is mounted within a 3.8 cm square stainless steel tube, which is then filled with a potting compound. A silicon o-ring seals the camera’s lens to an acrylic plate, and the back is fitted with a Delrin cap that allows the connectors to pass through. Each auxiliary camera is mounted via a dual-axis gimbal, allowing SIGMA to adjust their position for different viewing needs. Because of the multiple-camera reliance of project ΣVII, a multiplexer is used to reduce monitor space and provide a fast way to asses the feed from each camera simultaneously. To achieve this, a 5-line multi-coaxial cable is incorporated into the tether. This connects to the quad video multiplexer in the deck- side control box, which combines four video signals into one monitor signal. The fifth signal is streamed into the
company’s auxiliary monitor.
Cameras
