1 Jun
2009

Automatic Panoramas with Arduino and CHDK

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Last year around this time, I posted some information about my automatic panorama-taking “robot” made with an arduino, and a Canon S3IS mounted on a stepper motor, but I never published it to a more exposed portion of the site. Feel free to take a look at the project, and download the source code. Disclaimer: this project was produced on a $0 budget by an inexperienced programmer.

This project is extremely basic (and exceptionally cheap), and has an overkill motor for rotation. Also, tilt support was never implemented. However, it does make use of the remote shutter support of the CHDK firmware for Canon cameras to allow arduino-triggered photos.

Drop some comments below if you have done something similar, or if you have used any code/ideas from my design.

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20 Dec
2008

PanoBot

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PanoBot is a rudimentary panorama-taking device for any Canon camera running the CHDK firmware. This project was made back in ’08 so there are numerous projects that are much more full-featured than this implementation; nevertheless, I am making the code available for reference.

What The Current Code Does:

  • Takes a photo via usb pulse sequence
  • Rotates X degrees
  • Takes a photo via usb pulse sequence
  • ^REPEAT^
  • When it goes 360 degrees, it rotates 360 degrees in the opposite direction
    • Keeps the camera cable from wrapping around the base
  • Operation pauses, waits for user input
    • At this time, the user tilts the camera to a different angle
    • After tilting, the user presses the button on pin 10
  • The camera begins this sequence again

Features

  • 360 Degree rotation
  • .9 Degree Accuracy per shot
  • Programmable Delay
  • USB Shutter Control
  • Portable

Parts

  • Arduino Microcontroller
  • Stepper Motor (1.9 Degree step or less recommended)
  • Some sort of battery for standalone operation
  • A Supported Camera
  • A tripod (old all-metal tripods with bolt interconnects are best)
  • Bolts and nuts to fit your motor and tripod
  • Scrap wood or sheet metal (Sheet metal recommended for camera arm)
  • Set Screw and metal tube to fit around motor shaft (or use whatever you have lying around)

Supports

  • Canon S* IS Series
  • All other cameras that support CHDK

Sample Panorama

Resources:

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