I'm resending this, as I got a message that my message didn't meet the
Subject rules( I appearently forgot the colon?), and that many subscribers
didn't receive it because of that.
----------------------->

I'm a newbie to PIC and micro controllers, but I have done a lot of PC
programming, including interfacing to PLCs and using an I/O board to
control ticket machines etc. I would like to build a gyro stabilized camera
platform for use up in the air on a RC electrical heli. The idea is that
the camera should be able to "lock" at its target even if there is
turbulence, the heli yaws etc. But I should also be able to control the
camera from a standard PPM Tx/Rx, with pitch, yaw and roll. The camera is a
digital camera with a 2.4GHz video Tx connected to the VideoOut connector,
which can then be seen on a monitor on the ground, or recorded on a VCR or
a DV camcorder with Analog In..

I suppose I will have to use servos on all 3 axis. I suppose I will also
need 3 gyros. I will also need another channel for a servo to take the
pictures (unless I find out a way to do it electronically through its
serial connector).

I have not tried this yet, because I have a feeling that it's not as simple
as assembling 3 standard RC piezo gyros with 3 servos and then expect it ti
work right out of the box. I think I will need a PIC (or AVR or Atom?) to
handle this. It may be necessary to add some damping? What would be a good
choice of controller for such a project? I have not yet bought anything
except for the heli, RC equipment, Video Tx/Rx and the camera, thus I'm
free to choose between everything on the market. I would prefer not to
write assembler. The last time I did that was on my old Atari ST many years
ago.. C or compiled Basic would be the best.

When it comes to gyros I'm very uncertain if the way to go is to buy off-
the-shelf gyros, which already outputs PWM, have gain and calibration etc?
Or if I should go for something more "raw"? The only small gyro sensors I
have been able to track down are from Murata, the ENC-03J and the ENV-05F-
03. According to the datasheet the ENC-03J is supposed to be used with
video cameras (SteadyShot?), and it has a faster response than the ENV-05F-
03. AFAIK those gyros output a small(?) DC Voltage when tilted? So if I use
an uC with ADC inputs it should be able to read that Voltage directly? Does
anyone here have experience with gyros and servos, or have links to pages
with info on this subject?

Also, I was not able to find a supplier that selles the Murata gyros (or
any other gyros for that matter). Where can they be bought from?

I have been waiting for my partminer.com password for many hours now, to be
able to search for it there, but appearently it doesn't happen
automatically.
-- Bjorn Kare Nilssen http://bjornkn.home.online.no/ old 3D stuff
   Kristiansand, Norway

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