I've had a full riding season to test a FLIR camera and thought it might be helpful to share my experience for those thinking about using one.
I wanted a camera for a series of certified rides. The prosumer line of cameras is all that's available to the public. So my choices were Teledyne, SpeedIR and NightRide. I'm sure there are others, but I had to start somewhere.
Teledyne's Pathfinder II was discontinued with no replacement in the pipeline. Massive company with little or no customer support with a product that was already EOL, so I passed. SpeedIR seems to be a popular choice with IBA riders. I contacted them and learned they're working on a newer camera with a reduced footprint and increased frame rate. Due in 2024 which didn't fit my timeline.
I went with a NightRide 640. There were tradeoffs. Because the camera handles all I/O, there is no target “boxing” or highlighting on the image feed. SpeedIR's stated range for the “highlighted target ID” is about 120 yards. Better than nothing, but not very far at my nighttime speeds of around 70 mph. I'd surely like to have it, but at a better range. The NightRide will detect at 660 yards, recognize at 180 and ID at 90. That's decent, and I've learned that “detect” means roll off immediately. Once I understood the visual feed, the boxed target wasn't a deal breaker.
Giving up targeted ID meant a simpler setup - no ECU to route wiring and store in my tank bag. I could use an iPad mini as a high resolution display. On multi-day trips the iPad doubles as my computer so I don't have to pack a laptop. If I ever rally, that'll change, but for now it's good enough. The iPad isn't waterproof, but I use heavy freezer bags for all my electronics anyway.
I started with a direct battery connection, storing the coiled camera wires under my seat during daylight. The switch out at dusk took too much time when on the clock. So I sent the unit back and had it rewired for a direct cigarette style plug to the bike's 12V socket. Similar to my Valentine detector. I also asked for a direct ethernet connection to the iPad. Customer service was outstanding. The camera was back in less than a week.
The integral WiFi connectivity (SpeedIR has WiFi as well) seems like a great idea, but not so in my case. There were cutouts, latency issues and at times complete dropouts. Toggling WiFi on/off with gloves at night in eastern Montana was a lesson in lunacy. I was told the 5Ghz WiFi was the culprit. The revised ethernet connection is rock solid.
The NightRide uses a standard GoPro mount. Big advantage as I could consider RAM options. FLIR needs open air in front of the lens, so I put the camera on the fairing with a Panavise suction system. I experimented with positions nearer the engine, below the aux lights. I found the line-of-sight is greatly improved with the camera about 4 feet above the pavement.
The Panavise system isn't perfect. I watched the entire rig fall off when it lost suction at a gas stop. I was lucky it happened while stopped. I chose the extreme solution and broke out the gorilla glue, welding the cup to the fairing. I'm not recommending it, but it's worked for thousands of miles without failure. The other problem is security. I ride alone, and it wouldn't take much for someone to make off with my camera when I'm in the restroom. But that goes for everything else on the bike I can't take with me when I leave it for a few minutes. We all deal with this.
And that's it. I'm happy to share pics or info with anyone who's interested. Over the winter I'll continue to research systems with better specs or features. And would greatly appreciate any advice on how to do it better. But for now, what I'm using works pretty well.
I wanted a camera for a series of certified rides. The prosumer line of cameras is all that's available to the public. So my choices were Teledyne, SpeedIR and NightRide. I'm sure there are others, but I had to start somewhere.
Teledyne's Pathfinder II was discontinued with no replacement in the pipeline. Massive company with little or no customer support with a product that was already EOL, so I passed. SpeedIR seems to be a popular choice with IBA riders. I contacted them and learned they're working on a newer camera with a reduced footprint and increased frame rate. Due in 2024 which didn't fit my timeline.
I went with a NightRide 640. There were tradeoffs. Because the camera handles all I/O, there is no target “boxing” or highlighting on the image feed. SpeedIR's stated range for the “highlighted target ID” is about 120 yards. Better than nothing, but not very far at my nighttime speeds of around 70 mph. I'd surely like to have it, but at a better range. The NightRide will detect at 660 yards, recognize at 180 and ID at 90. That's decent, and I've learned that “detect” means roll off immediately. Once I understood the visual feed, the boxed target wasn't a deal breaker.
Giving up targeted ID meant a simpler setup - no ECU to route wiring and store in my tank bag. I could use an iPad mini as a high resolution display. On multi-day trips the iPad doubles as my computer so I don't have to pack a laptop. If I ever rally, that'll change, but for now it's good enough. The iPad isn't waterproof, but I use heavy freezer bags for all my electronics anyway.
I started with a direct battery connection, storing the coiled camera wires under my seat during daylight. The switch out at dusk took too much time when on the clock. So I sent the unit back and had it rewired for a direct cigarette style plug to the bike's 12V socket. Similar to my Valentine detector. I also asked for a direct ethernet connection to the iPad. Customer service was outstanding. The camera was back in less than a week.
The integral WiFi connectivity (SpeedIR has WiFi as well) seems like a great idea, but not so in my case. There were cutouts, latency issues and at times complete dropouts. Toggling WiFi on/off with gloves at night in eastern Montana was a lesson in lunacy. I was told the 5Ghz WiFi was the culprit. The revised ethernet connection is rock solid.
The NightRide uses a standard GoPro mount. Big advantage as I could consider RAM options. FLIR needs open air in front of the lens, so I put the camera on the fairing with a Panavise suction system. I experimented with positions nearer the engine, below the aux lights. I found the line-of-sight is greatly improved with the camera about 4 feet above the pavement.
The Panavise system isn't perfect. I watched the entire rig fall off when it lost suction at a gas stop. I was lucky it happened while stopped. I chose the extreme solution and broke out the gorilla glue, welding the cup to the fairing. I'm not recommending it, but it's worked for thousands of miles without failure. The other problem is security. I ride alone, and it wouldn't take much for someone to make off with my camera when I'm in the restroom. But that goes for everything else on the bike I can't take with me when I leave it for a few minutes. We all deal with this.
And that's it. I'm happy to share pics or info with anyone who's interested. Over the winter I'll continue to research systems with better specs or features. And would greatly appreciate any advice on how to do it better. But for now, what I'm using works pretty well.
