Abstract
For the 2017 solar eclipse ballooning, we have developed a video payload that can simultaneously live-stream multiple videos via a single 5.8 GHz wireless link through a Ubiquiti Rocket M5 modem. In this paper, we describe our approach to multiplex multiple video streams into a single data stream that a 5.8 GHz wireless modem can transport to the ground station. Various key factors are described to properly configure the Raspberry Pis and optimize the transmission from an M5 modem on the video payload over the 5.8 GHz link while ensuring adequate range and acceptable video quality received at the ground station. A screenshot of the multi-video streaming is provided as an example to justify a successful operation of our video payload.
Highlights
FOR the 2017 solar eclipse ballooning, the live streaming of the videos capturing the shadows of the solar eclipse was one of the main objectives
All teams who participated in the 2017 solar eclipse ballooning project were initially provided with a baseline ballooning system [1][2] that consisted of a ground station and four standard payloads for still image, video, Iridium-based tracking, and cut-down
The standard video payload for live streaming was primarily composed of a Raspberry Pi 2 Model B board with a Pi-camera module to capture highdefinition video during balloon flight and a 5.8 GHz Ubiquiti Rocket M5 modem to transmit the video to its counterpart M5 modem on the ground station
Summary
FOR the 2017 solar eclipse ballooning, the live streaming of the videos capturing the shadows of the solar eclipse was one of the main objectives. The Pi-camera was installed on a servo motor to be able to adjust its viewing direction to some extent but its primary viewing angle was still toward only one of the four directions, i.e., north, south, east, and west of the payload position To overcome this drawback and be able to capture video images from more than one particular direction, there were other approaches adopted by some other solar eclipse ballooning teams in the nation, such as placing the Pi-camera on a servo motor on top of the video payload, developing a video selector board that could select, at a given time, one of the video streams from multiple Pi-cameras facing different directions, or replicating multiple Raspberry Pi boards, each with a Pi-camera and a dedicated M5 modem to simultaneously transmit all live video streams from multiple Pi-cameras on multiple 5.8 GHz modems to the ground for further processing. Various key factors are discussed in optimizing the wireless transmission from the M5 modem on the video payload while ensuring acceptable quality of the live video at the ground station
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