Broken Camera?

[Juzwick]

Hi I am having trouble with my IR5 unit.
It's about 3 years old and have daily use. It has just started displaying red lines across the whole screen and wont track.
I am familiar with the typical light too bright issues and camera "light filter threshold" "IR brightness"...ect
nothing works...
It will work for 30secs when I turn it on then goes hay wire.

I suppose the cam is broken. I have tried re-downloading the 5 and 4 series software but it still wont work.
Can I get it repaired or just buy another?

It has been a great gizmo for the past three years.
[img:center]http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/2849/16524874.gif[/img]

[Juzwick]

Curiously I just tried to install free track software to get by with a webcam till I can afford a new Naturalpoint IR cam.

The webcam I have doesn't work either...
maybe my system has some kind of usb driver issue that is preventing usb cameras from working?

Does my screen shot look like a broken IR cam ?

[Juzwick]

The next morning I got up started my PC and it detected the webcam and installed usb webcam drivers.
I saw this and load "webcam test" internet site.
The webcam worked.
That night I tried my track IR cam with track IR5 software and it worked perfectly.
I played Rise Of Flight with no problems for 5 hours till 1am.
I haven't tried track IR during the day because I am afraid to touch the sensitivity . The daylight would mean I would have to adjust the sensitivity.
I'm not sure how to interpret all this... but for the moment it works at night.

I'll continue to post in case this helps someone else.

[NaturalPoint - Mike]

It does certainly look like either a bad imager or tons of interference. What kind of lighting is in the room? Is it right next to a window or similar object?

[Juzwick]

Thanks for a reply

I have quite dark curtains and low ambient light during the day except for a couple of hours in the late afternoon.

I have three years experience using the unit in all light conditions and this is new behaviour.
When I took that screen shot the sensitivity was high. When I turned the sensitivity down the red lines disappeared and I could see distorted green dots of the tracking clip. They were magnified and off centre as if the cam was zooming in panning to one side.
definitely looked wrong like the cam was broken.

I have been using it every night with no problems but I dare not try it during the day or touch the sensitivity.

Maybe I'll get a few more months out of it yet...

[Juzwick]

It's dead

Got a few extra weeks out of it but it is kaput now.
And I just spent all my extra cash on a second gtx560ti for SLI
the very day it finally died. I wish I hadn't spent that money now I need a now Track IR.

[jimmynes]

I have the exact same problem as this
and cannot figure it out.
Has anyone come up with a solution to this yet
as I was hoping my camera would last quite longer
than three years.

Regards Jimmy Nestor

[Seth Steiling]

Hi Jimmy,

In most cases, TrackIR hardware lasts for many, many years. But, occasionally, there will be a part that will fail. It's an unfortunate reality with electronic devices.

If you're seeing something like the image above, with red lines throughout the 2D Camera view, it's an almost certain indication that the image sensor in the unit has failed. This part is integral to the device's functionality, and if it goes, the whole unit will need to be replaced. Sorry to deliver the unfortunate news.

- Seth

[navarone]

As of this evening 01/02/13, my TrackIR 5 is also having the same issue as stated above. It was working fine this afternoon, but when I tried to run it tonight there was no movement detected. When I adjusted the Light Filter Threshold, I got the same picture as Juzwick. When I increased the threshold, I saw a solid red blob, and realized the blob was me
I've tried different versions of the software from 5.2 down to 4.2 with the same result. If the date I registered on this forum is any indication, I've only had my TrackIR for 2 years.

[Seth Steiling]

If you changed the light threshold setting, that could be the source of your issue. If you let too much light in, it's possible that the TrackIR sensor will see your reflection.

If that's the case, that's not the same as a failed imager. If you can post a screenshot of your 2D camera view, that will help us determine whether the unit has failed. First, though, I would lower the light threshold setting to see if that does the trick.

- Seth