Picked up a Raytheon FLIR made for Cadillac

[eternal21]

My buddy sent me this video on Saturday. Today I found an OEM cheap camera, OEM HUD projector and OEM on/off controls and will be doing a retrofit into the VX. This should be fun :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFKxmfrv4DY

[tom4bren]

Wow. That's a 'blast from the past'. I was working that program for the Army when GM partnered with us for the development.

Looking forward to seeing how it works out for you.

[eternal21]

Wow. That's a 'blast from the past'. I was working that program for the Army when GM partnered with us for the development.


EXCELLENT! Nice to know I now have a SME if I have any questions :D

[tom4bren]

Here's the Wiki on it:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AN/PAS-13

The original version was being developed by Hughes Aircraft Company & looked nothing like what it does now. That was circa 1990's.

The version used by Caddy was the Raytheon version circa early 2000's. Or maybe it was the Texas Instruments version from that same era ... can't remember now.

IIRC BAE Systems got the final production contract for the Army.

It's been 10 years since I've worked with the Thermal Imagers so the details are kinda fuzzy.

[eternal21]

It's the Raytheon unit, as confirmed by research prior to purchase. It looks like it connects w/a coax, so getting it to output should be fairly easy. There were a couple other retrofits that were done, and they seemed to go off w/out a hitch.

This is perfect for driving around the hill country at night :) Haven't yet decided if I want to hack up the dash to make the projector fit or just use an aftermarket screen. Determination will be made after the projector comes in, I suppose.

[tom4bren]

IIRC, it was the HUD projector that the populace didn't like on the commercial unit.

Definitely test it out before you permanently install. I have a feeling that you'll like a monitor instead.

[eternal21]

I was leaning toward the display. I was also thinking that a section of dark tint on the windshield where it would would be projected might work, as well. I'll play with both, but have a feeling that I'll end up using a display.

[mdwyer]

I've got a 20 year old one. It is a panning camera, though, so it only shows changes in temperature. That mean that it has to be constantly moving for you to see anything. Practical? Probably not... but they really are a lot of fun.

They're fun for Halloween! Hook it up to a video projector, rear-project onto some tissue paper taped to your windows, and let the neighborhood kids see themselves as they walk up to the door. Call it a 'ghost detector'. Note, however, that you pretty much have to either leave a window open or the camera outside, since IR doesn't go through glass.