8 January & February 2021 http://www.elektormagazine.com
When we say ‘hot spot’ we are, of course, not referring to public Internet
access points. Instead we are referring to locations that are significantly
warmer than their surrounding environment (and the opposite for ‘cold
spots’). They can be symptomatic of a fire, overheating components
or short circuits, thermal bridges, or broken seals allowing heat to
escape. If they are not accompanied by a naked flame or glow then
they are invisible to humans. To track them down the eye needs some
assistance: enter MTheCam.
Tracking down hot spots means much more than detecting a hotplate
that has inadvertently been left on. In electronic circuits, overloaded
components will
often give an early
indication of their
imminent demise
by becoming
hotter than usual;
and, in machinery,
worn bearings and inadequately lubricated
surfaces will heat up, giving a timely warning that can help extend
the life of the equipment. Even people can be detected, tracked and
counted using a heat sensor.MTheCam
A Simple Mini Thermal Camera
By Olaf Mertens (Germany)
Did you blow the candle out? And was the hob turned off? Everyone has, at some point,
experienced that nagging feeling after leaving the house that some heat source or other
might still be on and poised to do untold damage. Now you can find out using MTheCam
and your smartphone. The project described here is based on an eight-by-eight pixel thermal
sensor from Panasonic that, naturally, has many other applications.
homelab project