Hi,
Finally I got a used but fully functional thermal cam, a Flir i60...
Now I wonder where I could get the latest firmware - On the camera is installed version 2.17 .
And is there possibly some tricks/hacks for it ?
Martin
If you have any trouble registering with FLIR, I will download the file for you.
Fraser
Hi,
Your link worked without any problems, thanks!
Will do the upgrade tomorrow or saturday - First I want to replace the dead battery inside:
Time&date get lost when removing the accu...
Did the upgrade without any problems,
Btw, I could´t exchange a dead battery inside - Because there is no battery inside or a golden cap...
Interesting...
The date&time gets lost even when you leave the accu in the cam after a while.
As I wrote, there is no additional backup power like a battery or gold cap inside the cam.
Maybe it´s a "user failure" because as I received the cam, date and time were correct.
Must doing RTFM...
Please provide images of PCB and I may be able to assist on the RTC question. An RTC must have a power source to maintain time/date.
Fraser
Hi Fraser,
Thankyou for asking for pictures - I disassembled it again and bingo, I´ve found the place...
But I have no idea how to get to it, I don't see any other screws to loosen the "metal skeleton" from the plastic body and I don't want to break anything....
Sadly the chassis is usually secured via hidden screws in the front plastics. They are normally hidden under labels or other materials adhered to the plastic shell. I do not know exactly where the screws are located on the i60. A favorite location for some of the screws is behind the label that is around the lens. On some FLIR units I have worked on I have had to remove the rubber grip material to find the screws. Only do this if you find that the rubber material is held in place with double sided tape and not bonded into the plastic moulding.
In case you are unaware, if wishing to gently remove labels or surfaces held in place with double sided tape, you should warm the area with a hair dryer to soften the adhesive and make the label more flexible and less likely to crease or crack. In some cases the adhesive remains on the label and may be reused. There are many options for lifting a label but I tend to use a scalpel blade, razor blade (very thin) and thin guitar plectrums.
Fraser
Hi Fraser,
Yes, I must peel off two labels to get to the screws for opening the cam before.
Tomorrow I´ll look for other hidden ones....It´s a annoying thing to "damage" the body for such a simple thing like exchanging of the battery..
Otherwise it's a nice camera, you can clearly notice the higher resolution of 180x180 compared to the 120x120 from the Infracam.
And the included software works without problems on Windows 10.
The camera is from 2010 and once cost 7000€...
You can also tell from the workmanship and I paid 480€.
For the money such a quality, resolution and manual focus...I can live well with that.
Looking at the cameras case design. I would start by carefully removing the round label that is around the lens. That may expose screws that release the front black plastic moulding and that may cover the case to chassis securing screws.
There may be a way to increase the resolution. I would need to check if the ixx series had such an upgrade.
Fraser
Well from what I can find, it would appear that the i50 may be upgraded to 240 x 240 pixels from its original 140 x 140 pixels and the false noise generator switched off. The process is the same as that used for the E4 camera
You should be able to do the same with an i60. Just make sure you read the E4 upgrade information for the earliest (non Wi-Fi equipped) E4 cameras (Firmwares 1.18 & 1.19) circa 2013. The upgrade involves accessing the cameras file system using FileZilla and manually changing the configuration files contents in a text editor to release the cameras full potential. Make sure you take a backup of the file system before making any changes. This will enable you to revert to unmodified files at any time.
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/thermal-imaging/flir-e4-thermal-imaging-camera-teardown/Firmware 1.18/1.19 upgrade process.....
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/thermal-imaging/flir-e4-thermal-imaging-camera-teardown/msg321956/#msg321956Fraser
I find it surprising that the cameras design makes the RTC battery so complex to change. Before removing the chassis I would try to change the lithium cell with the chassis still in its plastic shell. Using plastic or wood (non conductive) probes I would try to release the lithium cell from its holder. There appears to be enough access and room to do this. Fitting a new lithium cell could be more challenging but should be possible if the original had enough room to come out. I use plastic spudgers with a pointed tip but wood cocktail sticks can be good as well. The thin wood stirring sticks from Costa coffee can make versatile probing tools as well !
Fraser
Hi,
Yesterday I did exactly this and get the cell out.
New battery in is the challenge for the evening....
Have taken apart dozens of these before - part of a company calibration check and refurb plan. Some screws are hidden behind the label that goes around the lens. It's a plastic label so fairly durable.
I find it surprising that the cameras design makes the RTC battery so complex to change.
Me too.
"Today" I´ll get a plastic tweezer and try to insert the new battery, if this won´t work, I´ll disassemble the rest of the cam.
A complete disassembling just for changing a battery...
it would appear that the i50 may be upgraded to 240 x 240 pixels
Really? The top model i60 is only 180x180...
There's a Bx0 series looks identical to ix0, are they also hackable?
"Only" ?!
Battery:
I made it ! Without disassembling everything, but it was hard, very hard...
Checked it, remove the accu, put it back, turned on...Date&Time remains.
Martin
Have you tried doing that modification to increase the resolution? I just got one of these for free because it was so old and appeared dead. It's a shame its not the e series, two years older, but man if I could get the resolution to 240x240 that would be a really nice upgrade.
I've wanted a thermal camera basically since the e series came out but they're always out of my price range so have not kept up to date on the hackability.
Hi,
The i60 was the "largest" model in the range at the time, with 180x180 pixels.
If you could make the resolution even higher, that would of course be great - but I don't know anything about it myself.