rebelrider.mike
Member
- Joined
- May 25, 2017
- Messages
- 554
Hey folks,
Another weird project. I have an old Contour Roam2 action cam that I recently decided to start using again. I've been using a Contour +2, but I recently "improved" the audio to the point where I don't have any now. So the Roam2 is coming to the rescue.
In my humble opinion, there are really only two faults with the Roam2:
- The battery is not swappable. Changing the battery means dismantling the camera.
- The camera doesn't record while charging. So if the battery goes dead, you just have to wait.
There are workaround for this that I've heard, but what I'd really like is a swappable battery. For this camera, that means making it external. So that's what I'm setting out to do. And while I'm at it, may as well make the new battery an 18650 right?
Actually getting to the battery takes a bit of work.
Once inside though, the cell is extractable by a little prying to get it off the adhesive backing, and unplugging the connector. Since it's out, I went ahead and ran it through my Opus, and got 1260mAh. Still plenty of life left in the cell, so I'll keep it for a future project.
You can see in the picture that the cell has a little BMS board, and a 3 pin JST connector. I believe the middle wire is for a temperature sensor. I did some looking around, and found on a motorcycle forum that the JST is a 1.5mm pitch. These connectors are so small, that I can't tell the difference between the 1.0, 1.25, and 1.5mm, so I'm glad I found that.
I was able to buy some connectors and wires, and I brought out my nifty little pin key set that I bought from China for a dollar.
The new BMS won't have a temperature sensor, so I wasn't sure if the camera would have an issue if it were missing. So for now, I made a simple battery connection with an 18650,
I got the camera back together enough to try it out, and lo! It works. Doesn't care about the missing sense wire.
I put a hole in the side of the case for the wires to go through. I used a manual drill that, again, I bought cheap from China for just this sort of thing. I won't be able to use the mounting rails on that side anymore, but I never did anyway, so no big loss.
That's it for now. Next I want to make an enclosure for the battery, and add a BMS. Also mount it to the camera somehow.
Since the camera can't tell the difference between 3.7VDC from a battery, or a power supply, I may put a charge controller or direct supply barrel connector on it. I haven't worked out exactly what I want to do yet. The enclosure will need to be easily opened though, as I want to be able to swap out the battery when plugging it in is inconvenient.
Another weird project. I have an old Contour Roam2 action cam that I recently decided to start using again. I've been using a Contour +2, but I recently "improved" the audio to the point where I don't have any now. So the Roam2 is coming to the rescue.
In my humble opinion, there are really only two faults with the Roam2:
- The battery is not swappable. Changing the battery means dismantling the camera.
- The camera doesn't record while charging. So if the battery goes dead, you just have to wait.
There are workaround for this that I've heard, but what I'd really like is a swappable battery. For this camera, that means making it external. So that's what I'm setting out to do. And while I'm at it, may as well make the new battery an 18650 right?
Actually getting to the battery takes a bit of work.
Once inside though, the cell is extractable by a little prying to get it off the adhesive backing, and unplugging the connector. Since it's out, I went ahead and ran it through my Opus, and got 1260mAh. Still plenty of life left in the cell, so I'll keep it for a future project.
You can see in the picture that the cell has a little BMS board, and a 3 pin JST connector. I believe the middle wire is for a temperature sensor. I did some looking around, and found on a motorcycle forum that the JST is a 1.5mm pitch. These connectors are so small, that I can't tell the difference between the 1.0, 1.25, and 1.5mm, so I'm glad I found that.
I was able to buy some connectors and wires, and I brought out my nifty little pin key set that I bought from China for a dollar.
The new BMS won't have a temperature sensor, so I wasn't sure if the camera would have an issue if it were missing. So for now, I made a simple battery connection with an 18650,
I got the camera back together enough to try it out, and lo! It works. Doesn't care about the missing sense wire.
I put a hole in the side of the case for the wires to go through. I used a manual drill that, again, I bought cheap from China for just this sort of thing. I won't be able to use the mounting rails on that side anymore, but I never did anyway, so no big loss.
That's it for now. Next I want to make an enclosure for the battery, and add a BMS. Also mount it to the camera somehow.
Since the camera can't tell the difference between 3.7VDC from a battery, or a power supply, I may put a charge controller or direct supply barrel connector on it. I haven't worked out exactly what I want to do yet. The enclosure will need to be easily opened though, as I want to be able to swap out the battery when plugging it in is inconvenient.
