First post, by aries-mu
Guys,
I need advices. Although this is not literally a vintage project, I suspect it requires that mental flexibility and deep experience that you people here have.
The problem:
• Water service meter located on the street, outside of the house, inside a manhole covered by a cast iron manhole lid that is heavier than heck
• Water provider requiring users to "read" the meter every 3 months and sending the reading to them to avoid insane bills (they'd just make a 'predictive' calculation and blast your bank account with what they expect you consumed)
• The procedure is very inconvenient. Not to talk about my 2 broken bones in my lower back, 2 damaged discs, and slipped spine, needing to find somebody to help me every time to lift that piece of neutronium
• The cast iron would shield wireless transmissions most likely
Solution:
I was thinking of placing some sort of camera inside the chamber, pointed at the water meter and accessible remotely
Challenges:
• Very close distance of the camera from the meter, requiring great auto-focus and zoom abilities
• Transmission: cast iron lid... Ways to work around?
• Choice of technology
• Light: the camera must be IR capable of course (unless I wanna also install a remotely-controlled LED light inside the hole... mmm....)
• Power: I still need to supply power to the rig, somehow...
And, of course, any possible retro-looking aspect would be a nice addition!
Thanks.
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