This page serves as an index to the primary sensors in areas managed by members of KAOS within the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department of the University of Kentucky. These and other sensors serve several purposes:
The cameras are generally intelligently controlled by PCs running Linux. Old RS232C cameras, such as the Nikon 950 and Olympus D340R, are able to be controlled in detail using the photopc package. More modern USB-interface still cameras, especially Canon PowerShots, are often given a similar level of control using gphoto2 (or much more using chdkptp), but the control is not well standardized, and varies significantly across camera models. Many network cameras, such as the D-Link DCS-900 and DCS-930L, only offer control via HTML WWW forms; filled-in forms can be generated and sent using wget, although this does seem to reveal memory leaks in the firmware of a number of network cameras.
Some images are now using HDR (high dynamic range) processing that involves combining multiple images captured with different exposures. Such techniques can produce ghosting and other artifacts, but are necessary when low dynamic range cameras are monitoring a very high dynamic range scene. Without HDR, large portions of the frame would be featureless black or white in such cases.
The Commonwealth of Kentucky allows recording of images where there is no expectation of privacy and allows recording of sounds with notice posted. Appropriate notice is posted near the outside of the door to each area where sounds may be recorded.
The shared ECE lab of Professors Dietz and Thapliyal. This laboratory provides a setting in which research not only can be conducted by individuals, but collaboration is encouraged. At least two desks are treated as "transient" workspaces for whoever needs them: visitors, REU students, etc. The second camera view below is the view of the front of 108 looking out the viewing window in 108A. The third camera view is a motion-triggered view of the door to 108 Marksbury.
(D-Link DCS-900 with really cheap peephole fisheye adapter)
(captured using D-Link DCS-900 with peephole fisheye adapter)
(captured using D-Link DCS-900 with peephole fisheye adapter)
(last 8 motion-detect events captured using D-Link DCS-900)
(from a webcam mounted on our MakerGear M2)
This is our machine room. (Please use hearing protection for any extended periods spent in the machine room during set-up or maintenance; the cooling system fans are really noisy!) Designed to hold a large scale research supercomputer, this room even feeds back waste heat to warm the building. This room currently houses a small fleet of cluster supercomputers.
(captured using Nikon 950 with fisheye adapter)
(last 8 motion-detect events captured using D-Link DCS-900 with peephole fisheye adapter)
This is professor Dietz's office. It's a fish tank, and this is being captured using an Insta360 air so we get a 220-degree view for each of the inside and outside.
(captured using D-Link DCS-900 with peephole fisheye adapter)
The only thing set in stone is our name.