Home Hacking Projects for Geeks

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Image Capture

Part I: Home Automation

these guidelines when positioning

the motion detectors:

• Place the motion detector so that

it will be as close to your pet as

possible. Figure 3-2 shows how

I positioned a motion detector

in the window frame of my cat’s

favorite window.

• Point the motion detector toward

a wall. You want to avoid trig-

gering it when you’re walking

past (even if just while getting

ready for your trip), so do your

best to isolate the small area

where your pet is likely to be.

• Position the motion detector in

an out-of-the-way location so

that it isn’t accidentally knocked

over.

Figure 3-2. Carefully positioning the

motion detector greatly reduces the

number of false alarms.

Rest the motion detector on a flat surface and secure it with poster adhesive.

This is especially important if you have a cat, as cats like to bat at things.

The adhesive works best if you stick small pieces in each corner of the back

of the motion detector, as shown in Figure 3-3.

The motion detectors have a wider angle of view than the cameras, so if you

find yourself getting a lot of false alarms, it may be that the motion detector is

seeing movement outside the range of the camera. You can reduce the motion

detector’s range of view by covering part of the lens with opaque tape.

Image Capture

In this phase, you will configure the image-capture and ...