DIY - Wi-Fi Touchscreen Camera

Imagine assembling out of shelf components to create a camera with touchscreen, wifi connectivity, a screen that itself functions as shutter, an auto transfer function for images to Dropbox account, and ability to click pictures with the tap of your finger. Not only this, you can review the images you have taken or change the camera settings and mode. This is no amateur DIY but it is doable and exciting as it does not require circuit knowledge. Through his lucid writeup, learn how Phillip Burgess makes such a camera with a Raspberry Pi camera board.

The camera requires little to no wiring. As said above, this DIY banks on assembly. A USB battery pack is used to make the whole camera portable. If using WiFi and/or a Model B Pi, you’ll want a robust battery pack that can provide 1 Amp (some are limited to 500 mA max). The Raspbian Wheezy operating system is uploaded on an SD card so it is advisable to purchase one with 8GB memory. The Raspberry Pi can be powered from a USB phone charger and then the first time boot can be configured.

To enable Dropbox, an app must be created with access credentials. Dropbox Uploader then can be run on Raspberry Pi. As soon as this happens, the camera is ready to load images to the Dropbox account automatically.

Phillip’s camera is effective. But there is scope of the size to be reduced. Empty spaces between the PiTFT and Raspberry Pi are not utilized – all this means extra features. For instance, advanced innovators can squeeze a LiPo battery and a 5V boost converter which would make the camera the size of the ones available in the market