ESP32 Climbing Camera

I often go climbing in the mountains and would also like to take some photos of the landscape or the climbing route. A large camera I do not want to drag along (every gram counts!) Pull the cell phone from the pocket in 300 meters altitude? ... No way!

And to be honest, an action cam on the helmet also looks pretty silly and I would certainly break it off soon.

So I made my own climbing camera that is lightweight (50g), cheap and can be operated with just one hand. It is for photos only, not for videos!

• ESP32-Cam
• Micro-SD-Card
• LiPo charging circuit
• LiPo battery 150 mAh
• Button
• PVC craft board, screws, cables

I used the project of Sara and Rui Santos (https://randomnerdtutorials.com/esp32-cam-take-photo-save-microsd-card/) which I modified a little bit. (Thanks to Sara and Rui). The Santos-sketch sends the ESP-Cam to deep sleep after the picture was made and saved. Deep-sleep-mode needs very low energy, but it still needs energy!

My version is only powered by my pressing finger for 5 seconds. In this way, the 150 mAh battery lasts for about 160 pictures! Five seconds with one hand? This is usually no problem during climbing at a good belay point.

Connect all parts as described in the Fritzing sketch at Step 1. The length of the cables depends on the shape you want to give the camera. My design is so compact that the electronics in the housing (step3) do not need any additional fixing or glue. So I can easily get to the SD card and the charging socket.

As connectors for the ESP32-cam I use Dupont plugs, but without the plastic sleeve, it takes too much space. Instead, I insulate the metal with small heat shrink tubing.

Then you can load the sketch onto the ESP32-cam. There are many good tutorials for this on the net.

Without 3D-Printer:

For this project, I am using a PVC sheet for the first time. I first determine the approximate size that the inside of the camera will have, about 48 x 31 x 21 mm. I cut this volume out of wood. I also cut and carve the hollow counterpart in wood. I have to remember to add the thickness of the plate twice to the dimensions.

I cut a PVC sheet with a cutter knife, about 120 x 100 mm so that there is room for the screws. Heat the sheet evenly with a hot air gun or a good hair dryer (use tongs!). When the sheet is soft, I place the sheet on the hollow mould and press it firmly into place with the punch. Wait one minute until the plastic has cooled down.

[In the picture you can see a failed trial: the plastic was not warm enough.]

3D-printer:

Of course, if you have a 3d printer, you can quickly make a suitable case yourself.

Put everything together, drill a suitable hole for the switch and one for the camera lens. Put a big enough lid onto the bottom of the housing and drill four screw holes as shown in the pictures. Insert screws and nuts. Only then cut the bottom and top sides as desired. Another hole for a loop would be handy.

Insert a formatted micro SD card into the slot on the ESP32-Cam, charge the LiPo-battery via USB and close the box with the screws. Now your climbing cam is ready.

Press the switch for about 5 seconds. When the flash goes off (you can see it shining a little through the plastic), the image is saved and you can release the switch.

My cam is not waterproof, but it has already survived a few climbs.

I can attach it to the shoulder strap of my backpack, where it doesn't bother me and is always at hand.

It is as exciting as it used to be in the good old pre-digital age: you didn't have a display then and you had to wait until the pictures were developed. Yes, and some pictures are not getting good either - like in the past!

Happy climbing!