Back up and Side View Camera Systems

BillyW wrote:
It would sure be nice if they could integrate one of these systems in with the OEM display so many newer tow vehicles already have. I will probably mod my Ram so I can use the rear view camera that's been installed on my trailer for the last 10 years.

They might? I know I could have a factory backup camera installed on my Ram that would work with the OEM display but the dealer wanted $500 to do it. They also wanted another $500 for the OEM GPS unit that would work on the display. I opted for my $65 camera deal and my old Tom Tom GPS instead.

My brother-in law has a pickup that has a camera in the tail gate. It is a rather wide angle and has a pair of shafts of light that show on the monitor where the pickup will be, when backing up. And the light shafts are 3 color, green-yellow-red, so you know how close you are.

The camera arrived today!

I hooked the monitor up on my work desk and it isn't working. The monitor sits there drawing about 20 mA from a power supply set at 12 volts. Screen totally black. Pressing the power button doesn't change anything. Connecting the green wire to the power causes the screen to flash blue every three seconds - the current jumps to 120 mA with the blue flash, and "AV2" displays in the upper right corner. This doesn't change to AV1 when I press the V1/V2 button. Pressing the menu button does not change the picture.

Hooking up the camera (it draws 70 MA or so) to the input that must be V2 causes a picture to flash every three seconds. The picture has a pattern of thick yellow lines - something like a big F on the left and a horizontally flipped F on the right side. Backup guide lines? I can't make out what the rest of the picture flashing is but it changes when I put my hand or piece of paper in front of the camera - the paper is recognizable in the quick flash. Looks like the camera is working but the monitor only works for half a second every three seconds.

I sent this story to the Amazon seller. Any thoughts on what could be going on here?

What are you using for a power source? Your monitor sounds like what mine was doing when I had the camera hooked up to my truck reverse light. I figured out that the power going to the reverse light wasn't a consent power, something like pulse wave modulation. Once I hooked the camera into my trailer plug reverse wire the picture cleared right up.

I'm using a variable power supply I built many years ago. Great thought, I'll try it with a battery right now.

It works! Many thanks!
The seller offered a partial refund or a new monitor. I already replied accepting the new monitor a few minutes ago. I'll reply again right now.

Good deal. I cussed, kicked and moaned for a couple days trying to figure out why mine didn't work. Checked the monitor and camera off a battery and they worked fine but hooked to the reverse light I got nothing. Never heard they were using dirty power to run the lights in some newer rigs until I found a reference to it somewhere on the net and decided I needed a new power source. Of course the trailer plug wiring isn't the same color wires as on the truck so I spent a half hour laying on my back under the truck trying to figure out which wire powered the trailer reverse lights. In hind sight I should have just wired the camera into the running lights then I could switch to it while towing if I ever want to look at the trailer tongue.

That is odd. It might be that the monitor is very sensitive to pulses on that green wire on/off feature. Picking up engine noise? Maybe it just needs a capacitor between green and black.
i haven't had any other troubles with my faithful power supply, though it might be old enough for capacitors to be failing. I built it about 1975.

If the onboard computer tests for bulb integrity then there is "dirty power" on those wires. The trailer connection is not usually monitored.

I had the monitor hooked directly to the battery so its power was clean, the camera power was the one causing problems and it wasn't sending a good picture. I never hooked up the green wire.

SCClockDr
So the computer actually test to make sure the bulb is working?

I see the problem with my variable power supply is that it just doesn't have enough power. The monitor draws 250 mA at 12 volts and my dear old power supply can't supply it. Time to buy a commercial one; I see this beauty is reasonably priced.
eBay.ca