My LUMIX Hardware Controller Is Complete

[BTM_Pix]

As someone less than politely pointed out on the other thread, I appear to have been a bit of a lazy arse in the almost 12 months since I tripped over and found the Cinelike d thing.

You may recall it happened because I was researching making a hardware controller and after several iterations, here it finally is.

And yes, it does look rather like a calculator doesn't it?

The different iterations (including an Android app at one point!) have been in pursuit of making something small, standalone, self powered, fast connecting, push buttons and with an integrated screen at a lowish cost and, well, here we are.

Here is the finished spec and features :

• Compatible with all Panasonic Lumix cameras that can be controlled by wifi
• Integrated USB rechargeable battery
• Full colour screen
• 20 keys with 3 bank switch keys giving 60 direct switch operations of functions
• Control of Aperture, ISO, Shutter Speed, White Balance, Colour Profile, Contrast, Saturation, Sharpness and Noise Reduction.
• Automatic unlocking of Cinelike D and Cinelike V on GX80/85, LX10/15 and TZ10
• Control of manual focus in fine and coarse steps 
• Control of One Shot AF
• Control of Record Stop/Start
• Store and Recall 8 focus points
• 4 selectable transition speeds between focus points
• Store and Recall 8 setup presets (each consisting of Aperture, ISO, Shutter Speed, White Balance, Colour Profile, Contrast, Saturation, Sharpness and Noise Reduction)
• Presets are stored in non-volatile memory so are available in any session.
• Boot time to camera connection and control under 2 seconds.
• Wifi control range tested to 20m.

Optional accessories :

1. Interface module to support Nintendo Nunchuck controller for manual focus control (native lenses and adapted lenses with smart adapters) and zoom (integrated lens cameras and power zoom lenses only)
2. Wireless interface module to sync remote record and stop on supported Tascam, Zoom and SoundDevices audio recorders. 

The controller fits a regular cheap cellphone to threaded adapter holder so as well as being used handheld it can be mounted to anything you have a need for with the right attachment so could be on a cage or a gimbal or whatever.

I'm going to be doing some more testing of it in anger in the next couple of weeks and I'll put up a video of it in action then.

So, I have been a bit less lazy than first imagined

By the by, the controller has both wifi and bluetooth so it begs the question would anyone be interested in a version of it for the Pocket 4K ??

[scotchtape]

Wow.  Great job.  I'm impressed you went all the way through with it!!!

[BTM_Pix]

8 minutes ago, scotchtape said:

Wow.  Great job.  I'm impressed you went all the way through with it!!!

Cheers.

I took a long break from it as I was too busy but the break worked to my advantage in the end as I re-thought it a bit to make it more universal so it can now be ported to BlackMagic next and probably to Sony after that as well.

[kye]

That's very impressive!  Well done!!

[Lux Shots]

Great job! I have something in the works as well, but after doing this shit for 10 hours a day, the last thing I want to do is do it again when I get home!

I did do a design modification and added USB the Go for direct tether. Now just trying to decide if I should pay USB SIG $2500 for a manufacturer's ID!

[BTM_Pix]

35 minutes ago, kye said:

That's very impressive!  Well done!!

Thanks

11 minutes ago, Lux Shots said:

Great job! I have something in the works as well, but after doing this shit for 10 hours a day, the last thing I want to do is do it again when I get home!

I did do a design modification and added USB the Go for direct tether. Now just trying to decide if I should pay USB SIG $2500 for a manufacturer's ID!

Thanks.

I suppose thats where a Kickstarter thing could come in useful to raise the registration cost.

 

[Trek of Joy]

Amazing job! Does it have a name?

Some of these devices have raised serious startup cash on Kickstarter - given the shitty camera control apps (Fuji, Sony), there's definitely a market for your widget. 

If you can figure out time-lapse and focus bracketing, you have a potential customer with every a9, a7r3 and a73 body sold. 

If it can trigger 4k recording, it'll make Fuji users heads explode.

Cheers

Chris

[BTM_Pix]

19 minutes ago, Trek of Joy said:

Amazing job! Does it have a name?

Thanks.

I should probably call it the EPOX-I due to my unfounded reputation on here for wanting to glue things to cameras.

19 minutes ago, Trek of Joy said:

If you can figure out time-lapse and focus bracketing, you have a potential customer with every a9, a7r3 and a73 body sold. 

I haven't really looked at the Sony stuff in any detail but both of those things are fairly trivial on Panasonic. They must be, as I know how to do them

24 minutes ago, Trek of Joy said:

If it can trigger 4k recording, it'll make Fuji users heads explode.

After a bit of lateral thinking I do have a way of simulating a proper app for Fuji by giving wireless video to an Android phone via some relatively cheap cobbling together and then using a wireless release to trigger the recording.

However, they have thrown a massive spanner in the works for the XT2 with the weird HDMI behaviour when you record internal FLOG. 

[sanveer]

 

Wow. This is absolutely insane.

8 hours ago, BTM_Pix said:

By the by, the controller has both wifi and bluetooth so it begs the question would anyone be interested in a version of it for the Pocket 4K ??

Yes, Please. It would add so much more to the BMPCC4k. 

 

Btw how much does this thing retail for? 

[BTM_Pix]

40 minutes ago, sanveer said:

Wow. This is absolutely insane.

Well its certainly almost driven me insane at times!

40 minutes ago, sanveer said:

Yes, Please. It would add so much more to the BMPCC4k. 

I'm going to start porting it ahead of time based on their documents but it'll be a bit blind until I get hold of a unit but I would expect it to be done within a month of that.

I will be looking at making it dual boot so you select on startup if its controlling a Panasonic or Pocket.

40 minutes ago, sanveer said:

Btw how much does this thing retail for? 

I don't know at this point.

It depends on how it is distributed.

I would say it will be around €150 for a dual boot with the additional options for joystick and audio recorder sync start.

[Grimor]

I take my hat off to you, sir

[buggz]

Wow, very nice!

I'm in, I would buy one now.

[sanveer]

@BTM_Pix The magnitude of your invention is so profound, that I am still trying to wrap my head around this one. 

8 hours ago, BTM_Pix said:

Well its certainly almost driven me insane at times!

Hahaha. I can just imagine. 

 

8 hours ago, BTM_Pix said:

I'm going to start porting it ahead of time based on their documents but it'll be a bit blind until I get hold of a unit but I would expect it to be done within a month of that.

I will be looking at making it dual boot so you select on startup if its controlling a Panasonic or Pocket.

I would suggest you speak to Grant Petty directly. This solves one of the fundamental issues with the BMPCC and (prospectively with the) BMPCC4k cameras, which is terrible battery life. If the 5inch screen monster can be switched off, even if briefly to punch in the required settings, it could easily add 30-50% to the battery of the camera. 

 

10 hours ago, BTM_Pix said:

I don't know at this point.

It depends on how it is distributed.

I would say it will be around €150 for a dual boot with the additional options for joystick and audio recorder sync start.

The price and features seem quite competitive. You could adopt an informal or formal crowd-funding route to see how many of these can be sold (approx figures).

Since LUTs can be baked-in on the BMPCC4k, information regarding then and the various codecs would be very interesting. 

[Inazuma]

Dude this is so awesome. 

[BTM_Pix]

8 hours ago, buggz said:

Wow, very nice!

I'm in, I would buy one now.

Thanks.

I'll hold you to that !

2 hours ago, sanveer said:

@BTM_Pix The magnitude of your invention is so profound, that I am still trying to wrap my head around this one. 

Wait til you see the as yet unrevealed focus method. You'll need a lie down after that

2 hours ago, sanveer said:

I would suggest you speak to Grant Petty directly. This solves one of the fundamental issues with the BMPCC and (prospectively with the) BMPCC4k cameras, which is terrible battery life. If the 5inch screen monster can be switched off, even if briefly to punch in the required settings, it could easily add 30-50% to the battery of the camera. 

I think he's probably got a bit too much on his plate to be bothered about my little calculator !

I'm not quite sure what you need it to do regarding the screen, can you elaborate?

2 hours ago, sanveer said:

The price and features seem quite competitive. You could adopt an informal or formal crowd-funding route to see how many of these can be sold (approx figures).

I'm looking at various options at the moment but I suppose much of it depends on the implementation of the other protocols.

My thinking now is to have it ready to go from the off with more than just Lumix control.

35 minutes ago, Inazuma said:

Dude this is so awesome. 

Cheers mate

And you might be interested to know that a Sony implementation of it will be coming sooner than I thought....

[Snowfun]

On 11/05/2018 at 12:01 PM, BTM_Pix said:

By the by, the controller has both wifi and bluetooth so it begs the question would anyone be interested in a version of it for the Pocket 4K ??

Yes, definitely interested - to the point that I’m sitting here with cash in hand.

Fabulous work.

[BTM_Pix]

3 minutes ago, Snowfun said:

Yes, definitely interested - to the point that I’m sitting here with cash in hand.

Fabulous work.

Nice one.

I'll try and deliver it before your Hydrogen arrives.

<Relaxes and takes 2 years off>

[Snowfun]

Don’t worry, I’ll give you a 3D call to place my order! 

Back to Eurovision...

 

(when I preordered the Pocket I was almost tempted to cancel the Hydrogen.  But didn’t)

[sanveer]

On 12/05/2018 at 2:07 PM, BTM_Pix said:

Wait til you see the as yet unrevealed focus method. You'll need a lie down after that

Wow. I hope curiosity doesn't kill the cat.  ?

 

On 12/05/2018 at 2:07 PM, BTM_Pix said:

I think he's probably got a bit too much on his plate to be bothered about my little calculator !

I'm not quite sure what you need it to do regarding the screen, can you elaborate?

Then we should spread the word about the calculator and the and use it for super quick reference (and making notes regarding each shot like DoPs do).

About the screen, I meant to ask, whether there is some way to switch off the screen (like on Panasonic cameras super economy mode) and make it go into mini hibernation at least until the shot is ready and the setting are being puched in. Also, maybe in-between the shot, or immediately aftr the scene, when the camera may be on, but the screen is not required for monitoring. 

 

On 12/05/2018 at 2:07 PM, BTM_Pix said:

I'm looking at various options at the moment but I suppose much of it depends on the implementation of the other protocols.

My thinking now is to have it ready to go from the off with more than just Lumix control.

Yes, the Lumix controller has some strange limitations and issues.

I think you little device should find an audience with M43, Mirrorless and Indie Film Blogs and then immediately thereafter with indie filmmakers, as soon as they start finding out what's cooking (or what's mostly already cooked). I was actually gathering some Indie Filmmakers to pick up the BMPCC4k in bulk and bargain for a bulk discount from blackmagic. Well, until I saw that Blackmagic had corrected prices here, and that the bulk buying exercise may not be necessary.

For this kind of Indie Filmmaking group this may be a great idea. Are you planning to buy the controller in bulk, and are you also looking at cheap mounting contraptions to fix it close to the cam to keep checking settings continuously (for people with mild OCD).

 

I think you should make a Cold Pitch (it can be Made Here on Eoshd, as a Poll; on 43rumors, on mirorlessons etc; basically most people will allow It, if you share the pics and a short working video of present features and the what the benefits of this great contraption would be), almost like an Evaluation Pitch to figure out how many Preorders there may be (and how many orders in Total) and what features people are most looking forward to. My 2 Cents. ?

[BTM_Pix]

28 minutes ago, sanveer said:

Use it for super quick reference (and making notes regarding each shot like DoPs do).

It has an internal micro SD card slot actually which will be used for boot mode selection (i.e. Lumix,Sony or Blackmagic) and it would be easy to write a settings log to that for each recording instance.

28 minutes ago, sanveer said:

About the screen, I meant to ask, whether there is some way to switch off the screen (like on Panasonic cameras super economy mode) and make it go into mini hibernation at least until the shot is ready and the setting are being puched in. Also, maybe in-between the shot, or immediately aftr the scene, when the camera may be on, but the screen is not required for monitoring. 

The Blackmagic protocol has a 2 value control for screen brightness (I'm going to take a wild guess that these are ON and OFF !) so, yeah, thats not an issue.

29 minutes ago, sanveer said:

Are you planning to buy the controller in bulk, and are you also looking at cheap mounting contraptions to fix it close to the cam to keep checking settings continuously (for people with mild OCD).

Yes, it will be done in batches.

It fits in a standard cellphone to thread mount adapter like this one (which is being used to attach it to the gimbal in the first post) and after that you can mount it to whatever you want. 

These are between £3 and £5 on eBay so there's no point me re-inventing the wheel and doing something myself.

As its a modular product, there is actually a wrist watch variation I've done of it with just the screen.

No, really.

45 minutes ago, sanveer said:

I think you should make a Cold Pitch (it can be Made Here on Eoshd, as a Poll; on 43rumors, on mirorlessons etc; basically most people will allow It, if you share the pics and a short working video of present features and the what the benefits of this great contraption would be), almost like an Evaluation Pitch to figure out how many Preorders there may be (and how many orders in Total) and what features people are most looking forward to. My 2 Cents. ?

Yes, it will be reaching a wider audience once a more thorough presentation is ready.