We are now going to build a very famous project for secret agents: a spy camera. This will be a camera that can be, for example, installed in a room behind a set of books and help you in monitoring the room from another location.
We are going to build two projects based on the same hardware. These will be the key topics covered in this chapter:
- The first project will be a spy camera that takes a picture every time motion is detected in front of it and uploads it to your Dropbox account. The pictures will then be accessible to the spy from anywhere in the world.
- Finally, we'll end the chapter by making the camera stream live videos on a local Wi-Fi network. This will be perfect for a spy who wants to see what's happening in a room while being hidden in another room or outside. Let's dive in!
First, let's see what are the required components for this project.
For once, we are not going to use an Arduino Uno board, but an Arduino Yun. Not only do we need Wi-Fi connectivity but also the on-board USB port of the Yun. This will make it really easy to use a USB camera with our project.
The following is the Arduino board that I used for this project:
Then, you need a USB camera. You need a camera that is compatible with the USB Video Class (UVC). Basically, most recent USB cameras are compatible with this standard. I recommend the Logitech C270 USB camera that I used for this project:
Finally, you will also need a PIR motion sensor, to detect whether there is motion in front of the camera. Any brand will be fine, you just need it be 5V-level compatible. This is the sensor that I used for this project:
Finally, here is the list of all the components that we will use in this project:
- Arduino Yun (http://www.adafruit.com/product/1498)
- USB camera (http://www.logitech.com/en-us/product/hd-webcam-c270)
- PIR motion sensor (http://www.adafruit.com/product/189)
- A microSD card (at least 2 GB)
- Breadboard (https://www.sparkfun.com/products/12002)
- Jumper wires (https://www.sparkfun.com/products/8431)
On the software side, you will only need the Arduino IDE. If you are using Windows, you'll also need a terminal software. I recommend using PuTTY, which you can download from http://www.putty.org/.