Project: Camera Chase Vehicle

Author: Dane Kouttron
Status: In-Progress
Timeline: Started 01/2026

"You stumble upon a bizarre robot chassis in an industrial warehouse... time to adopt this curious contraption and turn it into something cinematic."

🎯 The Vision

The goal is to construct a stabilized "Chase Camera" Rover. The inspiration for this build comes from the Freefly Tero, a platform famously utilized during the early RocketJump era to achieve smooth, low-angle tracking shots.

Why a Rover instead of a Drone?

While quad-rotors are versatile, they struggle with low-altitude precision.

• GPS Inaccuracy: Altitude hold is often imprecise when hugging the ground.
• Risk Factor: Obstacle avoidance becomes significantly more complex when flying just inches above the terrain.

Just fly higher $\rightarrow$ Use a ground-based cinema rover.

Project Objectives

• Acquire a heavy-duty chassis.
• Integrate a professional stabilization system.
• Establish long-range telemetry and video feeds.
• Implement companion computing for autonomous tracking.

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🛠️ Technical Architecture

To achieve a subject-tracking shot—whether it's a "Mad Max" style vehicle on a frozen lake or analyzing suspension geometry on a track—the system requires three primary pillars:

1. The Platform (The Muscle)

The chassis must be substantial enough to support a modern DSLR and a 3-axis gimbal without tipping over. I opted for a 1/5 scale RC vehicle (similar to the Losi 5 platforms).

2. The Gimbal (The Balance)

Thanks to a lead on a marketplace deal, I acquired a Movi M10 for approximately $124 USD. This was Freefly's inaugural full-size gimbal, designed by the "gimbal whisperer," Shane Colton. Despite being nearly a decade old, its continued iteration proves its robustness.

Power Integration: To ensure the assembly is modular (allowing the camera, transmitter, and gimbal to be removed as one unit), I standardized the voltage.

• Target Voltage: $\approx 14\text{V}$
• Battery Standard: DTAP range ($12\text{V} - 16.8\text{V}$)

Note: Extreme care was taken to minimize mass on the actuated axes to reduce motor strain.

3. Radio & Telemetry (The Senses)

The challenge here is balancing bandwidth, latency, and signal quality.

• Control Link: 900 MHz (Standard for long-range reliability).
• Video Link: 5.8 GHz using a pair of Amimon CONNEX wireless HD links designed for UAVs.
• Source: DSLR $\rightarrow$ HDMI $\rightarrow$ Wireless Transmitter.

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🚀 Future Upgrades & Scalability

I am planning for "companion computation" to enable automated tracking and obstacle avoidance.

Integration Path:

1. Hardware: Allocate space for a single-board computer (SBC).
2. Flight Stack: Integrate with the Pixhawk system.
3. Modeling: Maintain a strict CAD workflow to ensure all new components fit the physical footprint.

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🕵️ The Origin Story: BMI Surplus

The chassis was discovered during an excursion to BMI Surplus in Massachusetts with Jake Hecla and the mysterious Arsenio.

BMI Surplus is a dense emporium of gadgets and gizmos, much of which appears to originate from Lincoln Laboratory (the "friendly neighborhood spooks").

I managed to haggle the mystery chassis down to ~$50 + tax. The vehicle arrived with a strange Z-axis linear actuator bolted to the top. After extensive research, I found zero technical papers or documentation on its original purpose.

Theories on its original use:

• Surveying equipment?
• Automotive door-height imaging?
• Something far more classified?

Regardless of its past, it now serves as the foundation for this cinematic pursuit.