Checking a remote control

[racket]

Hi guy's

Just seen this brilliant way of checking if your remote control is working.

using your camera phone in camera mode, point the remote at the lens of the camera and press a button on the remote, you should see the IR bulb flash in the screen of your phone. Try it out it works on all remote controllers

 

[Plug]

Or indeed any digital camera if you don't have a camera phone.

 

[breezer]

Hi guy's

Just seen this brilliant way of checking if your remote control is working.

using your camera phone in camera mode, point the remote at the lens of the camera and press a button on the remote, you should see the IR bulb flash in the screen of your phone. Try it out it works on all remote controllers

actually its not a bulb or even a lmp, its a led.

the reason it works is because you phone camera uses a ccd chip, ccd chips can see infra red.

i also suggest that your advice is flawed, if you have a programable remote control (i.e a one for all) all you will see is the led flashing, it may be the remote control has the wrong number set for say your tv, but using your theory it must work.

my one for all is old and regularly looses its info, although the batteries work, i still have to reprogramme it

 

[Steve]

Why do they flash? I just had a look at my sky remotes thru the phone camera, and its a "bright white LED" that shows up, but depending what button i press, it flashes or pulsates at different rates. What is the TV "eye" sensitive to? is it brightness, frequency of flash, pulsation, or something more sinister . . . ?

 

[plugwash]

i belive its some form of high speed pulsed code. I suspect the flashing you are seeing is a similar effect to that you get when you see a TV or monitor on TV (basically a high frequency interacting with the sampling rate to give a lower frequency).

 

[Steve]

i belive its some form of high speed pulsed code. I suspect the flashing you are seeing is a similar effect to that you get when you see a TV or monitor on TV (basically a high frequency interacting with the sampling rate to give a lower frequency).

ah, now i understand. like on top gear when you see the cars going round the track and the wheels look like they are spinning the wrong way . . .

So the "pulsating", dim/bright, is actually my phone picking up the light at different stages of the hi-speed pulsing code. ace!

 

[RF Lighting]

This is also why/how you can buy I.R. illuminators for CCTV systems. The picture is bright but the theif is still in the dark!