Panasonic AW-E860

[skinda0]

Hi all,

I have started a bit of an interest in video recently and purchased some old Panasonic AW-E860 cameras and fujinon lenses for next to nothing. Now, the cameras have an iris control and are fitted with an SDI card that has zoom and focus control and 2 SDI outputs. On power up the zoom and focus move as well as iris. The iris behaves as I expect and adjusts to light levels. However I am a bit stumped as to how I can control the zoom and focus on the camera without the controller.

I have some breakout cables of the 50 pin d type and they break out a CV output and a RS232 port.

Does anyone know of any software that Panasonic has that I can use to control the camera over 232? Can I build a manual demand that I can use with the lens?

Or do I need to find a controller for these cameras?

 

Any help would be much appreciated! I am going from an old composite video CCTV camera system to these much higher quality cameras and want to get the most functionality out of them that I can.

[timsabre]

Hi, google "aw-e860 rs232" there are some documents giving the RS232 commands e.g.

https://eww.pass.panasonic.co.jp/pro-av/support/content/guide/DEF/HE50_120_SERIAL/ConvertibleProtocol.pdf

 

If you are not into scripting or programming there's a number of free camera control software apps out there which may already include this (as it looks, from a quick glance, like the panasonic standard which they use on other cams).

 

 

[skinda0]

Thanks Tim,

Weird thing is, the camera datasheet specifies 232, that protocol document specifies 422! The cables I have that wire up to the 50 pin d type, have 2 BNCs for YC video. They work fine. There is also a 9 way d-type that is wired for 232, pins 2,3&5. But I can't get anything out of it! Tried 2/3 swaps as well. Baud rate is setup correctly. Found a bit of software that supports serial PTZ with Panasonic AW cameras, but it's not freeware and I've had no luck yet getting them to do anything. I thought I may get something out of it on boot, but putty gives me a blank screen too! 

[sunray]

Hi Dan.

Have you checked the 232 with a volt meter?

When 'Idle' pins 2 or 3 should be at -ve9V (in reality -3V to -15V seems to be typical) and the other device should do the same to the other of the pins.

When commissioning AV systems using RS232 I got into the habit of removing the D-type covers and checking both were -ve before attempting any control, I even got as far as making up a box with male and female with red and green LEDs on each of the pins. Our factory couldnt be bothered to check the polarity when they built the racks and I'd estimate were 50% inorrect.

Setting up an 8n1 dumb terminal emulator on a pc is also a useful tool to see if any data is being transmitted.

[alistermorton]

Bit of a lobg shot, but it's not waiting on a hardware handshake is it? I recall back in the day having to make sure the CTS RTS DSR & DTR were correctly wired for some equipment. Others just used soft xon/xoff handshake. 

[timsabre]

I doubt you'll get anything out of the camera other than responses to your commands, once it's accepted them. 

[milosz]

Hi team , I have 3 of these cameras with lens at home, I have a 2 question. How you would rate video quality from this cameras and someone offer me 100£ for the set. I agreed, this is old so assume is good to get rid of it. 

[paulears]

The valuable bit is the glass. The cameras, frankly are just too old. SD and composite video limits any form of connectivity with modern gear. A few people still collect 2/3" glass

[milosz]

Thx for quick reply, make sens, this type of glass can be use for different camera model? 

[paulears]

Oh yes, ⅔" mount lenses are on ebay in all sorts of ages and prices all the time. The only snag is that they too are designed for the optical system of the day - so ⅔" lenses may well fit on newer cameras, but the limitations of the glass resolution can be awkward. My studio has 3 JVC HD cameras - I have my old SD very expensive lenses, and a couple have built in 2X converters. I can tale off the standard and wide angle HD lenses and put the old mega expensive lenses from the 90s on the modern camera, and it effectively makes the lens have a VERY long focal length. If I do something like a parachute video, from the ground I can see the jumpers exit nearly full frame. However, on a white cloud background, around the edges of the dark objects in the frame are coloured artefacts. Like you see when trying to project gobos on older lighting gear with rougher lenses - coloured fringing. For the few times I use these lenses I get away with it. The cost of HD long focal length lenses is crazy. I'd definitely think about camera and lens separately if you sell, because the cameras are probably not a draw at all, but you could get interest on the glass - depending on what you actually have.

[milosz]

Paulears thank you for your time and knowledge. Can you recommend a good body for that lens? Fujinon a20 x 8.6bmd, I may sell two and keep one for my self. or I will sell them all together for 100 pounds ( 3x AW-E860 and Fujinon a20 x 8.6bmdN) is not to cheap ?

[skinda0]

On 5/11/2024 at 12:28 PM, sunray said:

Hi Dan.

Have you checked the 232 with a volt meter?

When 'Idle' pins 2 or 3 should be at -ve9V (in reality -3V to -15V seems to be typical) and the other device should do the same to the other of the pins.

When commissioning AV systems using RS232 I got into the habit of removing the D-type covers and checking both were -ve before attempting any control, I even got as far as making up a box with male and female with red and green LEDs on each of the pins. Our factory couldnt be bothered to check the polarity when they built the racks and I'd estimate were 50% inorrect.

Setting up an 8n1 dumb terminal emulator on a pc is also a useful tool to see if any data is being transmitted.

I haven't yet, I'll give that a try just to check polarity. I did a 2/3 swap anyway but got nothing.

I have always found that 232 is bound to be setup incorrectly, at work I always say we should put DPDT switches in series with 232 comms so we can do a 2/3 swap on board rather than having to make up countless adapters!

On 5/11/2024 at 2:05 PM, alistermorton said:

Bit of a lobg shot, but it's not waiting on a hardware handshake is it? I recall back in the day having to make sure the CTS RTS DSR & DTR were correctly wired for some equipment. Others just used soft xon/xoff handshake. 

The wiring I had only has pins 2, 3 & 5 connected. I can only assume it was working with whatever kit they had them on before. 

 

I am currently using the setup listed in the doc linked by Tim earlier, but as 232. Of course this may be completely incorrect as these are for 422, but the datasheet for the camera specifies 232 and only has wiring for 232!

On 5/11/2024 at 5:55 PM, timsabre said:

I doubt you'll get anything out of the camera other than responses to your commands, once it's accepted them. 

I was coming to this conclusion. I need to confirm that my 232 port is actually functioning as expected as it is a USB to 232 converter I have had in a drawer for a few years.

 

Does anyone know of a pinout for the 50 pin D-SUB connector? From the datasheets I can see there are a lot of other video outputs I would like to experiment with, Component Y/C, Composite, RGB, and of course some control pins!

 

Thanks for the help all, hopefully I can get something out of them!

Edited Tuesday at 07:57 AM by skinda0

[skinda0]

I have just found this document:

https://www.spectratech.gr/Web/Panasonic/pdf/AW-CA24T24G.pdf

This details the pinouts of a lot of different connector cables for the AW series of cameras. Looks like I am able to check the pinouts I have with these drawings and hope they are incorrect as I can't currently talk to them. If they match my current pinouts I must be doing something wrong!

[timsabre]

So which of those cables have you got?

There is no difference in the command protocol between RS232 and RS422/485, it's just the electrical voltages on the line are different. I have some Panasonic cameras with IP control and they still use the same command protocol over IP as the old serial ones did.

[skinda0]

I have by the looks of it some custom made cables with YC video and 232 broken out. I can however confirm that the YC video output works perfectly and the pinout of the 232 port matches the pinout of the 50 pin D-SUB on the camera port. These were used by a company previously and were upgraded so taken out of service. I have no information to say they were faulty, and it would be odd that the same fault would be consistent across the three cameras.

I have the PB504 SDI card fitted to these cameras and they have the zoom/focus connector for the lens. I still have no control over the camera. Even Iris which plugs directly into the camera. 

I found this piece of software PTZ controller: https://www.ptzcontroller.com/

This lists Panasonic AW series cameras as a supported camera in their list, but connected up, I have nothing.

I have tried 3 different USB - 232 converters in case it was that but no luck so far. It is just odd that I have everything I need to get it to work, but I just can't get it to respond!