Holding Cameras Steady

The fastest track on the NASCAR circuit is the Talladega Superspeedway. In order to measure lap speed accurately, the camera has to be very steady.

The average speed of a NASCAR car varies from one racetrack to another. The speed is calculated based on the winner’s lap speed through the entire race. On the Talladega Superspeedway the recorded average speed is about 188 miles per hour (303 kilometers per hour).

In order to capture video images of the cars as they hammer along the track at these phenomenal speeds, a camera needs to resist the wind turbulence generated by the passing cars, especially since the camera is mounted to a gantry that is only ten inches above the track.

Doggicam Systems (Burbank, CA) adapted its patented movie camera system to create the Super Slide, a high-speed, light-weight, and super-rigid rail system, which allows the camera to be moved at tremendous speeds and accelerations while maintaining high precision.

One of the key components to the Super Slide that allows the Doggicam Systems’ Super Slide to deliver high-speed precision while moving safely within inches of the subject, are the Intech Power-Core™ rollers. These rollers ensure a smooth, vibration-free rolling transit of the camera system along the rail. With minimum resistance, the rollers allow the camera to accelerate from zero to 24 feet per second in just one second, and to reach a top speed of 25 feet per second.

Intech Power-Core™ rollers eliminate rail wear as well as the need for lubrication. These features are ideal for a long-lasting solution in demanding conditions like high vibration, torrential rains, and extreme heat to freezing temperatures — all environments that the Doggicam Super Slide is exposed to. Intech guide rollers are also used in mechanisms that move cameras in TV studios or on film sets, where smooth, vibration free and quiet camera operation is paramount.

Read more about this and other Entertainment Engineering topics in our online magazine!

 

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