I am building a robot with camera to inspect the public sewer system of a small town in Spain. There exist some commercial models, but they cost millions of euros, and the city hall cannot afford it. So, I am helping my father (works as an architect there) to build an alternative.
First elementary prototypes consist on a security camera on a basic radio-contol toy car. Other models are string-controled cars (pulling from one string from the other side). They work, but not as good as they should. Plus, there could be some water puddles, and our current models will get stuck there.
Moving to a more sophisticated technology, we came to the idea of mounting it on something like this:
robotshop.com/eu/productinfo.aspx?pc=rb-rbo-33
Our question is: is it waterproof? Is there the possibility of making it (or a similar one) water resistant? We expect around 5-10 cm of water, and it would be really awesome if it could just go through. Plus, if we manage to build the basics, we can add more stuff, like a moving arm for the camera or a methane sensor.
Currently the video is sent to the computer throug an analogic video cable, so there is no problem in adding more wires to the system. Wireless is not really an option, a 2.4 GHz analog video failed after few meters. The pipes are semicircular, flat on the bottom and dirty. The minimum diameter is 20 cm, although many of them are over 30.
Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much, community.