If anyone is near the Hamburg Cabela's you can get an inexpensive ($120-ish) GoLight Stryker in black.

I tried manually setting the values but I was not able to get a picture that looked as good the default settings from power on. Were your settings with AGC mode set to manual and the "Manual or Bias" box also set to manual? When I used the numbers you had as a starting point the picture was completely blacked out.

Start normal AGC mode and select manual bias box to manual  and adjust sliders to get a balanced image.
By balanced I mean a image that looks good with blk hot and wht hot when switching between them.
As you adjust the image and get the settings balanced  when you switch polarity
both will look good.

I just need to confirm that the values I have work for others,
if not I need to have full range for adjustments but that makes it
hard to get 1 unit resolution.

Last night it was cool out and I was using values of 2222 and 4055 in manual mode.
Using the software sent from DRS on the thumb drive.

Thanks, I was able to get things working this time.
For test 1 I put a glass of hot tap water in front of the wall. Wall was 72F and the glass was 99F.
Settings: 2079 and 3960
Test 2, same wall but the glass with ice and water in it (44F)
Settings: 2243 and 3960

I was able to get a good picture by adjusting only the level number on the left once I got the gain set right.

I'll try again tomorrow with the same test and try directly setting the numbers and see if I still get a good picture to see if it's repeatable.

Ok, Thanks

I just need a range that will work with other units.

I am thinking I will need put notes in code as to what values go into what statements,
so if someone needs to change the range to have their camera set to the center of the values they need they can.

Hope to get pots installed into my unit today and have prototype up and running.

When manual AGC button is pressed code is set to read pots then it sends values to camera, any time value changes it is re transmitted. Pressing Standard AGC mode data is no longer sent and unit runs like default mode AGC.

I ran my test again and it worked with the same numbers, so it seems like they are stable from one power cycle to another.

What would you guys say the human detection range is on this ?

Based on other cores with similar FOV and same resolution, I'd say human detection range would be around 1200m to 1400m.  Do you guys agree with this?

Setup manual controls for gain and bias
Changed code for arduino to toggle polarity and toggle 1x/3x
Now remote controls the following
NUC, Polarity,  1x/3x,  AGC standard, AGC manual controls, AGC Off

Using the auto AGC then going to AGC off will keep image from washing out
when panning , also you can aim camera then hit the auto AGC button to adjust
image the switch off AGC to keep it from auto adjusting image
Manual mode can be adjusted by single digits with the potentiometers

Manual remote adjustments

Wow!  Excellent results! Very nice control of the gain and bias with those pots!

Video from nextbook ares 10a $98 with usb easycap device  and powered with anker usb power bank
tablet only powers itself for longer runtime.

Tablet app is FPViewer free download

Video taken using iphone5s of tablets screen.



https://youtu.be/_ocA1XCEU04

Modified code to read potentiometers and send current reading when manual mode is selected
Before it would send default data until potentiometers were turned and updated

https://youtu.be/H6LsBBytTxk

Arduino nano source code for 6 button remote with manual gain and level controls

Switches go to gnd and respective pins labeled in program d4-d9 on nano PCB
Potentiometers 1 & 2  are 10K outer pins connected to gnd and 5v labeled  on nano PCB then
center pin or wiper connected to A3 (gain potentiometer #1) and A5(level potentiometer #2) labeled on nano PCB

gnd------A3-------5v  (pot#1)            gnd-------A5---------5v (pot#2)    labeled on nano PCB

Note: to reprogram the arduino nano that's connected to a  RS232 to TTL PCB board you have to disconnect the TX and RX pins from the nano PCB to the rs232 PCB. The wires going to the camera can stay connected, as well as the buttons.
Only 2 wires need to be disconnected the rx and tx from the nano to the RS232 PCB
after reprogramming reconnect the TX and RX back, if you don't disconnect you can't communicate with the nano

Tested and working

Cut and paste this code in arduino IDE program window

Start below

#include <SoftwareSerial.h>

#define DEBOUNCE 100  // ms for Debounce, 5+

//Buttons.
byte buttons[] = {4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9};

//Figure out Array Size
#define NUMBUTTONS sizeof(buttons)

//Track Buttons Pressed, Released, Currently Pressed
byte pressed[NUMBUTTONS], justpressed[NUMBUTTONS], justreleased[NUMBUTTONS];
byte previous_keystate[NUMBUTTONS], current_keystate[NUMBUTTONS];

//define variables
int bhot=1;
int narrow=1;
int manual=0;
int mgain=120;
int mlevel=125;
int mgain2=125;
int mlevel2=200;

void setup() {
 byte i;
 Serial.begin(19200); //Setup Serial Port
   // Input and Enable Pull-Up Resistors for Switch Pins
 for (i=0; i< NUMBUTTONS; i++) {
   pinMode(buttons[i], INPUT);
   digitalWrite(buttons[i], HIGH);
   
 }
}

void loop() {
       analogRead(A3); //Discard
   int level=analogRead(A3);
       analogRead(A5); //Discard  
   int gain=analogRead(A5);
   mgain=map(gain,0,1023,190,220);
   mlevel=map(level,0,1023,00,255);
   byte ccsum=256-1-50-2-15-mgain;
   byte bcsum=256-1-51-2-7-mlevel;
     
  byte thisSwitch=thisSwitch_justPressed();
 switch(thisSwitch)
 {  
 case 0:
 // button 1 NUC with shutter pin D4
   Serial.write(0x01);
   Serial.write(0x27);
   Serial.write(0x02);
   Serial.write(0x00);
   Serial.write(0x03);
   Serial.write(0xd3); break;
 case 1:
  // button 2 TOGGLE POLARITY pin D5
   if(bhot==1){
   Serial.write(0x01);
   Serial.write(0x28);
   Serial.write(0x00);
   Serial.write(0xd7);
   bhot=bhot-1; break;
   }else
   Serial.write(0x01);
   Serial.write(0x29);
   Serial.write(0x00);
   Serial.write(0xd6);
   bhot=bhot+1; break;
 case 2:
   // button 3  MANUAL AGC MODE   pin D6
       
    Serial.write(0x01);
    Serial.write(0x2a);
    Serial.write(0x02);
    Serial.write(0x00);
    Serial.write(0x02);
    Serial.write(0xd1);
    delay(100);
    manual=1;
   
    Serial.write(0x01);
    Serial.write(0x32);
    Serial.write(0x02);
    Serial.write(0x0f);
    Serial.write(mgain);
    Serial.write(ccsum);
    delay(100);
 
    Serial.write(0x01);
    Serial.write(0x33);
    Serial.write(0x02);
    Serial.write(0x07);
    Serial.write(mlevel);
    Serial.write(bcsum);
    delay(100);    
    break;

 case 3:
   // button 4 STANDARD AGC  pin  D7
   Serial.write(0x01);
   Serial.write(0x2a);
   Serial.write(0x02);
   Serial.write(0x00);
   Serial.write(0x01);
   Serial.write(0xd2);
   manual=0;
   break;
 case 4:
       // button 5 TOGGLE FOV pin D8
   if(narrow==1){
   Serial.write(0x01);
   Serial.write(0xa4);
   Serial.write(0x00);
   Serial.write(0x5b);
   narrow=narrow-1;
   break;
   }else {
   Serial.write(0x01);
   Serial.write(0xa5);
   Serial.write(0x02);
   Serial.write(0x00);
   Serial.write(0x00);
   Serial.write(0x58);
   narrow=narrow+1;
   break; }
   
 case 5:
       // button 6   MANUAL AGC OFF  pin D9
   Serial.write(0x01);
   Serial.write(0x2a);
   Serial.write(0x02);
   Serial.write(0x00);
   Serial.write(0x00);
   Serial.write(0xd3);
   manual=0;
   break;    
 }
}
 
void check_switches()
{
 static byte previousstate[NUMBUTTONS];
 static byte currentstate[NUMBUTTONS];
 static long lasttime;
 byte index;
 if (millis() < lasttime) {
   // We Looped, One More Time
   lasttime = millis();
 }
 if ((lasttime + DEBOUNCE) > millis()) {
   // Not Enough Time Passed for Debounce
   return;
 }
 // DEBOUNCE Milliseconds, Reset the Timer
 lasttime = millis();
 for (index = 0; index < NUMBUTTONS; index++) {
   justpressed[index] = 0;       //Clear Out Indicators
   justreleased[index] = 0;
   currentstate[index] = digitalRead(buttons[index]);   //Read Button
   if (currentstate[index] == previousstate[index]) {
     if ((pressed[index] == LOW) && (currentstate[index] == LOW)) {
       // Just Pressed
       justpressed[index] = 1;
     }
     else if ((pressed[index] == HIGH) && (currentstate[index] == HIGH)) {
       justreleased[index] = 1; // Just Released
     }
     pressed[index] = !currentstate[index];  //HIGH means NOT pressed
   }
   previousstate[index] = currentstate[index]; //Running Count of the Buttons
 }
}

byte thisSwitch_justPressed() {
 byte thisSwitch = 255;
 check_switches();  //Check the Switches ; Get Current State
 for (byte i = 0; i < NUMBUTTONS; i++) {
   current_keystate[i]=justpressed[i];
   if (current_keystate[i] != previous_keystate[i]) {
     if (current_keystate[i]) thisSwitch=i;
   }
   previous_keystate[i]=current_keystate[i];
 }
 analogRead(A3); //Discard
 int level=analogRead(A3); // center pin of potentiometer #1
  analogRead(A5); //Discard  
 int gain=analogRead(A5); // center pin of potentiometer #2
  mgain=map(gain,0,1023,190,220);
  mlevel=map(level,0,1023,00,255);

   byte ccsum=256-1-50-2-15-mgain;
   byte bcsum=256-1-51-2-7-mlevel;
   
if ((manual==1)&&(mgain2!=mgain)) {  
   
 Serial.write(0x01);
 Serial.write(0x32);
 Serial.write(0x02);
 Serial.write(0x0f);
 Serial.write(mgain);
 Serial.write(ccsum);
 delay(100);
  mgain2=mgain;
   
}

if ((manual==1)&&(mlevel2!=mlevel)) {  
 
 Serial.write(0x01);
 Serial.write(0x33);
 Serial.write(0x02);
 Serial.write(0x07);
 Serial.write(mlevel);
 Serial.write(bcsum);
 delay(100);    
 mlevel2=mlevel;
}
    return thisSwitch;      
}

Ended above this line

I love the gain controls, but I think I am going to stick with the 6 button version for now. It seems to meet my needs perfectly. I wish others would post what they have done with these, unless only 4 of us bought them. lol

Sierra Olympic still shows them for sale $995.

Unit with remote controller, 8-12vdc power supply , and simple video monitor makes a great 640x480 thermal camera setup!

They even work with the old style 4 camera video security dvr with analog video.

Has anyone with one of these taken it out in the field and captured any video?  I still haven't had much time to mess with my 2 units.

I will post some in the next few days

Sierra Olympic appears to be finally out of stock of these! I hope everyone that wanted one had a chance to get one.

I'm running an experiment with the camera powered via 3x 18650 (3000mAh) batteries and it has been running for 4 hours and 26 minutes so far.  The voltage has gone from 12.4V to 10.8V.  I'm curious how much longer it will run.  Kinda cool though since the battery pack really isn't all that large.

Just passed 5 hours and still running strong, I expect though the voltage will rapidly drop off at some point pretty soon as Li-ion batteries tend to do when they are almost discharged.

Just found this thread. This is awesome.

I may have missed it, but where are you guys buying these units at?

They were on clearance from Sierra Olympic, but they just sold out within the last few days it appears.

Ok I had to manually shut it off at about 5 hours 45 minutes because I'm doing this test at work and it's time to go home.  I'll recharge the batteries and start earlier tomorrow.

10-4, thanks

I am still shopping for a side-by-side to mount this bad boy on. This thermal project has impressed me more than most of my DIY projects. The quality of the image from this device for the cost is truly outstanding. The cool factor is also extremely high.

I found you one on eBay

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53200-19255-0/1?type=3&campId=5337559805&toolId=10001&customId=ixl4ftjm6i00zk8a00axe&mpre=http%3A%2F%2Fm.ebay.com%2Fitm%2FDRS-E-6000-640x480-Thermal-Camera-Module-w-62mm-Lens-Cables-GUI-FLIR-Scope-%2F262794087264%3Fhash%3Ditem3d2fbf8b60%3Ag%3AWtcAAOSw2xRYbn4y%26_trkparms%3Dpageci%3Abb928294-d3ae-11e6-ae7c-005056b6898a%7Cparentrq%3A715fa4991590a785742dc6c0ffc13b24%7Ciid%3A1

For those with vehicle roof panels that have raised ribs and no flat spot to mount go light I used a small grey stone flecked cutting board from Walmart to mount 4  
3 1/2 inch magnets from harbor freight with 2 added washers to add about 1/8 inch more rise about 7 inches apart in a square pattern  then mount the go light to the top side of the cutting board.  This lets the mount fit above the roof ribs. Makes mounting it quick and hold so far at top speed of 90 mph no problem, wind speed was higher as headwind was 15 mph so 100 mph wind rating is good
The cutting board only needs holes drilled for the magnets and the Golight , cutting board has a handle which is helpful to detach from roof as the magnets hold it place very very strong.
Pic of cutting board hanging on wall
Magnets can barely be seen under the board