Tests and trials
The final test of the prototype was executed simulating a conference rooms environment. The test was performed on a room made avalable by the University where the Video Follower was used to track a hypothetical professor lecturing at the blackboard. The prototype was positioned at the critical distance of 5 meters from its target. It being a sunny day, room illumination throughout the test was high. The following images exhibit the test configuration:
The trial was divided into two tests:
1) Firstly elementary movements were tested, one direction at a time, making sure the device response was the same for movements upward, downward, toward the right and the left-hand side.
2) A second, more sophisticated test saw the tracking of a person moving before the blackboard. This test aims at reproducing a circumstance oftentimes occurring at the University, at the same times critical for the device inasmuch as the tracking ought not to be thwarted by sudden movements covering or hiding the face of the person being tracked. During the test the "interval" mode was also tested, making the movements of the camera smoother as it follows its target. At large distances from the target the tracking is inherently limited by the minimum step of the servos.
3) The third and last phase involved the test of the several additional options, such as the flip setting, axes inversion, screenshot and automatic return to default position of the servos.
Conclusions
The trials had favorable outcome and the project was received positively by the professor supervising the course.
The project was showcased at the 23° Salone dell'Orientamento "Student Day", taken place on February 19, 2016 at the Rizzi location, where high school students attend introductory meetings at the University.
