InMotion Slider: Cinematic Camera Moves At Your Fingertips

Prototypes are here - We have tested them in Singapore!
almost 6 years ago – Sat, Jul 14, 2018 at 12:27:24 AM

Dear Kickstarter Backers,

We have finally released beta version of our firmware for new, redesigned slider electronics. New communication protocol has been integrated with InMotion App, so new electronics can be controlled via existing mobile app. We have implemented control for the second axis. For now in a form of simple angle selection bar, but we will find the most convenient UX way to present additional axis of movement in the following days. 

 In terms of firmware and software we still have to: 

• Integrate battery status update via Bluetooth, 
• Add a new feature to change motor torque modes: eco mode (for smartphones) and high torque mode (for mirrorless) 
• Add ramping in timelapse mode - Test everything as there are still some small bugs At this time we have a 1.0 version of iOS App and we have started the development of Android mobile app, so when shipped, the InMotion App will be available both for iOS and for Android. 

New mechanical design is going strong: we have finished the design of InMotion Control Unit, the rails and sliding mechanism. After the design was finished, we have made many iterations with 3D printed prototypes using first FDM and then much more expensive – PolyJet technology to make sure that everything sits well, before going for CNC manufacturing.  

Here are some pictures of all CNC milled parts for three prototype sliders:

Assembled slider

The slider: 

Singapore

Marcin - InMotion Cofounder - went recently to Asia to discuss different aspects of Slider production with our partners. The sliders were intensively tested by Singaporean filmmaker, while Marcin took care of the production aspects in Asia. We still did not get the footage, as sliders are going back from Singapore to us, but we already got some very precious feedback about the firmware, mechanics and travelling with the slider.

Photos of InMotion Slider in Singapore are presented below: 

Trust me, we are working tirelessly to make the best possible slider for you. We will make next update around 1st of August. We are extremely close to start of the production!

Payload testing, faster firmware update and noise level.
almost 6 years ago – Mon, Jun 18, 2018 at 07:51:23 PM

Dear InMotion backers,

My biggest apologies for delaying the update by six days. It has been an extremely busy week with many production things going on. Below I present an update that covers different areas of InMotion Slider development. 

New firmware for new microprocessor. 

As mentioned in previous updates, we’ve made the decision to switch from STM microprocessors to Samsung Artik microprocessor, so we could miniaturize the PCB board. It caused a lot of additional work for us, but we think it was definitely worth it. This week we have finished the implementation of Over The Air update. It means that new microprocessor will have its firmware updated using InMotion mobile app. New chip uses faster wireless connectivity, so now the Slider can be updates within ~20 seconds instead of two and a half minutes as it was previously. We are finishing the v1.0 firmware this week. Afterwards we will start very detailed tests to look for bugs and possible issues. Afterwards we will integrate new firmware with InMotion App. Below you can see a screen of firmware update using a simple OTA test app:

Noise level 
That’s the area where the biggest improvement from initial prototype was made. We have completely redesigned the mechanics by getting rid of most of the gears, applying some additional damping materials and moving resonant frequencies to higher regions so we do not get our mechanics into the resonance area during operation of the Slider. What’s more we have been able to do one more iteration of control algorithms, so now the slider is quieter during the operation. The frequency for PWM signals is around 44 kHz so it is two times higher than the maximum frequency that human ear can hear (~20 kHz is maximum for kids, then it gets lower with your age). It means that all noise of coils is emitted above the hearing range of a human. 

Btw. You can estimate your hearing age just for fun using this link: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SHFwmPQ_rQ)

InMotion Slider during operation (the Slider is super quiet, so iPhone made audio autogain. You can only hear Air Conditioner fan in the background that's usually super quiet). 

The payload:

We have completely redesigned the mechanics and electronics of InMotion Slider to make it more advanced but at the same time even more portable. It yielded the following changes: instead of one motor with some gears that caused the panning move, we’ve used two motors: one for panning and one for sliding. We’ve redesigned the InMotion Control Unit to create it much smaller. We’ve made electronic board with four layers instead of two for smaller size and better heat dissipation. In the end to fit everything into a smaller enclosure for better portability, we’ve changed the motors: now they are shorter and one size smaller (nema 16 instead of nema 17). Thus, the Slider ended up with the following parameters:

- Horizontal Payload: 5 kilograms
- Vertical (90 degrees) Payload: 1 kilogram (of course it is much higher at inclined shots like 30/45 degrees).

 InMotion Slider with 5kg horizontal payload 

InMotion Slider with 1kg vertical payload  

We are still working on some aspects that can increase the vertical payload: the weight of InMotion Control Unit enclosure, heat dissipation at maximum load and last but not least: maximum current that we can run through the stepper motor controller without turning on the temperature warning. 

Prodution:

We focus on finalising the mechanical design and electrical design/testing, so that we can start ordering the parts for production. We still need to finalise the leg support design and Phone mount, but that should be finished shortly. 

After the testing phase finishes, we will start tooling for aluminum extrusion. I promise, that me and whole InMotion team work super hard to deliver the best slider possible. I work about 100 hours a week and members of InMotion Team are also staying oftern over nights, so we can deliver InMotion Slider as good as only possible. Our longest development sprint at the office was about 44 hours without sleep, when we received some CNC machnied parts and we got lost in testing them :) 

Lets plan the next update around 10th of July.

 Have amazing day!

Slawek - founder of InMotion

Entirely new electronics, new design, more features and... Sincere apology for delaying the update.
almost 6 years ago – Wed, May 30, 2018 at 12:53:29 AM

This post is for backers only. Please visit Kickstarter.com and log in to read.

A Little Housekeeping + Backer Survey
about 6 years ago – Tue, Mar 27, 2018 at 02:01:52 AM

Dear InMotion backers,

We had to get many details in order before setting up the survey, ready to be sent out to you guys.

As we might have mentioned during the campaign, we’re using Backerkit as our designated pledge manager platform.

We want you to enjoy your entire experience with InMotion, so we’re trying to make managing your pledge (choosing your add-ons, completing/updating your shipping information, etc.) as quick and as painless as possible.

In the coming days, we’ll send out an invitation email with a link to your personal survey.

If you haven’t white-listed our email address just yet, please do that so the survey link doesn’t end up in your Spam/Junk folder.

You don’t need to create a BackerKit account to answer your survey.

If you need to change your survey responses, purchase more add-on items or update your shipping information, you can click the link in your survey email again or request your survey link under "Lost your survey?" on our BackerKit project page (this page will only start working after we send the surveys out).

Some of you might be tempted to contact me directly and give me your information.

I’m always super happy to help and from now on I will be much more reposnsive to messages on Kickstarter, it’s just that answering your survey will help us keep all pledges organised and get your rewards out to you faster.

If you used your Facebook credentials to log in to your Kickstarter account, the survey link is sent to the email address you use for your Facebook account.

If you have another email address that you prefer to use, please contact me and I’ll be happy to help.

Again, thanks a million for all your support. We seriously can’t wait to send you your InMotion slider.

P.s. The more technical update will be posted around next Thursday.

Stay Awesome and Talk Soon,

Slawek

Amazing free upgrades for our lovely backers!
about 6 years ago – Thu, Mar 01, 2018 at 12:03:47 PM

This post is for backers only. Please visit Kickstarter.com and log in to read.