Here is a description of my version of the DIY FPV goggles. I have been using these for about a year with good results. For about $25 I built these video goggles out of Dollar Tree foam, a rearview LCD display, a cheap fresnel lens, and of course duct tape. Are they as good as a pair of Fatsharks? I have never used Fatsharks, so I have no idea. But they are definitely better than using a laptop with a sunshade, which is what I used to use.
I learned about the concept for DIY video goggles from this thread:
http://fpvlab.com/forums/showthread.php?5181-Bobs-ECO-Goggles/
Here are some photos and a description of my goggles. I pretty much followed what others had done/recommended. It took me two attempts to get the goggles right so maybe this will save others some time.
For the basic enclosure I used dollar tree (readi-board) foam board and constructed it using Ed's (Experimental Airlines) fuselage tube technique:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xafg-o83L94
You get nice rounded edges and only one seam, which is covered by a foam joining strip.
The outer dimensions of the box are: 140mm x 68mm x 185mm. The 3.5" lcd screen is just duct taped on. And the whole box is covered with black duct tape.
After cutting the front to fit my face, I stuck on 1/2" black weatherstripping foam.
The straps are from an old pair of ski goggles. I simply cut slits in the sides of the box and pushed the straps through. There is enough material at the end of the strap that it will not pull back out.
The lens is a piece from a PVC page-sized Fresnel. Thickness: 0.4mm, Groove pitch: 0.3mm, Focal length: 300mm. I cut the lens to the following dimensions: 140mm x 50mm. Be sure to cut from the middle of the page-sized sheet or the lcd image will appear to be slightly above, below, etc. The lens is larger than the box so that you get a nice curve to reduce distortion. The lens is flexible enough that you can just wedge it inside the box and it will stay put. Although I added a couple straight pin through the side of the box to be sure. I tried using a U-shaped foam lens holder, but the dollar-tree foam would not cooperate with the curved lens.
Power for the lcd also comes from the video receiver. I run both on a single 2s battery. Here is a photo of where to solder to the RC305. I tried mounting the receiver directly to the goggles, but found it too heavy. It feels a lot better mounted to the strap.
The goggles are not too heavy and I can wear them for an hour or so without a problem. Also they are pretty easy to perch on top of your head so I can take them on and off while flying.
I was worried about blue (or in this case black) screen on the lcd. But so far it is not a problem. The video breaks up and gets pretty bad before it cuts out entirely. When it does go entirely black it comes back in about a second. For that second, your heart rate will roughly double, which I think is good for it. Like doing Jazzercise.
Here are some ebay links for the LCD screen and Fresnel lens that I used.
Thanks for reading. Much love to the FT brotherhood.
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