At 372 m depth in Lago Maggiore it is pitch black. Illumination is essential. Two lamps are required to avoid shadows. Distance between the two lights and the camera should be chosen so that backscatter from particulate matter is minimized.
OSRAM 4.6 W 12 V LED with 4000 K (white) light temperature and a spot angle of 36° providing 350 lm have been chosen. Consumption is 520 mA. the batteries have a nominal capacity of 6800 mA at 12 V.
Light assembly
OSRAM 4.6 W 12 V LED with 4000 K (white) light temperature and a spot angle of 36° providing 350 lm have been chosen. Consumption is 520 mA. the batteries have a nominal capacity of 6800 mA at 12 V.
Light assembly
Light coverage test with different beam angles
Though the LED bulbs had been upgraded to 7 W, light availability was still a limiting factor in obtaining good quality images. An attempt to use a powerful LED floodlight, dismantling the assembly and installing directly the LED array was not successful, as the sensor and its cabling was too big for the housing and direct soldering to the LED circuit board was very fragile.
Therefore in 2021 a stronger light set-up was introduced. It consits of two 40 W (nominal.....) motocycle spotlights. While the light is significantly stronger, still work on diffusor for a evenly light distribution is needed.