~$400–700
Unit Cost
Complete BOM excl. housing
4G LTE
Connectivity
Waveshare SIM7600G-H HAT
20–50W
Solar Panel
Site-dependent sizing
~$30/mo
Data Cost
4G SIM plan
Upload Pipeline
Capture
Pi captures via libcamera or gphoto2 every 5 min
Resize & ZIP
Web (980×655) + fullsize bundled into ZIP
4G Upload
POST via SIM7600G-H 4G HAT to Cloudflare Worker
B2 Storage
Backblaze B2 bucket per camera
Camera Wall
Client pages updated via callback
Hardware
Controller
- SBC: Raspberry Pi Zero 2W or Pi 4 (2GB)
- OS: Raspberry Pi OS Lite, read-only root
- 4G HAT: Waveshare SIM7600G-H (LTE Cat-4)
- Storage: 128GB microSD
- VPN: ZeroTier One for remote access
Camera
- Option A: Pi Camera Module v3 (12MP, autofocus)
- Option B: USB webcam (wide-angle, weather-rated)
- Capture: libcamera-still or gphoto2 via cron
- Resolution: Up to 12MP (Pi Camera v3)
- Rate: Every 5 min (144 shots/day)
Power
- Solar: 20–50W 12V panel (site dependent)
- Battery: LiFePO4 12V (heat-tolerant)
- Pi power: 12V → 5V buck converter (3A)
- Daily use: ~10–15Wh (Pi + camera + 4G)
- Autonomy: 3–5 days without sun
Enclosure
- Rating: IP65 weatherproof enclosure
- Window: Glass lens port for camera
- Mounting: Pole or scaffold clamp
- Antenna: External SMA for 4G signal
- Ventilation: Gore-Tex vent for condensation
Software Stack
Pi-Side
- Capture: libcamera-still or gphoto2 via cron (every 5 min)
- Resize: ImageMagick — web + fullsize output
- Upload: curl POST to Cloudflare Worker via 4G
- Heartbeat: Status ping every 15 min
- Service: systemd — pod-camera.service
Server-Side
- Upload Worker: Cloudflare Worker (TypeScript)
- Storage: Backblaze B2 (one bucket per camera)
- Database: Cloudflare D1 (SQLite) — camera settings
- Monitoring: PHP cron — heartbeat checks, alerts
- Display: Camera Wall — client pages via callback
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
- Remote sites with 4G coverage but no fixed internet
- More reliable than phone cam — proven Pi platform
- Full Linux control — SSH, cron, systemd, updates
- Same Cloudflare Worker pipeline as production DSLR fleet
- Solar powered — fully autonomous deployment
Weaknesses
- More expensive than phone cam for similar image quality
- Pi Camera Module limited vs DSLR (12MP vs 18MP)
- Complex BOM — Pi + HAT + camera + solar + enclosure
- $30/mo data cost vs $1–3/mo NB-IoT heartbeat-only
- 4G coverage gaps in truly remote areas
Comparison vs Production DSLR
| Attribute | 4G Timelapse Pod | Production DSLR |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Cost | $400–700 | $600–800 |
| Image Quality | 12MP (Pi Camera v3) | 18MP (Canon DSLR) |
| Connectivity | Solar + 4G (no mains) | Mains + Ethernet/4G |
| Best For | Remote sites, no power | Fixed sites with power |
| Data Cost | ~$30/month (4G SIM) | ~$30/month (4G SIM) |
| Moving Parts | None (solid state camera) | DSLR shutter (~100K life) |
| Upload Pipeline | Same (Cloudflare Worker → B2) | Same (Cloudflare Worker → B2) |