The first task was to source a camera. This was a pretty simple affair with Google used to good effect. The product of choice was the Linksys WVC200, as this was the only device that met the requirements. However, it did have a standard power supply, which meant I had to find a battery that could power it.

As a proof of concept, some rudimentary components were bought from Maplin to make a 4.5v battery pack. At this time we used 3 standard D cell batteries, as we had been informed that 4.5v from these three batteries would be enough to match the 5v input from the original power supply. While the camera did power up and get a DHCP address from the server, you couldn’t browse to the web page, and therefore couldn’t configure the device.

It was clear that the 0.5v shortage was causing this issue, and it was important that we found a 5v power source.

Google again provided links to the answer. I wanted to use a rechargable battery, and lithium seemed the obvious choice. The only one I could find that output 5v was at BiXNET.com. The battery pack they offered had a variety of connectors, and a charger. The connectors meant that it would fit a multitude of devices, and although the charger had US pins, it could be used with any mains adapter.

Bearing in mind they are based in California, it only took 3 days from order to delivery in London.

After unpacking, it was clear that the battery already had a charge, so we ran a successful test with the camera. The battery was then placed on charge for 24 hours, and then reconnected to the camera to see how long it would hold charge. The battery surpassed my expectations and the camera continuously streamed audio and video to the Internet for 5 hours and 22 minutes.

The final piece to this puzzle was what to do with the cable and the battery pack (asthetics are important to this client). The answer here was with Muji. Part of their household range includes an opaque plastic CD storage case, with a hole to open the drawer. The whole unit is big enough to hold the battery and the cable, and by changing the orientation of the box, the hole acts as a natural route for the power cable to the bottom of the camera.

So there is the solution; a wireless webcam, a rechargable battery, and a storage box. Not your everyday kind of IT request, but it keeps the mind sharp!