EagleEye HD / MPTZ 6: fixing stuck white pixels?

[Dale_Mahalko]

Does anyone know if there is a way to fix stuck pixels that are bright white on the EagleEye camera sensor?

http://imgur.com/DWFDxf4

This is a now six year old HDX system, and there's no support contract on the system as far as I know.

POLYCOM HDX camera

Part number: 1624-23412-001

Manufacture Date: 20091226

A web search pulled up a document with more info about it, from here: http://community.polycom.com/polycom/attachments/polycom/VideoEndpoints/4213/1/EagleEye%20HD%201080%...

Code name: MPTZ 6

Image sensor: 1/3" CCD

Output: SMPTE 296M 1280 x 720p, 50, 60 fps

2013 status: End of Sale/End of Published Date

After doing some web searching, I discovered a document from 2007 that says stuck pixels are (were?) a fact of life on cameras, and manufacturers actually hide the defects at the factory by simply disabling the dead pixels and having the camera interpolate over them to hide the dead spots:

http://www.ocmodshop.com/what-to-do-when-your-digital-camera-has-hot-pixels/3/

So..... if it is out of warranty / out of support coverage, is there some way that I as an end-user can tell the HDX system to add the stuck white pixel to the database of dead spots so that the streamed camera image looks good again?

I'd rather not be having to pay $3800 for a new EagleEye III, to fix one annoying stuck white pixel right in the center of the image.

[Kendo · Accepted solution]

This is from a very old document but since your system is older it may work.

On an HDX codec running 1.0.2 or higher with a “Dead Pixel” on the camera image, the following steps will clear that pixel from the camera image.

1. It is important that the camera and codec have been powered on for at least 45 minutes prior to attempting this fix.

1. With a hood or shroud (a small piece of cardboard and scotch tape works well) cover the camera lens so that no light at all enters the camera image.

NOTE: This is the most critical step as there cannot be any light at all entering the camera image

1. From a PC on the same network, open up a command prompt

1. Telnet into the HDX codec’s IP address using the system’s IP address

1. At the “Welcome to ViewStation Password:” prompt, enter systems “Remote Access Password”, hit Enter. (If the system does not have a remote access password, please proceed to step #6).

1. If the dead pixel is on the main camera image enter the following command: cameratest debug jvc 0 setpixcomp

1. If the dead pixel is on the secondary camera image enter the following command: cameratest debug jvc 1 setpixcomp

1. The above command tells the camera to start the compensation process which will restore the dead pixel

 You should see a JVC EXECUTED OKAY….. response indicating a valid command has been executed.

1. Leaving the camera lens completely covered, wait 15 seconds.

1. Once the process has been run, the bad pixels have been corrected and the mapping coordinates for them written into

the cameras memory. Power cycling the system should show no bad pixels on the screen.

1. You can now remove the cover or shroud from the camera.

[Dale_Mahalko]

(EDIT: Deleted previous reply. I see that you mention the changes are written to the camera directly, so the fixes should follow the camera if it is moved to a different codec.)

I understand that if any light gets on the camera sensor, this procedure will consider that light to be an error and it may blot/interpolate the whole illuminated region out, resulting in unintended "blinding" of the camera.

If such a screwup occurs, will restarting the codec and repeating the procedure in total darkness recover the pixels accidentally marked dead? Or is this a one-way, one-shot procedure and mistakes are not recoverable and permanent?

(I'm trying to determine the potential risk of irreversible damage, vs needing to buy a $3000+ replacement because of "Ooops!")

If it's a one-shot, can't go back procedure, I suppose I'd do multiple blackout layers to be extra careful. Cardboard over lens, black vinyl electrical tape around the edges, plus a black cloth bag, plus a dark windowless room... 

[Dale_Mahalko]

Followup to a four year old thread. I made a Youtube video of running the repair process on an HDX 7000..