Long duration usage

[RRanj3]

Hello,

Camera model: D415/D435

I couldn't find this information anywhere.Can these cameras be used continuously for very long duration, like maybe few days at a stretch? If not then is there any maximum time limit?

Thanks

[MartyG]

There was a case in 2017 where someone wanted to run a RealSense SR300 camera model for 3 days but got as far as 16 hours before the units had problems. He eventually got it running for 4 days in Librealsense1, the predecessor of the current SDK.

He also found that an industrial grade USB hub allowed him to run multiple SR300s for 15 hours without problems.

There was another case before that in 2014 with the original RealSense F200 model. In that example, the application stopped running prematurely due to memory leak (a bug in a program that slowly consumes memory over time til the program crashes).

I do not have knowledge of a specific case where a 400 Series camera ran for 3 days. Based on previous cases and great improvement in RealSense camera hardware since then, I would speculate it would be possible if:

- There are no memory leaks in your program

- Your operating system software is correctly configured

- The camera operates in an environment where its temperature is below the hardware's maximum temperature tolerances. The 400 Series can operate in a maximum ambient temperature of 35 degrees C.

- You have good quality USB ports and cables.

[RRanj3]

Thanks MartyG. Thats very helpful.

It looks like the problems are due to software bugs and not the camera. So i think there shouldn't be a problem.

But if intel has done some endurance testing, and can tell us if all is well, then it will be most reassuring.

[MartyG]

Thanks John. It may not be this weekend that you get a reply from Intel about your wish for official confirmation of maximum operating-time ranges, as the official hours of Intel support are Monday to Friday.

In the meantime .... regarding the USB aspect of stability, cable supplier Newnex (who can supply equipment to extend the 400 Series camera up to 100 m over fiber cable) posted the following information on another discussion: "We have stress tested all our solutions with the D435 camera. So far we haven't observed any frame drop issue. We have been manufacturing industrial grade USB3 connectivity solutions for many years. Our products supply industry like Machine Vision and Medical Imaging where continuous frame drop free image streaming is a must".

So Newnex cables may be of benefit to you for long periods of operation. You can see Newnex's extension equipment in action with the 400 Series in this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLQgR1jT04M&t=4s USB Extension for Intel RealSense D400 Series Camera - YouTube

Another piece of information relevant to stability is that in February 2018, Jesus G from Intel support said that compared to the older SR300 camera model, the 400 Series draws less power at higher resolutions.

[RRanj3]

Thanks MartyG.

I will look into the fiber cable. Looks promising.

[idata]

Hi john.g,

The camera can be used continuously for a few days but Intel has not done this sort of endurance testing.Regards,Alexandra