Recording OEM cameras

I gotta think that SOMEONE has solved this already.
How is it that I have 7 cameras already on my truck and Toyota's solution to wanting to record for my own protection in traffic is to buy ANOTHER camera?
I know that at least 6 of the 7 cameras are connected to the infotainment system, so it shouldn't be all that hard to connect a passthrough plug inline in order to tap into the cameras in order to record them.

Does such a thing exist? Is there a pin-out available for the 14" infotainment system where (God forbid) I could reverse engineer such a device?

 

Do you know the format of the video? Is it NTSC, PAL, MPEG-4 or some other video standard? Important for selecting the right portable flash DVR.

 

I have NO idea what format the OEM cameras are running.
I don't really want to go down the rabbit hole of designing something myself, it just annoys me that Toyota doesn't offer a way to tap into the cameras already available, even if for a fee.

 

Great idea! The dashcam is better for long distance though I think. They **should** record all though, for self defense purposes or whatever. Here's a print screen of the OEM dashcam video:


That Lat/Long is below the date/time/speed stamp. The dashcam records in MP4 to a microSD card.

 

Yeah, the single camera is ok, but that only protects you from the front.
My sister-in-law was just rear-ended 2 weeks ago so hard that it put her into the median wall and then the shoulder wall. Almost all airbags deployed and she is REALLY beat up. (She still can't turn her neck or open her jaw after 2 weeks) The kid that rammed her has no insurance and is now trying to sue her lying and saying she slammed on her brakes in front of him. She doesn't have a dash camera so there's no way to prove that he's at fault and her insurance will probably pay out to the kid despite it being 100% his fault.

For a $65k truck that already has cameras in every direction, I find it a little insulting that they expect you to spend an extra $500+ to add ANOTHER camera that only looks 1 direction.

 

I know BMWs with 360 cameras have recording on them when an accident happens or you press the record button. It seems simple enough in theory but probably alot harder to actually implement.

 

It’s an option and it came on my X6 but it’s part of the parking assist option. Without the option you don’t get the front or side cameras and no 360

 

Not only that but you also had to buy the drive recorder option from BMW if i remember correctly. Idk why Toyota wouldn't implement something like that to generate additional revenue. The cameras are pretty good quality and there's so many on these trucks.

 

It's likely the Oem cameras are using some sort of the proprietary digital format.

Even if let's say it's using common HD format found in ordinary surveillance cameras, it'll take some effort to get the special splitters developer and to have an additional dvr unit that will be recording all of these cameras. All connections and cables would need to be specifically developed and have high quality.

@GG.Offroad do you know which video format are our Oem cameras are using? Any way to add a splitter and record video to a camera dvr recorder?

 

The splitter cables are easy compared to the dvr unit. And the dvr isn't that hard if you know the video format.
Toyota just released the 4th year of these trucks, I'm very surprised someone hasn't tapped into this yet.

 

She should look in to an attorney if she already hasn't...also was it at an intersection? Good chance they could could have traffic cams, also if near a business they could pull surveillance footage from those too. Had a friend have a similar thing happen to recently and they pulled footage from both to prove the other driver's false claims wrong.

 

Generally, the driver in back is at fault for rear end collisions because they are expected to maintain a safe distance. Without proof that your SIL slammed on her brakes, I highly doubt her insurance will pay a dime to the other driver.

 

It was on the interstate so there's no cameras that we're aware of. She did talk to a lawyer and he said that no lawyers would take her case without a hefty upfront payment because the kid didn't have insurance, so there's no one to get money from.

I sure hope they don't, but the kid has been very vocal about suing and my experience with insurance is they like to settle out of court even when they aught to hold their ground.

 

So that's the recap of why I'm so gung ho for a device.

Back to the topic at hand, if anyone knows where I can get the pin-out of the infotainment and what video encoding format is being used, please share it here.

 

Not true... well, not entirely true though. Insurance companies are in the business of risk transfer and do not pay if they don't have to.
If the case is "gray-ish" and they might lose in court, they will try to settle if the settlement is less than court, representation, damages, etc. Otherwise, they will happily tell them to f-off.

 

I bet it's not a simple analog system that you can easily intercept with just the pin out. It's probably some kind of bus/network that transmits digital data that is decoded and displayed on the head unit. But that's just a hunch.

 

Can't help with the camera, but even a forward facing camera will show speed, sudden braking (or lack of), at the moment of impact.

 

This is not possible as all the video is encrypted. You'd need a decryption device in order to record.

 

What's the purpose of encrypting the cameras? It's not like they can be hacked.

 

The video on the dashcam is not encrypted. It's a straight MP4, you can take out the microSD card and upload it to your PC.

 

We're not talking about the dash cam, we're talking about the PVM (bird's eye 360) cameras. Sadly you cannot pop in an SD card and have direct access to those feeds.

 

If they were encrypted then you won't be able to swap out infotainment head units or cameras. While I don't know if anyone has needed to replace cameras, quite a few people have swapped infotainment units.
Clearly they are not encrypted.
Now, they are probably digitally ENCODED in which case we just need to find out the proper digital encoding standard and a recording device can be made.

 

I'd be surprised if the video is actually encrypted as it would add extra cost to make this happen between the little camera and the headend, and it's not really necessary.

 

I can't help but think for the simplest way to record from the 360 cameras is to get a Y connector to the back of the infotainment system and plus it into a dvr to always record and loop over the recording. Then the issue would be there's no way to access the dvr after its installed. I'm no expert in cameras and dvrs but just thinking out loud.

 

Basically that's the goal. There are a couple hurdles though.
1) Knowing the pin out. Knowing which wires are camera inputs.
2) Building the splitter. It's a somewhat unusual plug, so finding the correct plug and socket will be a little bit of work.
3) Knowing the video encoding format. There's over 20 digital formats commonly used and Toyota could have even done something entirely different.

 

Yep.
And the video transmission signal is very sensitive and needs a precise, SHIELDED cable to work. It's not your typical analog camera where you plugin a TV splitter and it just sends video signal everywhere.

@GG.Offroad sells extended cable to relocate the rear mirror camera and that cable and connectors are very high quality and had to be custom made by a factory with specialty equipment.

 

Hopefully we can summon him here and seek his wisdom on the topic.

 

Well I think the wires are secondary to the dvr. How could that hook up and still be accessible?

 

Subscribed.

 

I bought the rexing 4 camera. 3 cams on the main unit and a remote for the rear. Everything swivels so you get good angles.


but the rear cam is tricky because all the glass moves and the panoramic sunshade makes the inside of the sunroof not workable I need to hot glue it to the headliner.

So I actually have 12 cameras. Yuck