MIE.26 – Durable and Heat Resistant Waterproof Underwater Camera Housing

• Cody Gillen
• Alejandro Rios

A major challenge has been presented in the field of videography that requires immediate attention. It is the challenge of providing quality underwater visuals using a Canon EOS R5 C camera. The Canon EOS R5 C will be using an interchangeable VR180 lens attachment. An underwater housing for this camera has not yet been created. It is necessary for the development of such underwater housing to consider what problems must be overcome. The consideration of the case being waterproof is of the utmost importance. Followed by its ability to be heat resistant. Heat resistance is also a factor that plays a part in a potential issue with fogging, which would impact visual quality. Corrosive resistance and durability must be considered as well. Literature and patent research was done to fully understand how similar devices function given these conditions. Design criteria had to be established along with codes and standards that need to be upheld. Key assumptions are made, and metrics are defined. Based on these considerations, the soft plastic body, hard plastic body, aluminum body, and aluminum and polycarbonate body are proposed as four solutions. The hard plastic body design is selected because thermoplastic material works to uphold the waterproof integrity of the device. This is because of its advantageous chemical structure. Its ability to be molded and manufactured with ease makes it the ideal primary material for the underwater camera housing. Additionally, thermoplastic materials are chemically resistant, along with waterproof. The hard plastic body design is evaluated further using a quality function deployment. The quality function deployment assesses the customers’ needs to implement them into the design. An FMEA is then used to evaluate preliminary results for the device to show how it performs and could be improved. Potential modes of failure are diagnosed with modes of control, and risk assessment is analyzed. With all this, the final design process is initiated by digitizing images of the Canon EOS R5 C camera into an STL file. Materialise Magics and Solidworks are used to refine the scanned STL file. The refined file is then cut into halves. Each half is 3-D printed to create the camera mold. Bondo All Purpose Putty is added prior to thermoforming to create additional space and close air gaps. Each half of the camera mold is thermoformed, creating the two halves for the case. A gasket is laser cut from a sheet of rubber to seal the case. Bolts are used to seal the case providing compression on the gasket. This allows a watertight seal for the case. A second piece is adhered to an extension on the case lens, which acts as a base plate for a dome that covers the VR 180 lens. The dome piece is attached to the base plate using bolts and is made watertight by adding a gasket between them. The smooth dome allows clear visual quality. The case is then modified to allow the use of a tripod attachment. Final testing ensures that the prototype functions as desired.