Inexpensive transmitter and receiver?

[Chuck]

On Sat, 12 Jan 2008 11:38:10 -0500, "David" <davidd31415@yoowhoo.com>
wrote:

I need an inexpensive receiver to hook up to a high intensity speaker (I'm
thinking a smoke alarm speaker). I'm going to place it in another device
(dvd player maybe) and mail it to myself in an attempt to figure out what
unit in my apartment building is stealing my packages (the common area is
locked and this has happened a few times now, once within hours of drop
off).

Can anyone recommend a receiver that will run for a week or so without
draining its batteries?

I'm thinking about just picking up an inexpensive R/C toy and pulling the
receiver out of that but I need at least a few rooms worth of range and I am
unsure how much power the receiver itself requires. Anyone know?

Thanks,

Dave

Interesting, Dave.

You could also plant a transmitter into the device and use crude
direction finding techniques to locate it. It could be powered by the
DVD power supply, or by its own battery.

To increase battery life, key the transmitter with a timer so it is on
only a few minutes each hour. Battery should last a long time.

Chuck

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[David]

I need an inexpensive receiver to hook up to a high intensity speaker (I'm
thinking a smoke alarm speaker). I'm going to place it in another device
(dvd player maybe) and mail it to myself in an attempt to figure out what
unit in my apartment building is stealing my packages (the common area is
locked and this has happened a few times now, once within hours of drop
off).

Can anyone recommend a receiver that will run for a week or so without
draining its batteries?

I'm thinking about just picking up an inexpensive R/C toy and pulling the
receiver out of that but I need at least a few rooms worth of range and I am
unsure how much power the receiver itself requires. Anyone know?

Thanks,

Dave

 

[Bob Monsen]

"David" <davidd31415@yoowhoo.com> wrote in message
news:eJqdndtOYe5SbBXanZ2dnUVZ_hWdnZ2d@comcast.com...

I need an inexpensive receiver to hook up to a high intensity speaker (I'm
thinking a smoke alarm speaker). I'm going to place it in another device
(dvd player maybe) and mail it to myself in an attempt to figure out what
unit in my apartment building is stealing my packages (the common area is
locked and this has happened a few times now, once within hours of drop
off).

Can anyone recommend a receiver that will run for a week or so without
draining its batteries?

I'm thinking about just picking up an inexpensive R/C toy and pulling the
receiver out of that but I need at least a few rooms worth of range and I
am unsure how much power the receiver itself requires. Anyone know?

Thanks,

Dave

They sell direction finders for finding lost model airplanes. The
transmitter is very light, and they are cheap. search the web for 'rc
airplane locator'.

The other possibility would be to put an airhorn in the package, triggered
to go off when it is opened. That would wake up the entire building. If you
rigged it properly, s/he wouldn't be able to quiet it for a few minutes.
Maybe the painfully loud noise would be enough punishment to make them stop.

However, suppose you figure out who is doing it. What then? The cops won't
take your word for it and arrest the creep. You can't break into their
apartment. You could confront them, but that might lead to violence.
Instead, why not use general delivery?

Regards,
Bob Monsen

 

[David]

"Chuck" <nospam@nospam.at.all> wrote in message
news:i1vho3576r1j93jgr3d57v1mvt5hi75okf@4ax.com...

Interesting, Dave.

You could also plant a transmitter into the device and use crude
direction finding techniques to locate it. It could be powered by the
DVD power supply, or by its own battery.

To increase battery life, key the transmitter with a timer so it is on
only a few minutes each hour. Battery should last a long time.

Chuck

Hi Chuck,

I wouldn't know exactly how to proceed with the direction finding- I'm
hoping for a rather simple solution. Plus there's no gurantee that they'll
be plugging the DVD player in.

I like the timer idea if a typical receiver would drain its batteries in
less than a week but otherwise I would like the option to turn on the buzzer
at any time.

I suppose I could pulse the transmitter once a minute and then latch the
buzzer on after a signal is received but my goal is to keep everything as
simple as possible. The less I need to order the better, since my orders
are being stolen in the first place, LOL.

Dave

 

[terryS]

On Jan 12, 10:22 pm, "Bob Monsen" <rcmon...@gmail.com> wrote:

"David" <davidd31...@yoowhoo.com> wrote in message

news:eJqdndtOYe5SbBXanZ2dnUVZ_hWdnZ2d@comcast.com...





I need an inexpensive receiver to hook up to a high intensity speaker (I'm
thinking a smoke alarm speaker).  I'm going to place it in another device
(dvd player maybe) and mail it to myself in an attempt to figure out what
unit in my apartment building is stealing my packages (the common area is
locked and this has happened a few times now, once within hours of drop
off).

Can anyone recommend a receiver that will run for a week or so without
draining its batteries?

I'm thinking about just picking up an inexpensive R/C toy and pulling the
receiver out of that but I need at least a few rooms worth of range and I
am unsure how much power the receiver itself requires.  Anyone know?

Thanks,

Dave

They sell direction finders for finding lost model airplanes. The
transmitter is very light, and they are cheap. search the web for 'rc
airplane locator'.

The other possibility would be to put an airhorn in the package, triggered
to go off when it is opened. That would wake up the entire building. If you
rigged it properly, s/he wouldn't be able to quiet it for a few minutes.
Maybe the painfully loud noise would be enough punishment to make them stop.

However, suppose you figure out who is doing it. What then? The cops won't
take your word for it and arrest the creep. You can't break into their
apartment. You could confront them, but that might lead to violence.
Instead, why not use general delivery?

Regards,
 Bob Monsen- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Suggestion: A battery operated baby monitor; mail the transmitter
switched on with extra battery/batteries hooked up for longer life.
The receiver could be mains powered and left on all the time in your
apartment until you hear the package being opened.
I bought one recently for $20 and presently use it to transmit a house
alarm across the street to a neighbours when I'm not home.

 

[default]

On Sat, 12 Jan 2008 11:38:10 -0500, "David" <davidd31415@yoowhoo.com>
wrote:

I need an inexpensive receiver to hook up to a high intensity speaker (I'm
thinking a smoke alarm speaker). I'm going to place it in another device
(dvd player maybe) and mail it to myself in an attempt to figure out what
unit in my apartment building is stealing my packages (the common area is
locked and this has happened a few times now, once within hours of drop
off).

Can anyone recommend a receiver that will run for a week or so without
draining its batteries?

I'm thinking about just picking up an inexpensive R/C toy and pulling the
receiver out of that but I need at least a few rooms worth of range and I am
unsure how much power the receiver itself requires. Anyone know?

Thanks,

Dave

Or just a cmos long delay counter and timer to sound the alarm after a

predetermined time.

Awhile back I looked into using a timer counter to check the time
between maintenance intervals on some equipment - using a large cap to
keep it happy when it was unplugged. Ultra low current drain - months
on a few AA batteries - and maybe a separate alarm battery?

You have another option - put the transmitter in the DVD player and
have it send out a chirp when the DVD is plugged in, or taken from the
box - assuming the thief will use the player himself . . .
--

 

[David]

"Bob Monsen" <rcmonsen@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:Sp8ij.39036$Pv2.20828@newssvr23.news.prodigy.net...

However, suppose you figure out who is doing it. What then? The cops won't
take your word for it and arrest the creep. You can't break into their
apartment. You could confront them, but that might lead to violence.
Instead, why not use general delivery?

Bob, I love the air-horn idea. Won't be quite as simple to set up, but I
love the idea.

I don't expect the police to arrest the person based on my word but I plan
to call to file a report on the previous mail loses the day the package goes
missing. At that point I will tell the officer what I did and if s/he isn't
interested in pursuing it further, that's their choice. I expect they would
be willing to knock on the creep's door. The creep would be confused and
flustered and if the police are excellent at intimidating- if they asked
what the noise was and if they could come in and take a look around, they'd
be busted. A few years ago when I had a problem with a neighbor the police
were happy to go knocking on doors, I don't see why they would respond
differently in this case. I believe it is the same neighbor but I would
like to be certain before throwing accusations around.

 

[John Larkin]

On Sat, 12 Jan 2008 11:38:10 -0500, "David" <davidd31415@yoowhoo.com>
wrote:

I need an inexpensive receiver to hook up to a high intensity speaker (I'm
thinking a smoke alarm speaker). I'm going to place it in another device
(dvd player maybe) and mail it to myself in an attempt to figure out what
unit in my apartment building is stealing my packages (the common area is
locked and this has happened a few times now, once within hours of drop
off).

Can anyone recommend a receiver that will run for a week or so without
draining its batteries?

I'm thinking about just picking up an inexpensive R/C toy and pulling the
receiver out of that but I need at least a few rooms worth of range and I am
unsure how much power the receiver itself requires. Anyone know?

Thanks,

Dave

How about some really serious red dye?

John

 

[David]

"John Larkin" <jjlarkin@highNOTlandTHIStechnologyPART.com> wrote in message
news:8jnio3pm03js5pamvc2uvc0cua4cghugpp@4ax.com...

On Sat, 12 Jan 2008 11:38:10 -0500, "David" <davidd31415@yoowhoo.com
wrote:

I need an inexpensive receiver to hook up to a high intensity speaker (I'm
thinking a smoke alarm speaker). I'm going to place it in another device
(dvd player maybe) and mail it to myself in an attempt to figure out what
unit in my apartment building is stealing my packages (the common area is
locked and this has happened a few times now, once within hours of drop
off).

Can anyone recommend a receiver that will run for a week or so without
draining its batteries?

I'm thinking about just picking up an inexpensive R/C toy and pulling the
receiver out of that but I need at least a few rooms worth of range and I
am
unsure how much power the receiver itself requires. Anyone know?

Thanks,

Dave


How about some really serious red dye?

John

There are a lot of good and creative ideas but I want a solution that will:

- not destroy someone else's property
- function "on demand," regardless of if the dvd player has been plugged in
or removed from the box
- will clearly identify which apartment unit the dvd player is in

I always like hearing more ideas but aside from battery life and transmitter
range, what are the downsides to the r/c buzzer idea? I will ensure the
transmitter range is sufficient but the battery life is the one variable I
have to investigate more.

David

 

[Vince Morgan]

"David" <davidd31415@yoowhoo.com> wrote in message
news:_Pmdnf8EZpsPBxTanZ2dnUVZ_j-dnZ2d@comcast.com...

There are a lot of good and creative ideas but I want a solution that
will:

- not destroy someone else's property

That puts my plastic explosive idea to rest I guess.

 

[Sparkfish1]

On Jan 12, 4:38 pm, "David" <davidd31...@yoowhoo.com> wrote:

I need an inexpensive receiver to hook up to a high intensity speaker (I'm
thinking a smoke alarm speaker). I'm going to place it in another device
(dvd player maybe) and mail it to myself in an attempt to figure out what
unit in my apartment building is stealing my packages (the common area is
locked and this has happened a few times now, once within hours of drop
off).

Can anyone recommend a receiver that will run for a week or so without
draining its batteries?

I'm thinking about just picking up an inexpensive R/C toy and pulling the
receiver out of that but I need at least a few rooms worth of range and I am
unsure how much power the receiver itself requires. Anyone know?

Thanks,

Dave

Why not just run a webcam from your door to see wh is doing it and
then you have proof to go to the police


I recently bought a web cam ( labtech) for about ^gbp and it has a
motion detector that runs a video recording only when movement is
detected OR it can be set to record everything over a set period of
time

It is quite small and , above eye level it would not be noticed

I admit you would have to have some sort of extension lead but I would
have thought that woudld be easy to do

 

[Sparkfish1]

On Jan 12, 4:38 pm, "David" <davidd31...@yoowhoo.com> wrote:

I need an inexpensive receiver to hook up to a high intensity speaker (I'm
thinking a smoke alarm speaker). I'm going to place it in another device
(dvd player maybe) and mail it to myself in an attempt to figure out what
unit in my apartment building is stealing my packages (the common area is
locked and this has happened a few times now, once within hours of drop
off).

Can anyone recommend a receiver that will run for a week or so without
draining its batteries?

I'm thinking about just picking up an inexpensive R/C toy and pulling the
receiver out of that but I need at least a few rooms worth of range and I am
unsure how much power the receiver itself requires. Anyone know?

Thanks,

Dave

HOW ABOUT AN old mobile phone ?
coupled to your speaker alarm

 

[gearhead]

On Jan 12, 8:38 am, "David" <davidd31...@yoowhoo.com> wrote:

I need an inexpensive receiver to hook up to a high intensity speaker (I'm
thinking a smoke alarm speaker).  I'm going to place it in another device
(dvd player maybe) and mail it to myself in an attempt to figure out what
unit in my apartment building is stealing my packages (the common area is
locked and this has happened a few times now, once within hours of drop
off).

Can anyone recommend a receiver that will run for a week or so without
draining its batteries?

I'm thinking about just picking up an inexpensive R/C toy and pulling the
receiver out of that but I need at least a few rooms worth of range and I am
unsure how much power the receiver itself requires.  Anyone know?

Thanks,

Dave

Why do the responses to your post mention "the police" instead of
postal inspectors? Postal insprctors have the power to make arrests,
you know.
Someone has stolen your mail (a federal offense), and you should
contact the post office immediately if not sooner, as the saying goes.

 

[Nemo]

As a backup idea...

in case the other ideas fail, wrap the DVD player in very bright,
noticeable gift wrap paper and check the trash after it's been stolen.
It should be mixed in with the culprit's trash. It's not legal proof,
and if the guy's bright he'll put it in someone else's trash, but it'll
help *you* zero in on the perp.

The mail service may take exception to posting anything dodgy through it
(like active radio transmitters or chemical dye bombs) so, have you
considered faking a box that has gone through the mail and putting it
there yourself, maybe re-using an old box with stamps etc on it. Would
be cheaper too!

The police probably won't accept any evidence except video surveillance.
--
Nemo