Cuddeback Ambush IR series User manual

Make viewing and managing your
Cuddeback images easy with
Trophy Room –
Cuddeback’s free PC program

Free download at
www.cuddeback.com
See page 14 for more details
1) NEW – includes camera troubleshooting
and support tools
2) NEW - hunting and scouting tips; articles
from our pro staff
3) Plus: 1-click image copy from SD card
to your PC. Fast Guard Duty image viewing.
Image organization, enhancement, and
classification. Complete moon & sun data
for each image.
Trophy Room manages your
images, and now your
Cuddeback camera, too!
Trophy Room data screen example

CuddeSafe™Protects your
Cuddeback®Ambush IR®
from bears, thieves and the elements!
 • Fits Cuddeback Ambush IR series scouting cameras
 •Heavy-duty,bear-proofmetaldesign
 •E asytoinstall(lag-boltstotree);acceptsapadlock
 • Makesforeasiercardchecking/batteryreplacement
Attack model shown

Need Help?
Don’t contact your
dealer.
Use one of these support options:
  • DownloadTrophyRoomanduseitssupporttools
  • Visitwww.cuddeback.comforsupport,
   helpandtroubleshootingoptions
  • Emailusat[email protected]
  • Callusat(920)347-3810
The store you purchased this product
from does not carry parts nor are they
able to service your camera. Call us
at the phone number above and our
customer service staff will be happy
to help you.
STOP

FREE
Extended Warranty
with online registration!
Extend the warranty on your
Ambush IR to 18 months by
registering your purchase at
www.cuddeback.com.
Click “Support” then
“Product Registration”.
You must register your Ambush
IR within 10 days of purchase
to be eligible.

Care and treatment
A. Don’t abuse your camera.Treatitlikethe
sophisticatedpieceofelectronicsthatitis.
I. Treatitgently–donotabuseordrop
   II.KeepSDcarddryandneverinsertwet
     SDcardsintothecamera
   III. Avoidlettingwaterenterthecamera
   IV.Removebatteriesattheendoftheseason
1

Ambush IR®
Operating Instructions
What You Need
 1) OneormoreSecureDigital(SD)cards.
  (SeeAppendixAforrecommendations).
 2) Eight-AAbatteries(werecommend
  Rayovac®orDuracell®brandbatteries).
 3)
WhenAmbushIRisworkingitdisplaysanelectronic
“worm” ontheLCD.Thiswormscrollsaroundthe
  LCDtoindicatethatyoumustnotremovetheSD
  card,mustnotturntherotaryknob,ormustnot
  pressanybutton.Pleasebepatientandwaitforthe
  wormtogoawaybeforeremovingtheSDcard.
“worm”
2

Step 1 – Familiarize yourself with Ambush IR®
TakeamomenttofamiliarizeyourselfwithAmbushIR’sparts.
3
Front Back
Back
Test
LED
SD
Card
Socket
Mount
Bracket
Strap
Slots
LCD
Screen
Rotary
Knob
A/B
Buttons
User
Interface
LED
Camera
Lens
Motion-
Heat
Sensor User Interface
Door
Battery Door
Infrared
LEDs
Back
Top

Step 2 – Installing Batteries and SD Card
 1) TurntherotaryknobtotheOFFposition.
 2) Loosenthebatterythumbscrewandopenthe
  batterycompartmentdoor.Install8-AAalkalineor
  8-AAlithiumbatteries.Lithiumbatterieswill
providelongerbatterylifeandbetternightIRimages.
  Makesuretoobservecorrectpolarity.Closethe
  doorandtightenthethumbscrewcompletely.
 3)
Aseriesofnumbersdisplayed.TheseareAmbushIR’s
  hardwareandsoftwareversionnumbers.
 4) WaituntiltheLCDdisplaygoesblankandthe
  greenandredLEDsareoff.
 5) InstallyourSDcard.Besuretoobservethecorrect
  polaritywithclippedcorneronthecardtotheright.
4
Bottom View
Battery Install SD Card Install

Step 3 – Setting up the Ambush IR®
 1) TurntherotaryknobtoTimeposition,
  pressAandBtoset.TimeisAM/PMformat.
 2) TurntherotaryknobtoDateposition,
  pressAandBtoset.
 3) TurntherotaryknobtoYearposition,
  pressAandBtoset.
 4) LateryouwillreadStep 8 – More Features
  forinformationontheMENUpositions.
Step 4 – Attaching Ambush IR®to a Tree
 1) WerecommendyoursttryyourAmbushIRathome.
2) Foroptimumdetectionofdeer-sizedanimalswe
  recommendmountingAmbushIRabout30to36
  inchesofftheground(thisisaboutwaisthighto
  slightlyhigher).
 3) Forbestimagequality,installAmbushIRabout
  10to15feetfromwhereanimalsareexpected.
  AmbushIRwilldetectanimalsatdistancesfrom
  directlyinfrontofthecameratoabout50feet.
Notethatdetectiondistancevariesgreatlywith
  airtemperature,animalsize,andthespeedthe
  animalismoving.
5

 4) AmbushIRfeaturesour
  GeniusMountingSystem.
  Thissystemallowsyouto
  attachthebrackettoatree
  andthenslideAmbushIR
  onandoffthebracketas
  needed.
 5) Oncethetreebracketis
  attachedtothetree,make
  sureboththumbscrewson
  thebackofAmbushIRaretightenedcompletely.
  ThenslideAmbushIRontothebracket.
 6) Itisbesttoremoveanyvegetationandobstructions
  fromAmbushIR’seld-of-viewthatmayinterfere
  withAmbushIR’ssensororcamera.
 7) Aim/alignAmbushIRtomakesureitispointed
  whereyouexpecttheanimalstobe.AimAmbushIR
  levelwiththegroundtomaximizedetectionrange
  andperformance.YoucanuseAmbushIR’stest
  feature(explainednext)tohelpyoudeterminethe
  detectionarea.
 8) Cuddebackhasoptionalmountingmethods
  available,suchastilt-brackets,bear-resistant
  boxes,andmountingposts.Seeyourretailer
  orwww.cuddeback.comfordetails.
6

Step 5 – Checking Ambush IR
®
’s Detection Zone
1) TurntherotaryknobtotheTestposition.Closethe
  coverandtightenthethumbscrew.PutAmbushIR
  backontothetreebracket.(Note:thereisamore
  convenientmethodtoenabletestmode,seeStep 7
- Checking your Ambush IR for details).
 2) WalkbackandforthinfrontofAmbushIR.Thered
  LEDwillilluminatewhenAmbushIR’ssensorhas
  detectedyou.Usingthismethodyoucanaccurately
  positionyourAmbushIRasdesired.
Step 6 – Arming the Ambush IR®
YoucanprogramtheAmbushtorecordstillimages,or
stillimagesANDvideos.Turntherotaryknobtoeither
theVideo OffsettingortheVideo Onsettingasdesired.
ThesettingsrepresenttheamountoftimetheAmbushIR
willwaitbeforeittakesanotherimage.Thisdelaytime
preventsmultipleimagesofthesameanimal.Hereisour
recommendationforthevariousArmedsettings:
 a. Under30seconds–gametrails
 b. 1and3minutes–scrapes,foodplotsorfeeders
Whenrstarmed,AmbushIRwilldisplaytheindicated
delayfor5secondsandthenbegincountingdownfrom
45to0.Whenthecounterreaches0,AmbushIRwill
armandbereadytorecordimages.
WhenAmbushIRdetectsasubjectandtakesapicturea
“worm”willbedisplayedandtheLEDwillashredand
green–donotremovetheSDcarduntiltheLEDisOFF.
7

AftertheimageissavedtotheSDcardtheLCDwill
displaythedelaysettingandbegincountingdown.Once
thecounterreaches0,AmbushIRisreadytorecordthe
nextimage.
Step 7 – Checking Ambush IR®
WhenyoucheckAmbushIRitisnotnecessarytoturn
therotaryknob.Instead,presstheAorBbuttonto
temporarilysuspendArmedmodeandviewpertinent
information,suchasthenumberofimagesontheSDcard
andbatterylevel.EachtimeyoupresstheAorBbutton
newinformationwillbedisplayed.Hereisthesequence
ofinformationthatisdisplayedeachtimetheAorB
buttonispressed.
 1) ImagesonSDcard.NotetheARMED,DWELL,
  andIMAGESiconsaredisplayed.
 2) FreeSpaceonSDcardinMB.NotethatARMED
  andDWELLiconsaredisplayed.
 3) BatteryLevelasapercentage.Forexample,
bt:99meansthereis99%batterypowerleft.
 4) Time
 5) Date
 6) Year
 7) TestindicatesAmbushIRisinTestmodeandwill
  illuminatetheredTestLEDwhenactivityissensed.
 8) PressingAorBagainwillArmthecameraand
  thecurrentdelaysettingwillbedisplayed.
8

YoucanleaveAmbushIRinanyofthestates1thru7and
AmbushIRwillautomaticallyre-arminabout5minutes.
Thisallowsyoutoclosethecoverandleavethearea
withouttriggeringanimage.
Step 8 – More Features
Menu Position
TurntherotaryknobtotheMENUpositiontoperform
variousactivities.PressAtoadvancetothenextmenu
item,pressBtoactivatethedisplayedmenuaction.
 1) Battery Level–thebatterylevelisdisplayedinthe
  formatbt:99,whichisapercentageofremaining
  batterypower.PresstheAbuttontoadvancetothe
  nextmenuitem.
 2) CLr(ClearSDcard)–Thismenuallowsyouto
  clearallimagesandcontentontheSDcard.Press
andholdBtoclear
thecard.Thewormwill 
  appearandtheLEDswillashRED.
Whennished,
  theLCDwilldisplaytheamountofspaceontheSD
cardinMBs.PressAtoadvancetothenextmenuitem.
 3) Pic–Letsyoutakeatestpicture.PressBtotake
  apicture.PressAtoadvancetothenextmenuitem.
 4) LEd(IRLEDs)–Thismenuallowsyou totest
  AmbushIR’sIRLEDsandmeasurethebattery
  strength.PressBtotestAmbushIR’sinfraredLEDs.
  TheLEDswillbedrivenfrom33%maximum
  powerto99%maximumpower.Thetestwillstop
  whenthebatteriesdonothavesufcientpower
  todrivetheLEDsorat99%.Ifthebatteriesare
  depleted,FAILwillbedisplayed.Ifthereadingis
  below99%youmaywanttochangethebatteries
  tomaximizetheilluminationrange.
9

 6) StAt(StatisticalData)–PressBtodisplayActivation
  Date,ArmedDays,andImageCounter.Activation
  Dateistherstdayyouusedthecamera.Armed
  Daysisnowmanydaysthatcamerahasbeenused.
  ImageCounteristhetotalnumberofimagestaken
  withthecamera.
 7) LOAd–Letsyoutoinstallnewrmware.We
  mayupdatetheAmbushIRrmwaretoimproveits
  performance.Ifarmwareupdateisrequiredyou
  willneedtodownloadarmwarelefromour
website.Instructionswillbeprovidedwiththermware.
  Pleaseseewww.cuddeback.comfordetails.We
  recommendyoucheckourwebsiteforupdatesat
  thebeginningofyourscoutingseason.
 8) FirmwareVersion–4numberswillbedisplayed,
  suchas0200.Thisisthermwareversion.
  TurntherotaryknobtoanewsettingorpressAto
  returntothebatteryleveldisplay.
No Card Mode - Using Ambush IR®Without an
SD Card
WhenAmbushIRisusedwithoutanSDcard,imagesare
storedinAmbushIR’sinternalimagememory.Ambush
IRfeaturesaninternalmemoryofabout120MB.This
willallowstorageofupto120images.Imagescanbe
transferredfrominternalmemorytoanSDcard.
10

11
Transfer to SD card:IfyouuseAmbushIRwithoutan
SDcard,followthesestepstotransfertheimagesfrom
theinternalmemorytoanSDcard.
 1) IfAmbushIRisnotarmed,turntherotaryknobto
  anyoftheArmedpositions.
 2)
IfAmbushIRisarmed,pressAtodisplaythe
  numberof
imagesininternalmemory.
 3) InsertyourSDcardintoAmbushIR.
 4) PressA.TheamountoffreespaceontheSDcard
  willbedisplayed.
 5) PressAtoinitiatethetransfer.Imagessavedin
  internalmemorywillbecopiedtotheSDcard.As
  theyarebeingcopiedthewormwillappearandthe
  numberofimagesremainingtobetransferredwill
  bedisplayedontheLCD.
 6) Whenthecountreaches0thetransferiscomplete
  andallimagesontheinternalmemoryareerased.
 7) Tostopthetransferbeforeithasnished,pressand
  holdB.

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Battery Life and Battery Low Warning
BatterylifeinAmbushIRwillvarydependinguponbat-
teryquality,ambienttemperature,thenumberofimages
taken,howlongAmbushIRhasbeenoperating,and
otherfactors.Batterylifeyougetmaybemoreorless
thanthesenumbersdependingonthecircumstances.
Ambush IR–10,000imagesor6months,depending
 onusage.
Note - using video mode greatly reduces battery life.
Replace Ambush IR batteries when:
 1) TheBLOWiconappearsontheLCD.
 2) Whenthedisplayedbatterylevelisbt:10orbt:00.
 3)
WhenAmbushIRdoesnotappeartooperatecorrectly.
  Insomecasesthebatteriesmaybetoolowtoturn
  ontheLCDorBLOWicon.

13
Viewing Images
Youwillneedanexternalviewingdeviceorcomputerto
viewimages.First,removetheSDcardfromthecamera.
MakesuretoonlyremovetheSDcardwhenthewormis
notvisible.Hereisalistofsomeviewingoptions.
 1) Youcanviewtheimageswithanoptionalviewer
  orapoint-and-shootcamerathatisabletoread
AmbushIRimages(Note: not all SD based cameras
can view Ambush IR images, please test any
camera before purchasing).
 2) ReplacetheSDcardwithafreshSDcardandtake
  the
originalSDcardwithyoutoviewonyourPC
  orotherdevice.
 3) Cuddeback’sCuddeViewviewerwillallowyouto
  viewtheimages,copytheimagestoasecondSD
  cardanderasetheimagesfromtheSDcard.You
  canthenputtheoriginalSDcardbackinto
  AmbushIR.CuddeViewallowsyoutotransfer
  imagesfrommultiplecamerastoasingleSDcard.
  Gotowww.cuddeback.comformoreinformationon
  CuddeView.(Note:CuddeViewmaynotbeable
  tocopyalltheimagestakeninGuardDutymode.
  IfyouareusingGuardDutywerecommendyou
  viewtheimagesonacomputer.)
Use Windows PC to Manage Cuddeback Images with
Trophy Room
Trophy Roomsoftwaremakesiteasytomanageyour
Cuddebackimages.

14
Trophy Room
 1) AutomaticallycopiesimagesfromyourSDcardto
   yourPCandorganizesthembyyearanddate.
 2) Allowsyoutorenameeachfoldermakingiteasy
  tondyourimages.
 3)
Displayssunandmoondataforeachimage,including
  moonphase,moonriseandset,sunriseandset,and
  moonandsunpositionintheskyatthetimethe
  imagewastaken.
 4) Categorizesimagesasbuck,doe,fawn,bear,etc.
  Thereare28categoriestoselectfrom.Forwhitetail
  deeryoucanenterpointcountandgivedeeraname
  toalloweasymonitoringoftrophyanimals.
 5) Automaticallycalculatesthebuck/doe/fawnratios
  baseduponyourimages.
 6)
IncludesCuddeChartswithwhichyoucananalyzeyour
  imagestodeterminepea
k movementpatternsbased
  uponsunandmoonphaseandposition.
Trophy Room data screen example