What kind of device, or apparatus would/could one use (if any) to actually “see” the infrared coming from the remote control while it is operating?
I was WAG’ing nightvision goggles, perhaps?
You can pick it up with many computer video cams. Looks like a flashing penlight.
Infrared film of course, would work.
I think in a dark room with a “low- lumens” handycam you should be able to tape it.
My uncle who works in a electrical shop showed me how he tested remotes before he sold them . He pointed them at a sony camcorder and pressed a button . On ther t.v. screen connected to the camera you could see a green light come from the top of the remote . He said basically all camcorders will do this .
There are also infrared ‘filters’ that convert IR to the visible spectrum. Check Edmunds Scientific. I saw them in one of their catalogs.
All TV cameras pick up infrared as though it were visible light and display it as such (as far as I know). Am I the only one who first saw a TV remote while watching the Odd Couple on television some 25 years ago. When Oscar would turn the channels his remote would flash like a pen light. Years later I was disapointed when I used a remote for the first time and it didn’t do that.
SarumanRex: All TV cameras pick up infrared as though it were visible light and display it as such (as far as I know). Am I the only one who first saw a TV remote while watching the Odd Couple on television some 25 years ago. When Oscar would turn the channels his remote would flash like a pen light. Years later I was disapointed when I used a remote for the first time and it didn’t do that.
That explains it!
I was using my digital camcorder to take a family picture. I had the remote in my hand to start and stop it when I thought we had a good picture. When I played it back, I noticed a flash of light from my remote. But I couldn’t see it when I looked directly at it.
I believe radio Shack sells a strip of (some space age material I guess) that will glow when illuminated with IR and it is sold precisely to test them.
“Space age” meaning 1957-1969? 
The first time I checked one was with a “Find-IR-Scope” that weused in the Air Force to determine the splash point of an IR laser. That is, without dropping a cool million on an detector/dewar system.
I would make a guess that you could use a baby monitor. The kind that has a night view camera in the room. Apparently, the FOV is illuminated by several IR LEDs, so the infrared remote control should blink very apparently in its screen.
Is it exciting? No. All you’ll see is a blinkin glight from the front end of the remote. There’s certainly no beam shooting out of it. Typically, the LED will be recessed in a concavity, which reflects most of the energy away from the remote, and toward the remote receiver. Sometimes, you can “bounce” the energy off of a wall and back to the detector, depending on 1. The intensity of the radiation, 2. the reflectivity of the curfaces of incidence, and 3. the sensitivity of the detector.
A night-vision scope will work too. Quite well, actually.
So will a quickcam (like you put on your computer).