ACTI 5601 vs ZM 1.24.2

[lipi-t]

I tried to set up an ACTI 5601 camera in ZM, but I have no good result. Camera has the last firmware. It has this configuration:

Streaming Method: TCP Only
B2 Frame Enable: not checked
Resulotion: 640x480
Frame Rate Mode: Constant
Frame Rate: 5
Encoder Type: MJPEG
Video Quality: 50

and ZM config:
Source Type: remote
Remote Protocol: HTTP
Remote Method: Simple
Remote hostname: Admin:123456@192.168.254.174
Remote Host Port: 80
Remote Host Path: /cgi-bin/cmd/encoder?GET_STREAM
Remote Image Color: 24 bit color
Capture Width: 640
Capture Height: 480
Preserve Ascapt Ratio: unchecked
Orientation: normal

After save this settings, ZM console shows "green" camera, so it looks OK, but I select live video function, I look only an empty frame.
I tried an other way, I typed to browser this address:
http://192.168.254.174/cgi-bin/cmd/encoder?GET_STREAM
and voila! I enjoy the video!

So, I do not understand ZM why not shows live video of camera....

I hope, you can follow me.

ps: I tried to use /cgi-bin/cmd/system?GET_STREAM path, but result is same.

Tibi

[lipi-t]

After I tried to use ffmpeg in bash:
ffmpeg -i http://user@192.168.254.174/cgi-bin/cmd ... GET_STREAM ./test.avi

Looks ok, I can view the output avi file. But in ZM, not working same remote path (of course without "ffmpeg -i").

Tibi

[TechGuy]

I have an acti camera. the only way I was able to make it work is to use ffmpeg, which is a supported zoneminder option. The issue is that acti cameras generate rtsp stream errors and this breaks zoneminder. Even with ffmpeg I occationally have to restart ffmpeg because of the errors that end up crashing ffmpeg.

[Exno]

Im using an ACTi 7411 and the Arch Linux live distro with zm 1.24.2. I found this site linked by a thread somewhere here in the forums: http://pjpramod.blogspot.com/2009/12/se ... 8511p.html

I used this setup to test on:

Zoneminder Setup
**********************
> General
Source Type: Remote
Function: Monitor
Maximim FPS: 12 (Used by my test setup - You can change it)
Alarm Maximum FPS: 30(Used by my test setup - You can change it)
Reference Image Blend : 7 (Used by my test setup - You can change it)

> Source
Remote Protocol: RTSP
Remote Method: RTP Unicast
Remote Hostname: 192.168.0.101 (Used by my test setup - You can change it)
Remote host port: 7070
Host path: live.sdp
Capture Width: 640 (Used by my test setup - You can change it)
Capture height: 480 (Used by my test setup - You can change it)
Orientation: Normal

I think one of the biggest settings here for me was the "host path" > live.sdp.

Anyways, after I configured it all this way, for testing purposes at 640x480 I took a print-screen and made a jpeg for viewing pleasure of an Axis 207 and ACTi-7411 in 640x480 side by side, (axis 207 focus played with, ACTI-7411 zoom and focus out of the box)... Also the cameras are physically sitting next to eachother looking out a window so the frame of view isn't exactly the same, but you get the idea. Definately need to play with some color / balance settings on the ACTi.

http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B_a0y09 ... Mjk5&hl=en

I have also tried a lot of different configurations. This one seems to run pretty solid @ 640x480. I have yet to get zoneminder to load 1280x720 or 1280x1024 (these are available settings within the ACTi web interface).

When I do change to these the page wont load or it just shows version information on the feed service: CAMAZOLA blah blah blah v.X.x.x.

I really love how easy the AXIS was to hookup... I wish the darn ACTi was simlilarly adjustable and seamless. Ill be trolling the forums for a while searching for more help!

[Exno]

More findings:

I found that if I wanted to go to a higher resolution, I had to dump the rtsp call with the "remote" source type in ZM and commit to an FFMPEG setup. Fortunately this particular setup already had some support that I found here in the forums.

The google link below is the ACTi running with ffmpeg, referencing this thread to set up ffmpeg: http://www.zoneminder.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=13718 @ 1280x720 through Zoneminder 1.24.2, (im using Arch Linux live cd /w zoneminder, Note I also had to get the VLC package which I did with the pacman ((arch linux package manager)), "sudo pacman -S VLC").

http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B_a0y09 ... OTVi&hl=en

(There is a little bit of glare because Im looking through a window with the camera, sorry!)

1280x720 was the max resolution / 10 FPS I could get running in zoneminder. The ACTi-7411 is capable of 1280x1024 @ 8 FPS yet I was unable to get that working in ZM. I would only see information about the service: "camozola v.0.50.x.x 2004" or something like this /w no image. I was pretty anil about how I tested a setting change as well:

-Break the ZM connection by changing the camera setting from FFMPEG to REMOTE

-sudo pkill vlc (on ZM server)

-check that service was dead: ps aux | grep vlc

-make setting changes within the ACTi web interface, apply them, save/reboot the camera.

-run vlc-rwapper with options (referenced above in the ffmpeg link)

-adjust ZM back to ffmpeg as well as adjust resolution if needed.


Other thoughts:

-The zoom and focus on the ACTi 7411 are absolutely retarded. Basically, if you change the default zoom setting a little bit OR a lot, the focus can never recover / offset the change. I'm pretty much stuck at 1 setting. (note that the 7411 is a fixed dome and they don't say anything that I can see about zoom / focus in product documentation that I've found), who knows why there is focus / zoom? heh. I guess just super-fine adjustment for the area being monitored.

-When I unboxed the thing, it was actually heavier than I would have thought. The housing is made of a heavier material, maybe a steel of some kind. Nice and rugged.

-The heater/fan is not supported by PoE. Which kind of sucks considering that the camera only uses 4.4w. And most midspans provide 15.4w per port. Guess ill be running some power to this camera as well as the cat5e.

All in all, I will implement the 7411 in a project that I am working on. I do like its perks: PoE, internal heater, outdoor ready, some level of vandal resistance. I have read issues with FFMPEG regarding errors and such where users had to restart that particular stream. Ill test this setup long term and report back on the realiability level of this setup.


Below are images I took with my phone of the camera just out of the box:

http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B_a0y09 ... ODc2&hl=en

http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B_a0y09 ... YTI5&hl=en

http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B_a0y09 ... YjJk&hl=en

http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B_a0y09 ... ZjQ4&hl=en

http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B_a0y09 ... Nzli&hl=en

http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B_a0y09 ... OGMx&hl=en