Severely uninformed person needs recommendation!

J

Jon Kovach

n3wb
Nov 17, 2017
16
2
Hi all,

First off, I know NOTHING about these cameras, capabilities, or the software. I'm computer saavy, but have never had a need/reason to learn about these. And so, I'm coming to you for help! We are a manufacturing company, and I am not looking for a camera to help me with security, but rather to monitor one portion of my manufacturing process.

Here is what I need to do:
  • I need to record two hours of video each day, from ~6:00am-8:00am. OR record when motion activates the camera.
  • I need an accurate image (to be able to read 20point text) from roughly 20-25 feet up in the air (camera will be mounted in rafters). (this is a wish, but might not be reality)
  • I need an image that spans roughly 15 feet wide, and I can mount as high as 20-25 feet up, or lower.
  • Wifi enabled
  • Controllable via software (Mac or iPad preferred)
  • Store recordings on an FTP server
  • No monthly/yearly fee (preferred)
So these are all preferred... I don't know how many of these wish-list items I can achieve...

Can someone help point me in the right direction? I'm looking at cameras on Amazon... but honestly, I have no idea what I should be looking for.

I'm not even thinking about budget right now, because I could justify paying a lot of money for all these features! It'd be SO SO SO helpful to our production.

Thanks in advance. I appreciate any help y'all can toss my way!!!
Jon
 
There are other ways to do it, but I would suggest a PTZ camera.

This is a really great value PTZ. Dahua SD49225T HN 2MP 25x Starlight IR PTZ Network Camera ,free DHL shipping-in Surveillance Cameras from Security & Protection on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

Fully zoomed out and 20 feet from the floor pointing straight down you would see a region of floor covering about 27x15 feet. Fully zoomed in at the same distance, your view of the floor would be 1.1 x 0.6 feet. So at max zoom you could read a book lying open on the floor.

Here is a cheaper option with much more limited zoom. I can't say if it could read 20pt text at 20 feet distance at max zoom.
Aliexpress.com : Buy Dahua 4x optical zoom Dome PTZ Camera Built in Mic IR cctv ptz SD29204T GN W,free DHL shipping from Reliable dome ptz suppliers on Empire Technology Co., Ltd (faster shipping)
Aliexpress.com : Buy Dahua 4x optical zoom Dome PTZ Camera Built in Mic IR cctv ptz SD29204T GN W,free shipping from Reliable dome ptz suppliers on Empire Technology Co., Ltd (cheaper shipping)

Recording two hours of video each day is easy.

I believe the smaller PTZ has wifi built in, but don't let that control your decision. You can purchase a separate wifi client device to connect any wired camera to wifi. http://a.co/hStTY6N

I believe both of the cameras I linked have micro SD card slots and can record to the cards on a schedule, though I can't personally verify either claim as I have not bothered to look for a card slot or try to use the camera's built-in recording features. I would suggest recording to a Windows PC running Blue Iris, because I know you can configure two hours of recording per day in that and it would do a good job. Note that if you are going to stream video to a separate recording device, you should use a wired network to ensure good reliability.

Blue Iris can also upload recordings to an FTP server, or you could even configure FTP server software to directly serve the folder(s) where recordings are stored.

Monthly/yearly fees are for consumer wifi cameras marketed to folk who can't figure out how to set up a system for themselves.

Accessing (with some measure of control) from iOS and Mac should be no problem, whether you use just the camera's built-in interface or if you use Blue Iris or something else entirely.
 
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Brian has you headed the right direction.
You need to get power to the cam anyway, so I would try to avoid WiFi, and run a network cable to it and use POE.
POE=Power Over Ethernet. One small cable handles it all.
 
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Jon Kovach said:
Hi all,

First off, I know NOTHING about these cameras, capabilities, or the software. I'm computer saavy, but have never had a need/reason to learn about these. And so, I'm coming to you for help! We are a manufacturing company, and I am not looking for a camera to help me with security, but rather to monitor one portion of my manufacturing process.
Jon
Click to expand...

@bp2008 has sent you links to 3 great cams. @looney2ns has wisely suggested POE. The first cam is POE+ (12 VDC) and that's OK. The second two use 12VDC also but I don't think they're set up for it to come in on the network cable as the first one is. Should you decide on either of the last two you can still bring power in over the network cable by using what's known as a 'passive' POE splitter, as below. One end goes at the cam and connects to the RJ-45 and cam power connector. The other splitter connects to your LAN and the cam's power supply. The two injectors join via Ethernet (network, CAT-5e, CAT-6) cable.

cam-mount-5_sm.jpg
 
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Maybe mine is a slightly different model but my small Dahua PTZ does support PoE. Now that you mention it I don't see that in the specs in the product I linked.
 
TonyR said:
@bp2008 has sent you links to 3 great cams. @looney2ns has wisely suggested POE. The first cam is POE+ (12 VDC) and that's OK. The second two use 12VDC also but I don't think they're set up for it to come in on the network cable as the first one is. Should you decide on either of the last two you can still bring power in over the network cable by using what's known as a 'passive' POE splitter, as below. One end goes at the cam and connects to the RJ-45 and cam power connector. The other splitter connects to your LAN and the cam's power supply. The two injectors join via Ethernet (network, CAT-5e, CAT-6) cable.

View attachment 23676
Click to expand...

The cams are indeed POE.
SD29204T-GN
2MP 4x IR PTZ Network Camera
> 1/2.7” 2Megapixel CMOS
> Powerful 4x optical zoom
> Support Triple-streams encoding
> WDR, Day/Night(ICR), Ultra DNR
> Max. 25/30fps@1080P, 25/30/50/60fps@720P
> IVS
> Support PoE
> IR distance up to 30m


20160920090503_89030.png
 
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Guys, thank you so much. I am going to go with exactly what you are suggesting and give it a try. I'll never know if I don't try, and this has tremendous potential for me.

I do have one question. If I go with this camera: ahua SD49225T HN 2MP 25x Starlight IR PTZ Network Camera ,free DHL shipping-in Surveillance Cameras from Security & Protection on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

...can I control the camera from Blue Iris (or some other software?) to control where it is pointing, the zoom level, etc...? Or when I mount it, do I need to get it at exactly the right angle?

Thanks so much - again,
Jon
 
Jon Kovach said:
Guys, thank you so much. I am going to go with exactly what you are suggesting and give it a try. I'll never know if I don't try, and this has tremendous potential for me.

I do have one question. If I go with this camera: ahua SD49225T HN 2MP 25x Starlight IR PTZ Network Camera ,free DHL shipping-in Surveillance Cameras from Security & Protection on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

...can I control the camera from Blue Iris (or some other software?) to control where it is pointing, the zoom level, etc...? Or when I mount it, do I need to get it at exactly the right angle?

Thanks so much - again,
Jon
Click to expand...

Yes on control with BI.
Really doesn't matter on Pal vs NTSC anymore, digital is digital. But NTSC allows for a tad higher frame rates.
 
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OK. So I got it. It's here. I'm super excited. I want to plug it in... but the wires are exposed. I guess I have to wire a connector on?? But one didn't come with it! Argh. I am eventually going to do POE, but for now I need to plug it in and set it up/test. I attached two photos. Help!!!

Jon

IMG_0190.JPG IMG_0191.JPG
 
Hi Jon,

Better double check the rating on that AC power adapter and what the camera wants for input.
 
Guh. Really? It came with the camera! Why it doesn't have a plug end on it is beyond me... I thought I'd just be able to plug it right into the camera.
Not the end of the world, but don't want to mis-step at this point...
 
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I'm surprised that this isn't shipped WITH the camera... oh well - thank you very much for the reference. I bought 4, just in case, since they are 50 cents a piece.
Thanks very much - AGAIN!
Jon
 
jon - thanks for your post. It helps guys like me to learn more about implementing a security system. Similarly as you, I too am a noob in the security cam world but comfortable with networking side of things like PC and networking.

I work for a mfg plant and they are using commercial, high end cam equipment. I was told they spend close to 200K and within ONE year, the false injury claims went down by 99%.

The ONE percent didn't know there was a security cam system in place and changed their story once they saw the recording - LOL
 
Just an observation: The specs on the SD49225T-HN say "DC 12V/3A or PoE+(802.3at)"; that power supply label says "OUTPUT AC 24V".
 
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TonyR - I see that, as well. Could it be that there is a typo on the power supply? I mean... isn't that what these things do, is convert AC to DC?
I guess I want to know if I should wire this thing up or not? If I do, and it's wrong, will it kill the camera?
Should I just buy a new power supply? Like this one: https://www.amazon.com/GW-Security-Adapter-Supply-Surveillance/dp/B005AW7PI8

?

Thanks,
Jon
 
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A lot of larger PTZs use 24 volt AC power and a pair of the loose wires are intended to be connected to the loose wires at the output end of the power supply (I connect mine with wire nuts). However it is true, that camera doesn't list 24v AC as an input power option, so I suspect they just put the wrong power brick in with your camera.

Though I think the adapter you linked would work, you should probably just buy a PoE+ injector.

http://a.co/63DO6o7
 
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If a PoE+ switch makes more sense, this is a cheap one from a trusted brand: http://a.co/1Md5Wxp

Beware of the total power budget when shopping for a PoE+ switch. They usually don't have enough power budget for you to use all ports at their full rated power.
 
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