Adding IP cameras in FLOW Insights

This article guides you how to add cameras to TrafficEmbedded and TrafficEnterprise systems.

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Written by DataFromSky
Updated over a week ago

To start configuring the analytics in FLOW Insights we first need to add cameras. We need to specify the parameters of the RTSP stream first in order for the stream to be connected and the video analytics to run well.

IP camera configuration - codec, resolution, FPS, RTSP address

Codecs that FLOW devices can work with include H.265 and H.264 (generally speaking any type of codec that supports RTSP streaming). The FLOW devices use the nvv4l2decoder by NVIDIA at the image input of video analytics. The minimum input resolution should be 544x320px. In general, Full HD(1920x1080px) videos work best but 4k is also acceptable and can be adjusted by the Region of interest (ROI) - for the videoanalytics to analyze only a specific area of the covered footage.

Camera FPS

The FPS should be set depending on the type of monitored scene.

Type of monitored environment and recommended minimum detection FPS:

  1. Pedestrian movements – sidewalk, town square, bus stop (up to 7 km/h): 5 FPS

  2. Pedestrian and cyclist movements – bicycle path (up to 50 km/h): 10 FPS

  3. Traffic junction, city traffic (up to 75 km/h): 15 FPS

  4. Monitoring of district level road - (up to 150 km/h): 20 FPS

  5. Highway/motorway monitoring - (up to 200 km/h): 25 FPS

RTSP stream address

Then we will need RTSP stream addresses. Depending on the manufacturer the RTSP address is slightly different. What they have similar however is the beginning of the address which is in the following format: rtsp://user:password@ip:port which in breakdown consists of: rtsp:// preposition, username, password, IP address, and port number. The /path/file that goes at the end of the address is different depending on the camera manufacturer. Below you can see the different endings of the most important camera manufacturers. Based on this information you can easily create the RTSP link you need to enter into your FLOW device.

Hikvision: /Streaming/channels/101

AXIS: /axis-media/media.amp

Dahua: /dahua/cam/realmonitor?channel=1

Wisenet(Hanwha): /profile2/media.smp (Hanwha)

DataFromSky Linux OS with Movidius cameras: /LiveH264_0

Azena OS DataFromSky cameras (including port): 8554/fhd

The last important thing are: exposure, shutter time, IR, and other visual parameters of the camera. These should be set so that the cars and pedestrians are clearly visible to the human eye.

Adding IP camera to FLOW devices

Every camera and analytics can be adjusted to fit the specific requirements of the given application. When adding a camera, you define the name and source of the RTSP stream. You can add a camera under Analytics by clicking on the empty camera/analytics slot and clicking on it. See the picture below.

Login credentials are included in the source address in the following format:

rtsp://user:password@ip:port/path/file

If you have a Point-and-zoom camera, you can connect FLOW to its OnVIF data stream. This way, FLOW will be able to recognize the current camera position and zoom settings - you can use this information to assure that the video stream is being analyzed only when the camera captures the correct scene. OnVIF source is entered in the following format:

user:password@ip

To learn more about how to work with PTZ (OnVIF cameras) refer to the article Using FLOW with PTZ cameras.

After you have added a camera you can access its Analytics settings. These are individual for each camera.

If you need assistance you can get in touch with us using the live chat (icon in the bottom right), email: info@datafromsky.com, or contact form here: contact us!

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