Axis 212, 212PTZ-V User Manual

USER’S MANUAL

AXIS 212 PTZ Network Camera AXIS 212 PTZ-V Network Camera

Notices

This manual is intended for administrators and users of the AXIS 212 PTZ/-V Network Camera, and is applicable for firmware release 4.49 and later. It includes instructions for using and managing the camera on your network. Previous experience of networking will be of use when using this product. Some knowledge of UNIX or Linux-based systems may also be beneficial, for developing shell scripts and applications. Later versions of this document will be posted to the Axis Website, as required. See also the product’s online help, available via the Web-based interface.

Liability

Every care has been taken in the preparation of this manual. Please inform your local Axis office of any inaccuracies or omissions. Axis Communications AB cannot be held responsible for any technical or typographical errors and reserves the right to make changes to the product and manuals without prior notice. Axis Communications AB makes no warranty of any kind with regard to the material contained within this document, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. Axis Communications AB shall not be liable nor responsible for incidental or consequential damages in connection with the furnishing, performance or use of this material.

Intellectual Property Rights

Axis AB has intellectual property rights relating to technology embodied in the product described in this document. In particular, and without limitation, these intellectual property rights may include one or more of the patents listed at http://www.axis.com/patent.htm and one or more additional patents or pending patent applications in the US and other countries.

This product contains licensed third-party software. See the menu item “About” in the product’s user interface for more information.

This product contains source code copyright Apple Computer, Inc., under the terms of Apple Public Source License 2.0 (see http://www.opensource.apple.com/apsl/). The source code is available from: http://developer.apple.com/darwin/projects/bonjour/

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V User’s Manual

Equipment Modifications

This equipment must be installed and used in strict accordance with the instructions given in the user documentation. This equipment contains no user-serviceable components. Unauthorized equipment changes or modifications will invalidate all applicable regulatory certifications and approvals.

Trademark Acknowledgments

Apple, Boa, Bonjour, Ethernet, Internet Explorer, Linux, Microsoft, Mozilla, Netscape Navigator, OS/2, Real, QuickTime, UNIX, Windows, WWW are registered trademarks of the respective holders. Java and all Java-based trademarks and logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries. Axis Communications AB is independent of Sun Microsystems Inc.

is a certification mark of the UPnPTM Implementers Corporation.

UPnP

Support

Should you require any technical assistance, please contact your Axis reseller. If your questions cannot be answered immediately, your reseller will forward your queries through the appropriate channels to ensure a rapid response. If you are connected to the Internet, you can:

• download user documentation and firmware updates

• find answers to resolved problems in the FAQ database. Search by product, category, or phrases

• report problems to Axis support by logging in to your private support area

• visit Axis Support at www.axis.com/techsup

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V Network Camera User’s Manual

January 2010 Part no. 38187

Rev. 4.1

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Table of contents

Contents

Product Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Key Features

Hardware Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

I/O terminal connector - Pinout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

LED indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Accessing the Camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Access from a browser

Setting the Root Password . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

AXIS Media Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Accessing the camera from the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Adjust focus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

The Live View Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Pan/Tilt/Zoom controls

The control panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

AMC audio controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Video Streams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

How to stream MPEG-4

Other MPEG-4 clients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Stream Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Alternative methods of accessing the video stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Accessing the configuration menus

Video and Image settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Image

Overlay Image . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Advanced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Audio Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Live View Config . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Layout

HTML Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

External Video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Sequence Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

PTZ Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Preset Positions

Guard tour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Advanced - Ctrl Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Event Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Event Servers

Event Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Motion Detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Port Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

System Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Security

Date & Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Ports & Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

LED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Advanced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Resetting to the Factory Default Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

The I/O Terminal Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Pinout and Interface

Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Checking the Firmware

Upgrading the Firmware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Emergency Recovery Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Axis Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Symptoms, Possible Causes and Remedial Actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

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AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Table of contents

Technical Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Optimizing your system

Bandwidth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Glossary of Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

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AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Product Overview

Product Overview

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V Network Camera is ideal for surveillance and remote monitoring, offering overview images and instant one-click Pan/Tilt/Zoom control. It combines a 3-Megapixel sensor with a wide-angle lens, providing VGA resolution. With no moving parts, this camera offers guard tour functionality without wear and tear.

The built-in Power over Ethernet support reduces cabling and installation costs, as well as consolidating power for higher reliability. Simultaneous Motion JPEG and MPEG-4 video streams, a comprehensive set of network security features and two-way audio support increase the surveillance and monitoring options.

For indoor use only

Key Features

• Instant one-click Pan, Tilt and Zoom

• PTZ with no moving parts - no wear and tear

• Simultaneous MPEG-4 and Motion JPEG for optimized quality and bandwidth

• Power over Ethernet for reduced cabling and consolidated power

• Two-way audio, including built-in microphone and detection alarm

• 140º pan and 105º tilt

• Pan & Tilt speed 400º/1 sec.

• 3x instant zoom

• Tamper proof mounting

Hardware Overview

Network connector

Camera unit

Power indicator

Network

indicator

Audio out

Audio in

(LED)

Cover plate

Power connector

I/O terminal

Control button

Microphone

Status indicator (LED)

Serial number (S/N) - The serial number is required during the installation. Please retain this for future reference.

Dome casing for AXIS 212 PTZ-V

Dome casing for AXIS 212 PTZ

connector

Cover plate

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Product Overview

Power connector - For connection of the PS-H power adapter (included).

I/O terminal connector - The I/O terminal connector provides the physical interface to one transistor output, one digital input

and an auxiliary connection point for DC power. For more information, see The I/O Terminal Connector, on page 40.

Network connector - The camera connects to the network via a standard network connector. Supporting NWAY, the camera detects the speed of the local network segment (10BaseT/100BaseTX Ethernet). Supporting PoE (Power over Ethernet), the camera can be powered directly from the network cabling.

Audio out - Audio output (line level), which can be connected to a public address (PA) system or an active speaker with a built-in amplifier. A pair of headphones can also be attached. A stereo connector must be used for the audio out.

Audio in - One 3.5mm input for a mono microphone, or for line-in mono signal (left channel is used from a stereo signal).

Microphone - Built-in microphone. To prevent unauthorized listening, the internal microphone can be disabled by inserting a

plug in the 'Audio in' connector.

Serial number label - The serial number may be required during installation.

Control button - Press this button to install the camera using the AXIS Internet Dynamic DNS Service, or to restore the

factory default settings, as described in Resetting to the Factory Default Settings, on page 39.

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Product Overview

Network

connector

I/O terminal connector - Pinout

See The I/O Terminal Connector, on page 40.

LED indicators

LED Color Description

Network Green Steady for connection to 100 Mbit/s network. Flashes for network activity.

Amber Steady for connection to 10 Mbit/s network. Flashes for network activity.

Unlit No connection.

Status Green Shows steady green for normal operation.

Note: The Status LED can be configured to be unlit during normal operation, or to flash only when the camera is accessed. See the online help files for more information. Go to Setup >

System Options > LED settings

Amber Steady during startup, reset to factory default or when restoring settings.

Red Slow flash for failed upgrade.

Power Green Normal operation.

Amber Flashes green/amber during firmware upgrade.

Note:

To achieve correct image orientation, AXIS 212 PTZ/-V must be mounted with the network connector facing upwards.

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Accessing the Camera

Accessing the Camera

To install the camera on the network, please see the supplied installation guide. The camera can be used with most standard operating systems and browsers. The recommended browser is Microsoft Internet Explorer with Windows, Safari with Mac OS and Firefox with other operating systems.

Notes:

• To view streaming video in Microsoft Internet Explorer, set your browser to allow ActiveX controls and allow the AXIS Media Control (AMC) to be installed on your workstation.

• QuickTime

• If your workstation restricts the use of additional software components, the camera can be configured to use a Java applet for viewing Motion JPEG.

• The AXIS 212 PTZ/-V includes one (1) decoder license for viewing MPEG-4 video streams. This is automatically installed with AMC. The administrator can disable the installation of the MPEG-4 decoder, to prevent unlicensed copies being installed.

Access from a browser

1. Start a browser (for example, Internet Explorer, Firefox).

2. Enter the IP address or host name of the camera in the Location/Address field of your browser. To access the camera from a Macintosh computer (Mac OSX), simply click on the Bonjour tab and select the AXIS 212 PTZ from the drop-down list.

3. If this is the first time the camera is accessed, see Setting the Root Password, on page 8. Otherwise enter your user name and password, as set by the administrator.

4. The camera’s Live View page now appears in your browser.

and Real PlayerTM are also supported for viewing streaming MPEG-4 video and audio.

Note:

The layout of the Live View page may have been customized to specific requirements. Consequently, some of the examples and functions featured here may differ from those displayed on your own Live View page.

Setting the Root Password

1. When accessing the camera for the first time, the Configure Root Password dialog appears.

2. Enter a password and re-enter, to confirm the spelling. Click OK. If the password is lost, the camera must be reset to the factory default settings. See page 39.

3. If required, click Yes to install the AXIS Media Control (AMC). You will need administrator rights on the computer to do this.

Note:

The default administrator user name root is permanent and cannot be deleted.

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Accessing the Camera

Focus adjustment ring

AXIS Media Control

The AXIS Media Control (AMC) is installed automatically the first time the camera is accessed from Microsoft Internet Explorer. The AMC control panel can be opened by right-clicking on the video image in the Live View web page. The AMC control panel can be used to configure various video and audio settings. Please see the readme file included in the tool for more information. The AMC manual is available from the Network Video link in axis.com/techsup

Accessing the camera from the Internet

Once installed, the camera is accessible on your local network (LAN). To access the camera from the Internet you must configure your broadband router to allow incoming data traffic to the camera. One way to do this is to enable the NAT-traversal feature, which will attempt to automatically configure the router to allow access to the camera. This is enabled from Setup > System Options > Network > TCP/IP Advanced.

For more information, please see NAT traversal (port mapping), on page 35. See also the AXIS Internet Dynamic DNS Service at www.axiscam.net or, for Technical notes on this and other topics, visit the Axis Support Web at www.axis.com/techsup

Adjust focus

If the image is out of focus, the camera’s preset focus position needs to be adjusted. Follow these instructions to focus the camera:

1. Remove the dome casing.

2. Open the Live View page in a web browser.

3. Set the camera view to maximum zoom, i.e. click on a suitable detail in the image to zoom in.

4. Rotate the metal focus adjustment ring (see illustration) to set the focus.

Important!

Older camera models have a fixing screw that must be loosened before rotating the focus adjustment ring. The screw is located close to the audio in/audio out connectors. Gently tighten the screw when satisfied with the image.

5. When satisfied with the image, mount the dome casing. For instructions please refer to the Installation Guide supplied with the camera.

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - The Live View Page

The Output buttons control the output directly from the Live View page. These buttons are configured under Setup > Live View Config >

Layout.

Pulse - click this button to activate the output for a defined period of

time, for example, to switch on a light for 20 seconds.

Active/Inactive - click these buttons to manually start and stop a connected device, for example, switch a light on/off.

The Live View Page

Depending on whether or not the Live View page has been customized, the buttons described below may or may not be visible.

The Video Format drop-down list allows the video format on the Live View page to be temporarily changed.

The Action buttons can trigger an event directly from the Live View page. These are configured under Setup > Live View Config > Layout.

The Snapshot button saves a snapshot of the video image currently being displayed. Right-click on the video image to save it in JPEG format on your computer. This button is primarily intended for use when the AMC viewer toolbar is not available.

The AMC (AXIS Media Control) viewer toolbar is only available for Microsoft Internet Explorer. It provides the following buttons:

The Play/Stop button starts and stops the live video stream.

The Snapshot button saves a snapshot of the video image currently being displayed. The Snapshot function and the target directory for saving snapshots can be configured from the AMC Control Applet in the Windows Control Panel (Internet Explorer only).

The record button is used to record the current (MPEG-4) video stream. The location where the image file is saved can be specified using the AMC control panel. To enable recording, Select Live View Config > Viewer Settings > Enable recording button.

Click the View Full Screen button to make the video image fill the entire screen area. No other windows will be visible. Press Esc (Escape) on the computer keyboard to exit full screen.

These buttons change the navigation mode. Selecting Center will move the camera view to center on the position that was clicked. Joystick mode will move the camera in the direction indicated by a mouse click, relative to the center of the image. The further from the center the image is clicked, the greater the movement. These modes can also be selected by right-clicking in the image.

Note:

The snapshot function in MPEG-4 full screen mode will return the image view to the default live view page. Click the View Full Screen button to return to Full Screen Mode.

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - The Live View Page

Pan/Tilt/Zoom controls

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V can be controlled by clicking in the image, or by clicking on the Pan/Tilt/Zoom bars on the Live View page. These are enabled/disabled for specified users by the administrator under System Options > Security > Users > User List.

Zoom out to overview image will set the camera to the minimum zoom position. Note that when in this position, the camera cannot pan or tilt.

The control panel

Click the Ctrl panel button to display the control panel. The panel provides buttons for switching between PanTilt and ZoomFunc when in Center mode. This controls whether the camera should pan/tilt to the position in the image that was clicked. or whether it should zoom directly in on that point.

The Control panel can also show your own shortcut buttons, which are configured from Setup > PTZ Configuration > Advanced.

Note:

The scroll wheel on the mouse can also be used to control the zoom.

AMC audio controls

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V can transmit audio to clients using either the built-in microphone or a connected external microphone and can play audio received from clients via a connected speaker. There are audio controls for controlling the microphone and the client computer’s speaker output. These controls are only available when audio is enabled, see AXIS Media Control, on page 9 and Audio Settings, on page 19. See also the AMC User’s Manual for more information at: http://www.axis.com/techsup/software/amc/

Click the Speaker and Microphone buttons to switch the sound off and on for the speaker and microphone, respectively.

Use the sliders to control the volume on the speaker and microphone. The volume can be set between 0 and 100.

When using Half-duplex mode, this button toggles between allowing you to speak and listen. The first icon indicates that you can talk and the speaker connected to the camera will play your voice. The second indicates that you will hear audio from the camera.

Simplex - Network Camera speaker only - the speaker connected to AXIS 212 PTZ/-V will play audio transmitted

from any web client. This mode requires you to use the push to talk button.

Simplex - Network Camera microphone only - transmits audio from AXIS 212 PTZ/-V to any web clients. This can be used in remote monitoring, web attractions etc., to provide live audio from a monitored situation.

Note:

External microphones and speakers are optional items and are not included with the product.

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Video Streams

Video Streams

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V provides several different image and video stream formats. The type to use depends on your requirements and on the properties of your network.

Unicasting is communication between a single sender and a single receiver over a network. This means that the video stream goes independently to each user, and each user gets their own stream.

Multicast is bandwidth-conserving technology that reduces bandwidth usage by simultaneously delivering a single stream of information to multiple network users.

The Live View page in AXIS 212 PTZ/-V provides access to Motion JPEG and MPEG-4 video streams, as well as to single JPEG images. Other applications and clients can also access these video streams/images directly, without going via the Live View page.

How to stream MPEG-4

Deciding on the combination of protocols and methods to use depends on your viewing requirements, and on the properties of your network.

Unicast RTP This unicast method (RTP over UDP) should be

your first consideration for live unicast video, especially when it is important to always have an up-to-date video stream, even if some images are dropped.

RTP over RTSP This unicast method (RTP tunneled over RTSP)

is useful as it is relatively simple to configure firewalls to allow RTSP traffic.

RTP over RTSP over HTTP

Multicast RTP This method (RTP over UDP) should be used for live multicast video. The video stream is always

This unicast method can be used to traverse firewalls. Firewalls are commonly configured to allow the HTTP protocol, thus allowing RTP to be tunneled.

up-to-date, even if some images are dropped.

Multicasting provides the most efficient usage of bandwidth when there are large numbers of clients viewing simultaneously. A multicast broadcast cannot however, pass a network router unless the router is configured to allow this. It is not possible to multicast over the Internet, for example.

Note also that all multicast viewers count as one unicast viewer in the maximum total of 10 simultaneous connections.

Unicasting is used for video streaming, so that there is no video traffic on the network until a client connects and requests the stream.

Note that there are a maximum of 20 simultaneous unicast connections.

AXIS Media Control (AMC)

The recommended method of accessing live video (MPEG-4 and Motion JPEG) from AXIS 212 PTZ/-V is to use AXIS Media Control (AMC) in Microsoft Internet Explorer in Windows.

The AMC control panel can be used to configure various video and audio settings. Please see the readme file included in the tool for more information.

The AMC control panel is automatically installed on first use, after which it can be configured. Open the AMC Control Panel from:

• Windows Control Panel (from the Start menu)

• Alternatively, right-click the video image and click Settings in the menu.

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Video Streams

Other MPEG-4 clients

QuickTime™ & Real Player™

To access the video stream from, for example, QuickTime™ or Real Player™ the following paths can be used:

• rtsp://<ip>/mpeg4/media.amp

• rtsp://<ip>/mpeg4/media.3gp

Notes:

• AXIS 212 PTZ/-V supports QuickTime 6.5.1 (or later) and Real Player 10.5 (or later)

• QuickTime adds latency to the video and audio stream (up to 3 seconds)

• It may be possible to use other players to view the MPEG-4 stream using the paths above, although this is not guaranteed by Axis

• <ip> = IP address

Stream Types

Motion JPEG

This format uses standard JPEG still images for the video stream. These images are then displayed and updated at a rate sufficient to create a stream that shows constantly updated motion.

The Motion JPEG stream uses considerable amounts of bandwidth, but provides excellent image quality and access to each and every individual image contained in the stream. The recommended method of accessing Motion JPEG live video from AXIS 212 PTZ/-V is to use AXIS Media Control (AMC) in Microsoft Internet Explorer in Windows.

Note also that multiple clients accessing Motion JPEG streams can use different image settings.

MPEG-4

This is a video compression standard that makes good use of bandwidth, and which can provide high quality video streams at less than 1 Mbit/s.

Note:

All clients viewing the MPEG-4 stream must use the same image settings.

The MPEG-4 standard provides scope for a large range of different coding tools for use by various applications in different situations, and AXIS 212 PTZ/-V provides certain subsets of these tools. These are represented as Video object types, which are selected for use with different viewing clients. The supported video object types are:

• Simple - sets the coding type to H.263, as used by, for example, QuickTime™

• Advanced Simple - sets the coding type to MPEG-4 Part 2, as used by AMC (AXIS Media Control)

When using MPEG-4 it is also possible to control the bit rate, which in turn allows the amount of bandwidth usage to be controlled. CBR (Constant Bit Rate) is used to achieve a specific bit rate by varying the quality of the MPEG-4 stream. When using VBR (Variable Bit Rate), the quality of the video stream is kept as constant as possible, at the cost of a varying bit rate.

Important!

MPEG-4 is licensed technology. AXIS 212 PTZ/-V includes one viewing client license. Installing additional unlicensed copies of the viewing client is prohibited. To purchase additional licenses, contact your Axis reseller.

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Video Streams

Alternative methods of accessing the video stream

Video/images from AXIS 212 PTZ/-V can also be accessed in the following ways:

• If supported by the client, AXIS 212 PTZ/-V can use Motion JPEG server push to display video. This option maintains an open HTTP connection to the browser and sends data as and when required, for as long as required.

• As single JPEG images in a browser. Enter, for example, the path: http://<ip>/axis-cgi/jpg/image.cgi?resolution=CIF

• Windows Media Player. This requires AMC and the MPEG-4 decoder to be installed. The paths that can be used are listed below, in the order of preference.

• Unicast via RTP: axrtpu://<ip>/mpeg4/media.amp

• Unicast via RTSP: axrtsp://<ip>/mpeg4/media.amp

• Unicast via RTSP, tunneled via HTTP: axrtsphttp://<ip>/mpeg4/media.amp

• Unicast via RTSP, tunneled via HTTPS: axrtsphttps://<ip>/mpeg4/media.amp

• Multicast: axrtpm://<ip>/mpeg4/media.amp

Note:

<ip> = IP address

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Configuration

Setup link

Configuration

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V is configured from the setup tools, which are available from the link in the web interface. The setup tools can be used by:

• administrators, who have unrestricted access to all the Setup tools

• operators, who have access to the Video & Image, Live View Config and Event Configuration settings

See Security, on page 31 for more information on user access control.

The descriptions below show examples of the features available in AXIS 212 PTZ/-V. For details of each setting, please refer to the online help available from the setup tools. Click to access the online help.

Accessing the configuration menus

Follow the instructions below to access the configuration menus from a browser.

1. Start your browser and enter the IP address or host name of the camera in the location/address field.

2. The Live View page is now displayed. Click Setup to display the menus that help you configure your network camera.

Video and Image settings

Text, date and time overlay

Image overlay

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Video and Image settings

Image

Image Appearance

Use these settings to change the image as required. The video image can be fine-tuned by adjusting the resolution, compression level, and the white balance.

The configuration of the video image will affect the camera’s overall performance, depending on how it is used and on the available bandwidth. Setting a higher resolution and a lower compression improves video image quality, but increases the amount of bandwidth used. Please see the online help for further information on these settings.

Overlay Settings

Use these settings to include: a) an image as an overlay, and/or b) the date and time, along with text of your own.

Text overlays are included in one line at the top or bottom of the video image. Image overlays can be placed anywhere in the video image.

See Overlay Image, on page 17 for instructions on how to upload an overlay image to AXIS 212 PTZ/-V.

Video Stream

Define the maximum video stream time per session in seconds, minutes or hours. When the set time has expired, a new stream can be started by refreshing the page in the browser. For unlimited video stream time, select the Unlimited radio button. Note that the maximum video stream time does not apply to clients connecting via multicast.

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Video and Image settings

The frame rate allowed to each viewer can also be limited, to reduce bandwidth usage. To allow the highest available frame rate, select the Unlimited radio button.

For a preview of the image before saving, click Test. When satisfied with the settings, click Save. Please note that the preview image will be in JPEG format, even though the settings are valid both for Motion JPEG and MPEG-4.

Overlay Image

An overlay image is an image included in the video image. Follow these instructions to upload and use an overlay image:

1. Go to Setup > Video & Image > Overlay Image in your web interface.

2. To upload the image to AXIS 212 PTZ/-V, click the Browse button and locate it on your computer or server.

3. Click the Upload button and follow the on-screen instructions.

4. The image is now available in the Use overlay image drop-down list.

5. Click Save.

6. Go to Setup > Video & Image and modify the parameters under Overlay Settings.

Overlay image requirements:

Image Formats Image Size

• Windows 24-bit BMP (full color)

• Windows 4-bit BMP (16 colors)

• The maximum overlay image size supported by AXIS 212 PTZ/-V is the same as the maximum image resolution. See Technical Specifications, on page 47.

• When a text overlay is also used, this reduces the amount of space available to the overlay image. To keep the text readable at lower resolutions, the text overlay occupies proportionally more and more space, i.e., 16 pixels in height at 640x480, 32 pixels at 320x240 and 64 pixels at 160x120.

• If the overlay is initially positioned so that part of it is outside the video image, it will be relocated so that it appears over the video image, i.e. the entire image is always displayed.

The height and width of the overlay image in pixels must be divisible by 4.

Please see the online help for more information.

Advanced

Camera - Lighting Conditions

To optimize the lighting settings according to your requirements, modify the following settings:

• Color level - Select color or B/W

• Brightness - This can be adjusted in the range 0-100

• Sharpness - Controls the amount of sharpening applied to the image

• Exposure control - This setting is used to adapt to the amount/type of light being used

• Exposure zones - This setting determines which part of the image will be used to calculate the exposure. The Auto setting can be used in many situations, but for particular requirements, select one of the other predefined areas.

White balance

This is used to always try to make the colors in the image appear the same, to compensate for the different colors present in different light sources.

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V can be set to automatically identify the light source used and compensate for its color. Alternatively, the type of light source can be set manually.

From the drop-down list, select the white balance setting suitable for the lighting used for your camera.

For more information please refer to the online help .

AXIS 212 PTZ/-V - Video and Image settings

Low Light Behavior

These settings determine how the camera will function in low light conditions. Adjustments made here affect image quality and are basically a measure of how much noise to allow in images. Please use the online help for more information on each individual setting.

• Exposure priority

• Max exposure time

•Max gain

Please see the online help for more information on these settings.

MPEG-4

GOV Settings - The GOV settings control the composition of the MPEG-4 video stream. Setting the length to a high value saves considerably on bandwidth. The Cyclic refresh parameter gives a smoother bit rate and can be useful if bandwidth is limited.

Bit Rate Control - Limiting the maximum bit rate is a good way of controlling the bandwidth used by the MPEG-4 video stream. Leaving the Maximum bit rate as unlimited will provide consistently good image quality, but at the expense of increased bandwith usage whenever there is more activity in the image. Limiting the bit rate to a defined value will prevent excessive bandwidth usage, but images will be lost when the limit is exceeded.

Note that a maximum bit rate can be used for both variable and constant bit rates.

The bit rate type can be set as Variable Bit Rate (VBR) or Constant Bit Rate (CBR). VBR will adjust the bit rate according to the images' complexity, thus using a lot of bandwidth for a lot of activity in the image and less for lower activity in the monitored area.

CBR allows you to set a fixed Target bit rate that will consume a predictable amount of bandwidth, and which will not change whatever happens in the image.

As the bit rate would usually need to increase for increased image activity, but in this case cannot, the frame rate and image quality will be affected negatively. To go some of the way towards compensating for this, it is possible to prioritize either the frame rate or the image quality whenever the bit rate would normally need to be increased. Not setting a priority means the frame rate and image quality will be affected approximately equally.

MJPEG

Frame Size Control - In some situation the image size may get quite large due to low light or complex scenery. Adjusting the maximum frame size is a good way of controlling the bandwidth and storage used by the MJPEG video stream in these situations. Leaving the frame size at Unlimited will provide consistently good image quality at the expense of increased bandwidth and storage usage during low light. Limiting the frame size will prevent excessive bandwidth and storage usage, but image quality will suffer. To prevent increase in bandwidth and storage usage, the maximum frame size should be set to an optimal amount.

During ideal light conditions follow these instructions to optimize frame size:

1. Click the View button and a pop-up window appears with Frame size and Compression in the text field.

2. Note the current frame size. To calculate a maximum frame size add 10 - 20% to the current frame size.

3. Enter the calculated frame size in the Limited to… field.

4. Verify the quality of the image in low light. Increase the maximum frame size if needed.

Note:

The maximum frame size allowed increases compression in order to maintain a low frame size starting at the compression value set under Image Settings > Image Appearance > Compression. When compression is 100, the image cannot be made smaller. You may also need to adjust the Resolution setting if a smaller frame size is needed.

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