LevelOne
FCS-1050
Day/Night IP Network Camera
User’s Manual
Before You Use This Product
The use of surveillance devices may be prohibited by law in your country. The
Network Camera is not only a high-performance web-ready camera but also can be
part of a flexible surveillance system. It is the user’s responsibility to ensure that the
operation of such devices is legal before installing this unit for its intended use.
It is important to first verify that all contents received are complete according to the
list in the "Package Contents" chapter. Take notice of the warnings in “Quick
installation guide” before the Network Camera is installed, then carefully read and
follow the instructions in the “Installation” chapter to avoid damages due to faulty
assembly and installation. This also ensures the product is used properly as
intended.
The Network Camera is a network device and its use should be straightforward for
those who have basic network knowledge. The “Troubleshooting” chapter in the
Appendix provides remedies to the most common errors in set up and configuration.
You should consult this chapter first if you run into a system error.
The Network Camera is designed for various applications including video sharing,
general security/surveillance, etc. The “How to Use” chapter suggests ways to best
utilize the Network Camera and ensure proper operations. For the creative and
professional developers, the "URL Commands of The Network Camera " chapter
serves to be a helpful reference to customize existing homepages or integrating with
the current web server.
For paragraphs preceded by the reader should use caution to understand
completely the warnings. Ignoring the warnings may result in serious hazards or
injuries.
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Table of Contents
Before You Use This Product......................................................................1
Table of Contents Package Contents ...........................................................2
Package Contents .................................................................................... 3
Installation .............................................................................................5
Hardware installation..........................................................................5
Software installation...........................................................................6
Initial Access to the Network Camera....................................................8
How to Use .......................................................................................9
Installing plug-in................................................................................ 9
Primary user’s capability ................................................................... 11
Administrator’s capability .................................................................. 15
Definition in Configuration ...................................................................... 31
System parameters .......................................................................... 32
Security settings.............................................................................. 33
Network settings.............................................................................. 34
DDNS and UPnP settings ................................................................... 37
Video codec parameters.................................................................... 38
Motion detection .............................................................................. 40
Application settings .......................................................................... 41
Homepage layout settings ................................................................. 43
Viewing system log .......................................................................... 44
Viewing system parameters............................................................... 44
Restore factory default settings.......................................................... 44
Appendix.............................................................................................. 45
A. Troubleshooting ........................................................................... 45
B. Frequently asked questions ........................................................... 47
C. URL commands of the Network Camera........................................... 50
D. Technical specifications ................................................................. 60
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Package Contents
Network Camera FCS-1050
Power adapter
Camera stand
Software CD
I/O terminal block connector
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Installation
Hardware installation
Please verify that your product package contains all the
accessories listed in the foregoing Package Contents.
Depending on the user’s application, an Ethernet cable
may be needed. The Ethernet cable should meet the specs
of UTP Category 5 and not exceed 100 meters in length.
Connect the power adapter jack to the Network
Camera before plugging in to the power socket. This will
reduce the risk of accidental electric shock.
Upon powering up, the device runs through a self-test procedure and the front LEDs
will blink between green and red a few times. If self-test passes, the LED will be green
and the Network Camera will standby for getting IP address. After getting IP Address,
the LED will blink green every second. If self-test fails the red LED will blink several
times. Refer to Appendix A for troubleshooting.
The Network Camera provides a general I/O terminal block with one digital input and
one relay switch for device control. Pin 1 and pin 2 can be connected to an external
sensor device and the state of voltage will be monitored from the initial state 'LOW'.
The relay switch of pin 3 and pin 4 can be used to turn on or off the external device.
Consult with the dealer of the peripherals for correct installation.
1 DI- INPUT (Initial state of DI is low)
2 DI+ INPUT (Max. 50mA, 12VDC)
3 SW_COMMON OUTPUT (open from SW_OPEN at initial state)
(close with SW_OPEN when set DO to ON)
4 SW_NOPEN OUTPUT (Max. 1A, 24VDC or 0.5A, 125VAC
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Software installation
In this manual, "User" refers to whoever has access to the Network Camera, and
"Administrator" refers to the person who can configure the Network Camera and grant
user access to the camera.
At the end of the hardware installation, users can use Installation wizard included in the
product CDROM to find the location of the Network Camera. There may be many
Network Cameras in the local network. Users can differentiate the Network Cameras
with the MAC Address. The MAC Address is printed on the labels on the carton and the
bottom of the Network Camera body.
The IP addresses shown in the
"Current IP Address" field reflect
those on the local network. They
may be from the DHCP server. If
there is no DHCP server, the camera
will try to find a free IP address (this
takes from 15 second to 3 minutes,
depending on the LAN status). The
method of finding IP address is
seeking from 192.168.0.99
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If users run Installation wizard before the
hardware installation, the Network Camera
may not be showed on the Installer list.
After the hardware installation, users may
click on
to update the list.
Users may click directly on
to access the Network Camera in the default
browser.
Once installation is complete, the Administrator should proceed to the next
section "Initial access to the Network Camera" for necessary checks and
configurations.
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Initial Access to the Network Camera
Check Network Settings
The Network Camera can be connected either before or immediately after software
installation onto the Local Area Network. The Administrator should complete the
network settings on the configuration page, including the correct subnet mask and IP
address of gateway and DNS. Ask your network administrator or Internet service
provider for the detail information. By default the Network Camera requires the
Administrator to run installation every time it reboots. If the network settings are to
remain unchanged, disable the Install option. Refer to “Network settings” on the
System Configuration page for details. If any setting is entered incorrectly and cannot
proceed to setting up the Network Camera, restore the factory settings following the
steps in the “Troubleshooting” chapter of the Appendix.
Add Password to prevent Unauthorized Access
The default Administrator’s password is the MAC Address, which marks at the
bottom label of your FCS-1050. The Administrator should immediately implement a
new password as a matter of prudent security practice. Once the Administrator’s
password is saved, the Network Camera will ask for the user’s name and password
before each access. The Administrator can set up a maximum of twenty (20) user
accounts. Each user can access the Network Camera except to perform system
configuration. Some critical functions are exclusive for the Administrator, such as
system configuration, user administration, and software upgrades. The user name for
the Administrator is permanently assigned as “root”. Once the password is changed,
the browser will display an authentication window to ask for the new password. Once
the password is set, there is no provision to recover the Administrator’s
password. The only option is to restore to the original factory default
settings.
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How to Use
Authentication
After opening the Web browser and typing in the URL of the Network Camera, a
dialogue window pops up to request a username and password. Upon successful
authentication, the following figure is displayed.
The foreground is the login window and the background shows the message if
authentication fails. The user may check the option box to save the password for future
convenience. This option is not available to the Administrator for obvious reason.
Installing plug-in
For the initial access to the Network Camera in Windows, the web browser may prompt
for permission to install a new plug-in for the Network Camera. Permission request
depends on the Internet security settings of the user’s PC or notebook. If the highest
security level is set, the computer may prohibit any installation and execution attempt.
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This plug-in has been registered for certificate and is used to display the video in the
browser. Users may click on
to proceed. If the web browser does not allow the
user to continue to install, check the Internet security option to lower the security
levels or contact your IT or networking supervisor for help.
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Primary user’s capability
Main screen with camera view
The main page layout has two parts:
Configuration functions: The camera can be configured using these user interfaces.
Camera View: What the camera sees.
Click the configuration link on the left menu to enter the configuration page.
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Digital Zoom
Click on the magnifier icon under the camera view then the digital zoom control panel
will be shown. Uncheck “Disable digital zoom” and use the slider control to change the
zoom factors.
Digital Output
Clicking on the “On” or “Off” button turns the digital output to either on or off status.
Snapshot
Click on , web browser will pop up a new window to show the snapshot.
Users can point at the snapshot and click the right button of mouse to save it.
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Client settings
At the initial access to the “Connection type” page in Windows, the web browser will ask
for a new plug-in installation, the plug-in being the Network Camera. This plug-in has
been registered for certification and can be used to change the parameters at the
client’s site. The user may click on
to install the plug-in. If the web browser
does not allow the user to complete the installation, check the Internet security to
lower the security level or contact your IT or networking supervisor.
There are two settings for the client side. One is “Media Option” for users to
determine if audio should be muted. The other is “Protocol Option” which allows
choices on connection protocol between client and server. There are three protocols
choices to optimize your usage - UDP, TCP and HTTP.
The UDP protocol allows for more real-time audio and video streams. However, some
packets may be lost due to network burst traffic and images may be obscured.
The TCP protocol allows for less packet loss and produces a more accurate video display.
The downside with this protocol is that the real-time effect is worse than that with the
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UDP protocol.
The HTTP protocol must be selected if the network is protected by a firewall and it only
allows HTTP Port (80) to be opened. In this mode, audio will not be sent and only video
is operational. If no special need is required, UDP protocol is recommended. Generally
speaking, the client’s choice will be in the order of UDP → TCP → HTTP. After the
Network Camera is connected successfully, “Protocol Option” will indicate the selected
protocol. The selected protocol will be recorded in the user's PC and will be used for the
next connection. If the network environment is changed, or the user wants to let the
web browser to detect again, manually select the UDP protocol, save, and return HOME
to re-connect.
<url>
http://<Network Camera>/protocol.html
<Network Camera> is the domain name or the original IP address of the Network
Camera.
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Administrator’s capability
Fine-tuning for Best Performance
Best performance generally equates to the fastest image refresh rate with the best
video quality, and at the lowest network bandwidth as possible. The three factors,
“Maximum frame rate”, “Fix bit rate”, and “Fix quality” on the Video Configuration page,
are correlative to allow for achieving the best performance possible.
For Best Real-time Video Images
To achieve good real-time visual effect, the network bandwidth should be large enough
to allow a transmission rate of greater than 20 image frames per second. If the
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broadband network is over 1 Mbps, set the “Fix bit rate” to 1000Kbps or 1200Kbps, and
set “Fix quality” at the highest quality. The maximum frame rate is 25 in PAL system
and 30 in NTSC system. If your network bandwidth is more than 384Kbps, you can fix
the bit rate according to your bandwidth and set the maximum frame rate to 25 fps or
30 fps. If the images vary dramatically in your environment, you may want to slow the
maximum frame rate down to 20 fps in order to lower the rate of data transmission.
This allows for better video quality and the human eyes cannot readily detect the
differences between those of 20, 25, or 30 frames per second. If your network
bandwidth is below 384 Kbps, set the “Fix bit rate” according to your bandwidth and try
to get the best performance by fine-tuning with the “Maximum frame rate”. In a slow
network, greater frame rate results in blur images. Another work-around is to choose
“Half” in the “Size” option for better images, or “Halfx2” for a larger image view. Video
quality performance will vary somewhat due to the number of users viewing on the
network; even when the parameters have initially been finely tuned. Performance will
also suffer due to poor connectivity because of the network’s burst constraint.
Only Quality Images Will Do
To have the best video quality, you should set “Fix quality” at “Detailed” or “Excellent”
and adjust the “Maximum frame rate” to match your network’s bandwidth. If your
network is slow and you receive “broken” pictures, go to the TCP protocol in
“Connection type” and choose a more appropriate mode of transmission. The images
may suffer a time delay due to a slower connection. The delay will also increase with
added number of users.
Somewhere Between Real-time and Clear Images
If you have a broadband network, set “Fix quality” at ”Normal” or better, rather than
setting “Fix bit rate”. You can also fix the bandwidth according to your actual network
speed and adjust the frame rate. Start from 30 fps down for best results but not below
15 fps. If the image qualities are not improved, select a lower bandwidth setting.
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Opening accounts for new users
Protect Network Camera by passwords
The Network Camera is shipped without any password by default. That means
everyone can access the Network Camera including the configuration as long as the IP
address is known. It is necessary to assign a password if the Network Camera is
intended to be accessed by others. Type a new word twice in ○
This password is used to identify the administrator. Then add an account with user
2
name and password for your friends in ○
. Network Camera can provide twenty
accounts for your valuable customers or friends. Each account identifies the access
right rather than the real visitor. That allows multiple visitors share the same account
of different level. An option to access DI/DO is provided for each account. Some users
may need to prohibit from controlling your attached devices. You may delete some
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1
to enable protection.
users from ○3.
More flexible options for viewers
The first option allows anyone uses “demo” as the user name to view without password.
The Administrator can also decide if more viewers are allowed to watch the video if the
viewers exceed the limit. The overloaded viewers will have snapshot mode instead.
4
○
Change homepage layout
How to change the font color
1. Click on “Configuration” on homepage,
2. Click on “Homepage layout” at the left column,
3. Find “Font color” and pull down the list to choose any color you like,
4. Click on “Save” button.
* The font color is better to contrast with the background.
How to change the background
1. Click on “Configuration” on homepage,
2. Click on “Homepage layout” at the left column,
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