In many ways, IP cameras are ideally suited to many video analysis applications. They are designed to be left on site and switched on 24/7. As they are connected via a network, anyone on the network can access the camera, including multiple simultaneous users. Also because of that network connection, the number of cameras which can be accessed is not limited - your facility can have 100 cameras, all of which you might connect to via your Dartfish equipped device.

MyDartfish Express can capture video from an IP camera via a WiFi to the camera or the network to which the camera is connected.


These are the requirements to use this solution:

  • Subscription to one of these myDartfish plans: myDartfish Mobile Plus, myDartfish 360, myDartfish 360 S, myDartfish Live, myDartfish Pro, myDartfish Live S, myDartfish Pro S or myDartfish Teampro Data
  • iOS device (feature not available on Android version)
  • An IP camera tested and supported by Dartfish. The list of those devices is available here
  • Wireless access to the camera on the same network and subnet as the myDartfish Express device


How to capture with an IP camera

  • First, you will need to connect to the camera across a wifi connection
  • In Express, open the IP Camera module



  • If you have never configured any IP camera, click on Setup
  • There are three types of cameras you can connect to:
    • Dartfish cameras: cameras from other Dartfish devices (e.g. using the feature "Share my camera" of myDartfish Express)
    • Network cameras: any ONVIF-compliant IP camera supported by Dartfish (see the requirements section hereinabove)
    • RTSP feeds: any other RTSP feed supported by Dartfish
myDartfish Mobile Plus, 360 and 360 S users only have access to Dartfish Cameras
  • Press on a camera to select it, and press on Back
  • If no camera is listed, see the below sections to see how to connect to the various types of cameras



  • Press on "REC" to enable or disable the recording of the session



  • Press on "Start recording/watching" to start the session


  • During the session, you can pause and navigate  backward/forward or pause at any point in the video


  • Stop the session on the top left


  • Mark events with the "+" button in the timeline


  • The events are displayed in the event pane that can be expanded or collapsed on the top right

Connect to a Dartfish camera


With myDartfish Express, it is possible to share the built-in camera of a secondary device by streaming on the local network. This video stream can then be captured on your primary device. For more information on how to enable this feature, read this tutorial

  • Once the streaming device and the capturing device are connected to the same network, start streaming on the secondary device
  • On the primary device, open the IP Camera module and open the camera settings
  • In the first section "Dartfish Cameras", click on "Scan"


  • The camera of the second device will be listed. Select it and exit the settings start recording



  • If no camera is listed after the scan, you can try to add manually your secondary device
    • Press on the "+" button
    • Enter a name
    • Enter the IP address of your secondary device. The IP address is displayed on the secondary device while it is streaming
    • Press on Add


Connect to an ONVIF camera


ONVIF is a standard use by many camera manufacturers. This standard allows for the automatic detection of cameras on the same network, provided the cameras are on the same network than the capturing device. ONVIF cameras are listed in the Network camera section

  • Press on Scan. The available cameras will be listed
  • Select a camera. If the camera requires an ONVIF authentication, press on the "i" and open the section "Secured connection". Enter here the ONVIF credentials
  • Go back to the capture module to start recording


Connect to an RTSP feed


It is also possible to capture videos streamed over the RTSP protocol. For this, you will need to know in advance the address of the video stream. This address will always start with rtsp://

  • In the section "RTSP Feed", press on "+"
  • Enter a label to recognize your video source
  • Enter the RTSP address
  • If the stream is protected by a password, open the section "Secured connection" and enter the credentials
  • Go back to the capture module to start recording


Troubleshooting


The audio track has a lot of background noise and stuttering

This may happen when the sample rate of the audio track is set to 48 kHz. Set the sample rate to 44.1 kHz or 32 kHz in the encoding settings of the camera.

Example of audio settings in the configuration web page of an Axis IP camera