Using IP cameras as game trail cams?

[RustyJL 0]

Is it sound advice?

 

http://www.ehow.com/how_5772777_build-camera-live-video-stream.html

 

Instructions

 

1

 

 

Trail Camera with Video

 

 

First things first. I will briefly describe everything you will need to put this system together. Believe me, It is MUCH cheaper than buying the systems going right now that simply email you still pictures.

 

First you will need an IP BASED web camera. You can find many different types of these by just searching Google for "Ip WEBCAM". Radio Shack also carries a few good choices. There are a few weatherproof ones on the market but it is not neccessary because you can always put a cover on it. But we will get to that later. IP BASED webcams basically have their own servers set up directly in the camera. Pretty much all they need is an internet connection and they automatically allow access for control of the camera by loggin into the IP address. These can be purchased starting for about $80 dollars to $1500 plus. The point here is to be cost effective and the $80 dollar models you will find work just fine. Just make sure it is an IP BASED WEBCAM. A regular webcam will not work.

 

2

 

 

Craddlepoint Router for Trail Camera System

 

 

The next item you will need for your trail camera with live streaming video capabilities is a cellular router. By far the best around is Cradlepoint Brand Routers. These routers are made to accept your USB wireless internet cards. I personally use the USB720 from Verizon wireless. However almost any cellular carrier does offer some sort of wireless internet device. Sprint, ATT, Cricket, TMobile etc. Just ask your service provider and they will point you in the right direction. A USB device is best. This service usually cost anywhere from $29 bucks a month to $59 bucks a month. This is the ONLY fee you will aquire for this set up. If your like myself, you may already have wireless internet service and a USB device. Now, the Cradlepoint Wireless Router enables you to plug your cellular USB internet device right into it. It automatically recognizes your wireless internet device and forms a connection to the internet. Now whenever you plug your IP BASED WEBCAM into the Craddlepoint router, you have an internet connection via the wirless device. The IP BASED WEBCAM now assigns an IP ADDRESS and is ready to stream its video to the web. Be sure you have a signal where you intend to put your system.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3

 

 

Weather Proof Box for trail camera video system.

 

 

Next you will need a weatherproof box for your system. I use a box like shown in the picture that is much like your outside cable box on your home. They can be picked up at any hardware store for a few dollars. You will want to mount the cradlepoint router inside the box. I mount this right in the center so it leaves room inside the box to tuck away the wireless card and any cords and a power invertor. I like to use these boxes because you can easily spray paint them with your favorite camo pattern and once they are mounted to a tree there is easy access if needed. You will want to drill a hole in the box large enough to run the cord for the camera outside of. I then mount the camera on top of the box so that whenever I mount the box the camera has a clear view of the feeder or location you are trying to view. Be sure and use weatherproof calking for any holes you drill and you will want to put a "roof" over the camera after you mount it to a tree. I cut a small piece of sheet matal and just mount it over top of the camera on the tree to help keep it out of the rain.

 

4

 

 

Power Invertor for your wireless video streaming trail camera

 

 

I will sum up the next three things you will need to complete your wireless trail camera streaming video system. You will need a small power invertor that can fit inside your weatherproof box with the Cradlepoint router. This invertor needs to be able to convert power from a marine grade battery to power for the Cradlepoint Device. The Cradlepoint will supply power via the usb connection to your wireless card and some IP WEBCAMS. Some IP WEBCAMS will need to also be plugged into the power source.

 

5

 

 

Next thing you will need is an electrical timer. These serve a very inportant purpose in this system. They can be purchased at any hardware store for a few bucks. The timers are very important here. Being the Cradlepoint Router has a feature on it to automatically detect and configure an internet connection when powered on. Consider this timer a safety feature to ensure your camera is always ready to be used via the internet. If your like myself, you may live several hours away from your hunting property. If you ever lose your wireless connection for any reason. This timer will "reboot" the system which will automatically reset your Cradlepoint Routers connection and put it through the tasks of automatically re-establishing a connection. I like to set my timer to "re-boot" the system ever 6 hours. Honestly, I have had absolutley no problems with keeping a connection, however, it's one of those things thats " better safe than sorry" to me. The first time the system would actually need to be re-booted for some reason and you are 5 hours away, you would probably wish you had the timer on it.

 

6

 

 

Marine grade battery for power to your Trail Camera system

 

 

Lastly a marine grade battery will keep power to your system. I have solar panels running to my battery and it runs indefinitley. A friend of mine just has two batteries. Keeps one at home on charge and just switches them out weekly. Just hook your battery into the power invertor and then run the power from the invertor to the other devices.

 

7

 

 

OK, In review. You have a Cradlepoint Wireless Router in a weatherproof box. You have your wireless internet card connected to your Cradlepoint Router via USB connection. You have a IP BASED WEBCAM also plugged into the Cradlepoint Router via USB connection. You have a power invertor providing power to these devices via a marine grade battery. You have the enitre system mounted to a tree and powered up. Now then, you will go through the camera setup which will have detailed instructions with the booklet that came with it. It will provide you the IP ADDRESS to use to log into your system. Once you enter the IP ADDRESS into your web browser you can log in and take control of your camera. I have found that you can call the help line to your camera maker and they will gladly walk you step by step through the simple setup. However certain cameras are pretty much plug -n- play. All you will need to know is the IP Address to enter into your browser.

 

8

 

 

These systems are amazing. You can zoom in....zoom out. Look left and right. They can be set up to notify you by text message or email whenever motion is detected at the feeder. You can record video and sound and download it to your computer. You can sit and watch your feeders while drinking coffee in your own home or at any other computer you have access to. The best thing about it is, you pay no fee besides your cellular internet service. If you are familiar with trail cameras then you already know with other store bought systems you will pay for monthly fees to upload pictures in which they charge you per picture fees that add up to cost hundreds of dollars a month to be able to look at still photos. Not only that but you can expect to pay in the neighboorhood of $700 - $1200 for the trail camera. I built my first system for less than $300 dollars.

 

Well, now you know how to not only build a system for cheaper, but also how to have a trail camera with live video streaming and many more capabilities. Hope you enjoy these tips, give it a try you will not be disappointed. Now...Im going to log in and see whats at my feeders.

 

 

 

 

Read more: http://www.ehow.com/how_5772777_build-camera-live-video-stream.html#ixzz2sVZl4rDt

[need2shave 0]

PTZ camera, cradle point routers, aircards, deep cycle battery with solar, outdoor enclosures, etc for $300...on what planet?

[RustyJL 0]

Yeah, I don't know that he was talking about using a high end IP camera!

 

Getting something like an Acti E32 hooked up to a cradlepoint router and 3G card should make for a decent game camera at a reasonable price with benefits not on offer from regular cams.

[need2shave 0]

Aside from the camera it would still be far more expansive than $300. Depending on what wireless carrier you use, Verizon and AT&T charge $500 just for a public facing IP address now.

[dvarapala 0]

Cost issues aside, there is also the matter of bandwidth and the quality of the data connection. I have a Galaxy Note 3 with a quad-core processor and 4G cellular data, and I see all kinds of problems when I access my cameras remotely. The frame rate is like a slide show, and the connection drops frequently. In the real world, even the much-ballyhooed 4G isn't up to the task of linking a remote IP camera.

 

However, it's no surprise that this sort of BS fantasy would show up on eHow. Any self-proclaimed "expert" can just make **** up and post it and eHow doesn't care - they make their ad revenue whether the information they provide is any good or not, so why would they invest any resources in verifying any of the information they host? This is why whenever anything from eHow come up in a Google search, I won't even bother to click on them anymore (unless I'm in the mood for a good laugh).

[need2shave 0]

We do reliable streaming on 3g and 4g connections for covert applications all the time. You definitely have to scale back the quality and rates. We usually stream on CIF res at low bitrates. If you tried high def, forget about it.

[buellwinkle 0]

We live streamed our city parade at 1080P using a 4G connection, no problems. Wasn't that much bandwidth, maybe 1GB/hr.

 

We also use a Cradlepoint with a VZW USB stick and without paying the $500 ransom from VZW, we can't access the cameras remotely but for us it's more for access control updates.

[RustyJL 0]

We live streamed our city parade at 1080P using a 4G connection, no problems. Wasn't that much bandwidth, maybe 1GB/hr.

 

We also use a Cradlepoint with a VZW USB stick and without paying the $500 ransom from VZW, we can't access the cameras remotely but for us it's more for access control updates.

 

 

Thanks for the feedbank gents.

 

In this application, it would be set to record on detecting motion in a cleared area (cultivation paddocks) so that shadows/grass blowing in the wind did not set it off. The ability to view the footage live would only be used in short bursts to confirm that the fox/dog/pig is still there so we would know it's worth getting into the ute and driving down to shoot the vermin.

 

Also what is the story with this $500 ransom that your carrier over there demands? What does it get you? As I understand Buellwinkle's reply, he can stream the video at 1080p which is all I want - actually much lower resolution would be fine too in this particular situation. I am sure that we would have a similar ransom being demanded over here with our major carriers Telstra/Optus etc.

 

Would also come in handy for remote surveillance of other sites, but that's a topic for another day.

[need2shave 0]

You may not have the fee. Verizon and At&t didn't use to charge it. It's a fee levied for public facing static IP addresses. Verizon and AT&T now issue private (locked) IPs on their mobile broadband. To get it unlocked and public facing, you have to pay...without doing so, remote access doesn't work.

[drocer 0]

Ruggedized/IP66/IP65 android phone + reboot/remote scripts + IP cam app + cheap SIM? MMS sent video/pictures on motion. $100USD for phone + phone plan. Night would require IR lights but it sounds like this is during the day. Cheap solar charger/battery to keep running.

[thewireguys 3]

You may not have the fee. Verizon and At&t didn't use to charge it. It's a fee levied for public facing static IP addresses. Verizon and AT&T now issue private (locked) IPs on their mobile broadband. To get it unlocked and public facing, you have to pay...without doing so, remote access doesn't work.

 

 

The $500 Charge for Verizon is for there M2M account setup. Not only to you get unlimited public static IP address your also don't have to sign up for a long term contract. With the M2M account you only have month to month contacts. Also remember they are not UNLIMITED data accounts

Edited February 7, 2014 by Guest

[need2shave 0]

Right, it wasn't a bad deal for us as we have 10+ devices. If you only need it for one personal, it's a tougher pill to swallow. We however wouldn't stray from Verizon, their coverage far outperforms the others.

[buellwinkle 0]

There is another mobile data phone service that uses Verizon's network that is cheaper and they don't have the $500 fee for a static IP. Don't remember who they are but if you search you can find it here.

[RustyJL 0]

What a surprise, our major Telco does not offer static IP addresses to mobile broadband customers...

 

 

 

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1863462

 

 

 

So you are saying that this is only required if you want to login to your camera to view it in real time?

 

 

 

It seems that their competition Optus do it, however it has to be on a business plan which I suspect means big money.

 

 

 

Sounds easier to go with the added burden of sourcing extra power and cost of putting a Nanostation M2

in

 

http://www.ubiquitishop.com.au/78_7_nanostation_m2_2_4ghz_w_aupwr.product

 

With getting this solution to work however, it appears that a line of sight is required between the two radio's. Is it possible to get an omnidirectional antennae to get around this problem?

[thewireguys 3]

What a surprise, our major Telco does not offer static IP addresses to mobile broadband customers...

 

 

 

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1863462

 

 

 

So you are saying that this is only required if you want to login to your camera to view it in real time?

 

 

 

It seems that their competition Optus do it, however it has to be on a business plan which I suspect means big money.

 

 

 

Sounds easier to go with the added burden of sourcing extra power and cost of putting a Nanostation M2

in

 

http://www.ubiquitishop.com.au/78_7_nanostation_m2_2_4ghz_w_aupwr.product

 

With getting this solution to work however, it appears that a line of sight is required between the two radio's. Is it possible to get an omnidirectional antennae to get around this problem?

 

Using a omnidirectional will only make the problem worse. Your only option for non-LOS is 900Mhz and high gain antennas but even this might not work.

[RustyJL 0]

Excellent information gents. Thank you for your assistance.

 

Logging in live is not a must have for this idea, just be nice. I may well be satisfied with the system sending me email photos/video of the action and going from there.