RasPipC - Cameras on your TV made Easy.

[bp2008]

Follow these instructions and be sure to use the sub stream for the video feeds, not the main feed. Use the Raspbian PIXEL image, available for download here.

Heh. Those aren't instructions for RasPipC. RasPipC doesn't have instructions, as it isn't finished yet. Those instructions are for the very simple app I put together in a couple hours because I didn't want to use RpiSurv.

 

[Jmtyra]

Too true sir, too true. Corrected and updated in my reply. I'm just still excited that this works so well, haha.

 

[Dasstrum]

Ok I've been playing around with my Raspberry Pi and this RasPipC program for a few hours now past 2 days and I cannot for the life of me figure out how to install/run/use this program! I've downloaded both the .zip and .tar.gz files.

Can someone please explain how to open/run this?

 

[Jmtyra]

Hi! The RasPipC program isn't complete, however please see this post for details on an alternative.

 

[SvenVD]

For those that are using rpisurv:

New features in rpisurv http://rpisurv.net !

• Rpisurv is now compatible with systemd. You can use the standard systemctl commands to manage rpisurv.
• New config option autostretch to disable or enable autostretching of streams to make full use of all screen pixels (but breaking aspect ratio of stream). Previously this autostretch was on by default, now it is off by default.
• If you are connected with a keyboard you can stop rpisurv by pressing "q" for about 25 seconds.
• Rpisurv now shows a placeholder "connecting" when it is starting up the stream.
• Rpisurv now shows a placeholder if autostretch is disabled and if screen space is not all used up by connectable camera streams.

 

[BoboKrull]

For those that are using rpisurv:

New features in rpisurv http://rpisurv.net !

Hi Sven
Im trying to install rpisurv, but after rebooting I get booted into "linux command mode" and I dont know what to do but reinstall everyhing. Im using the 7" rasp touch screen.
Could you perhaps make a youtube-movie of all steps to get everything working?

 

[SvenVD]

Hi Sven
Im trying to install rpisurv, but after rebooting I get booted into "linux command mode" and I dont know what to do but reinstall everyhing. Im using the 7" rasp touch screen.
Could you perhaps make a youtube-movie of all steps to get everything working?

Hi, I will think about that youtube movie. But in the meanwhile follow the steps in rpisurv/README.md at master · SvenVD/rpisurv · GitHub. If you send me the output of "journalctl -u rpisurv" I can pinpoint your issue probably. First guess is that resolution of your streams is too high for the 7inch screen. You should check that and try with lower resolution.

 

[BoboKrull]

Hi, I will think about that youtube movie. But in the meanwhile follow the steps in rpisurv/README.md at master · SvenVD/rpisurv · GitHub. If you send me the output of "journalctl -u rpisurv" I can pinpoint your issue probably. First guess is that resolution of your streams is too high for the 7inch screen. You should check that and try with lower resolution.

Thanks for the answer. I now borrowed a raspbarry pi 2 (instead of my 3) and reinstalled noobs with raspbian.
Suddenly everything is working ofcourse... so It must be something wrong with the compatability with pi3 perhaps? I'll see if I can output a log from the pi3

Btw... do you think its possible to get a screensaver function after a couple of mintues and so that It's possible to wake up the screen by touching it? Would be really neat function
And as a bonus maybe swipe/tap on left and right side can change streams?

 

[JRNAn30]

Im having an issue displaying more than two cameras on my Raspberry Pi3, soon as I enable a third camera, one disappears from my display. Removing any one of these three causes the other two to display in the correct position.

omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "0 0 640 360" "rtsp:///user&pass@192.168.50.200:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=2"
omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "640 0 1280 360" "rtsp:///user&pass@192.168.50.201:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=2"
omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "1280 0 1920 360" "rtsp://user&pass@192.168.50.202:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=2"

Ive enabled streams, and even tried with a crazy low resolution (MJPEG, 352x240, 15fps circa 512Kbs) and even this has the same problem. Running on a wired connection too so its not wifi limitations. HTOP shows CPU use is a few % per core, and 96MB used.

EDIT: Log entries include "COMXVideoecode timeout".... could this be related to a 1920x1080 screen resolution?

EDI2: Seems my gfx RAM split might have been reset on boot. Think this is fixed...

any ideas what might be causing the issue? thx in adv

 

[SvenVD]

New update for rpisurv:

New major version 2.0 of rpisurv is released as a beta version. A lot of extra features have been added, with the most notable that you can now cycle between screens of camera streams automatically or via the keyboard. Full list of changes: SvenVD/rpisurv. Beta testers are welcome.

 

[Falcon]

I have attached the program I was talking about in the previous post, which I've called OmxPlayerAuto. You don't need the zip labeled SourceCode unless you want to modify the program's source code.

Installation instructions

@bp2008, First UI3, then this! Great work here. I have limited RPi and Linix experience. I tried 4-5 other tutorials that I found around the web and couldn't get any to work. Not sure why this one does, but I'm happy that it does. I even have it running with minimal delay via WIFI.

Many thanks,

Falcon

 

[horseflesh]

Can someone recommend a vendor (or Amazon link) for the right kind of Pi? Can I buy just one thing or do I need to get a video add-on, network add-on, etc?

 

[bp2008]

The latest, fastest pi is the Pi 3 Model B+, so pick that one. You'll also need a power adapter (5v, 2.5 amps or more) and microSD card (at least 8 GB). A plastic case for the pi may be wise to protect it from small bumps or to block some of the light from its LEDs if desired.

I typically buy a CanaKit or Vilros kit which comes with all that extra stuff, and these days all the kits usually include a pair of tiny adhesive heatsinks just to help things run a little cooler.

 

[Falcon]

Is there any reason this wouldn't run on the RPi Zero W with a mini-HDMI to HDMI cable. I've only used the 3B+, and I know it runs well on that.

Falcon

 

[bp2008]

Is there any reason this wouldn't run on the RPi Zero W with a mini-HDMI to HDMI cable. I've only used the 3B+, and I know it runs well on that.

Falcon

Should be fine. Don't expect any miracles of speed though, especially if you try to use it on wifi.

 

[tangent]

Is there any reason this wouldn't run on the RPi Zero W with a mini-HDMI to HDMI cable. I've only used the 3B+, and I know it runs well on that.

Falcon

It will depend on the number of cameras and the resolution of the streams / sub streams you're using.

 

[Jmtyra]

Anyone else experienced video artifacts with Omxplayer under specific configurations? Whenever I configure a full screen of video sources, I get the video artifact shown below. Tried this with rpisurv as well as OmxPlayerAuto with the same result so I think it's specific to the Omxplayer itself. Tried GPU settings as low as 128 and as high as 512, no change. Re-ordering the videos and changing the sizes didn't make a difference either. One video less than a full screen and there are no issues. The RPi has those aftermarket metal heatsinks and an open air case in an A/C environment (indoors) so not sure it's thermal related either.

Any ideas?

 

[bp2008]

Which pi model is it?

Are you loading substreams to save resources?

Try these command line arguments to omxplayer:
--hdmiclocksync
--nohdmiclocksync
(not both at the same time of course)

What if you make one stream one pixel less wide so that not all the pixels of the screen are filled with video?

 

[Jmtyra]

It's a RPi v3b

Yup! Learned that lesson the hard way in the past, it choked. The substreams are running at "D1" 704*480 on the cameras.

--hdmiclocksync made it very angry and immediately triggered the video artifact, then the screen went blank.
--nohdmiclocksync was previously included in the command line. I've included the setup below for reference (sorry I should have done that in the original post).

Great minds! Tried that also in the past...made each video slightly smaller, even tried 4 feeds at the top and the other feeds below in a custom layout, but that seemed to make things worse.

One thing I didn't try was reducing the number of feeds with something like a 4x4 setup. Going to try that now and see what happens.

Current setup, IP and user/pass removed:

omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "0 0 640 360" "rtsp://user:pass@000.000.000.11:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=2"
omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "640 0 1280 360" "rtsp://user:pass@000.000.000.14:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=2"
omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "1280 0 1920 360" "rtsp://user:pass@000.000.000.10:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=2"
omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "0 360 640 720" "rtsp://user:pass@000.000.000.13:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=2"
omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "640 360 1280 720" "rtsp://user:pass@000.000.000.12:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=2"
omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "1280 360 1920 720" "rtsp://user:pass@000.000.000.15:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=2"
omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "0 720 640 1080" "rtsp://user:pass@000.000.000.18:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=2"
omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "640 720 1280 1080" "rtsp://user:pass@000.000.000.17:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=2"
omxplayer --lavfdopts probesize:25000 --no-keys --live --timeout 30 --aspect-mode stretch --layer 2 --nohdmiclocksync --avdict rtsp_transport:tcp --win "1280 720 1920 1080" "rtsp://user:pass@000.000.000.16:554/media/video2"

 

[Jmtyra]

Well, doing a 4x4 didn't cause the effect, so perhaps anything past 8 streams is just too much for the RPi? I wonder if it's the GPU?

Anyone else been successful at running more than 8 streams at once?