EdgeVis Local Viewer is a software viewing application that allows users to locally access the video available on an EdgeVis Encoder. Users can connect directly to an EdgeVis encoder over Ethernet or Wi-Fi.

The latest system requirements can be found in the EdgeVis Client Suite for Windows Installation Guidance article.

IMPORTANT: As Local Viewer must decode up to FOUR H.264 video streams simultaneously it is STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to use an Intel CPU with Quick Sync Video support. To check the CPU in a PC, search for the model number in this list:

https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/search/featurefilter.html?productType=873&0_QuickSyncVideo=True

If the processor in the PC is not listed in the link above Local Viewer will use a software decoder which will use significantly more CPU. In these circumstances using a quad-core 3GHz+ processor is recommended.

NOTE: Local Viewer requires considerable hardware resources when running with four video streams. It is recommended that no other high usage programs are run at the same time as Local Viewer to avoid performance problems. If running other programs is a requirement, it will be necessary to increase the system specifications to allow all programs access to the required CPU/memory load.

Video latency / blue screen drop outs will be experienced if system resources are inadequate.

The following table describes which encoders (running V7.1.5+) support local viewing, the number of channels supported and the communication ports that can be used to connect using local viewer:

The latest version can be downloaded from our Download Center as part of EdgeVis Client Suite Installer.

Run this installer (which can only be run by a user with Administrator privileges) and select EdgeVis Local Viewer which will install all the files required.

The installer will create an EdgeVis Local Viewer shortcut in the Start menu in the Digital Barriers folder.

Note: The EdgeVis Shield Components can be installed from the Advanced section of the installer. Install these if the encoder has an RDC network attached and access to RDC Config is required.

Local viewing is disabled by default on IP Series encoders. To enable local viewing log into the encoder’s local configuration web interface.

On the home page, under the Advanced Settings section at the bottom, click the Local viewing and RTSP button.

This will open the settings dialog, where the local viewing service can be enabled. A password must also be entered – this is the password used when connecting to an encoder with Local Viewer.

In normal operation IP Series encoders receive an H.264 RTSP stream from each attached IP camera, which it can record to disk – these are normally set to 1080p, 10Mbits, 25-30 fps by the encoder (if supported). When a user uses Local Viewer to view an IP camera, the encoder will ‘reflect’ the incoming H.264 stream from the camera directly to Local Viewer, meaning the image quality/frame-rate/dimensions are unchanged – the encoder does not modify the stream in any way.

For IP Series encoders local viewing will take advantage of any video layouts created on the encoder. This allows users to use the same video layouts on both EdgeVis Client and Local Viewer. From the local web configuration interface enter the Video Feeds section. This will list all cameras available on the encoder – use the Add Video Layout menu item to add either a new Quad View or Picture-in-Picture layout.

Local Viewing is always enabled on the HD-S600/HD-R700 and allow a maximum of TWO attached cameras to be viewed with Local Viewer. When connecting Local Viewer to these encoders the user must enter the local web administration password.

NOTE: In normal operation these encoders capture the video signal and (if enabled) will generate an on-board H.264 recording to save to disk. This is the same video stream that is also output to the Local Viewer, and as such changes to the recording settings (camera selection, recording settings) for each camera affect both the recording settings and the local viewing stream.

Local Viewer can display both channels from an HD-S600 and HD-R700 at the same time – this is available automatically when two video channels are configured for output using the above steps.

Once set-up, use EdgeVis Local Viewer to connect locally to the EdgeVis Encoder. This section describes how to discover and log in to the encoder and view the video feeds from the attached cameras.

EdgeVis Local Viewer streams the video feeds from the EdgeVis encoder at original frame sizes and frame rates and at high data rates. The video data rate and sizes used are configured either on the EdgeVis encoder or directly on any connected IP camera. EdgeVis Local Viewer will only operate when connected to the same local network as the EdgeVis encoder or directly to the EdgeVis Encoder’s local Wi-Fi.

Refer to the encoder guides for details on how to configure your encoder.

Connect your computer to the same ethernet network the EdgeVis Encoder is connected to. Ensure the computer is on the same subnet and the network can sustain the bandwidth the cameras are configured at.

Enable the local wi-fi on the EdgeVis Encoder. Connect your computer directly to the encoder’s Wi-Fi.

Launching EdgeVis Local Viewer will attempt to automatically discover the EdgeVis Encoder on your local network.

If the encoder cannot be automatically discovered, select Connect Manually and enter the IP address of the EdgeVis Encoder.

Enter the password and select login to connect to the encoder.

The password that should be entered is the one configured on the Local Viewer and RTSP Settings page on the encoder's local web configuration interface. Refer to the article How do I enable Local Viewer access and RTSP output streams? for more information.

Once connected to the EdgeVis Encoder the live video feeds can be viewed and controlled.

Once connected to the EdgeVis encoder, the available video feeds and configured layouts are displayed.

Select the desired video feed or layout to view:

Control the camera’s PTZ by opening the PTZ control.

The RTSP video stream output by an encoder is only used for video/audio transmission. PTZ commands and alarm notifications are sent using a secondary proprietary protocol. All PTZ commands are then translated on the encoder and sent to the camera in the camera’s native protocol.

Note: In Local Viewer the PTZ control is shared with the remote EdgeVis client and both applications can control the camera at the same time. The last command sent to the camera will override all previous commands, regardless of which application generated it.

EdgeVis Local Viewer can view encoder side alerts.

Select the Alerts tab to view the current alerts. This includes configured alerts as well as maintenance alerts.

Alarm notifications are only relayed to Local Viewer when:

Note: The maximum number of alerts displayed is configurable in the application settings. Older alerts will automatically be deleted.

For alerts to appear, a C-AMS alert must be created on the encoder. Refer to the user documentation for more information.

Press CLEAR ALL to clear all alerts for the list, select individual alerts to clear and press CLEAR SELECTED. Press the play icon to playback any recording from the time of the alert.

EdgeVis Local Viewer can view the recordings and download any recordings to the local computer.

From the main menu, select Recordings, or from an input select the … menu, then Recordings.

The timeline will show all the available footage on the disk. The blue bar represents available video. The time is shown above, use the mouse scroll wheel to zoom in and out of the available footage or click the + and – buttons. The scroll bar can be dragged back and forward to move up and down the timeline. The scroll bar arrows can be dragged back and forward to change the zoom level of the timeline.

Events and bookmarks are indicated on the timeline. Hover over the marks to view the content of the events.

*An encoder with the Firmware v7.3.1 or newer is required to view Bookmarks and events

The events and bookmarks can be viewed in a list by selecting the events (1) or the bookmarks (2) icon.

Selecting an item (3) on the list will start playback from that time. Items can be queried from the search bar (4)

Events can be filtered from the menu (5). Filtering the event types will hide them from the list and the timeline view.

Export all footage

Export a section

Note: To clear the Set start and set end marker press the ][ button.

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EdgeVis Local Viewer can configure SafeZone-2D Analytics and an RDC Network that are connected to an encoder.

From the home page select Encoder Configuration to open the encoder's configuration web page.
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Note: Some encoder models have built in SafeZone-2D analytics. The ability to configure an encoder will depend on the model version, an available licence and user permissions.

Note: Analytics can only be enabled on physical inputs and if there is an available licence.

Detection sensitivity can be adjusted to either minimise false alarms or increase detection. As a starting point set the sensitivity to the middle (5) and adjust as required.

SafeZone-2D analytics are a licensed feature. A licence is required for every input required. If there are no licences available, the message No licence available will be shown. Licences can easily be moved between inputs by disabling the analytics on an input that is no longer required.

Analytics can only be enabled on physical inputs, i.e. a single camera feed. Virtual inputs, such as Quad views and Picture in picture cannot have analytics enabled. If the currently selected input cannot have analytics enabled, the message Select an input to configure will be displayed.

Select CONFIGURE to step through the analytics wizard.

1 - The detected object is too big and will not alarm
2 - The detected object is too wide and will not alarm
3 - The detected object is too small and will not alarm
4 - The detected object fits within the square. This will trigger an alarm
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Note: The location of the detection size is only for indication and does not affect detection.

The region not shaded will alarm, in the above example only objects moving through the doorway will alert.

The region can be inverted to exclude an area from alarming.

On receiving an alarm, the object detected will be highlighted on the live video.

Objects outside the detection region will still be detected and will show as grey squares. If the object moves into the detection region it will alert.

The detection overlay can be disabled from the settings menu “Show Analytics Overlay”

On the HD-R700 with an RDC system attached, the nodes can be configured locally using RDC Config. Select RDC from the main menu to launch RDC Config.

Refer to the RDC Config manual for full documentation.

Note: The EdgeVis Shield Components must be installed to access RDC Config. These can be installed from the advanced section of the EdgeVis Installer.

Application settings are accessed from the top right menu.

Advanced settings are only useful for fault diagnoses of your system and if requested by Digital Barriers Support

The following keyboard shortcuts can be used to drive the application from a keyboard or other input device.

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