I had already talked about systems for video surveillance at home from the computer, pointing out some free programs capable of monitoring different environments using a normal webcam connected to the PC. In this post I wanted to deepen what is the best of the free programs for homemade video surveillance, Yawcam, with a guide to be notified on the phone (Android smartphone, Blackberry, WP7 or iPhone) when something moves.
What is needed to monitor and monitor an environment and to install a video surveillance system with alarms or warnings is:
- A Windows PC always active and connected to the internet via a router (you can also use Linux or Mac but I don't know the free programs for these systems).
- A USB webcam of any kind.
- An extension of the USB cable (if you want to mount the webcam outside the house, in front of the entrance or a window).
- The free YawCam program.
The YawCam program is really simple both to install and to configure also because it is available in Italian (from the settings, change the language by choosing the yawcam_lang_italian file).
Yawcam is a Windows program that requires Java JRE installed on the computer.
Yawcam immediately recognizes the webcam connected to the computer and shows a preview of what is being filmed.
From the settings, you can choose the webcam to use which can also be a network device (the IP Camera).
A video surveillance system as it should, requires that the webcam recording is visible via the internet from any computer so that you can control what is happening remotely.
On YawCam, in the main screen, you must therefore activate streaming, which publishes the broadcast taken online .
By opening the web browser and typing as localhost address : 8081 you should see the video footage.
Go to Settings -> Change settings -> Connections and check at which internet address (URL) you can see the shot.
By pressing the " What are my URLs " button you will see the addresses to watch the streaming.
There will presumably be the internal address (type 192.168.xx ) that certainly works (depending on the port and unless there are any firewalls) while the external ones will certainly not work and will give an error.
The external ones, the first two at the top, only work if port forwarding from the router is configured.
On the YawCam preferences you can press the " Configure the router " button to read the instructions to follow.
In both cases, the port, by default, is the 8081 while the 8888 is the http port that works if you always enable the http service from the main screen.
The port forwarding instructions are in English but very clear and translatable with Google Translate.
On Navigaweb I had reported a tool to configure port forwarding on the router more easily.
The success of this operation also depends on the characteristics of your network connection and I suggest, in case of difficulty, to look for specific guides according to the provider (Alice, Libero, Tiscali, Fastweb).
Returning now to YawCam, you can activate the system of alerts and notifications by activating the function Motion capture or Motion Detection.
From the Window menu, open the one relating to motion capture to configure both when taking pictures and when the program must send a warning or an alarm .
Basically, Yawcam should be told to take a photograph whenever a change or movement is detected in the shot.
Thinking about video surveillance, if the webcam takes the door of the house, you want to tell the computer to record images every time someone enters and tries to enter the house.
To set up a correct capture of movements, you have to do the sensitivity tests so that Yawcam does not take photos with every little vibration, nor does it let thieves run away.
From the settings, by pressing on Settings, you can choose whether to detect movements only in a single area of the shot and then sensitivity and tolerance (how long motion is detected).
After finishing, you need to set the alarm or warning.
Also from the motion capture window it is possible to select an action that the computer must perform when motion is detected .
You can then choose whether to play music, open a sound file, send an automatic mail .
The email must be configured by specifying the SMTP server, easily found for all types of Email addresses.
The Mail can be received from the mobile phone and, in this sense, the notification can reach the Android smartphone, iPhone, Blackberry or any other mobile phone that has Push notifications.
You can also tell the program to send all the shots via Email, movement or not, by setting a message every 10 minutes (it is useless to put an email per minute, it would clog the mailbox).
A video surveillance system of this type can be installed in a couple of hours, it works very well for any need, without having spent a penny.
If you have thought about other types of solutions, let them know!
In another article, other programs to turn the webcam into a surveillance camera.
