Network configuration#
Gigabit Ethernet#
The camera can be connected with a network using the M12 gigabit ethernet
port. By default, the interface is configured to request an IP address from a
DHCP server. There are two ways to find out the IP address that was
assigned, see :ref:detecting_the_device. The base network configuration can be
performed in the user interface, which is accessible via web-browser, once the
IP address is known, see :ref:config_ui.
Detecting the device#
Use the bonjour service#
The bonjour network discovery service is running on the camera by default. The camera should show up in any bonjour discovery tool:
Ubuntu
Under Linux (here: Ubuntu), the avahi-discover tool can be used to list all bonjour devices in the network. Highlighting the entries of the list, will yield detailed information on the device, including its IP address.
sudo apt install -y avahi-discover
avahi-discover
Run avahi-discover and select the correct ecm device (by serial number)
iOS / Android
There are third-party apps available for bonjour discovery, e.g. flame: install flame app from app store and run discovery (just open the app)
Windows
Via third-party software. Apple offers a Windows service (part of iTunes) for Bonjour discovery external link.
iTunes in not needed as full install, the iTunes64Setup.exe is an
archive containing the Bonjour64.msi Windows service. For installation,
download the iTunes installer and open it with an archive manager (e.g. 7zip).
You will find several .msi files. Execute the Bonjour64.msi file
and follow the installer (it will extract to only a few MB).
Bonjour64.msi installer (in german) executed directly from 7zip
Using the Bonjour service from Windows cmd / power shell can be done with the following commands:
# list all bonjour devices with ssh feature
dns-sd -B _ssh._tcp
# get dns network name of bonjour device (e.g. ecm-example.local.)
dns-sd -L INSTANCE_NAME _ssh._tcp
# get v4 IP address of bonjour device
dns-sd -G v4 DNS_NAME
Scanning for ssh services with Bonjour, acquiring details from the sensor and its IP address.
Accessing the dhcp server#
This might require administrative privileges and access to the DHCP server of your
network infrastructure. Depending on the DHCP server used, the camera should be
listed with its hostname (of the form ecm-SERIAL) in the DHCP leases view.
Other options#
If no DHCP server is running on your network, the camera should connected to a 1:1 connection with a host-pc. As the camera is still in dhcp client mode, the host-pc must be configured to serve as dhcp server, handling the ip configuration.
Configuration user interface#
Finding the user interface#
Once, thi IP address of the C7 smart camera is known, further configuration can be performed with a web-browser.
From your host (in the same network as the camera), go to:
The ssl-certificates on the camera are only valid locally (no ssl validation is possible against unknown anonymous web-servers, as running on the camera). As a result, the following security warnings will be issued by most web-browsers (here shown for Google Chrome, display in other browsers will vary):
SSL security exception, please go to advanced
Please, accept the security exception in this case -- but please stay alert if you encounter these messages on websites outside your organization!
If you want to read more on what the message actually means, please see this post (external link).
SSL security exception - advanced, please proceed to your camera's IP
Login and password setup#
For information how to find the user interface, see config_ui.
Once you opened the website (and accepted the security exception), the following login / greeter screen will be presented:
Login greeter for the user interface
During setup, the following default username and password are used:
| default | |
|---|---|
| Username | admin |
| Password | 3dvl |
You should change the default password to secure and private one. Please use the "Security" screen for changing the password:
Setting the password
The security screen also shows the currently known / active session cookies (password-less login).
Network configuration#
For information how to find the user interface, see config_ui.
The factory default network setting is "automatic". In this mode the C7 smart camera is acting as a DHCP client and requesting its network configuration from the local network DHCP server (infrastructure):
Factory default setting, automatic (DHCP) network configuration
Optionally, you can specify a fixed IP address with the "manual" setting. The subnet-mask is given as extension to the static IP-address. The gateway and DNS server settings must be set according to you local network topology.
Figure: manual (fixed-IP) network configuration
Please make sure to add the correct subnet setting to your static IP. The following table shows examples of the most used subnet-masks:
| Subnet mask | IP-Extension |
|---|---|
| 255.255.255.0 | /24 |
| 255.255.0.0 | /16 |
| 255.0.0.0 | /8 |
Finally, hitting "apply settings" should reconfigure the C7 smart camera to its new static IP address. Please be aware, that entering wrong values can lead to an undiscoverable camera and settings might be hard to correct later on. The current configuration UI session will become stale and the new IP address must be used in the browser to continue configuration.
Danger
A wrong IP configuration can lead to a situation, where the camera is not easily accessible anymore. Please use extra caution when applying the new settings.
Warning
If the IP configuration did not work successfully (e.g. wrong information was supplied) and the C7 smart camera is not discoverable anymore, you can either debug the situation with network diagnosis tools e.g. Wireshark, or perform a firmware reset, see firmware_reset.
Date and NTP configuration#
The C7 smart camera features a real-time clock (RTC) with supporting battery (super-cap). It will sustain the time and date during system power off for several hours (up to a few days). Still, the system clock is accurate only in limits, as with any quartz based clock. Also, longer off periods may lead to wrong system times. This problem is addressed on the Linux platform with the network time protocol (NTP). Per default, it is switched on and configured to public NTP servers:
| RTP Server |
|---|
| 0.pool.ntp.org |
| 1.pool.ntp.org |
| 2.pool.ntp.org |
| 3.pool.ntp.org |
If the C7 smart camera is not connected directly to the internet, you may change this configuration to a local NTP server in your network.
Factory default configuration of the network time servers.
Hostname#
The hostname of the C7 smart camera is (per factory default) based on its serial number:
ecm-SERIAL
This is also the name which will be shown during network discovery and in your DHCP server as identifier. For organization purposes, it might be helpful to change the default hostname to something project specific (e.g. packaging-1, conveyor-gate-1, ...). The setting can be found within the "system" view of the config UI. Fill in the new hostname and click the save symbol next to it. The new setting should be active after a reboot (button to the right).
Changing the hostname in the "system" view