AXIS FA51-B Main Unit

When you connect a sensor unit to a main unit, we recommend that you make the connection before you power up the main unit. If you disconnect a sensor unit and connect a different one, you must restart the main unit.

The sensor unit is delivered with a cable. To shorten the cable follow these steps:

1. Cut the cable to the desired length. Measure from the sensor unit.

2. Strip the plastic outer coating from the end of the cable.

3. Peel back the shield.

4. Flatten the colored wires in the order described below.

5. 1	Brown
   2	White/brown
   3	Not used
   4	Not used
   5	White/blue
   6	Blue

6. Insert the wires all the way into a shielded 6P6C RJ12 connector.

7. NOTICE

   Make sure that the wires stay in the correct order and that the cable shield makes good contact with the connector shield.

8. Use a crimping tool to fasten the connector to the cable.

To find Axis devices on the network and assign them IP addresses in Windows®, use AXIS IP Utility or AXIS Device Manager. Both applications are free and can be downloaded from axis.com/support.

For more information about how to find and assign IP addresses, go to How to assign an IP address and access your device.

You can use the device with the following browsers:

✓: Recommended
*: Supported with limitations

1. Open a browser and type the IP address or host name of the Axis device.

   If you don’t know the IP address, use AXIS IP Utility or AXIS Device Manager to find the device on the network.

2. Type the username and password. If you access the device for the first time, you must create an administrator account. See Create an administrator account.

For descriptions of all features and settings in the web interface of devices with AXIS OS, see AXIS OS web interface help.

The first time you log in to your device, you must create an administrator account.

1. Enter a username.

2. Enter a password. See Secure passwords.

3. Re-enter the password.

4. Accept the license agreement.

5. Click Add account.

The device password is the primary protection for your data and services. Axis devices do not impose a password policy as they may be used in various types of installations.

To protect your data we strongly recommend that you:

• Use a password with at least 8 characters, preferably created by a password generator.

• Don’t expose the password.

• Change the password at a recurring interval, at least once a year.

1. To make sure that the device has its original AXIS OS, or to take full control of the device after a security attack:

2. Reset to factory default settings. See Reset to factory default settings.

   After the reset, secure boot guarantees the state of the device.

3. Configure and install the device.

This video gives you an overview of the device’s web interface.

Preview mode is ideal for installers when fine tuning the camera view during the installation. No login is required to access the camera view in preview mode. It is available only in factory defaulted state for a limited time from powering up the device.

Set the power line frequency

1. Go to Video > Installation > Power line frequency.

2. Select a power line frequency and click Save and restart.

Set the orientation

1. Go to Video > Installation > Rotate.

2. Select 0 , 90, 180 or 270 degrees.

   See also Monitor long and narrow areas.

This section includes instructions about configuring your device. If you want to learn more about how certain features work, go to Learn more.

1. To adjust the view in relation to a reference area or an object, use the level grid in combination with a mechanical adjustment of the camera.

2. Go to Video > Image > and click .

3. Click to show the level grid.

4. Adjust the camera mechanically until the position of the reference area or the object is aligned with the level grid.

To improve image quality for specific surveillance scenes, use exposure modes. Exposure modes lets you control aperture, shutter speed, and gain. Go to Video > Image > Exposure and select between the following exposure modes:

• For most use cases, select Automatic exposure.

• For environments with certain artificial lighting, for example fluorescent lighting, select Flicker-free.

  Select the same frequency as the power line frequency.

• For environments with certain artificial light and bright light, for example outdoors with fluorescent lighting at night and sun during daytime, select Flicker-reduced.

  Select the same frequency as the power line frequency.

• To lock the current exposure settings, select Hold current.

• To reduce motion blur in low-light conditions, adjust one or more of the following settings in Video > Image > Exposure:
• Note

  When you increase the gain, image noise also increases.

• Set Max shutter to a shorter time, and Max gain to a higher value.

• If you still have problems with motion blur:

• Increase the light level in the scene.

• Mount the camera so that objects move toward it or away from it rather than sideways.

Dynamic range is the difference in light levels in an image. In some cases the difference between the darkest and the brightest areas can be significant. The result is often an image where either the dark or the bright areas are visible. Wide dynamic range (WDR) makes both dark and bright areas of the image visible.

1. Go to Video > Image > Wide dynamic range.

2. Use the Local contrast slider to adjust the amount of WDR.

3. If you still have problems, go to Exposure and adjust the Exposure zone to cover the area of interest.

Find out more about WDR and how to use it at axis.com/web-articles/wdr.

Use corridor format to better utilize the full field of view in a long and narrow area, for example a staircase, hallway, road, or tunnel.

1. Depending on your device, turn the camera or the 3-axis lens in the camera 90° or 270°.

2. If the device doesn’t have automatic rotation of the view, go to Video > Installation.

3. Rotate the view 90° or 270°.

You can create one or several privacy masks to hide parts of the image.

1. Go to Video > Privacy masks.

2. Click .

3. Click the new mask and type a name.

4. Adjust the size and placement of the privacy mask according to your needs.

5. To change the color for all privacy masks, click Privacy masks and select a color.

See also Privacy masks

You can add an image as an overlay in the video stream.

1. Go to Video > Overlays.

2. Click Manage images.

3. Upload or drag and drop an image.

4. Click Upload.

5. Select Image from the drop-down list and click .

6. Select the image and a position. You can also drag the overlay image in the live view to change the position.

This section includes instructions about configuring your device. To learn more about how streaming and storage works, go to Streaming and storage.

1. Go to Video > Stream.

2. Click in the live view.

3. Select Video format AV1 if your device supports it. Otherwise select H.264.

4. Go to Video > Stream > General and increase Compression.

5. Go to Video > Stream > Zipstream and do one or more of the following:

6. • Select the Zipstream Strength that you want to use.

   • Turn on Optimize for storage. This can only be used if the video management software supports B-frames.

   • Turn on Dynamic FPS.

   • Turn on Dynamic GOP and set a high Upper limit GOP length value.

Your camera can transmit a live video stream to an HDMI monitor even without a network connection. Use the monitor for surveillance purposes or for public viewing, for example in a store.

1. Connect an external monitor using the HDMI connector.

2. Go to System > Video out and turn on HDMI.

3. Select a Source. Rotate the image if needed.

1. To store recordings on the network, you need to set up your network storage.

2. Go to System > Storage.

3. Click Add network storage under Network storage.

4. Type the IP address of the host server.

5. Type the name of the shared location on the host server under Network share.

6. Type the username and password.

7. Select the SMB version or leave it on Auto.

8. Select Add share without testing if you experience temporary connection issues, or if the share is not yet configured.

9. Click Add.

1. Record video directly from the camera

2. Go to Video > Stream.

3. To start a recording, click .

   If you haven’t set up any storage, click and . For instructions on how to set up network storage, see Set up network storage

4. To stop recording, click again.

1. Watch video

2. Go to Recordings.

3. Click for your recording in the list.

You can create rules to make your device perform an action when certain events occur. A rule consists of conditions and actions. The conditions can be used to trigger the actions. For example, the device can start a recording or send an email when it detects motion, or show an overlay text while the device is recording.

To learn more, see Get started with rules for events.

This example explains how to set up the camera to start recording to the SD card when the camera detects an object. The recording will include five seconds before detection and one minute after detection ends.

Before you start:

• Make sure you have an SD card installed.

1. Start the application if it is not already running.

2. Make sure you have set up the application according to your needs.

1. Create a rule:

2. Go to System > Events and add a rule.

3. Type a name for the rule.

4. In the list of actions, under Recordings, select Record video while the rule is active.

5. In the list of storage options, select SD_DISK.

6. Select a camera and a stream profile.

7. Set the prebuffer time to 5 seconds.

8. Set the postbuffer time to 1 minute.

9. Click Save.

This example explains how to display the text “Motion detected” when the device detects an object.

1. Start the application if it is not already running.

2. Make sure you have set up the application according to your needs.

1. Add the overlay text:

2. Go to Video > Overlays.

3. Under Overlays, select Text and click .

4. Enter #D in the text field.

5. Choose text size and appearance.

6. To position the text overlay, click and select an option.

1. Create a rule:

2. Go to System > Events and add a rule.

3. Type a name for the rule.

4. In the list of actions, under Overlay text, select Use overlay text.

5. Select a video channel.

6. In Text, type “Motion detected”.

7. Set the duration.

8. Click Save.

To read about all the features and settings available in the web interface of devices with AXIS OS, go to AXIS OS web interface help.

A privacy mask is a user-defined area that covers a part of the monitored area. In the video stream, privacy masks appear either as blocks of solid color or with a mosaic pattern.

You’ll see the privacy mask on all snapshots, recorded video, and live streams.

You can use the VAPIX® application programming interface (API) to hide the privacy masks.

You can create several privacy masks. Each mask can have 3 to 10 anchor points.

Overlays are superimposed over the video stream. They are used to provide extra information during recordings, such as a timestamp, or during product installation and configuration. You can add either text or an image.

Decide which compression method to use based on your viewing requirements, and on the properties of your network. The available options are:

H.264 or MPEG-4 Part 10/AVC

H.264 can, without compromising image quality, reduce the size of a digital video file by more than 80% compared to the Motion JPEG format and by as much as 50% compared to older MPEG formats. This means that less network bandwidth and storage space are required for a video file. Or seen another way, higher video quality can be achieved for a given bitrate.

The Image tab contains camera settings that affect all video streams from the product. If you change something in this tab, it immediately affects all video streams and recordings.

The Stream tab contains settings for video streams. You get these settings if you request a video stream from the product and don’t specify for example resolution, or frame rate. When you change the settings in the Stream tab, it doesn’t affect ongoing streams, but it will take effect when you start a new stream.

The Stream profiles settings override the settings from the Stream tab. If you request a stream with a specific stream profile, the stream contains the settings of that profile. If you request a stream without specifying a stream profile, or request a stream profile that doesn't exist in the product, the stream contains the settings from the Stream tab.

Bitrate control helps you to manage the bandwidth consumption of your video stream.

Variable bitrate (VBR)
Variable bitrate allows the bandwidth consumption to vary depending on the level of activity in the scene. The more activity, the more bandwidth you need. With variable bitrate you are guaranteed constant image quality, but you need to make sure you have storage margins.

Maximum bitrate (MBR)
Maximum bitrate lets you set a target bitrate to handle bitrate limitations in your system. You might see a decline in image quality or frame rate as the instantaneous bitrate is kept below the specified target bitrate. You can choose to prioritize either image quality or frame rate. We recommend that you configure the target bitrate to a higher value than the expected bitrate. This gives you a margin in case there is a high level of activity in the scene.

With analytics and apps you can get more out of your Axis device. AXIS Camera Application Platform (ACAP) is an open platform that makes it possible for third parties to develop analytics and other apps for Axis devices. Apps can be preinstalled on the device, available for download for free, or for a license fee.

To find the user manuals for Axis analytics and apps, go to help.axis.com.

AXIS Face Detector is an application that detects faces in a predefined area of the live video. The detected faces are marked within boxes.

To find out more about the application, see axis.com/products/axis-face-detector

To reset the product to the factory default settings:

You can also reset parameters to factory default through the device’s web interface. Go to Maintenance > Factory default and click Default.

Axis offers device software management according to either the active track or the long-term support (LTS) tracks. Being on the active track means continuously getting access to all the latest product features, while the LTS tracks provide a fixed platform with periodic releases focused mainly on bug fixes and security updates.

Using AXIS OS from the active track is recommended if you want to access the newest features, or if you use Axis end-to-end system offerings. The LTS tracks are recommended if you use third-party integrations, which are not continuously validated against the latest active track. With LTS, the products can maintain cybersecurity without introducing any significant functional changes or affecting any existing integrations. For more detailed information about Axis device software strategy, go to axis.com/support/device-software.

AXIS OS determines the functionality of our devices. When you troubleshoot a problem, we recommend that you to start by checking the current AXIS OS version. The latest version might contain a correction that fixes your particular problem.

To check the current AXIS OS version:

1. Go to the device’s web interface > Status.

2. Under Device info, see the AXIS OS version.

1. Download the AXIS OS file to your computer, available free of charge at axis.com/support/device-software.

2. Log in to the device as an administrator.

3. Go to Maintenance > AXIS OS upgrade and click Upgrade.

4. When the upgrade has finished, the product restarts automatically.

You can use AXIS Device Manager to upgrade multiple devices at the same time. Find out more at axis.com/products/axis-device-manager.

Problems upgrading AXIS OS

Problems setting the IP address

Problems accessing the device

Problems with streaming

Problems with MQTT

Problems with operating the device

If you can’t find what you’re looking for here, try the troubleshooting section at axis.com/support.

When you set up your system, it’s important to consider how different settings and situations affect performance. Some factors affect bandwidth (bitrate), others affect frame rate, and some affect both.

The most important factors to consider:

• High image resolution or lower compression levels result in images containing more data which in turn affects the bandwidth.

• Rotating the image in the GUI can increase the product's CPU load.

• Access by large numbers of Motion JPEG clients or unicast H.264/H.265/AV1 clients affects the bandwidth.

• Simultaneous viewing of different streams (resolution, compression) by different clients affects both frame rate and bandwidth.

  Use identical streams wherever possible to maintain a high frame rate. Stream profiles can be used to ensure that streams are identical.

• Accessing video streams with different codecs simultaneously affects both frame rate and bandwidth. For optimal performance, use streams with the same codec.

• Heavy usage of event settings affects the product’s CPU load which in turn affects the frame rate.

• Using HTTPS may reduce frame rate, in particular if streaming Motion JPEG.

• Heavy network utilization due to poor infrastructure affects the bandwidth.

• Viewing on poorly performing client computers lowers perceived performance and affects frame rate.

• Running multiple AXIS Camera Application Platform (ACAP) applications simultaneously may affect the frame rate and the general performance.

If you need more help, go to axis.com/support.

This device supports microSD/microSDHC/microSDXC cards.

For SD card recommendations, see axis.com.

microSD, microSDHC, and microSDXC Logos are trademarks of SD-3C LLC. microSD, microSDHC, microSDXC are trademarks or registered trademarks of SD-3C, LLC in the United States, other countries or both.

• The control button is used for:

• Resetting the product to factory default settings. See Reset to factory default settings.

Use the microHDMI^TM connector to connect a display or public view monitor.

RJ45 Ethernet connector with Power over Ethernet (PoE).

Use the I/O connector with external devices in combination with, for example, motion detection, event triggering, and alarm notifications. In addition to the 0 VDC reference point and power (12 V DC output), the I/O connector provides the interface to:

Digital input

For connecting devices that can toggle between an open and closed circuit, for example PIR sensors, door/window contacts, and glass break detectors.

Digital output

For connecting external devices such as relays and LEDs. Connected devices can be activated by the VAPIX® Application Programming Interface, through an event or from the device’s web interface.

4-pin terminal block

Example

1. DC ground
2. DC output 12 V, max 50mA
3. I/O configured as input
4. I/O configured as output

The RJ12 connector is used for connecting the sensor unit to the main unit.

For information on how to shorten the sensor unit cable see Shorten the sensor unit cable.