Zoneminder cameras PTZ

Configuration
1

Hi all,
I’ve configured correctly home assistant to interact with zoneminder. So now I can see my 4 cameras. 2 of them have PTZ support. From zoneminder I can move them, but I have no idea how to do that from Hass.
Any suggestion?
Thanks, Simon

2

One way you could do it:

3

Seems interesting! I’ll follow this way, even I fear it will not be so easy for me. Thanks! Simon

4

I found out it’s the easiest way to integrate cameras. Because ZM is good at it, and the PTZ script can be called even when ZM is off.
Use case : ZM is started (modect) only when nobody’s home. But I want to be able to have the camera display even if ZM is off. So my cams are declared both ways : ZM and “direct”. But doing PTZ the direct way is a pain, especially when you already have ZM able to do so !

1 : create one shell command
zm_ptz: 'sudo /usr/bin/zmcontrol.pl --id {{ id_cam }} -command=presetGoto -preset={{ id_preset }}'

2 : for each position you want to reach, create a script that calls this shell

ptz_garage:
  alias: Garage
  sequence:
    - service: shell_command.zm_ptz
      data_template:
        id_cam: '{{ 2 }}'
        id_preset: '{{ 1 }}'

See that you’ll have to retrieve the camera ID in ZM and the number of the preset you’ll want to reach.

3 : the script can be used everywhere in HA. For instance in lovelace, I have a picture element card, with scripts to call as button over the cam image. Something like :

type: picture-elements
image: /local/1.jpg
elements:
- type : image
  entity: camera.sous_sol
  camera_image: camera.sous_sol
  style:
    left: 50%
    top: 50%
    width: 100%
    height: 100%
- type: icon
  icon: mdi:car-convertible
  entity: script.ptz_garage
  tap_action:
    action: call-service
    service: script.ptz_garage
  hold_action:
    action: more-info
  style:
    left: 5%
    top: 95%

It looks like this (this my basement, right now, so really dark !) :
image

5

The only problem with that solution is that you have to have zoneminder in the same ‘computer’ as home assistant. Any way to make it work with a docker install?

Edit: A bit more information on what I want to achieve. I have Hass running in a docker container. Zoneminder is running on the docker host computer. So I need Hass inside the docker to access zmcontrol.pl on the host.

6

I have both services on the same VM, no container.
I would think “ssh” to run a distant command on the ZM machine. There is also the ZM API but I’m not aware how to use it.

7

Hello, my solution was to make a small modification in the official zoneminder integration and create a service to ptz

Follow the link with the necessary modifications

Basically a ptz function

def ptz_move_camera(call):
        camera_id = call.data["camera_id"]
        move_direction = call.data["move_direction"]
        params = {
            "view": "request",
            "request": "control",
            "id": camera_id,
            "control": move_direction,
            "xge": 43,
            "token": zm_client._auth_token,
        }

        requests.request(
            method="POST", url="{}{}".format(zm_client._server_url, "index.php"), params=params,
        )

    hass.services.register(DOMAIN, SERVICE_PTZ_MOVE_CAMERA, ptz_move_camera)

Service Layout

ptz_move_camera:
  description: Move the ZoneMinder Camera
  fields:
    camera_id:
      description: The string id of the ZoneMinder camera.
      example: '1'
    move_direction:
      description: The string name of the ZoneMinder direction.
      example: 'moveConRight'

The camera_id is the id camera in zoneminder and the move_direction is the direction you would like the camera move

With everything done just perform a call_service
service_print

I will create an issue proposing this improvement

1 Like
8

This would be a nice feature. I recently implemented this functionality using Shell command. But doing it directly on zoneminder integration would be much better.

9

Could you create a PR so that everyone got this feature in futur HA release?