Homebridge Camera FFmpeg

FFmpeg plugin for Homebridge.

Installation

Basic Installation:

1. Install this plugin using: npm install -g --unsafe-perm homebridge-camera-ffmpeg
2. Edit config.json and add the camera.

Install via Homebridge Config UI X:

1. Search for Camera FFmpeg on the plugin screen of the Homebridge UI.
2. Install the homebridge-camera-ffmpeg and use the form to enter your camera settings.

After restarting Homebridge, each camera you defined will need to be manually paired in the Home app, to do this:

1. Open the Home app on your device.
2. Tap the Home tab, then tap .
3. Tap Add Accessory, and select I Don't Have a Code or Cannot Scan.
4. Select the Camera you want to pair.
5. Enter the Homebridge PIN, this can be found under the QR code in Homebridge UI or your Homebridge logs, alternatively you can select Use Camera and scan the QR code again.

Configuration

Config.json Example

{
  "platform": "Camera-ffmpeg",
  "cameras": [
    {
      "name": "Camera Name",
      "videoConfig": {
        "source": "-re -i rtsp://myfancy_rtsp_stream",
        "stillImageSource": "-i http://faster_still_image_grab_url/this_is_optional.jpg",
        "maxStreams": 2,
        "maxWidth": 1280,
        "maxHeight": 720,
        "maxFPS": 30
      }
    }
  ]
}

Optional Parameters

• uploader enable uploading of snapshots to Google Drive, defaults to false. See wiki for more detailed instructions.
• motion enable a dummy switch and motion sensor to trigger picture notifications in iOS 13, defaults to false. See wiki for more detailed instructions.
• doorbell enable doorbell function for this camera (image notifications). When enabled there will be an additional switch that triggers the doorbell event, automate it to use it with other HomeKit switches, HTTP events etc.
• manufacturer set manufacturer name for display in the Home app
• model set model for display in the Home app
• serialNumber set serial number for display in the Home app
• firmwareRevision set firmware revision for display in the Home app

Example with manufacturer, model, serial number and firmware set:

{
  "platform": "Camera-ffmpeg",
  "cameras": [
    {
      "name": "Camera Name",
      "manufacturer": "ACME, Inc.",
      "model": "ABC-123",
      "serialNumber": "1234567890",
      "firmwareRevision": "1.0",
      "videoConfig": {
        "source": "-re -i rtsp://myfancy_rtsp_stream",
        "stillImageSource": "-i http://faster_still_image_grab_url/this_is_optional.jpg",
        "maxStreams": 2,
        "maxWidth": 1280,
        "maxHeight": 720,
        "maxFPS": 30
      }
    }
  ]
}

Optional videoConfig Parameters

• maxStreams is the maximum number of streams that will be generated for this camera, default 2
• maxWidth is the maximum width reported to HomeKit, default 1280
• maxHeight is the maximum height reported to HomeKit, default 720
• maxFPS is the maximum frame rate of the stream, default 10
• minBitrate is the minimum bit rate of the stream in kbit/s, default 0
• maxBitrate is the maximum bit rate of the stream in kbit/s, default 300
• preserveRatio can be set to either W or H with respective obvious meanings, all other values have no effect
• vcodec If you're running on a RPi with the omx version of ffmpeg installed, you can change to the hardware accelerated video codec with this option, default libx264
• audio can be set to true to enable audio streaming from camera, default false.
• acodec Default audio codec is libfdk_aac and is enabled in the bundled ffmpeg version.
• packetSize If audio or video is choppy try a smaller value, set to a multiple of 188, default 1316
• vflip Flips the stream vertically, default false
• hflip Flips the stream horizontally, default false
• mapvideo Select the stream used for video, default 0:0
• mapaudio Select the stream used for audio, default 0:1
• videoFilter Allows a custom video filter to be passed to FFmpeg via -vf, defaults to scale=1280:720
• additionalCommandline Allows additional of extra command line options to FFmpeg, for example '-loglevel verbose'
• debug Show the output of ffmpeg in the log, default false

A somewhat complicated example:

{
  "platform": "Camera-ffmpeg",
  "cameras": [
    {
      "name": "Camera Name",
      "videoConfig": {
        "source": "-re -i rtsp://myfancy_rtsp_stream",
        "stillImageSource": "-i http://faster_still_image_grab_url/this_is_optional.jpg",
        "maxStreams": 2,
        "maxWidth": 1280,
        "maxHeight": 720,
        "maxFPS": 30,
        "maxBitrate": 200,
        "vcodec": "h264_omx",
        "audio": false,
        "packetSize": 188,
        "hflip": true,
        "additionalCommandline": "-x264-params intra-refresh=1:bframes=0",
        "debug": true
      }
    }
  ]
}

Using another Video Processor

• videoProcessor is the video processor used to manage videos. eg: ffmpeg (by default) or avconv or /a/path/to/another/ffmpeg. Need to use the same parameters than ffmpeg.

{
  "platform": "Camera-ffmpeg",
  "videoProcessor": "avconv",
  "cameras": [
    ...
  ]
}

{
  "platform": "Camera-ffmpeg",
  "videoProcessor": "/my/own/compiled/ffmpeg",
  "cameras": [
    ...
  ]
}

Setting a source interface, or IP address

• interfaceName selects the IP address of a given network interface. The default is to select the first available, and that may not be the same IP address that ffmpeg will use. A mismatch will cause the iOS device to discard the video stream.

{
  "platform": "Camera-ffmpeg",
  "interfaceName": "bond0",
  "cameras": [
    ...
  ]
}

Tested configurations

We have started collecting tested configurations in the wiki, so please before raising an issue with your configuration, please check the wiki. Also if you have a working configuration that you would like to share, please add it to the wiki.

https://github.com/KhaosT/homebridge-camera-ffmpeg/wiki

Credit

Homebridge Camera FFmpeg was originally created by Khaos Tian.