5$ live streaming camera for Home Assistant | ESP32-CAM tutorial

[@KPeyanski]

Do you like my new studio background? Share below what do you think. Thanks for watching!

[@1over137]

My own experience with ESP32-Cam. I spent about 6 months using them for greenhouse monitoring and seedling time lapses. For those kind of "project eyes" they are "ok", not great. The main issues I had with it was stability and reliability. Asking the camera to upload a jpeg image once a minute and in the morning you would find 60% of the images missing or corrupted partial writes. I can confirm that buying one with a 4db antenna was more reliable. However, for more permenant installations, where feasible, a RaspberryPI and a cheap 14MPS 'web' camera and MotionEyeOS is nearly ideal!

[@KPeyanski]

Many thanks for sharing your experience and tips. Keep up!

[@nic8544]

I don't need cameras right now, but this project is so simple and very well described that I will get some and try, just for fun 😊. Thank you very much

[@RocketBoom1966]

I think by default, the camera resolution is 640x480. I was able to increase it to the maximum spec of my camera which is 1600x1200 (2MP) by adding the following line in the config: resolution: 1600x1200. I bought 2 esp32-cam boards via Amazon. One camera module was DOA. Not sure if that's common. Thanks for another easy to follow video. Yes I like the studio background! 🙂

[@davidr521]

Do you have the link to the Amazon cam you got?

[@carralf]

I believe you have great videos. You take the necesary time to explain. I have Just set up my esp32 cam working OK. Thanks to you. Keep up the good work.

[@KPeyanski]

Many thanks, I will do my best! Also check my other DIY videos :)

[@tomcruise1387]

10:45 sensor is for me "unavailable" the light works fine but impossible to get any image from my esp32cam

[@tartine3966]

I had the same problem, the device was too far from my router, but even close it's not efficient (I should have maybe bought the antenna version). The flashlight is dangerous and can burn (I see smoke) and I think it makes the device unresponsive because of heat.

[@daveocatnz]

Just got this working. using an ESP cam from aliexpress that had FTD adapter thing built in. I have it setup to send 10 snapshots with 2 seconds delay in-between on a motion sensor on the driveway. It gives me 10 pics on my phone as a notification, only when i have left the house and also stores the photos in the files dir on the home assistant. It works perfect and if i need to i can access my other high res cameras but this is great for a quick notification so i can see what's happening. This camera isnt great for a stream, but ideal for snapshots. I will do another for a doorbell camera. Thanks for the easy tutorial, thats the second time one of your videos has helped me out!

[@KPeyanski]

You are welcome. Check my other videos as well

[@aubreykloppers9202]

#esp32camowned - I had a problem with an initial error uploading to the board, switching the ground-wire to the ground wire next to the 5v, everything worked as it should. Thank you sir, from Cape Town, South Africa

[@FrankGraffagnino]

this is really great. i've love to see a follow-up video where you use a camera like this to detect who walked into a room... basically frigate or something like that to look at the image of a face and determine which of the family members it is... then set a sensor to say when that person is in the room or something like that.

[@KPeyanski]

Yes, that sounds like a good project, but I think a better camera (with fast FPS) should be used for that also a Google Coral for the Frigate. I also think that a custom model should be trained which is also challenging ...

[@IronicoII]

Hi , can use the esp32cam for compare faces ? I can create tutorial for this please !

[@KPeyanski]

ok, go for it!

[@1over137]

If you don't want to fiddle with wires you can buy carrier boards for the ESP32-Cam which contains a USB Microport and a USB Serial converter which makes it much easier to program and to power from a USB charger in service. The usually places ama and eba

[@KPeyanski]

Thanks for sharing this Paul. That is really valuable confirmation that this board/hat can be used not only for powering the device but also for flashing....

[@alainfrenois33480]

hello it doesn't work for me this camera I bought several and I never managed to get them to work is it really functional or the video is fake thank you

[@big_whopper]

Very nice! Thanks for the comprehensive video!

[@edwardvanhazendonk]

Thanks for sharing, clear and good explanation, time to dig up this module from my IoT devices box 👍🏻🤔😀

[@KPeyanski]

You are welcome 🙏 wish you luck and share the results later

[@haiderzia8]

Awesome project. Exactly what I was looking for.

[@KPeyanski]

Great to hear! Enjoy!

[@neelizblue]

@KPeyanski: If I dont use esphome and use arduino ide to upload default esp32 cam web server sketch, i can see there is face detection, face registration and also motion detection features are available. Any idea if i flush an esp32 cam device with arduiono ide how to add it to home assistant? I tried but home assistant can not find the device using the ip and port 6053. Alternatively if I flash it directly with esp32home from home assistant is there any way to add face/motion detection?

[@paolopoletto1661]

Hi, I followed your indications but using latest version of HA (@Sept04th) my camer is every time in idle, the frame rate is very slow maximum 1fps instead the the max_framerate is set to 20, also in the HA card for the camera I selected the live mode. Do you have suggestions ? Do you need further details ? Thanks

[@mikekappasig]

do you have any recording set up with this? i wonder if you could integrate with fridate? with the sapre GPIO pins, can you add a mm wave sensor and use person presence as a trigger for recording? I might have to pick up a couple to play with, this looks awesome.

[@navin-vibes]

thx for all of your great Videos. I have a question about the implementation in the dummy case. I have the same. I am not sure if I can use the batteries 4.5 V to power the esp or if it is possible to use the blinking LED afterwords for example when i get a moving detection at the door via HA. It should be possible to use the esp as switch for the Red LED. Any idea for that ? Second question how do handle the flash light ? Thx in advance !

[@CHuKa]

ERROR Running command failed: Failed to connect to ESP32: No serial data received.

[@azun]

Hi, I constantly get this error message while installing INFO Reading configuration /config/esphome/cam.yaml... ERROR Error while reading config: Invalid YAML syntax: mapping values are not allowed here in "/config/esphome/cam.yaml", line 3, column 15: platform: ESP32 ^ Any advice ?

[@Meyer_Family]

Thanks KP. Great vid. Please can you make a similar video using ov5640 camera on esp32 board in HA?

[@KPeyanski]

Thanks for the comment. I will think about your idea ;)

[@dronesvisionsaeriennes]

Hi KPeyanski, nice video for me i'm beginner with HA...so, i get my camera " online " but not video stream available ... maybe an idea ?? thank's a lot Phil

[@KPeyanski]

Not sure what could be the reason. Can you try with another esp32-cam from different brand/seller. The best will be to get the one from the video description.

[@MrCWoodhouse]

I'm pretty sure that the ftdi adapter should be 3.3v same as the gpio pins. 3.3v works for me.

[@KPeyanski]

I guess both options are working then...

[@eelcogg]

The lagging is due to the HA integration. If I run just the webcam firmware on the ESP32 I can see a high resolution 30fps stream in my browser.

[@1brokkolibaum]

Does anyone have any idea how to make the cam stop streaming / taking pictures if I don't access it? It heats up a lot and I just want it to show me a quick picture of my mailbox. :/

[@manojkhatri1788]

How can I install.this in the dummy camera. I am looking to try this but how will it be powered

[@KPeyanski]

That is easy, you have to make a tiny hole on the back of the dummy camera, then to cut one USB cable and to insert in the hole. After that you have to connect the black wire of the USB cable to the GND pin of the ESP32-CAM board and the red wire to the 5V pin. To power up the camera The USB cable can be connected to any USB port or you can use an USB wall charger/adapter. Hope that helps.

[@TheKilerfish]

Hi! Thank you so much for the video!! Do you maybe know if getting the MB (mounting board) version from your link will allow me to flash it without the FTDI converter?

[@KPeyanski]

That is a very good question that I wish I knew, but unfortunately this is not the case :) I Hope that somebody that have such board to share his/her experience.

[@1Poe]

Hi @KPeyanski and @Vixlier : the esp32-cam-MB will allow you to flash the camera module (from HASSIO or from ArduinoIDE), but you need to find a way to short the GPIO0 to GND. the MB is have received from Aliexpress has only a RST switch.the Boot is missing. Because the connection between camera and MB is male-female you don't have easy access to pins. I have used a super small tweezer to short the pins while the boards were connected.Probably you can also do it with a cooper wire placed between pin3&4 on the cam module and then sandwich togeter the boards. (in my case the sample ArduinoIDe code didn't worked, by Kiril's Yaml was working right from begining)

[@CHuKa]

@@1Poecan you do a video on that?

[@DonParlor]

Hello @KPeyanski, you didn't mention the 2.4Ghz antenna. How is the range of the ESP32-Cam board without it?

[@pmdsaude]

Hi, you mentioned that the first time was a bite scary for you, what was your issue? I'm trying to install it as you mention in the video but I have a problem. Every time I try to upload the conf gives me always the same error. "failed to initialize. Try resetting your device or holding the BOOT button while selecting your serial port until it starts preparing the installation" I already try on other PC, other cables, drivers, etc. Do you know what can be the issue? Thanks.

[@pmdsaude]

I found the issue, in my case I have it to use the ground pin the one next to 5v pin. It works 🎉

[@KPeyanski]

Great, I'm happy that it works and thanks that you share what was your issue :)

[@Infantteriejager561]

I have installed and connected it succesfully to the home assistent server. It looks to be online but the camera seems to be inactive. I tried it on two different esp32 cams right now. It doesnt seem like a hardware problem. Found in the Logs the following Error: [E][esp32_camera:099]: Setup Failed: ESP_FAIL. Anyone had the same Problem?

[@clemsmak9680]

If for example I Want to use it like doorbell, I know the service to take a screenshot but don't know where is my screenshot folder and how send it to telegram.

[@KPeyanski]

Hi Clem, you should store the screenshot in /config/www/ folder of your HA. As example /config/www/screenshot.jpg Then you can refer to that image as /local/screenshot.jpg when you are calling the notify telegram service. That is becauseas /config/www/ and /local/ are kind of aliases. Check my Z-Wave Doorbell video where I'm creating very similar HA automation - kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z5_QoHyqjsmXmpI

[@anonymoususer6448]

Maxing-out the ESP32-cam ( #esp32camowned ) For every ESP32CAM have installed, I have added a Dallas temperature sensor and a PIR motion sensior This gives me (almost for free), the temperature in the room where the cam is mounted. The PIR sensor alerts me of any movements. It also sends me a picture using a Telegram Bot. All of this in mainly made possible by the many great Home-assistant integrations PS: as @KPeyanski mentioned in his video. This is not the greatest camera (no night vision, big latency, and getting too hot is watched a lot)... but it is OK for most indoor usage.

[@KPeyanski]

That is a great comment :) I love it 💙 Many thanks for sharing this!

[@razvannicolaedan7023]

hello, when i install in my log sais Error resolving IP address

[@KPeyanski]

seems like you have trouble connecting your wifi

[@razvannicolaedan7023]

@@KPeyanski in the logs it´s sayng WARNING Can't connect to ESPHome API for camimpresora.local: Error resolving IP address: [Errno -5] No address associated with hostname

[@damieke]

@@razvannicolaedan7023 got the same error :( did you manage to fix it?

[@patrickdelvisohopkins]

Hi Kirill, great project! But I've got a questions, is it possible to record the video as well with HA? Or take pictures and store them to see later?Can these Esp32-cams be integrated with MotioneyeOS? Thanks a lot!!

[@patrickdelvisohopkins]

Also, is it possible to use the free pins on the ESP32-CAM for other sensors? For example, attaching a temperature sensor. Thanks again

[@KPeyanski]

yes, you can use the free pins for other sensors

[@KPeyanski]

yes, this can be integrated to Motioneye OS and yes you can store pictures and video using HA services camera.snapshot and camera.record and store the content on the HA server or somewhere else.

[@patrickdelvisohopkins]

@@KPeyanski thanks for your help, you are a legend!

[@jonsproductionstudio]

@@KPeyanski How can you do this? To take pictures or integrat it in Motioneye?

[@edwardlytton1548]

good video, i will implement it as a door camera, and a good idea for a dummy case👍

[@KPeyanski]

Sounds like a plan. Go for it and let us know the results 😉

[@kevinman4141]

Nice! gonna try it asap.

[@KPeyanski]

Hope you enjoy!

[@manfredbogner9799]

very good

[@KPeyanski]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@RushMyEx]

The Cam picture isnt smooth at all. Logs tell It takes pictures exactly each 10 seconds. How to change?

[@KPeyanski]

10 seconds is too long in my opinion, it is maybe around 1 frame per second. Check the example ESP32-CAM footage in the video for reference. Anyways, if you wish you can try to improve the YAML configuration. Just search for the esp32 camera component in the ESPHome site and you will see what are the options and attributes.

[@RushMyEx]

@@KPeyanski Thank you! ur advise worked. The doc states that it work in 0.1 fps when no service calls for stream. Unfortunatly it causes a lil trouble on the HA Lovelace. But works still somehow okayish. A bit slower then the example code but easy to access the Resolution

[@anonymoususer6448]

@@RushMyEx yes, the camera changes framerate when you connect a client (browser) to it. I tested this. If you keep the stream open, in a browser, for several minutes, then the camera sensor overheats and it stops sending video. The rest of the board still continues to work (e.g. the GPIO ports still work). Once the camera has cooled down, the video will work again. I use those cams in combination with ta temperature sensor (Dallas 18b20)and a PIR motion sensor.

[@RushMyEx]

@@anonymoususer6448 thank you! I didn't know it has overheating issues. I already got confronted with frame drops. I was wondering why.

[@CHuKa]

Have you tried esp32 cam2?

[@KPeyanski]

no, is it much better?

[@fabianheine6018]

It costs five US doors???

[@Jcarlier50]

for me it's best to buy a mini camera tuya for 18 euros..

[@Francois_Dupont]

Thank you!!

[@KPeyanski]

You're welcome!

[@blackmetaljacket]

Great, it works :)

[@KPeyanski]

Nice, did you manage to make one?

[@EmilePolka]

this thing is certainly not a 5USD cam board for me, heck the price of that thing doesnt make sense here in my place (12USD per piece) when you can get a v380 ip cam for only

[@KPeyanski]

Where are you from? Australia maybe? is this v380 ip cam going to work with Home Assistant?

[@bruunit9215]

Would probably place it on the Robot Vacuum cleaner just for fun :D #esp32camowned

[@KPeyanski]

Hahah great idea 💡 love it!

[@dablet]

there must be a better solution without lag, even for $10. $5 for lag is really useless for 90% of the applications.

[@KPeyanski]

I don't know maybe there is, but I never heard about such. In the range of $25-30 you can buy an of the shelf camera with RTSP support that will work just fine with HA maybe that will be better for your case.

[@businesstalk]

great instructions! #esp32camowned

[@KPeyanski]

Well done! Congratulations and welcome to the club :) Also, don't forget to check my other DIY smart sensor tutorials

[@ScRaP17]

#esp32camowned 🎉🎉🎉

[@KPeyanski]

Congrats & welcome to the club! How many you plan to make?

[@ScRaP17]

@@KPeyanski I’m just playing around and looking for a nice camera solution for some casual surveillance, as the fps are too low this solution is not working for me, but it was so nice to try how easy is esphome integrations, I found that it is a better option to run the typical esp32cam example, and add it as a picture with the website that generates, but only works in local, it has better fps rate. Most probably I’ll try next with one of these tuya wifi cheap cameras, of course not 5€, but around 40€ I should get what I need! Thank you for your tutorial!so nice!just subscribed!!!

[@gimy9368]

#esp32camowned THX :P

[@KPeyanski]

Great work Gimy, I'm proud of you! Check my other DIY videos as well and enjoy your camera!

[@The_Birdman]

#esp32camowned

[@KPeyanski]

Wow, great job mate. Enjoy!

[@Sphinx3170]

Hello, it is a very good Video, I try and try everything, but why it didn't work by me? I used the Camera with programmerbord and also I try a FTDI Adapter, the Results are the same: Thank you for helping. Thomas Compiling /data/esp32-cam/.pioenvs/esp32-cam/src/esphome/components/api/api_connection.cpp.o xtensa-esp32-elf-g++: fatal error: Killed signal terminated program cc1plus compilation terminated. *** [/data/esp32-cam/.pioenvs/esp32-cam/src/esphome/components/api/api_connection.cpp.o] Error 1 ========================= [FAILED] Took 58.34 seconds =========================

[@suhaybahmed3813]

Same issue