Anyone used a Valcom SIP Door Intercom

[Ritmo2k]

I am about to order a Valcom VIP-172L http://www.valcom.com/techsupport/ip_solutions/ip_intercomdoorphones.htm as an IP based door intercom, then add a bullet camera with a single port encoder such as an https://www.supercircuits.com/Security-Cameras/Bullet-Security-Cameras/PC337HR.

Anyone done something similar, or from a usability point of view see anything I could do better? From an old thread http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=5712.0 (just getting around to doing this now) I suspect this should be fine.

Intercom is ~450.00 so I think its the cheapest solution to accomplish a "SIP" video intercom setup.

Thanks!

[golgoj4]

The doorphone looks like a solid choice, but the camera: is it analog? how would you connect it to linuxMCE?

Ive been trying to cobble together solid information on how entire doorbell / doorphone system works and with tschak's help, i have
 this http://wiki.linuxmce.org/index.php/Doorbell so far. Hopefully it will help you getting it setup and you can let us know of any quirks.

[Ritmo2k]

Hey,
I forgot to mention I was going to use a single port video encoder to emulate an IP Camera. I would avoid this but they just don't make a tiny ip bullet camera which I need.

I'll help keep that link updated once my stuff arrives and I get it setup!

[nite_man]

Intercom is ~450.00 so I think its the cheapest solution to accomplish a "SIP" video intercom setup.

I don't think so. Analog intercom - about $40-$50, Sipura SPA-2002 - about $70-$80, IP camera - about $100-$150. Total - ~ $250-$300

[Ritmo2k]

SPA is a steaming pile of sh!t, although you are right having used high end gateways at our company voip setup, I am snobbish when it comes to that low end hardware; its just full of issues from echo to reliability. In reality it would probably work as an intercom just fine, but I cant bring myself to work with that stuff.

Also, I need 100% reliability where as cheap hardware like that tends to need to be vulcan nerve pinched from time to time. Not good enough...

My dilemma with the camera is it all has to fit into a dual gang box provisioned already, so I need a bullet camera 1/2"->3/4" OD max to shove into the intercom. No ip camera is that small.

[trentend]

I bought one of these IP Kamera Kits some time ago, for this purpose.  I intend to use the microphone socket of the camera, and combine it with a PoE injector/adaptor (I bought a job lot of netgear ones years ago for indecently little money which are ideal for individual usage not needring a PoE stwich where only 100mbs are required) to run remotely without a power source.  Then using an ordinary push to make switch or switches connecte to my available KNX inputs.  I have two cat6 cables and a knx bus cable wired to my fronty door, so there's no reason I couldn't do this and even potentially add a knx keypad or other device.

Was going to go with the home-made, cobbled together approach that is not well supported by LinuxMCE. It struck me as more fun, and no real reason it couldn't be resilient and robust. Still, not supported well in LinuxMCE - particularly that camera which doesn't work with LinuxMCE (but can be configured using windows and then used to display pictures in any browser - which is how I envisaged using it).

This comes in at a total of under £100 UKP excluding housing.  Another motivation.

[Ritmo2k]

That is neat, so how did you plan to send audio back to emulate a full intercom?

Is that something done easily with the KNX stuff? Being in Canada, Ive never really looked at KNX...

[trentend]

That is neat, so how did you plan to send audio back to emulate a full intercom?

Is that something done easily with the KNX stuff? Being in Canada, Ive never really looked at KNX...

Ignore the KNX stuff, it's a red herring.

I figured to need 2 cat6 cables.  1 for the PoE supply to the camera, which returns video (and I assume audio from the camera board, although I've not tested this) as a video stream to browser (over the built in webserver). Then using the other cat6 (or cat5 should work) use two pairs for two push to make switches and the other two pairs as a return speaker cable to the door intercom. I've tested this and it works okay.  At the return end (in my electrical cabinet in my case) I'd need two inputs to sense the push to make (this is where I would use some spare KNX inputs I have) and an amplified audio source for the door intercom speaker (I've yet to source a small suitable speaker).

I haven't finalised how to tie it all together at the software end, but the hardware is relatively simple.

[Ritmo2k]

Hah, you inspired me to look at new stuff and there is a new camera from axis!
http://www.axis.com/products/cam_m1031w/index.htm

This rocks, I'm dumping all the old stuff. The home has a pretty ornamental doorbell, so using this camera, i can hear and talk to the person if I so desire. Cheap too..

I'll start a new thread about integrating this.

[trentend]

The big problem for me might be how to get power to this. The fact that the aviosys works with a PoE injector is a big factor.  Perhaps this does too? If not you'll need a local power supply - which can be problematic outside.

Also you need to think about weatherproofing.

[Ritmo2k]

Yea its POE equipped, the location is shielded from direct weather, but temp is an issue. I am looking into this now, I can heat the enclosure if I have to. I'll get back to the thread once I have this worked out.