Panasonic BL-C111A User Manual

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Choosing a Location to Mount the Camera
Notes About the Camera’s Built-in Sensor
Please read the following information about the camera’s built-in 
pyroelectric infrared sensor before deciding where to mount the camera.
Refer to the Panasonic Network Camera website at
http://panasonic.co.jp/pcc/products/en/netwkcam/ for further 
information about the built-in sensor.
The camera’s built-in sensor is a pyroelectric infrared sensor, which means 
it uses infrared rays to detect temperature differences within its range that 
are emitted naturally by people, animals, etc. The sensor can be used to 
trigger the camera to buffer (i.e., temporarily store) camera images in its 
memory. You can view these images later as desired. The sensor can also 
be used to trigger the camera to transfer images to someone or 
somewhere, by FTP, E-mail, or HTTP.
Because the detection range is easily affected by the temperature of the 
surrounding environment or how fast the objects in front of the camera are 
moving, you should take the following into consideration when deciding 
where to mount the camera.
1.
The sensor’s active detection range is about 5 m (16 feet 5 inches) in 
front of the camera, about 30° horizontally, and about 85° vertically, 
when the camera is in a 20 °C (68 °F) environment.
2.
If an object is within about 1 m (3 feet 3 inches) of the camera, the 
sensor may detect the object even if it is outside of the sensor’s range.
3.
If there is no temperature difference between objects in range of the 
camera’s sensor and the surrounding environment, such as on a hot 
summer day, the sensor may not be able to detect properly.
4.
If the sensor is obstructed, the sensor is not able to make detections. 
Remove any obstacles in front of the sensor.
5.
As shown in the illustration below, the sensor can easily detect 
temperature differences of objects moving sideways within the 
detection range, but cannot easily detect objects moving slowly 
towards the sensor. Mount the camera where objects often pass the 
camera from the sides.
6.
If the lens is aimed at an area outside of the sensor’s active detection 
range, the objects that trigger the sensor may not be visible, and 
therefore buffered or transferred images may not show the object that 
triggered the sensor.
In the example below, the person has triggered the sensor, but the 
person is not in the visible range of the camera.
We recommend that you limit the pan and tilt range of the camera to 
the active detection range of the sensor, or that you limit other user’s 
access to the pan and tilt features.
7.
The sensor may not perform properly in the following areas. Avoid 
these kinds of locations when mounting the camera.
8.
When deciding where to mount the camera, you can verify the 
sensor’s ability to make detections that satisfy your needs by referring 
to the camera’s indicator. See 7.4 Changing the Indicator Display in 
the Operating Instructions on the CD-ROM, and configure the camera 
to light the indicator in orange when the sensor makes a detection. 
You can then adjust the sensitivity of the sensor (see 2.8 Adjusting 
Sensor Sensitivity in the Operating Instructions on the CD-ROM) or 
change the camera’s location if necessary. Note that if you increase 
the sensitivity of the sensor, the sensor may make inaccurate 
detections.
Note
• If you are not satisfied with the sensor’s ability to make detections, 
we recommend using the camera’s motion detection feature. This 
feature detects motion by detecting changes in the camera image. 
For more information, see Section 2 Using Triggers to Buffer and 
Transfer Images in the Operating Instructions on the CD-ROM.
• The built-in sensor and the motion detection feature are not 
designed to be used for security or surveillance. No responsibility 
will be taken by our company with respect to consequences 
resulting from the use of these features.
About 5 m
(16 feet 5 inches)
Top View
Side View
About 30°
About 5 m
(16 feet 5 inches)
About 85°
Difficult to detect
(The detection range
may be reduced)
Easy to detect
Easy to detect
30°
49°
Where the camera or the object is 
exposed to direct sunlight
In a greasy or humid place such as 
a kitchen
Where there are sharp temperature 
changes such as near an air 
conditioner
Where there is an obstacle such as 
glass in front of the camera
Where the camera or the object is 
exposed to bright light
Near devices that emit radio waves, 
such as mobile phones
Read the following information after setting up the camera according to the procedure described in the Setup Guide.
BL-C111A_BL-C131A_IG.fm  Page 3  Tuesday, November 7, 2006  3:07 PM