PTZ Camera Configuration & Use

PTZ Configuration in Nx Witness VMS

Nx Witness supports two different modes for PTZ cameras:

• Standard (ONVIF) PTZ - for PTZ cameras which are auto discovered via ONVIF (majority of PTZ cameras). Allows operators to control PTZ using a digital joystick overlaid on the live camera view.
• Advanced PTZ - enables rapid, fluid control of PTZ cameras no matter how much delay there is in the video stream. Only supported on some devices (see below). Advanced PTZ features include:
  • Box Targeting - users can draw a box around a target area or object and camera will move accordingly.
  • Single Mouse Click Pan and Tilt - users can click once and PTZ will change center focus to that point
  • Double Click to Zoom Out - Double click to reset zoom to default.

How to enable Standard (ONVIF) PTZ?

Standard PTZ is a built-in function in Nx Witness and will PTZ controls will automatically be applied to cameras with PTZ function detected via the ONVIF API. In some cases (e.g. Zoom lenses) PTZ may be incorrectly identified. If you find a camera that is displaying the PTZ control icon, but does not support PTZ please let our support team know!

How to enable Advanced PTZ?

Advanced PTZ is a built-in function in Nx Witness and does not require a license or manual configuration. Once a PTZ camera has been calibrated for Advanced PTZ support the standard PTZ icon on a camera will be used to activate and utilize the Advanced PTZ feature.

Models that support Advance PTZ can be found using the Nx Witness Supported Devices List. 

How to request Advanced PTZ for a new model?

Advanced PTZ is an on-demand feature and has to be implemented individually for new camera models. Read the following support article to learn more: How to prepare PTZ cameras for Advanced PTZ calibration?

Questions

If you have any questions related to this topic or you want to share your experience with other community members or our team, please visit and engage in our support community or reach out to your local reseller.