RL500 manual or list of commands?

Would anyone be able to link to a manual to the common PTZ camera "cleartouch RL500"? I'm trying to figure out the factory reset commands from the remote, and FM didn't leave a manual, as far as I can tell, nor can I find one online. Does anyone have a list of common commands like factory reset or anything else on the RL500 (or similar RL400?). My googling skills just can't turn up anything useful at all.

Thanks!

twrhodes wrote: Sat Jan 21, 2023 4:15 pm Would anyone be able to link to a manual to the common PTZ camera "cleartouch RL500"? I'm trying to figure out the factory reset commands from the remote, and FM didn't leave a manual, as far as I can tell, nor can I find one online. Does anyone have a list of common commands like factory reset or anything else on the RL500 (or similar RL400?). My googling skills just can't turn up anything useful at all.

Thanks!

These links might help:

https://www.getcleartouch.com/download/ ... pec-sheet/

https://ptzoptics.com/product-documentation/

https://ptzoptics.com/wp-content/upload ... 4-8-20.pdf

twrhodes wrote: Sat Jan 21, 2023 4:15 pm Would anyone be able to link to a manual to the common PTZ camera "cleartouch RL500"? I'm trying to figure out the factory reset commands from the remote, and FM didn't leave a manual, as far as I can tell, nor can I find one online. Does anyone have a list of common commands like factory reset or anything else on the RL500 (or similar RL400?). My googling skills just can't turn up anything useful at all.

Thanks!

I'm only adding that you're not alone. We got a ClearTouch RL-400. I can't find any documentation anywhere, and when I asked for support, the installers simply pointed me back to these tech forums which had no information.

From what I've gathered so far:

• The church prefers everyone use the remote control, and will install a remote control receiver extender to the rack as well.
• The church is moving away from using the RS232 serial -> USB connection. Ours accidentally came with it installed to the rack (long story...). Thank goodness because it works just fine with VISCA, and we love it.
• I've been told it has IP support. But the IP address is hard to find, changes due to DHCP, and won't work if you have the RS 232 serial connection installed. The IP camera is still on my TODO list.

I'm hoping I can find a way to IP control this thing, it would save me a cable. I also need to get in and adjust the brightness and color, right now the top of many heads aare angelic pure white... It's on my TODO list, and so I figure something out, I'll definitely update here.

brad_p wrote: Sun Jan 22, 2023 10:50 am I've been told it has IP support. But the IP address is hard to find, changes due to DHCP

Have it assigned a static IP by the network. It can be done in the Church Network Manager.

twrhodes wrote: Sat Jan 21, 2023 4:15 pm Would anyone be able to link to a manual to the common PTZ camera "cleartouch RL500"?

I spent some time tonight on this issue because I'd love to figure it out on my end. I have some info. The camera appears to be a Chinese knockoff from a company called ValueHD. Sure enough, this camera appears to be the exact same as the one in my stake center, with the exception of the logo on the front: https://www.valuehd.com.cn/hd-camera-us ... tings.html. The way I figured this out is I did a full port scan of my stake center's network. One device gave an ARP reply, and the first half of that device's MAC address is D4E08E, which is the ValueHD Corporation: https://www.adminsub.net/mac-address-finder/d4e08e

Poking around that website, it appears they support VISCA over IP. The trouble is that I can't find any further documentation related to it. But at least it appears to be VISCA. I tried a full 1-65535 port scan on it, got nothing back. I also tried sending it UDP Visca commands over the typical port 52381, got no response. I tried connecting to it via TCP over the typical port 5678, got no response.

russellhltn wrote: Sun Jan 22, 2023 11:49 am Have it assigned a static IP by the network. It can be done in the Church Network Manager.

Can't. This camera is within an IP range which the Stake Technology Specialist can't manage. Specifically, my camera is at 192.168.100.88. The CNM zones are lot: 192.168.14.1 - 192.168.14.254, Facility at 10.134.104.98 - 10.134.104.110, and Public at 192.168.108.2 - 192.168.111.254. The camera IP is out of that range.

It seems I've hit a dead end. I know the camera is there, I just can't do anything with it via IP. Fortunately we got the USB camera control installed (in our case Keyspan USB Serial Adapter), and once I installed the driver, it works great. But I hear the USB isn't going to be installed any further, so if anyone else finds a way to get their ClearTouch camera working via IP, I'm very curious.

I've figured out more. Turns out the RL400 camera is shipped with the factory IP address 192.168.100.88. This isn't assigned via DHCP as our prior stake center upgrade engineer stated. https://support.getcleartouch.com/porta ... -the-rl400. That helps explain some things. The reason that I can't see any packet replies is that none of the building's subnets connect to that IP address. Any TCP or UDP packet I send to that port can't get routed.

Looks like the answer is any of these three. 1) Get my computer somehow onto that 192.168.100.X subnet and hook the camera up to that same subnet (I located the camera's ethernet cord on the rack). 2) Ask the church to change/create a subnet range that includes 192.168.100.88 3) See if there is a way to change the camera's IP address, the documentation refers to it as "default", but I don't know if it's changeable.

#1 is a mess, it would require two ethernet adapters on the laptop (one for broadcast streaming, another for camera connection). It would also require adding cords, and a big point of IP connectivity is to reduce cords.

#2 is an option?

#3 seems like the best first approach.

I also found the manual for the original Chinese version of the camera, and it also has a 192.168.100.88 default address. Looks like this manual is the way to go: https://www.manualslib.com/manual/15995 ... =14#manual. Looks like if I can get on that subnet, I'm able to change the camera's IP address, the camera appears to have a web interface. Looks like I've got a plan to try for next Sunday.

I don't know about the RL500 camera. I assume there are similarities here? But I can't find the RL500 on the valuehd website. twrhodes, I think your next step is to log into the CNM, pull up the all the devices listed in your Public zone, then hopefully you will see a row like: UHDCamera 192.168.100.88 d4:e0:8e:8a:f9:fa ValueHD. That last one gives you the true manufacturer's name, and from there we can hunt down a manual.

brad_p wrote: Sun Jan 22, 2023 11:21 pm I've figured out more. Turns out the RL400 camera is shipped with the factory IP address 192.168.100.88. This isn't assigned via DHCP as our prior stake center upgrade engineer stated.

That's a problem. The first step is to change the camera to DHCP. Once it contacts the DHCP server, then it will appear in CNM and can have a static IP assigned.

brad_p wrote: Sun Jan 22, 2023 11:21 pm 2) Ask the church to change/create a subnet range that includes 192.168.100.88

Not going to happen.

Your best bet is to configure your computer to the same subnet as the camera, and the using that connection reconfigure it.

russellhltn wrote: Sun Jan 22, 2023 11:56 pm Your best bet is to configure your computer to the same subnet as the camera, and the using that connection reconfigure it.

I've been reading along and I agree with russellhltn. Since you said you can isolate the specific LAN cable going to the camera, take it off the switch and plug it into a notebook PC that's been configured with an IP address in the 192.168.100.x range.

Once connected, type 192.168.100.88 into your browser and I'll bet the camera's configuration menu will popup. If it doesn't, try 192.168.100.88:8080 or 192.168.100.88:443. One of those should get you in. You MAY run into an access password, then you'll have to Google that and find out what the default PW is.

I suggest setting the camera to DHCP, connect it back to the switch, and use CNM to assign it a fixed IP address. THEN, make sure you can access it using the new IP address and change the password to keep others on the public LAN from accessing it. Finally, check if the firmware is up to date. That might prove difficult with an off-brand camera, but it's worth a shot.

Good news and bad news.

Good news is that by setting my laptop to static a 192.168.100.X IP address and 255.255.255.0 subnet mask, and directly plugging my laptop's network into the camera data jack on the rack, I got in. Just went into a browser, typed in 192.168.100.88, and put in admin/admin for the username/password. I got camera info, picture adjustment info, PTZ controls, and network updates.

Bad news is that once I set the camera to dynamic IP, the camera won't show up on the network anywhere. I first set CNM to statically assign its MAC to an IP address in the Facility zone (seemed appropriate as the camera isn't a Public thing). Once that was saved, and then when I saved the camera's dynamic IP address setting, the camera rebooted, and it's gone on the network. No link light or anything. I tried a few approaches, used the remote control to shut off and restart the camera, nothing.

I've got a few ideas left, but none feel ideal. 1) Maybe there is a factory reset hole/button on the camera and I just need to get my ladder to the chapel to find it, then from there I'll just statically assign it a facility IP address as a start. 2) Maybe the church's DHCP is wonky, and if I try my own router it will work. 3) Maybe if I use a packet sniffer I'll see the camera is trying DHCP requests and just not getting a good response back. 4) Maybe the camera data jack on the switch isn't meant for the facility zone but for the public zone instead? I know one jack is definitely a facility zone jack, so I'll try that...

Overall, I'm so close, but got so much work left.

brad_p wrote: Sat Jan 28, 2023 11:53 pm I first set CNM to statically assign its MAC to an IP address in the Facility zone (seemed appropriate as the camera isn't a Public thing).

Unless you put your laptop on the Facility zone, I doubt if you can talk to it. And if you do, I don't know as you'd have the bandwidth to stream. The Facility zone is intended for things like A/C controls, door locks, etc. Not for high bandwidth applications.

You can't talk to anything in the Facility zone from the Public zone without a VPN. And that's not going to happen.

I do wonder how you assigned the MAC. Last I knew, that couldn't be keyed in, it had to be selected from a drop down list and that only happens once it's on dynamic.

brad_p wrote: Sat Jan 28, 2023 11:53 pmMaybe the camera data jack on the switch isn't meant for the facility zone but for the public zone instead? I know one jack is definitely a facility zone jack, so I'll try that...

Bingo.

russellhltn wrote: Sun Jan 29, 2023 12:16 am You can't talk to anything in the Facility zone from the Public zone without a VPN. And that's not going to happen.

Good to know facility doesn't talk to public. I just saw a device in public zone route to all IP addresses in the facility zone, so I figured it could do the reverse. Another reason why I chose facility is I have two ethernet jacks on my rack for broadcasting (why they gave me two, I don't know). One gives a public zone IP, the second gives a facility zone IP. So I just kind of figured I'm good to use either one and can route to either one.

I do wonder how you assigned the MAC. Last I knew, that couldn't be keyed in, it had to be selected from a drop down list and that only happens once it's on dynamic.

You can hand type in a MAC address. I triple checked I typed it in right.

brad_p wrote: Sat Jan 28, 2023 11:53 pmMaybe the camera data jack on the switch isn't meant for the facility zone but for the public zone instead? I know one jack is definitely a facility zone jack, so I'll try that...

Bingo.

Thanks for the feedback. I've removed static assignment via CNM, I'll reboot the camera, and hope it pops up in the public zone.

brad_p wrote: Sun Jan 29, 2023 9:20 am I just saw a device in public zone route to all IP addresses in the facility zone, so I figured it could do the reverse.

It might try, but I wouldn't expect that to be successful. I'd expect the router to keep things separate.

brad_p wrote: Sun Jan 29, 2023 9:20 am I have two ethernet jacks on my rack for broadcasting (why they gave me two, I don't know).

It comes in handy if you are running stake conference through an encoder and you also need another port for your laptop to control Wi-Fi and any other networked things at the same time. I run a separate wire from the internal switch to the front so that I can have access to two Ethernet ports at the same time.

russellhltn wrote: Sun Jan 29, 2023 12:16 am I do wonder how you assigned the MAC. Last I knew, that couldn't be keyed in, it had to be selected from a drop down list and that only happens once it's on dynamic.

This changed a while back. It now lets you type in a MAC address (which was a welcome change).

Again, russellhltn is correct. Put it in the Public zone, and when you get it configured, remember to change the camera's password from the default.

Mikerowaved wrote: Mon Jan 30, 2023 2:00 pm This changed a while back. It now lets you type in a MAC address (which was a welcome change).

Maybe when it when from TM to CNM.

I figured out what was causing many of my problems. The ethernet connection to the camera was flaky. After a few hours of ruling things out, I got a ladder, unhooked the camera, plugged my laptop directly into the camera, and got a connection. From there, I hooked up an ethernet pin checker, and pin 1 didn't work.... The extra difficulty was that the installers also broke the IR receiver on the rack, and so I found myself running from the media rack to the camera several times to reboot the camera to test. A couple of FIR requests later, and it's fixed. As the RL 400 is different from the RL500, I've started a different topic here: viewtopic.php?t=41802

Just came across this thread today. We've had the RL400 since spring of last year. We have them installed in all three of our buildings. I have it setup to be completely IP/Ethernet controlled. The wards that are broadcasting zoom are controlling it via mobile device once the host computer is up and running. We use OBS to grab the IP video feed. For stake conference, we use the web interface to control each camera (we use 2), and wardtools.org for lower thirds... all this runs through OBS to Zoom. I recently moved to a new stake and am hoping to get things setup similarly here.

awchan13 wrote: Sun Apr 09, 2023 8:27 pm Just came across this thread today. We've had the RL400 since spring of last year. We have them installed in all three of our buildings. I have it setup to be completely IP/Ethernet controlled. The wards that are broadcasting zoom are controlling it via mobile device once the host computer is up and running. We use OBS to grab the IP video feed. For stake conference, we use the web interface to control each camera (we use 2), and wardtools.org for lower thirds... all this runs through OBS to Zoom. I recently moved to a new stake and am hoping to get things setup similarly here.

The web interface is a poor interface compared to the IP interface. It has a standard VISCA port and control process.

With the OBS-PTZ plugin, you can control the camera via OBS. In our case, we start with a laptop with OBS that does the streaming and camera movement. We then use a remote desktop tool (in our case, AnyDesk). Then we get a large cheap tablet (Amazon fire) with AnyDesk, and log into the laptop. Then the person with the tablet can sit down with his or her family, and control everything about the broadcast, including camera PTZ control, from the tablet.

I received this link for the RL500 User Manual from tech support at ClearTouch:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AYwmda ... OdX3x/view

This is the manual that comes with the camera.

steve

shadfiel wrote: Thu Jul 13, 2023 9:13 am I received this link for the RL500 User Manual from tech support at ClearTouch:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AYwmda ... OdX3x/view

Awesome, thanks!!

We are just getting this camera in our stake. A little concerning seeing the comments about it. Have the issues been resolved? Using IR has not been a great solution for us.

Would like feedback before I reach out to VHD and Cleartouch. I have contacts at both, so want to see what has been figured out.

bradehlert wrote: Sun Apr 14, 2024 11:27 am We are just getting this camera in our stake. A little concerning seeing the comments about it. Have the issues been resolved? Using IR has not been a great solution for us.

It would help if you could let us know how it will be connected. Ethernet with or without PoE? HDMI extender? SDI? Has your audio/video system been upgraded recently? About how long ago?

IR is OK, but only if you use an IR extender. We have one in our A/V equipment rack that makes IR simple to use when pointed at the sensor in the rack. Trying to use it directly on the camera is not recommended as the range is pretty short, which is the case on many such cameras.

What other concerns do you have?