This guide is for a visible camera on a site you operate, aimed at an aisle, a dock, or a yard, with signs and power you control. It is not a guide to conceal a camera, to record people without authority, or to defeat a network. Specify coverage, light, retention, and the switch.
Coverage and light
Write the distance and the width the camera must cover, and what must be recognizable. A dock overview and a barcode on a pallet are different lenses. State the minimum light. If the aisle is dark when the lights drop, say whether you need infrared illuminators and how far they must reach. A camera rated for daylight will not meet a night aisle because the resolution number is large.
Resolution and frame rate set the bitrate. Storage is that bitrate, times cameras, times hours, plus the recorder’s own limit. Ask the maker for the bitrate at your settings rather than a marketing day-count. Outdoor housings need an IP rating and a temperature range. A warehouse door is not indoors.
- Overt mounting position, distance, and the detail you must see.
- Minimum light and whether infrared is required, with range.
- Resolution, frames per second, and the bitrate used for disk sizing.
- Retention in days and the number of cameras on that recorder.
- PoE class, switch budget, and who configures the network you own.
| Choice | Write this | Leave this out |
|---|---|---|
| Lens | Aisle width and distance | A hidden location |
| Night | Lux and IR distance | A promise from resolution alone |
| Disk | Bitrate, cameras, days | A day-count with no settings |
| Power | PoE class and switch budget | An unmeasured injector |
Incoming check
Confirm the model is the overt dome or bullet you ordered, with the lens range on the label. Confirm PoE class against the switch. Record a sample at the frame rate you will keep and read the bitrate the recorder actually stores. Point it at the aisle you specified, in the light you specified. Do not add a second hidden sensor. If the site needs a sign or a policy, that is the operator’s job, not a feature of the camera.
What to lock on the order
Describe the camera location as a visible position: the aisle, the dock, or the yard, at a height a technician can service. State what detail must be recognizable and at what distance, in the light you actually have at night as well as in the day. Ask for bitrate at the resolution and frame rate you will store, then multiply by cameras and by retention. That product is the disk order. PoE class and the switch budget are the power order. Keep those three orders consistent. This purchase is for an overt system on a network you control. Do not add a concealed view, a disguised housing, or a second microphone the drawing does not show. At the sample, record the real scene, read the bitrate off the recorder, and confirm the class against the switch port. File the layout that shows each camera as a visible device.
Questions buyers actually ask
What decides the lens?
The width of the aisle and the distance to the face or the pallet label you need to see. A varifocal range belongs on the RFQ.
How many days of recording?
Days times bitrate times cameras is the disk. Ask for the bitrate at the resolution and frame rate you set, then size the recorder.
Does PoE class matter?
Yes. A camera with a heater or an illuminator can need a higher class than the switch port. Write the class.