Unifi AI Port- Works great!

S

steve9380

Young grasshopper
Aug 10, 2015
43
5
Just recently purchased the Unifi Ai Port. I have it connected to my Dahua IPC-HFW5231E-Z12. I am getting great results. I have been using my camera zoom set to 90 meters away and the results have been on point.
I have been paying 10.00 to Rekor Systems which I plan on eliminating very soon.
The Unifi Ai Port needs more graphical paperwork in its software which I think would be included in future updates.

What would be great if someone can figure out how to use the Camera and AI Port with OpenALPR Neighborhood software.

Here is a screenshot of what I get displayed with the AI Port.
 

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The Unifi Ai Port will do 3 Dahua IPC-HFW5231E-Z12 or similar cameras. This is worth the price of 199.00. My night pics are not that great due to the distance of my setup.

Question is how to setup the camera so that it can interwork with LPR Neighborhood free software?
Also at this time Unifi Ai does not display , vin, state or Region.
 
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Are you talking about the software a member created here?

If so, that would require the original developer to re-write the code and I doubt he would do that until he switches how he acquires plates. Similar to how people have asked if the code could be rewritten for CodeProject instead of OpenALPR. The developer of this program hasn't touched it in years.

tech101

Thread 'OpenALPR Tool - Save and Query CSV Exports Steps I took To Get Mine Working. ZERO Programming Experience.'

The LPR_Viewer and LPR_Downloader are free Windows programs designed by @Gymratz & @DLONG2 which allow you to automatically collect, store, view and manage plate data from your IP cameras. It does require a $5 a month subscription to the 'Watchman' plan available at OpenALPR.com.

Also there is another function built into the LPR Viewer which can pull Make, Model, Year, VIN of the vehicle which requires another $25 / month subscription details below As of this Writing (10/25/2021).

Please see Original Gymratz Viewer & Download Post Here.

If. Someone is doing Fresh...
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Yes, I have been using the OpenAlpr software for years and I thinks its awesome. Just would like to continue to use it with the AI port current setup. I'm sure Unifi will update their software in future updates.
 
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JUST cancelled Rekor subscription starting 1/2025. The Unifi AI Port is worth the 200. if you can get your hands on one.
 
Does not work with HFW5241E-Z12E though nor HDW5842T-ZE-S2. loading circles for both. @EMPIRETECANDY, I updated to the latest firmware on the HFW5241E-Z12E and still nothing. Any ideas?

Camera was on V2.840.15OG00A.0.R, Build Date: 2022-01-10, and did not work, issue persists on V2.840.15OG00D.0.R, Build Date: 2022-08-18
 
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I just adopted a Dahua camera in Protect, wondering if it will have the same AI features for LPR as UniFi AI Port. All I see from the G4 doorbell are the categories of person, package, ring, and animal.

Guessing that these AI features for LPR are found only in the additional UniFi hardware.
 
How do you access the AI port and configure it? I refuse to use their shitty controller software again.
 
I agree the AI Port is great with an ONVIF camera... during the day. It is phenomenally accurate and super usable.

I have one paired with my Axis Q1656-DLE as well as an AI Pro in the same location. During the day it does better LPR than the Axis License Plate Verifier running on the Axis Camera. It's on par with their Native AI Pro - no discernible difference for me - I have the Axis pointed North and the AI Pro pointed South mounted on a mailbox.

The usability is of course through the roof compared to the Axis (with Axis License Plate Verifier), even when I had it connected to PlateVerifier/ParkPow which cleaned up a lot of the Axis misses and made it usable. Footage/event review in the Axis UI just stinks compared to the Protect experience.

At night though in Protect, currently everything shuts down 100% - both Unifi cameras and ONVIF with the AI Port. The problem is LPR in Protect is currently predicated on Vehicle Detection. As you know for a properly tuned Axis nighttime camera the whole scene is black - at night long with faint headlights and a plate. In Protect it never sees this as a vehicle, so no LPR ever occurs, sadly. I have NEVER HAD A SINGLE night LPR read in Protect - I've tried external illuminators (super high powered), stuck on IR cut filters, and blinded the cameras to visible light. Not a single LPR read in all of my attempts.

For now I keep Axis License Plate Verifier running for night LPR recording (plate# photo date/time only really incase I need to go find footage) but never looks at it until an event needs review. I use Protect for daily event review/scanning (so much nicer and intuitive to use).

I am very hopeful that Unifi will soon get Nighttime LPR dialed and am giving them feedback to this goal. They will kill this whole market with their usability when they make that happen.

I'll also buy their forthcoming AI LPR camera (an AI Pro camera tuned for night according to the specs and marketing) as soon as I can to see if that is the ticket. Someone is going to figure out that night LPR is rather simply a large sensor, a large aperture, min shutter and gain and win the market IMO. This is not rocket science.
 
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DLONG2 said:
I just adopted a Dahua camera in Protect, wondering if it will have the same AI features for LPR as UniFi AI Port. All I see from the G4 doorbell are the categories of person, package, ring, and animal.

Guessing that these AI features for LPR are found only in the additional UniFi hardware.
Click to expand...
ONVIF cameras have the same AI features for LPR when paired with the Unifi AI Port. My AI Port/Axis Q1656-DLE combo is indiscernible from an AI Pro in Unifi Protect - same features across the board.
 
steve9380 said:
The Unifi Ai Port will do 3 Dahua IPC-HFW5231E-Z12 or similar cameras. This is worth the price of 199.00.
Click to expand...
Not currently - that AI Port can only pair with one camera right now. There are reports that it will pair with 3 4K cameras in a future firmware upgrade, which will be a killer feature, but for now it is only one camera per AI Port
 
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Can the AI Port allow for the license plate and date/time data be exported somehow, as in an HTML listing or a download of some kind? Or do the plates only appear superimposed on the images?
 
DLONG2 said:
Can the AI Port allow for the license plate and date/time data be exported somehow, as in an HTML listing or a download of some kind? Or do the plates only appear superimposed on the images?
Click to expand...
Not a function of the AI Port - this would be a function of Protect. Unfortunately it's not there out of the box yet - you'd need to script against the API or use the HTML source of the displayed web page. It would be nice to have though.
 
Duh987 said:
Does not work with HFW5241E-Z12E though nor HDW5842T-ZE-S2. loading circles for both. @EMPIRETECANDY, I updated to the latest firmware on the HFW5241E-Z12E and still nothing. Any ideas?

Camera was on V2.840.15OG00A.0.R, Build Date: 2022-01-10, and did not work, issue persists on V2.840.15OG00D.0.R, Build Date: 2022-08-18
Click to expand...
For the last few weeks i have been trying to get the HFW5241E-Z12E working with AI port and have had same results as others. This morning i changed firmware to no Smart IR V2.840.0000000.26.R, Build Date: 2023-12-21 and then upgraded the bin file. After linking the AI port it has been successfully connected for a few hours now, streaming properly on dashboard page, loading smoothly when viewing events and reading license plates very nicely.
 
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I have the AI Port as well; however my LPR is on a different VLAN, how were you able to correct this?
 
I acquired the AI Port today, and when I pair with the Z12, there is no LPR option in AI, just animal, person and vehicle. How do I get the LPR OCR to become an available option? The camera is acquired okay within Protect, and I get motion alerts and vehicle alerts, but no LPR option.
 
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DLONG2 said:
I acquired the AI Port today, and when I pair with the Z12, there is no LPR option in AI, just animal, person and vehicle. How do I get the LPR OCR to become an available option? The camera is acquired okay within Protect, and I get motion alerts and vehicle alerts, but no LPR option.
Click to expand...
Try unpairing it and re-pairing it again; also make sure AI Port is up to date
 
Arjun said:
Try unpairing it and re-pairing it again; also make sure AI Port is up to date
Click to expand...
Thanks. I had to log in with the admin pass in order to enable that LPR option.
 
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