PTZ cameras
Sony PTZ camera automation for radio studios
VRA automates Sony PTZ cameras in a radio studio. When a presenter starts talking it recalls their angle over VISCA over IP, and the camera is framed while it is still off air, so a small team gets a camera show without a camera operator.
What VRA does with Sony.
VISCA over IP, set for you
Pick any Sony model and VRA sets VISCA over IP on port 52381. Add the camera's address, then build angles from its preset slots or from positions you capture.
Waits until the head stops
Some cameras confirm a VISCA command the moment they accept it, before the move has finished. Switch on Completion on acceptance for such a camera and Camera Assist keeps polling during a preset recall until the camera stops moving.
The same angle from a mic or a button
An angle stores a camera position and the command that takes it to air. An Audio Manager trigger, a macro or a dashboard button all run the same angle.
The next shot is framed off air
After calibration, Camera Assist frames a camera that is not on air to the shot size and face count you set per angle, from close up to wide. When the switcher takes it, the picture is already right.
Preview needs NDI or a stream
VRA has no native MJPEG preview for Sony. Use the NDI|HX output on models that have one, like the BRC-X400 or SRG-X400, or give the camera a stream URL.
How to set it up.
Requirements
- Camera Assist running on the same network as the camera.
- The camera's IP address, plus its username and password if it uses them.
- A preview source if you want pictures in VRA Cloud.
- A video switcher connected to VRA. Camera Assist moves and frames the camera; the switcher makes the cut.
Install Camera Assist on a machine in the studio network.
On the Cameras page, choose Add new camera, then PTZ camera, and pick your Sony model from the list. The model fills in the protocol, the port and the lens data.
Enter the camera's host and, if it asks for them, a username and password. Add a preview: an NDI source, a stream URL or, where the model has one, the camera's own stream.
Set the PGM trigger, the switcher command that takes this camera to air. Save, and check that Camera Assist reports the camera as connected.
Build angles from preset slots or captured positions. Run calibration before you switch on AI framing.
Sony questions
Can VRA use the auto framing in a Sony SRG-A40? +
No. Handing framing to the camera's own tracking is a Canon-only option in VRA. On a Sony, Camera Assist's AI framing does the work after calibration, and it holds the shot size you set per angle instead of following one person around.
Does VRA work with the Sony FR7? +
The FR7 is not in the model list. Add it through the Sony FR Series entry, which runs on VISCA over IP, and test movement before you build angles.
Is my Sony model supported? +
Look for it in the model list when you add a camera. The entry sets the protocol and lens data, and badges show which models have PTZ and NDI. If yours is missing, send us the model and firmware before you fall back on a generic profile.
Does VRA replace my video switcher? +
No. Camera Assist moves and frames the camera. The angle's PGM trigger tells your switcher to take it to air, so the switcher still makes the cut.
Can I mix in a fixed camera? +
Yes. A fixed camera gets a preview and a PGM trigger, so it can go on air like the others. It has no movement and no AI framing.
Sony
About Sony.
Sony's BRC and SRG remote cameras range from compact conference heads to 4K studio models. VRA's model list covers both ranges, including NDI|HX models like the SRG-X120 and Sony's own auto-framing cameras such as the SRG-A40 and BRC-AM7.
The FR7 cinema-line camera is not in the list. It has its own Sony FR Series entry in the manual camera list instead, also on VISCA over IP.
What you can do with this connection
Automated camera switching for radio
Switch cameras from microphone activity and prepare PTZ shots off air.
More infoThe products behind it.
More integrations.
Panasonic
Panasonic AW PTZ cameras carry their own HTTP control and a built-in video stream. VRA automates them over that control and previews from the camera.
Canon
Canon CR-N and CR-X PTZ cameras can run Canon's own auto tracking. VRA automates them over Canon's XC protocol, and each angle uses that or VRA's framing.
PTZOptics
PTZOptics Move, Studio and NDI cameras speak VISCA over IP or NDI, by model. VRA automates each one over its own protocol and frames the next shot off air.
Check your studio setup with us.
Tell us your camera models, video switcher and radio automation. We will check the connections and show you the workflow that fits your station.