ATSCADA iStreamCameraTools: Integrating Industrial Cameras With SCADA
Industrial monitoring often requires more than process data alone. Engineers may also need live video to verify equipment conditions, observe production areas, or investigate abnormal events.
ATSCADA iStreamCameraTools provides a way to connect ONVIF-compatible cameras and display their video streams directly inside a Windows Forms application.
This guide covers the basic installation and configuration process.
Install iStreamCameraTools
First, open the Resources Installation Manager.
Find iStreamCameraTools Version 5.0.0.1 and select Install.
When the setup window appears, click Install and wait for the installation to complete. Select Finish when finished.
Add iStreamCameraTools to Visual Studio
Open Visual Studio and create a Windows Forms App (.NET Framework) project.
In the Toolbox, right-click and select Add Tab.
Name the new tab:
ATSCADA iStreamCamera
Right-click the new tab and select Choose Items…
Click Browse and navigate to:
C:\Program Files\ATPro\ATSCADA\iStreamCameraTools\iStreamCameraTools.dll
Select the DLL and click OK.
The ATSCADA iStreamCamera component should now be available in the Visual Studio Toolbox.
This type of camera integration can be useful for industrial projects such as SCADA applications in water treatment, where operators may need both process information and visual confirmation of equipment conditions.
Add the Required VLC Libraries
The camera streaming component also requires the appropriate VLC libraries.
In Visual Studio, right-click References and select Add Reference…
Navigate to the iStreamCameraTools installation directory.
Select the required VLC .NET DLL files and click Add.
After adding the libraries, check the References section to make sure the required iStreamCameraTools and VLC components have been included successfully.
For developers exploring different SCADA environments during development or testing, open SCADA software resources can also provide additional reference material.
Add the Camera Control
After the component has been added to the Toolbox, drag the ATSCADA iStreamCamera control onto your Windows Forms application.
You can then configure the camera through its available properties.
CameraID
CameraID identifies the camera.
It can use the camera's static IP address or serial number, depending on the camera configuration.
ManualRTSPUrl
ManualRTSPUrl is used when the RTSP address of the camera is already known.
Enter the RTSP URL directly into this property.
If the RTSP address is not known, it can be left blank when automatic discovery is being used.
UserID
Enter the username configured for the camera.
Password
Enter the password associated with the camera account.
These credentials are required when the camera requires authentication for accessing its stream.
UseManualURL
This property determines whether the RTSP address should be entered manually or discovered automatically.
Set:
True — when the RTSP URL is already known and will be entered manually.
False — when the system should automatically discover and determine the RTSP URL.
Building a Camera Monitoring Interface
Once the component, VLC libraries, and camera properties have been configured, the live camera stream can be integrated into the Windows Forms interface.
This allows developers to build applications that combine camera footage with other SCADA information such as:
Equipment status
Process values
Alarms
Sensor data
Machine conditions
Production information
For example, an operator could monitor a process value while viewing the corresponding equipment through the camera stream.
This provides two different types of information at the same time:
SCADA data shows what the system is reporting.
Video shows what is physically happening in the field.
Typical Integration Workflow
The overall process can be summarized as:
Install iStreamCameraTools → Add the component to Visual Studio → Add VLC libraries → Place the camera control → Configure camera properties → Display the camera stream
Once configured, ONVIF-compatible cameras can become another information source within a Windows Forms SCADA application.
This can be particularly useful for industrial monitoring systems where engineers need both real-time process data and direct visual access to field equipment.
