Bee webcam

1.) Short description

The bee webcam is designed to enable beekeepers to observe their bees anytime, anywhere. The bee activity at the entrance and in the apiary provides the beekeeper with important information about the health and vitality of the colonies. They can also determine the forage situation at the apiary, thus gaining information about the bees' food supply.

2.) Background and motivation

2.1.) Problem

The goal is to develop a bee webcam that transmits a live stream from the entrance or apiary directly to a web browser. The resolution and frame rate must be high enough to capture important information about the bee flight (bees with pollen bags, foraging flight, etc.). An appropriate power supply must ensure continuous operation of the webcam. The live stream will be transmitted either via Wi-Fi or the mobile network.

2.2.) Why is this project important and who benefits from it?

A bee webcam is useful for all beekeepers who keep their bees away from home. This is especially true for migratory beekeepers or beekeepers with multiple locations. A bee webcam can eliminate many trips to the apiaries, protecting the environment and saving the beekeeper considerable time and money.

3.) Objectives and expected results

The bee webcam should provide a live stream from the hive entrance or apiary. The webcam requires a standalone power supply and a network connection. Depending on the circumstances, a Wi-Fi or cellular connection may be necessary. The video transmission should be encrypted and sent directly to a web browser so that the live stream can be integrated into a website. All necessary software should be license-free.

4.) Technical implementation

A Raspberry Pi with sufficient computing power is required to process the video signal. Various camera modules, with and without interchangeable lenses, are available for the Raspberry Pi. Since various operating systems can be installed on the Raspberry Pi, a wide variety of video processing programs can be installed. An autonomous power supply is also feasible for the Raspberry Pi. Various additional modules can be used for a mobile network connection. A Wi-Fi module is already installed on the Raspberry Pi.

5.) Helpful information and basic knowledge

The Raspberry Pi is a fully-fledged single-board computer with countless possibilities. Virtually all Linux distributions can be installed with a wide range of software packages. Therefore, we've compiled a wealth of information and basic knowledge to make getting started easier.

6.) Milestones and results

• You can find instructions for building a Wi-Fi bee webcam here.

7.) Questions and answers

In the bee webcam forum you can discuss experiences and problems with the 4Bees developer community.