Mastering Zonar
★ Zonar Products · Auxiliary Camera
The auxiliary camera adds a side, rear or cargo view to the VidFleet AI Recorder over a single cable. Here is what it sees, how tough it is and how it goes on.
Drawing for reference, not a product photo.
The auxiliary camera is the add-on view for the VidFleet AI Recorder AIR-II. It mounts outside or inside the body of the vehicle, looks where the windshield cameras cannot, and feeds its video back to the recorder over one cable that carries both power and the picture.
Zonar designed it around the problems that make side and rear cameras a headache in the field: a narrow view that has to be aimed perfectly, water and wash-downs, cameras knocked out of alignment, thick multi-wire cables and poor night images.
Zonar lists three common positions. A side camera looking back covers lane changes and the blind side of a box truck. A rear camera looking down covers backing at docks and job sites. An interior cargo camera shows what was loaded and whether it shifted.
Delivery and box trucks usually start with the rear camera, since backing and dock damage are where many low-speed claims come from. Waste and municipal trucks use side views to confirm a bin was serviced or a lane was swept. Cargo vans use the interior view to settle damaged or missing goods questions.
| Spec | Detail |
|---|---|
| Image sensor | 1/4 inch |
| Resolution | 1280 x 720 |
| Frame rate | 25 fps |
| Field of view | 192 deg horizontal, 128 deg vertical, 206 deg diagonal |
| Minimum illumination | 1 lux |
| Exposure, gain, white balance | Automatic |
| Video link | FPD-Link III, 8-bit YUV output |
| Operating voltage and current | 8 V, under 150 mA |
| Ruggedness | Camera IP69K, connectors IP67 |
| Operating temperature | -40 to +85 °C |
| Cable | 5 ft in the kit, extensions up to 50 ft |
Plan the cable route before the first screw. The camera itself goes on in under ten minutes with the screws supplied and only the base and hood to assemble, but the time on a box truck is in routing the single cable from the cab back to the camera without chafe points, pinch points or exposed runs. Order the extension cable length up front, since the kit cable is only 5 feet. Because the 45 degree angle is fixed, pick the mounting surface for the view you want rather than planning to aim it afterward, and check the image in the Zonar Video app before closing up the panels.
It fits fleets already putting an AIR-II in the windshield that want proof from the side, back or cargo area as well. Fleets with only an AIR-I should plan on the AIR-II, since the auxiliary inputs are on that model. We can supply and install the recorder and its cameras together on one visit.
When you are ready to put auxiliary camera units in your vehicles, API Signal supplies the hardware, sets up the monthly service and has our technicians install it on site at your yard, so the vehicles never leave your lot. Call 803-513-1009 or use Get a Quote to set a date.
Sources: Zonar auxiliary camera spec sheet, Zonar VidFleet AIRecorder spec sheet, Zonar AI Recorder installation guide. ZONAR is a trademark of Zonar Systems, Inc. Other product names belong to their owners. API Signal is an independent installer and is not Zonar.
Zonar lists the auxiliary inputs on the AIR-II, which accepts up to two auxiliary cameras. A fleet that wants side or rear views should start with the AIR-II.
The kit includes a 5 foot cable, and extension cables bring the run up to 50 feet, which reaches the back of most box trucks.
No. One cable from the recorder carries both power and video.
Tell us how many vehicles and what they are. We'll quote the hardware and the install together.