Guide: Raspberry Zero + Home Assistant as Webcam for PrusaConnect  

Guide: Raspberry Zero + Home Assistant as Webcam for PrusaConnect

Hi all,

since I had some trouble to get my Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W working as a webcam for PrusaConnect, I thought I write a guide for you to do better...

This is what you need:

• Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W
• Raspberry Pi Camera Module 2.1 or 3
• Raspberry USB Charger
• SD Card
• Home Assistant server running

This is what you need to do:

Step 1: Get Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W and camera running

• Connect the camera module with Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W
• Install the latest Raspberry Pi OS Light Version on the SD card by using the Raspberry Imager -> https://www.raspberrypi.com/software/
• Check the IP adress of your Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W using a network scanner or your router user interface
• Once the OS is installed you need to enable the legacy camera support using a ssh connection and then the command "sudo raspi-config"

Step 2: Install MJPEG streamer

• Next, you can install the MJPEG streamer using this guide: https://elinux.org/RPi-Cam-Web-Interface
• You will now be able to access your camera by
  Settings: http://your-ip/html
  Webcam URL: http://your-ip/html/cam_pic_new.php?pDelay=40000
  Snapshot URL: http://your-ip/html/cam_pic.php

Step 3: Get token and fingerprint from PRusaConnect

• Login to PrusaConnect, go to camera, add a new camera
• Click on the qr code - use your computer as camera and start the stream
• Now use the developer menu of your browser (recommend: Chrome Browser) to get the token and fingerprint values

Step 4: Use Home Assistant to push still images to PrusaConnect

• You can use your existing Home Assistant server (will not explain this here)
• Go to settings -> add on store -> add "Nodered"
• Once Nodered is installed, you will need to set a password in the configuration tab of Nodered -> then start Nodered. Make sure you selected "Show in tab"
• Go to NoderedCreate a new flow by dragging "timestamp" + "http request" + "http request" to the workspace area and connect the elements.
• Now configure the elements:
  timestamp: set the interval to 30 seconds
  http request:  use method "GET" and enter the snapshot URL
  http request: use method "PUT" and enter the URL https://connect.prusa3d.com/c/snapshot
  and the headers
  token + the token value
  fingerprint + the fingerprint value
  content-type + image/jpg

Now Home Assistant / Nodered will push a still image every 30 seconds to your PrusaConnect Webcam view...