Hardware
Darts camera setup with three webcams
A darts camera setup for Sridu is a steel-tip board, three ordinary USB webcams and good light. There is no special kit to buy and no subscription. You don’t even need cameras to start: type in your scores or try the demo first. How this compares with ready-made systems: see the comparison.
Shopping list
What you need
You probably have most of it already.
- A dartboardAny steel-tip board of any brand. The surround doesn’t matter either, the board is found automatically.
- Three USB webcamsPlain webcams with 720p or better. Three work best, but one or two will do (see below).
- Good lightEven light on the board with no hard shadows. We recommend a ring light, an LED ring around the board that lights it from every side. More on light in Better detection.
- A computerA laptop or PC next to the board, with Chrome or Edge. Install Sridu as an app there and it starts in its own window. A 2017 laptop handles two cameras. For three it should be from the last few years, see the system requirements. A screen or TV for the score is a nice extra.
- Optional: a phoneUse it as a second screen at the oche. Scan the code and follow the match live.
Setup
How to build your darts camera setup
It takes a few minutes. The drawing at the top shows the layout from above.
- Mount the cameras around the boardPut them 30 to 50 cm from the board, spaced evenly around it, each one looking in at an angle from the side. Every camera has to see the whole double ring. Mount them firmly, because a camera that moves costs accuracy. Ideas for rings, printed holders and wooden frames are in the DIY build guide.
- Switch on the lightLight the board evenly, best with a ring light around it, so the darts don’t cast hard shadows across it.
- Open Sridu and press Auto setupAllow camera access. Sridu finds your cameras, measures the board and shows you each picture to check. If the 20 is in the wrong place, tap the real one. Then throw your first dart.
Cameras
How many cameras?
Every extra camera helps when darts hide each other. We recommend three.
- 1Fine for trying it out. One camera has to guess where a hidden tip is, so expect to correct darts often.
- 2Accurate as long as the darts don’t hide each other. Tight groups need a correction now and then.
- 3Recommended. With one camera every 120° around the board, even tight groups are read reliably.
- 4For perfectionists. One every 90°. Plug them into different USB ports.
If something is off
Quick fixes
Wrong scores usually have a simple cause, and it is rarely the detection itself:
- Darts land in the wrong segment? A camera has probably moved. Press Recalibrate on the Cameras page. That’s one click.
- A camera doesn’t start? Several cameras on one USB port or hub can be too much. Spread them over different ports. The Cameras page shows which one is missing.
- The picture flickers or keeps getting brighter and darker? That is the camera’s auto exposure. Lock it with one tap on the Cameras page (in Chrome and Edge). The setting is saved for that camera.
- Not sure where a dart landed? Tap the dart and correct it. If a dart sits right on a wire, you are asked to check it.
- Want to see what the cameras see? Use Test throw on the Cameras page. It measures darts without starting a game.
- Still not right? Light, camera angles, locking the picture and what your accuracy figures mean are all in Better detection.
The cameras are not sure
CheckDart 2 · close to the wire
- T2060 points
- 1close to the wire
- ·Dart 3
You tap the chip, then the field
Dart 2tap the new field
- T2060 points
- 1being corrected
- ·Dart 3
Miss (0)Whole boardCancel
For the curious
Technical details
- Computer: every camera keeps the processor busy the whole time. The system requirements list minimum and recommended computers, with a calculator and how we measured.
- Resolution: 720p is enough, 1080p is a little better.
- Browser: Chrome and Edge let Sridu control exposure, focus and white balance. Other browsers work, just without these controls.
- Secure address: browsers only allow cameras on https or localhost. play.sridu.com runs on https. Hosting it yourself? The self-hosting guide explains how.
- Lens distortion: the calibration measures it and corrects for it, so ordinary wide-angle webcams are fine.
- Autofocus and auto exposure: best locked. In Chrome and Edge you can lock them per camera on the Cameras page, and the setting is kept.
Plays well with 2 cameras at 720p
- Cameras2 webcams at 720p
- Processor4 cores, the speed of a 2017 laptop
- Memory4 GB
- GraphicsBuilt-in graphics that play HD video
- USBOne USB port per camera, no hub
- BrowserChrome or Edge 111 or newer
3 cameras, every effect on, room to spare
- Cameras3 webcams at 720p
- Processor6 cores, from about 2022
- Memory8 GB
- GraphicsBuilt-in graphics are fine
- USBOne port per camera, on both sides of a laptop
- BrowserCurrent Chrome or Edge
No cameras yet?
Start right away: enter your scores by hand, or start the demo. It simulates three cameras, so you can see how a darts camera setup works with Sridu before you buy anything.