IndigoVision Q and A
Broadband Wireless and Cameras
As today’s security needs become more demanding, the need for surveillance cameras in remote locations has now become mandatory. An energy company has homeland security concerns both within and around a power generating plant perimeter. Corporate Security requires the ability to view and control cameras both locally and at a plant 200 miles away. An energy company has an office trailer that is periodically relocated within a large room. A company wants to record video on their network servers instead of replacing and cataloging video tapes once a day. Management wants to stream live DVD quality video across town from the office to the plant. A police department SWAT team sets up a camera to monitor hostile situations.
As companies consolidate their operations and work to reduce expenses, they have found the need for increased video monitoring. Viewing multiple “analog” cameras in a security shack requires a cluster of cables, video multiplexers, video amplifiers and multiple video monitors. In the digital IP (Internet Protocol) world, the analog video cable cluster is replaced with one Ethernet cable and computer video monitors. Once your video cameras speak the IP language, they can be viewed and controlled (via the Internet) from anywhere in the world!
A Wireless Wire
One of the more popular broadband wireless protocols is the Internet Protocol (IP). IP is the language used by your computer’s Internet browser (i.e. Internet Explorer, Netscape, Opera, etc.). The IP language is so universal; it allows a multitude of products to communicate with each other. So how can Broadband Wireless and IP provide a cost effective video monitoring solution?
The solution lies in combining today’s IP Broadband Wireless equipment and Video to IP converters. One of today’s most cost effective and reliable IP Broadband Wireless devices is manufactured by Motorola. Motorola’s Canopy system operates in the unlicensed 5.2GHz, 5.7GHz, 2.4GHz, and the (soon to be released) 900MHz spectrums. It can be configured in point to point (up to 35 miles) or point to multipoint (up to 10 miles) line of sight systems and can be purchased with secure AES (government approved) encryption. The Canopy product functions as a layer 2 bridge. Canopy is a Wireless Wire – it mimics a CAT5 Ethernet cable wirelessly without the wire.
Video Cameras and IP
There are many specialized analog cameras that utilize custom zoom lens and have better low light characteristics than many of the current IP camera offerings. These analog cameras are priced lower than equivalent IP cameras, yet they require a Video to IP converter. An effective Video to IP converter utilizes video compression techniques that allow the highest quality video at the lowest possible bandwidth. One of the best analog video to IP converters available today is manufactured by IndigoVision. IndigoVision’s Video Bridge products allow you to choose between the highest quality resolution, the best frame rate (how “jerky” the video looks) or a combination of both. The Video Bridge bandwidth requirements (the amount of space used on a digital network) can be as low as 8Kbps (kilobits per second) for CIF video (352 x 288 pixels) or as high as 4Mbps per camera for full frame, full color MPEG4, 4CIF video (704 x 576 pixels) with guaranteed 25/30 frames per second. Other features of the Video Bridge units include full duplex audio, a serial connection used for camera Pan, Tilt, Zoom (PTZ), and binary inputs/relay outputs that can be utilized for access control or activity monitoring functions.
Wireless Video and Intranet Access – Case 1
An energy company has homeland security concerns both within and around a power generating plant perimeter. Real time video is the preferred monitoring choice. As the majority of the locations are great distances from the main generating building, a traditional wired coaxial video system is cost prohibitive and impractical to implement. Specialized analog cameras are chosen for their video zoom features and reliability. One camera uses infrared technology and can read a license plate at high vehicle speeds in total darkness! With analog cameras as the preferred choice, the IndigoVision Video Bridge 6000 product was chosen to convert the analog video to IP. Canopy was chosen as the Broadband Wireless connection from the Video Bridge to the power plant’s internal IP network. Canopy Subscriber Modules were installed at the guard shacks and on camera utility poles. The Subscriber Modules provide an IP connection for the cameras, an Intranet connection (a connection to the internal IP network) for the guard shack computers, and support 500k of streaming video (constant bandwidth). Security now has the ability to view and control cameras both locally and at a plant 200 miles away. Viewing and controlling cameras offsite is accomplished via camera remote control software through a secure Internet connection.
Canopy Access Points were installed on the roof of the main power plant building, allowing for a clear line of sight path between the Access Points and Subscriber Modules. One Subscriber Module location was behind a hill and required the use of a “wireless repeater” to extend the communications path around a hill.
Each Subscriber Module interfaces with an outdoor Nema enclosure containing an Uninterruptible Power Supply (when the electric fails, you need the camera the most), an Ethernet switch, a video to IP converter, a 40˚ F activated silicone heater and lightning surge suppression for the Subscriber Module, video and camera PTZ inputs.
Wireless Mobility - Case 2
The Hamilton County Police Association uses an IP camera on an 802.11b wireless link for tactical operations. The wireless camera is monitored in a SWAT vehicle nearby. As 802.11b operates in the congested 2.4 GHz unlicensed band, they were unable to maintain a reliable video link.
802.11b was not designed to operate in an outdoor (interference prone) environment. It uses a modulation scheme called QAM (Quadrature Amplitude Modulation) or more easily understood as “AM”. When you are listening to an AM radio station in your car and drive under a bridge or into a tunnel, the AM signal becomes weak and unclear. Listening to an FM radio station in the same environment is much more stable and clear. The Motorola Canopy products use a proprietary FM modulation scheme and were designed to work in an outdoor interference prone environment. As a result, the data signal is much more reliable on links that are measured in miles as compared to 802.11b link distances that are measured in feet.
The SWAT IP camera and a Canopy Subscriber Module are mounted on a tripod with a “backpack” containing the power source and a Video Bridge video to IP converter. The Canopy Access Point is placed on a telescoping mast on the roof of the SWAT vehicle and positioned toward the Subscriber Module. Future wireless infrastructure will connect the SWAT vehicle and the tripod camera back to the police dispatch enabling real time video monitoring during tactical situations.
Wireless Video Streaming - Case 3
Management wants to stream DVD quality video across town from the corporate office to the plant. The corporate office has a clear line of sight to the plant’s main building. A Motorola Canopy Backhaul link is utilized to establish a 13Mbps link between the buildings. The video is converted to IP using the MemoryLink product from Adaptive Video products. The bandwidth used for DVD quality audio and video is 4Mbps. A 3 hour DVD was played across the wireless link with no video or audio dropouts!
The Wireless Office - Case 4
An energy company has a portable office trailer in a large building. The office trailer is periodically relocated to different areas of the building where standard network Ethernet cabling is not available. A Motorola Canopy Access Point is mounted inside at one end of the building. The Subscriber Module is mounted on the portable office trailer. The office trailer can now be relocated to any area within the building and maintain a connection to the company Intranet.
Uses for Broadband Wireless are many and are only limited by your imagination. My sincere hope is that this article is the beginning of your quest to conquer many challenges wirelessly!
Mobilcomm, based in Cincinnati, Ohio is an Authorized Motorola Sales and Service Station for two-way radio and wireless networking systems. Mobilcomm is a Value Added Distributor for IndigoVision products. For wireless system design, staging and implementation, contact Greg Conrad at 800.441.1360.
|
