Effective Notification with Public Address Systems

Editor / Provider: The Editorial Team | Updated: 3/23/2010 | Article type: Tech Corner

Communication plays a crucial role in ensuring safety. A clear and direct command during emergency prevents chaos and minimizes possible casualties. A&S takes a look at the latest technologies, trends and challenges of the current public address market.


The market for public address (PA) and voice evacuation (EVAC) systems is growing steadily. "The worldwide EVAC systems market is estimated to be worth US$37.5 million in 2009," said Alastair Hayfield, Research Manager, Video Surveillance and VCA Group, IMS Research. "More than half of the sales for these alarms are believed to come from the Americas market."


The market size increases for all types of PA systems. "We estimate the worldwide market for PA systems to be worth more than $10 billion," said Kaz Shimizu, Product Marketing Manager, TOA. "Since all new buildings require such systems, developing countries such as China, India and Brazil are seeing the strongest growth."


The economic downturn has had little effect on the market. "The slowdown in new construction might have a minimal effect on the EVAC systems market; however, the main vertical markets that tend to use these systems are schools and governmental buildings. Many of these buildings will present retrofit opportunities," Hayfield said. "In the U.S., one of the EVAC drivers will be the new NFPA 72 code for mass notification."


Applications
Applications for PA and EVAC systems range widely, with unique requirements for each market. "It is hard to describe a standard set of systems because installations for PA systems are of ten highly customized," said Penny Wu, Marketing Manager, BXB Electronics.


PA systems are divided into two categories — commercial and emergency. Providers of notification systems usually have the R&D know-how and industry experience to offer solutions for both categories.


Commercial Systems
Commercial PA systems must be flexible for varied usage. Functions such as background music at shopping malls and theme parks, discount notifications at supermarkets, broadcasts of church services and announcements at schools all require tailor-made systems.


In both digital and analog systems, amplifiers play an important role. Configuration can be done by zones and users can choose between prerecorded messages, live-announcements and message recording.


A network control unit is the heart of a digital PA system. "Our network controller monitors the status of all the equipment in the system, reports status changes and stores fault messages in the system," said Terence Ng, Senior Product Marketing Manager, Public Address and Conference Systems, Robert Bosch (SEA), Bosch Security Systems. "This monitoring extends from the capsule of a call station microphone to the end of a loudspeaker line. The external cables connected to the control inputs are monitored for short and open circuits with an internally generated pilot tone for audio outputs monitoring."


Emergency Notification
Emergency notification is the highest priority. Traditional systems only sounded a siren throughout the whole building, regardless of location. Panic can cause injury, and reducing survival rates.


"In overcrowded environments, an adequate sound broadcast system is paramount," said Marco Morimanda, Product Manager, Paso. "When activated from the fire-detection system, it should be able to manage any emergency situations, allowing a guided and controlled evacuation of the premises."



Integration enables alarm notifications to be more precise, indicating location, type of danger and evacuation directions in calmly spoken live or recorded messages. "Implementing when-and-where automatic gain controls on paging microphones and system inputs improves user comfort," said Antonio Ferrari, Audio Contractor Market Manager, RCF.


System design must consider hierarchy. "Our amplifiers that run at 4 ohms or at 75/100V are ideal," said Grant Murray, Product Marketing Specialist,  Phonic. "The 100V high-output ceiling speakers and zone mixer allow emergency interruption functions, so emergency announcements are made efficient."


Integration makes evacuation easier. "For hotels, integrating video surveillance with PA systems allows security personnel to check the fire location and only evacuate tenants in specific areas," Shimizu said. "Managing a building by sections makes evacuation more efficient by not disrupting business flow at other locations."


Sound Clarity
A clear message enables effective information sharing. "To ensure sound clarity, a clear source of the message, good amplifiers, easy routing of audio signals, proper speaker types and positioning of the speakers are important," Morimanda said.


Microphones and speakers directly affect sound indelibility, acoustic feedback and echo. "Live announcements should use a good microphone with a smooth frequency response, such as electret condenser microphones," Ng said.
"A low-cut filter is often required to remove the bass boost that occurs when speaking very close into a cardioid microphone. This bass boost is called the proximity effect and would decrease the intelligibility of the announcement."


Speakers
The sensitivity and input power of speakers vary the sound pressure level (SPL). "Enough sound volume — not excessive — is an indispensable factor to catch speech clearly," Shimizu said. "Therefore, the speaker's direction, angles, positions and input-power should be carefully considered."


To prevent extreme volume differences due to speaker placement, sound quality is maintained with appropriate product selection and acoustic design. "Our DSP keeps the setting parameters in memory, and the suitable adjustment pattern can be instantly recalled with a preset button," Shimizu said. "This feature ensures constant sound quality and prevents the destruction of equipment by operation errors. SPV simulation software further assists to calculate the estimated SPL at listening points and helps to decide the types of speakers used and system layout."


Speaker type and positioning is linked to sound clarity, especially for large spaces. "In smaller rooms and corridors, ceiling loudspeakers work well and are an economical solution," Ng said. "For larger spaces, the loudspeakers should be more directional to address the public without too many reflections from walls and ceiling, as this would cause echoes and reverberation."


Column loudspeakers are designed for this purpose. "In very large reverberant spaces, such as airport terminals, active column (array) loudspeakers with electronic beam steering are often the only practical solution to address people with clear intelligible messages," Ng said. "These array loudspeakers are capable of creating a very flat direct sound field precisely at ear level of the audience."


Large spaces require customized solutions. "For large exhibition halls, high-ceiling warehouses and other similar spaces, a hemispherical loud speaker is a good and economical solution. As the name implies, a hemispherical loudspeaker radiates 180 degrees wide into one direction, normally downwards, with an almost flat frequency response," said Ng. "For a clear sound it is important that the frequency response is not only reasonably flat on-axis, but also off-axis. The off-axis response is the area where the good loudspeakers distinguish themselves from the lesser ones."


Reliable power affects sound quality. "Amplifiers are designed to amplify small voltage input signals into much larger output signals," Murray said. "The audio circuitry must be capable of amplifying the input signal without alteration.
Since the power that drives the loudspeakers comes from the amplifier's power supply, a clean source of power is required to deliver a clean music signal."


Cabling also impacts sound clarity for all PA systems. "The width and material of cables must consider the distance for signal transmission," Wu said. "Cables must be tested to ensure its quality and color can be used for easy management."


Compatibility is a determining factor for sound clarity and smooth system operation. "According to different projects, installers need to consider how to select individual products at the design stage and test for compatibility," Shimizu said.


Rules and Regulations
Sales of notification systems are directly affected by rules and regulations. Providers must have sufficient knowledge of each country's requirements before manufacturing or releasing a product.


Requirements also change with time. "For example, we previously offered wireless systems that used the 700-800 MHz frequency range in the U.S., but due to change of regulations it's no longer available to manufacturers of wireless gear. We're now shipping units with frequencies above 833 MHz to the U.S.," said Murray.


Regulations affect system design. "In Europe, the EN 60849 and EN 54-16 and EN54-24 are common standards for voice alarm systems," Morimanda said. "The EN 60849 standard defines design and installation terms for the system to meet safety and reliability requirements."


Other standards for notification include Australian Standards 60849,
Singapore CP25, China Compulsory Certification Mark and Korea Certification Mark. Global standards may also apply, such as ISO, BS, UL, CSA or CE.


Japan has specific regulations. "There are three types of Japanese standards or regulations for PA systems," Shimizu said. "The safety standard compliance is mandatory for almost all electrical equipment. The emergency evacuation law decides the system features and acoustic conditions for emergency announcements. The construction rules control the architectural strength of installation, such as mounting brackets for speakers in the event of an earthquake."


Challenges
Growth for PA systems is closely tied to standards and regulations. "PA systems for emergency sound systems need to comply with various international and national standards, with respect to functions, indicators and supervision," Ng said. "This is a continuous process, as standards are being revised and replaced regularly."


However, there is no single certification body for worldwide voice alarm standards. A global provider has to be certified multiple times with different bodies, slowing down the time to market, Ng said.


Changes in user preferences and market demand are other challenges for manufacturers. "The market is extremely broad, yet everybody has a different and specific idea of what they want and what they need their equipment to do," Murray said. "Trends and government regulations in different countries are constantly changing. Coming up with something new and innovative is always a challenge."


Easy user interface with more functions means a complex system backed up by solid R&D know-how. "The use of a single PA system for various functions, like background music, business announcements and voice alarm can be a challenge," Ng said. "Issues might be that clear voice announcements require a different tonal balance than background music. To resolve this, multiple parametric equalizers would be needed."


Future Outlook
In the future, standards and regulations will continue to play an important role in the PA market. Several manufacturers are waiting for the release of EN 54-19.


Device technology will continue to progress. The radiant degree of digital speakers will improve to 360 degrees with stronger audio processing, controlling, managing and powering, said Ferrari.


Market demands change with user expectations. "PA systems for emergency sound systems and sound reinforcement systems are moving into each others territory, as customers want a single system for both functions, such as sports stadiums," Ng said. "This means that PA systems may incorporate low-impedance amplifiers next to the traditional constant voltage amplifiers, but still with all supervision functions, including fault logging, amplifier redundancy and the ability to operate on backup power supplies."


Networking for digital PA systems will be more flexible, moving from proprietary network to standard Ethernet-based networks. This would not guarantee interoperability between different brands, but traditionally separated systems will be integrated to a certain extent, such as audio systems, video surveillance, access control, building management, Ng said.


Apart from that, telephone broadcast, intercommunication and security will also be more closely integrated. Systems will become more flexible with modular designs for easier maintenance and system upgrade, Wu said.


Data security grows in importance with the introduction of open network. "Future systems will need to be more secure, partly because nonproprietary easily accessible networks will be used, and also because of an increased risk of attacks by hackers or terrorists," Ng said. "This means additional functions are required for authentication and encryption."

Power Plants Consider Management Platforms

Editor / Provider: By the Editorial Team | Updated: 3/18/2010 | Article type: Infrastructure

With outdated systems come difficulties replacing, expanding and integrating. Putting all subsystems together under one management platform requires SDKs and direct manufacturer support. The migration to IP-based systems requires security managers at power plants to understand IP's benefits.


As plant buildings become increasingly complex and differ in many ways — use, size, operating hours or changing occupancy requirements, and environmental conditions — building automation systems become useful to integrate open protocol devices into a single system, said experts from Siemens Building Technologies in a prepared statement.


Migration can occur in phases. In the first phase, security managers might request certificates and proof-of-quality documentation before purchasing digital storage equipment, said Aluisio Figueiredo, COO of Intelligent Security Systems. For surveillance systems, analog storage equipment is replaced with DVRs. The next phase will see additions of network cameras for increased coverage.


"For the most part, traditional security is housed on independent networks, and power plants are slow to pick up building management systems," said Darryl Polowaniuk, Manager of Security and Fire Safety Solutions at Johnson Controls. Generally, potential changes to the system require a project charter. Input has to be collected from all stakeholders and business units to ensure the changes will not negatively impact any units or facilities, Polowaniuk said.


As such, replacing or upgrading equipment rarely happens. Expansion and integration occur more, said Anantharam Varayur, Director of Webcom Information Technology.


Access control, intrusion detection and video surveillance systems are limited in current integration. "With these subsystems, we register the alarm, show the event on the map, and display footage from cameras positioned around the perimeter," Figueiredo said. For older systems, many of the sophisticated features of access control and intrusion alarms are not part of the VMS, which means that information analysis and processing stay in separate systems.


Information Management
As most power plants have been operating for years, change is not considered lightly. In a typical control room, each subsystem has its own GUI, and the step towards building management solutions or sophisticated CMS and PSIM has not been made yet, said Richard Lack, Sales and Marketing Director at ASL Safety and Security.


However, changes are happening. "Before, multiple control rooms were used for every power plant with one or two operators," said Guy Van Wijmeersch, Market Director Utilities of Barco. "Companies are now centralizing and consolidating different control rooms into a larger one, fitting six or up to 20 operators to oversee plant safety and security."


After Sept. 11, the US North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) established an Information Sharing and Analysis Center for the electricity sector. Specific to power plants, distur- bances or unusual occurrences must be reported to the appropriate systems, governmental agencies and regulatory bodies. Current systems are unable to effectively coordinate responses with all necessary parties.


One solution is PSIM software. A central platform can access disparate security devices via SDKs and APIs, and correlate the data from these various assets to create an intelligent and unified solution without major surgery on existing security infrastructure, said David Fowler, Senior VP of Marketing and Product Development, VidSys.


The energy sector is dominated by traditional engineers who are used to last-generation SCADA systems. "We're trying to move away from SCADA systems, which have very basic mapping and information management capabilities," Lack said. "PSIM can maintain legacy interface support and cover buildings and zones, and all subsystems within, via a 3-D environment."


Visual displays in the command and control room are critical. Grouped displays like video walls and PSIM software make more information easily accessible to operators during an emergency, Van Wijmeersch said. Nuclear power plants require video walls to be approved for seismic events such as earthquakes.


Information Sharing
The NERC requires critical information to be shared with government agencies and regulatory bodies. In reality, however, communication to external law enforcement parties is achieved manually through e-mail distribution lists and hotlines. "The market for communication and sharing of information is traditional and adopts new technologies slowly. Integration of software is also expensive," said Hagai Katz, Senior VP of Marketing at Magal S3. "Even SOP procedures are outdated; there is very little connection between the local police and power plant. Most simply do not have the standard of software and the channels of communication."


If suspicious activity occurs, such as a helicopter flying over a rural substation, the information is normally sent to an e-mail distribution list. This is a common information-sharing method among power plants today.


"There is no real-time sharing and the data is not shared online. However, information can be shared over a dedicated LAN," Varayur said.


It is important to note that most power plants are privately owned. Law enforcement agencies do not have permission to enter the plant, or access information, if help is not asked for, said Javier Prieto, Security Leader for Spain and Portugal, Honeywell Building Solutions. A balance must be struck between protecting plant data and sharing information with the necessary governmental bodies.


Training
With outdated systems comes an aging workforce. IP providers must train security operators who have worked with traditional systems for years to tackle new systems, IT infrastructure and workstations.


"If you have a sophisticated system, but operators are not able to respond to alerts or detection, you've got a huge problem," Prieto said. "Depending on how much background operators have in IT and computers, we give a full day's training on average."


In some countries, trained operators are transferred every few years, as a security precaution. "Government employees in India cannot remain in one position for more than a handful of years, which means that training new operators is an ongoing process," Varayur said.


Future Systems
Power plants, though conservative, are positioned to build new technologies into existing systems and eventually phase out obsolete equipment. New regulations will demand more integration, as well as efficient information management and sharing procedures. "In the future, a typical site will become more of a sensor fusion platform. We're seeing more requirements for video analytics, audio analytics and fiber-based sensors for perimeters," Lack said. "Because of the long perimeters involved, conventional video surveillance with heavy reliance on high-lux levels for lighting will be superseded by thermal imaging cameras."


Sophisticated management solutions that converge all relevant subsystems — not limited to security — into a cohesive 3-D and GIS-based platform are becoming a reality. "These systems will pull together an entire picture of what is happening and communicate it outbound," Katz said.

How to Shop for Analytics

Editor / Provider: a&s International | Updated: 3/18/2010 | Article type: Tech Corner

Two issues can result in a disgruntled user — repeated fine-tuning and poor integration with video management software. Users typically have minimal software comprehension but high expectations. This, on top of the high cost, presents additional hurdles for analytics providers.


Overpromising the ease of adding analytics is catching up to the industry. Vendors have realized limitations must be communicated at the onset, or else they risk increasing user distrust. Difficulties in testing and fine-tuning procedures, as well as integration with video management software (VMS) have been notoriously underestimated until actual installation.


Testing and Fine-Tuning
With all the things that could go wrong, an experienced integrator is needed during deployment. Most deployments require an initial setup, testing and fine-tuning stage.


Testing
Users are quick to accept video content analysis (VCA) if it passes the initial test. "End-user tests are often successful because everyone on site is fully alert to the surroundings, but as time passes, problems in performance arise," said Nicolas Jdanoff, Sales Director of IPVision (a Hymatom company). For example, a directional algorithm can be tested with one or two people deliberately walking in the wrong direction, while in reality, countless other variables affect the scene.


Users should bring in consultants or security managers for larger installations to oversee and ensure real-life testing, Jdanoff said.


Fine-Tuning
Careful tuning ensures effective monitoring. "Once the requirements and objectives are defined, an adjustment period of at least two to four weeks is needed, in which integrators must work with users to optimize each algorithm's coverage," said Patrick Lim, Director of Sales and Marketing at Ademco. "Our biggest problem is not with individual VCA systems, but with trying to remedy poorly deployed systems by customers who have been ill-advised."


Most calls made to service centers are from users who have shifted a camera's field of view, said Pauline Marin, Marketing Manager of Keeneo. This emphasizes the sensitivity of VCA and the importance of proper tuning procedures.


For traffic monitoring applications, traffic patterns during peak hours and weekends can differ, requiring different rule sets, said Zvika Ashani, CTO and co-founder of Agent Video Intelligence. The same holds true for seasonal weather changes.


Integration with Video Management Software
Most analytics deployments integrate existing VMS. "Analytics are usually considered a separate purchase, so it becomes a big effort to add another system to the mix," said Ed Troha, MD of Global Marketing at ObjectVideo.


However, most VMS providers cannot support deep integration with video analytics. In many cases, two separate servers are required — one for VMS and one for VCA, said Justin Schorn, VP of Product Development at Aimetis. This complicates maintenance and increases total cost of ownership.


If the VMS and VCA are separate products, full analytic features are often not available in the main video management interface, Schorn said. This means a third-party analytics product can do little more than notify the VMS that an event has occurred.


Attempts to bring these two platforms together at a user level are limited, as customers need to be trained on two separate interfaces. Some VCA providers like Aimetis and iOmniscient develop their own VMS, which offers native support for analytics.


"Funnily, the most questions asked by users are not about setting up the analytics software, but about connecting with the VMS," said Dirk Owerfeldt, Senior VP of Viasys Intelligent Video.


The process can be time-consuming. "For analytics-enabled edge devices, often you need to add the cameras to the VMS, via clicking, dragging and dropping into a folder. You then need to enter data on the VCA side, so that the analytics knows to send the information to the VMS. From there, protocols, IP addresses and port numbers must be configured on both sides," Owerfeldt said. This process is repeated for every camera.


More partnerships must be developed between VMS and analytics providers, so the VMS can configure and edit VCA rules and display alerts, Troha said. The introduction of a communication protocol for not only VMS integration, but other hardware too, may mark a turning point.


Without more industry effort, true growth will be hindered regardless of how sophisticated or accurate VCA becomes.


Price
The price of analytics varies, depending on volume, algorithms and region of deployment. Licenses per channel can range from US$100 to more than $2,000.


"To reach the mass market, the easy answer is to lower the price," Owerfeldt said. As standards have yet to be set, few parameters can be drawn to determine "fair pricing."


However, as the market grows, prices will drop. For faster commercialization, technical issues must be considered. Users will continue to hesitate if tuning and integration remain difficult and demand an installer's intervention.

Understanding VMS, GUI and SaaS Wars

Editor / Provider: Submitted by Milestone Systems | Updated: 3/17/2010 | Article type: Hot Topics

As convergence heats up, there is a dizzying array of management solutions. Eric Fullerton, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer at Milestone Systems, examines the differences.


There seem to be many different video management software (VMS) products on the market today, so how can an integrator or value-added reseller (VAR) figure out what they need?


They have to look for the VMS vendor who will be the best long-term partner for sustainable growth and who can enable the VAR to supply his customers with a platform that adds value over time. The deciding factor is that the VMS company must offer a true open platform that enables integration to third-party applications and secures future innovations to keep the end user from getting locked out of other options.


Vendors with an end-to-end solution not open for integration to third-party products and applications try to lock their customers in as a sole supplier. History has proven this is an expensive route, because end users are limited in their ability to keep up with industry innovations. No one vendor can do it all. Integrators also need to look for a vendor that offers a full range of products and can help them scale from the smallest solutions to the largest and most complex.


What's Next
What's ahead in the future for VMS? Video is becoming the high value element in physical security, largely driven by IP technology. This means end users are now expecting integrated security implementations to be used through the video client graphical user interface (GUI) instead of through the access control or HVAC interfaces. This is driving many customer integrations where the VMS GUI is now becoming the preferred GUI.


This means that we are right on the verge of a GUI war between the different players in the security market.


Some VMS vendors are positioning themselves as physical security integration management (PSIM) companies, integrating all security products into high-level client applications. Other vendors like Milestone offer a comprehensive and well-documented SDK with extensive integration possibilities, allowing each vendor decide how they choose to interface their different security applications. The difference is between taking control of customer environments or offering customers freedom of choice.


The PSIM companies will end up as high-end custom integration companies. The open platform companies will prolif?erate as they offer freedom of choice and greater ROI and TCO over time.


There's talk today about VMS distributed as Software as a Service (SaaS). It's the early days on this approach, so the jury is still out. If SaaS can find a business model where it truly solves a problem that adds value to the solution, it will find a place in the market. If not, they will continue to be just a promise. At Milestone we have not seen the tangible value of these solutions to date. However, we are continuously looking at it.

Sponsored by:

Adapt to Survive

Editor / Provider: Submitted by CornerStone | Updated: 3/12/2010 | Article type: Hot Topics

The security market has changed. Whether vendors are ready to shape the future is explored by Jon Roadnight, Senior Director of CornerStone.


The constant in our modern day lives is change. Sometimes this is a gradual, steady and developmental process, such as the adjustment from tape-based recording on VCRs to DVRs. Although the recording medium had changed and moved into the heralded digital environment, users were able to adapt because manufacturers had developed their products to operate like the superseded product.


Adapting to this change was easy because the system installer did not need to change his setup routine. A camera is connected to the recording device via a coaxial video cable, which is then terminated with the same connectors being plugged into the new device. While the installer needs different technical skills to commission and set up the system, the proliferation of PC skills made this change more of a "shuffle" than a "leap" into a new technological world.


The overall change that is currently taking place in the industry is not as simple as the change from VCRs to DVRs. Instead, this shift is dramatic and challenging to those of us it impacts directly.


There are, however, no longer any doubts about the industry's medium to long-term direction from anyone who has observed the electronic security arena during the past five years. If the metaphoric “fog of uncertainty'” had obscured the future vision for our industry, then the picture has now undoubtedly been clarified in spectacular HD.


Problems with Change
The growth of the IP video market has been rapid. The annual growth is estimated to reach 25 percent to 200 percent by 2012. IP video product sales are driving the present growth in the security market, with new manufacturers and new products constantly being launched.


Cameras have evolved, from analog to IP and from megapixel to HD, in the span of a few years. This raises the concern that the installation industry is not sufficiently knowledgeable about the technical aspects of the cameras, and that they are not marketed correctly.


One issue is the proliferation of equipment manufacturers and the convergence of technology. The security system marketplace could become more commoditized, with similar products with the same compression algorithms and networking standards.


This may be good news for global brands, as they are masters at taking products to market, and have the supply chains and distribution channels to do so. However, they risk losing buyers and brand loyalty when similar products can be purchased for less.


Many of the rules, design principles, technical knowledge and support networks must be altered as the scale of change continues. This will challenge installers and end users the most. Years of working practice and technical principles will need to be relearned. Industry standards will need to be rewritten. Client expectations and requirements will need to be readjusted. Product designers and manufacturers will push the boundaries of technology today to develop the digital technology of tomorrow. Products will develop quickly throughout this phase, bringing difficulties. Adopting the right technology or the most suitable protocol will be critical. This could mean the difference between a system that can be developed and built upon over a number of years, or a wasted investment with products quickly becoming obsolete and unserviceable.


Currently, not all products are interoperable. During the system design process, it is essential to understand the interface capabilities and limitations of the products of choice. It is easy to make the costly mistake of producing a product without the capabilities for integration.


Standards
The new technologies being developed do not satisfy all regulations and standards. This poses a difficult question for manufacturers. Do regulations and standards matter, or should the market decide the direction of the products being developed?


The downside of having standards and regulations is manufacturers must ensure the quickest route to market, to sell as many products as possible to recoup R&D costs. The removal of restricted protocols opens market potential and enables makers to leverage their brand to drive sales.


On the other hand, a small independent manufacturer with an excellent product will wish to ensure that the functionality is protected by closed protocols. Patents may be what drives commercial success for the brand to further develop.


For manufacturers, industry standards offer a framework to operate in. Imagine having spent millions on R&D only to realize the market has moved in a different direction.


This is why the Open Network Video Interface Forum (ONVIF) and the Physical Security Interoperability Alliance (PSIA) exist. The standards bodies promote open IP-based systems and act as a guide for manufacturers. Although these are two separate bodies, with ONVIF focusing more on IP video, and PSIA focusing more on the broader area of physical security, they both regard interoperability as their ultimate goal.


Embracing New Technology
Experienced security professionals must guard against the devaluing of the security system application knowledge by gaining a higher value skill set.


The solution in solving the knowledge gap is training. As IP technology was developed from a microprocessor- biased background, it would be unreasonable to expect an individual from an electrical and broadcast background to pick up the new technology naturally.


Expenditure on product training and professional development should be increased. This spending will be essential for security professionals to overlay their experience with a deep understanding of the new technology. Only by making this investment will security integrators retain their competitive advantage, and will end users have the understanding to define their operational requirements.


It is our belief that as security operations improve and service level expectations increase, the individuals and organizations that do not embrace the new technology will be left behind. Organizations that are more dynamic and can harness the technology will thrive and grow. Times of change open up many opportunities. Learning, adapting, educating and embracing new technology will allow manufacturers to compete with others and not be left behind in the dust.


About the Author
Jon Roadnight is a Senior Director of CornerStone GRG, an international security consultancy practice. He can be contacted at jon@cornerstonegrg.co.uk or www. cornerstonegrg.co.uk.

Considering Open and Integrated Systems

Editor / Provider: Submitted by Johnson Controls | Updated: 3/10/2010 | Article type: Hot Topics

Regardless of language, culture or economics, security in any country should protect people, property and assets. While different countries face varying compliance standards or none at all, system integrators, distributors and building owners or security managers must adapt their services and solutions appropriately.


Currently, the security marketplace is cluttered with thousands of providers claiming to offer the right products or integrated technologies to accomplish any and all goals. Walking the floor of any industry-related tradeshow can overwhelm visitors by the choices available. With the development of new standards and alliances, including the PSIA and ONVIF, end users and service providers find themselves inundated with marketing materials and white papers. It is not uncommon for a customer to question any provider's proposal.


The industry is still years away from establishing solid standards, due to countless overseas vendors and manufacturers who work with varying firmware or codec designs. Additionally, many vendors are still reluctant to create open architectures. This means that there are limitations to common building management protocols and varying levels of openness.


Meeting Business Outcomes
Building owners and security managers need to find partners who recognize their needs, and assess the priorities and perceptions of representative stakeholders, including building occupants. An analysis of that data is vital to the design process intended to meet desired business outcomes.


The technology-contracting model determines the appropriate levels of system integration to manage multiple, duplicate and discrete systems under various vendors, contracts and proprietary protocols — especially in today's ever-changing technology landscape. A single point of contact manages multiple contractors, balances first and lifestyle costs, and efficiently converges individual systems into a technology solution.


Users should avoid working with a company claiming to offer these services, without a proven track record of success. An experienced technology contractor understands the value of vendor relationships.


Open Protocols and Standards
A basic platform for an integrated solution is IP-based, and can use Ethernet technology and TCP/IP networks. This provides a foundation for success. The use of open protocols and standards will ensure that users can choose the best solutions for creating an intelligent building without losing features or connectivity.


A system able to support tens of thousands of data point capacities takes full advantage of distributed intelligence. Coupled with graphic workstations to create the basis for a personal command center, buildings can better manage the entire building automation system (BAS) network.


Building Automation Systems
One of the main highlights of a BAS is that integration can include different subsystems, including access control, video surveillance, emergency lighting, chillers, elevators and fire alarms. A computerized management system can be integrated for maintenance and facility management. Further additions can be made to the management system. In hotels, for example, power monitoring and staff paging systems can be added to round out the full intelligent building capabilities.


At the heart of the network is a modern, scalable asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) backbone, designed to easily manage and support services and protocols. ATM technology is a network infrastructure that supports enterprises with various multimedia — voice, video and data. It provides the basis for LAN interconnectivity and fully integrated network access. LAN and the ATM backbone are managed by one common network management system.


This network can distribute television, video-ondemand, e-commerce, Internet, BAS, video surveillance, and management system data through an entire complex. The network is modular and flexible, enabling users to start on a smaller scale and expand as needs evolve, to support dynamic and changing environments. In addition, the system design should ensure that any future upgrade to the optical fiber backbone and ATM switches will not adversely affect operations.


Setting New Standards
With more buildings implementing BASs, a new standard is emerging for the integration of subsystems and independent protocols into a manageable and operational network. These solutions are ideal for today's sophisticated, multipurpose facilities. It provides IP-based technologies for business and entertainment today, while offering the ability to address the demands of the next decade.

Layered Protection at Power Plants

Editor / Provider: The Editorial Team | Updated: 3/9/2010 | Article type: Commercial Markets

Security at power plants visibly deters and detects. With various technologies on-site and guards constantly patrolling, power plants are heavily protected against unauthorized entry. A&S explores critical areas and the systems deployed.


Power plant security can be divided into several levels. Depending on the facility, critical exterior areas include vehicular entrances, perimeter fence lines, pump houses and switch yards, said Darryl Polowaniuk, Manager of Security and Fire Safety Solutions at Johnson Controls. Perimeters can be protected using microwave sensors, direct burial detection, fence line detection, video surveillance with thermal imaging and guard patrols.


Entrance areas are generally protected through checkpoints, serpentines or vehicle gates integrated with access control and video surveillance for verification, Polowaniuk said.


Internal are as critical to operations include the main and subsidiary control centers, IT data rooms, telecom rooms, stores and warehouses where critical spares may be located, and computer rooms controlling plant process control systems, said Dale Zahn, VP of Business Development at Intellibind Technologies. These areas are often protected by access control, video surveillance and intrusion alarms.


IP Adoption
Most power plants were built well before IP development, which means that changes and upgrades require budgeting, Zahn said.


Analog systems are based on standardized and accepted measures. With emerging technologies, many IP-based systems have yet to reach their full potential, Polowaniuk said.


Advances in reliability, fault tolerance and redundant solutions are pushing old systems to evolve to IP, said Javier Prieto, Security Leader for Spain and Portugal, Honeywell Building Solutions. Some Spanish nuclear plants have already evolved to using IP-based systems.


Network technologies are used for remote surveillance and expansion. A power plant requiring more coverage around water areas may install cameras across a small body of water. Analog cameras would need extensive cabling to accomplish this. "The cost is much lower to install network cameras over long distances," said Aluisio Figueiredo, COO of Intelligent Security Systems.


Open platform software supports various types of encoders, so the video system is less vendor-specific. "Most systems today are hybrid, with analog cameras and digital transmission and storage," said Anantharam Varayur, Director of Webcom Information Technology. "Customers can purchase any camera to replace broken ones and still use the same encoder."


An impediment to IP is the prevalence of legacy equipment. "Building systems like lifts or escalators, and plant and manufacturing equipment, are still based on serial or analog interfaces," said Richard Lack, Sales and Marketing Director at ASL Safety and Security. For full integration, management platforms must support both IP and analog systems.


"It is not a question of why users won't move to IP, it's that they are not always presented with viable options," Lack said. "The systems in use are still working and were approved years ago."


Transmission
Fiber optics and wireless are common at power plants. "Remote locations use more fiber backbone, whereas closed environments tend to use reserved wireless frequencies," Figueiredo said.


In most plants, two LANs run separately. Surveillance footage is generally transmitted to a LAN not connected to the campus-wide network, Varayur said.


From cameras to encoders, analog transmission is preferred because power plants use specially armored coaxial cables. "UTP or STP cables, connecting megapixel network cameras, do not have this special protection, and in such electrically-charged environment, these cables are subjected to more interference," Varayur said.


Protecting Perimeters
Perimeters are protected by up to three lines of defense. "Critical functionality includes the flexibility to be able to set the alarm locally, while allowing for central monitoring, simple identification of the origin of an alarm and reliable verification," said experts from Siemens Building Technologies in a prepared statement.


Typical perimeter defenses include sensor cables on meshed fences, microwave barriers between the fence and protected building, and video surveillance to confirm and verify, said Fabrizio Leonardi, Marketing Director of CIAS.


Electronic sensors on fences can comprise an electronic card with specialized components that detect movement or vibration, said Martin Kowen, Export Director, GM Advanced Fencing and Security Technologies. "Each sensor has an ID and actively communicates with the system processing card, to know the exact location of the intrusion attempt."


Industry-acceptable false alarm rates are usually less than five false alarms per kilometer in a month, Kowen said. False alarms can be lowered by sensors interpreting anomalies. "If there is wind on the protected site, then data readings from each sensor will all change proportionally. This unified change in data reading will not cause a false alarm to sound," Kowen said.


Products based on fuzzy logic analysis measure and compare typical stored signals with the size, shape and rate of change of new signals, Leonardi said. Events that generate an alarm are date- and time-stamped, stored in memory and can be analyzed in real time.


Buried cables are often used between fences for detection. "We encountered major issues because buried cable sensors are easily affected from the electrically-charged grounds characteristic of many plants," said Hagai Katz, Senior VP of Marketing at Magal S3.


For outdoor perimeter equipment, power plants require lightning protection. If lightning strikes near the system, capacitors can charge and take the load, Katz said. It is important that outdoor systems are linked to uninterruptable power supplies.


Post-mounted radars integrated with cameras for verification can detect and track people or vehicles moving into detection zones, said Jason Burger, Sales and Marketing Manager at Navtech Radar. The control room can display information on an aerial map with corresponding video images.


Radar paired with video surveillance can better protect perimeters via wide-area tracking, Katz said.


Authorizing Access
Access control systems oversee exits and gates, including vehicle entrances, pipes, tunnels, employee gates, maintenance points, control rooms and so on, Katz said. Each gate has a different protection — car entrances may have a physical gate with cameras, LPR and guards. Conveyer belts could be protected by thermal cameras to watch for intruders climbing onto the belt and entering the plant.


Access control systems can be active and run up to 100,000 badges a day, said Kevin Pearman, Account Manager, Integrated Security and Building Management Systems, Bytes Systems Integration. Proximity or smart cards allow staff to access to buildings, and biometric technologies are used at critical areas to protect against identity theft. At major access control points, physical barriers are used, including turnstiles and heavy doors, coupled with X-ray baggage checks and radiation scanners at nuclear plants.


Access control is probably the oldest installed equipment at power plants, making upgrades a challenge. "Security managers have no desire to replace old equipment with new IP-based systems, but they would like the benefits of being able to open the door remotely and mapping out its status on a map," Figueiredo said. Protocol analyzers, essentially sensors deployed on doors, are substitutes when SDKs are not available. They can be used to integrate systems running on serial or RS-232 communication.


Adding biometrics is easier than linking existing systems. "If you're dealing with old technology, you run the risk of looking for manufacturers who aren't even in business anymore," Figueiredo said. "Integrating sophisticated technology like fingerprint or facial recognition biometrics gives you a huge advantage: direct support from the manufacturer."


Video Verification and Monitoring
A large mix of mostly analog cameras is installed at power plants. Fixed, PTZ, day and night, infrared, thermal, and higher resolution cameras monitor perimeter and indoor areas.


Real-time surveillance is mandatory. As systems are used to verify events at perimeter and access points, video footage must be transmitted at 30 fps, Figueiredo said.


Users are replacing broken cameras with higher resolution ones. "520 TVL is a minimum, and we are seeing more requests for megapixel cameras," Figueiredo said. For the most part, however, security managers are still learning about the benefits of megapixel and HD cameras.


Storage is vital — footage needs to be kept at least a month. The emphasis is on backup and redundancy.


Evacuation and Safety
Apart from security, safety is a primary concern. Power plants must have reliable voice alarm and evacuation systems to notify employees about airborne contaminants and other critical events.


Nuclear facilities often use voice alarm systems with confidence tones — a series of tone-generated blips broadcasted every 15 seconds indicate that the building evacuation system is operational. "If staff don't hear that confidence tone, immediate evacuation is necessary," Lack said.


In Europe, new legislation allows manufacturers to use field-proven IP-based routing rather than analog. "Voice alarm systems can now sit on the same physical network as the other subsystems," Lack said.

Power Plants Prepare for Change

Editor / Provider: The Editorial Team | Updated: 3/9/2010 | Article type: Commercial Markets

Power plants deliver usable energy to the world and are among the top-rated, high-risk facilities. Conservative and regimented in tried and proven SOPs, these energy generators operate on strict day-to-day practices that ensure the security and safety of people and assets.


As the threat of terrorist attacks become more real, governments, energy and electric organizations, and plant owners must review and increase security measures. Depending on the plant and its location, threats can include syndicated theft and extreme environmental activities. "You must understand your adversary, to define, design and plan your security system," said Javier Prieto, Security Leader for Spain and Portugal, Honeywell Building Solutions.


Most power plants today follow regulations and best practices for critical infrastructure. However, system guidelines are broad, leaving actual equipment specifications to be agreed upon by plant owners, integrators and the operations team.


Planning and installation must be carefully considered at the onset, to avoid using equipment unfit for the environment. The type of plant and its location makes every solution unique.


Current systems installed at power plants are analog and becoming obsolete. Introducing digital systems gradually brings more hybrid systems to the fore. However, integration is challenged by a lack of support from existing equipment manufacturers, some of whom are no longer in business.


Information management and sharing is still at a basic level and often done manually. As most power plants are privately-owned, external information is shared through e-mail distribution lists and hotlines. Within the plant, information is distributed from the command and control center. SCADA systems dominate, but have rudimentary mapping capabilities, which is crucial for response during an emergency. Fully integrated platforms, such as sophisticated CMS or PSIM, have yet to reach power plants.


When existing systems break down, outdated parts are becoming more difficult to find. Users are gradually moving towards IP-based systems, which offer more flexibility, scalability and cohesive information management. The time is ripe for change.


Regulations and Standards
Excluding nuclear plants, no regulations govern power plant security, so best practices and recommendations are followed. However, government organizations such as the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) and the US Department of Homeland Security have been actively involved in standardizing requirements for the energy sector.


"The U.S. pioneered nuclear power stations, and many countries around the world, such as Japan, Mexico and Canada, follow American standards," said Hagai Katz, Senior VP of Marketing at Magal S3.


NERC requires power plants to look outside service territories and establish security principles based on the electric grid's reliability, which requires visibility at a higher level. "This means that security technologies applied should be designed with a 'protection-indepth' philosophy — to deter, detect, assess and respond to an incident," said Dale Zahn, VP of Business Development at Intellibind Technologies.


The corporation holds quarterly Critical Infrastructure Protection Committee meetings with representatives from the federal government, as well as industry representatives from the eight NERC operating regions. "Representatives have IT, operations or physical security backgrounds, and come from the investor-owned municipal and cooperatives," Zahn said.


System guidelines are broad, leaving users flexibility to specify their equipment wants and needs, said Darryl Polowaniuk, Manager of Security and Fire Safety Solutions at Johnson Controls.


Market
The market is large and relatively untapped.


Power companies will need to spend US$1.4 trillion over the next 22 years to meet power demands and modernize the transmission and distribution grid, according to the "Improving Power Plant Performance Through Technology Upgrade" white paper by Honeywell Process Solutions. Most power plants have been using the same security systems installed 10 or 20 years ago, making refurbishment or replacement a priority.


"In Europe, power plants are increasingly implementing security systems with 12 to 15 percent growth," Prieto said. Global growth is slightly lower, averaging 6 to 8 percent.


In India, there are one or more plant projects underway in each state. Some are old plants, with little surveillance. "There is a big opportunity to install video surveillance systems in these plants," said Anantharam Varayur, Director of Webcom Information Technology.


In South Africa, security makes up at least a quarter of the project's budget. "If security systems are found noncompliant, plants can be fined," said Kevin Pearman, AccountManager, Integrated Security and Building Management Systems, Bytes Systems Integration.


Designing and Planning
Most project tenders are indiscreet — there can be separate tenders for video surveillance, access control and intrusion detection systems. "At this time, orders can be awarded to multiple vendors, which creates a challenge in integrating the systems," Varayur said. "Customers must take the initiative of putting requirements together at the project onset for a comprehensive tender."


Driven by the need to meet local requirements, planning and design is usually standards-driven, Zahn said. Involved parties include representatives from plant operations, engineering, safety, the supply chain, IT, security and plant maintenance. Once needs are determined, an experienced system integrator will be hired to ensure consistency across a fleet of generating stations, involving equipment selection, operation, maintenance and repair of applied technologies.


As power plants are often located at remote sites, maintenance for faulty equipment requires long waits for repair technicians. "Sometimes customers actually buy spare parts, including cameras, network switches, encoders, additional servers, monitors and power supplies, to lessen the downtime of a system breakdown," Varayur said.


Security managers and their corporate security departments have a vested interest in the final design, as they will likely be stewards of the system upon completion, Polowaniuk said. IT managers also play a crucial role in supplying the network, involved in considerations for bandwidth requirements and redundancy.


Site-Specific Requirements
The type of power plant and its environment impacts security requirements. In general, hydroelectric, coal and fossil fuel, solar and wind plants follow best practices.


Security systems at nuclear power plants are doubled or tripled compared to other plants, as they should comply with legislation, Prieto said. For example, all systems at nuclear plants must be redundant, including networks, fences, control rooms and servers. In comparison, a solar plant might have a single perimeter solution equipped with cameras and fences, but nuclear plants can have up to three layers of perimeter protection.


Coal and other fossil burning plants in the environmental spotlight must follow procedural detection measures to protect against activists, Polowaniuk said.


Hydroelectric plants typically border large bodies of water, exposing them to more complex risks. "If a terrorist was to strike via a boat coming into the dam, it would be disastrous," said Aluisio Figueiredo, COO of Intelligent Security Systems. Armed military personnel usually patrol seaside or water borders at all times.


Cameras equipped with video analytics are necessary to track boats coming into secure areas. "This unique requirement is very common for water dams," Figueiredo said.


For seaside plants, noncorrosive solutions need to be implemented.
The salty and moist environment of ten results in equipment replacement after just one or two years. "Even standards such as IP66 or IP67 are sometimes not enough to protect against corrosion, so special anti-corrosive standards and practices must be used," Katz said.


Power plants located in rural areas with limited natural barriers become simpler to protect, Polowaniuk said. Thermal cameras and radars can be used to survey areas beyond the plant's perimeter. This is not so in urban environments.


In urban environments, plants must be careful not to disturb neighboring residences or commercial buildings. For example, strobe lighting and audible alarms could be disruptive, Polowaniuk said.


The high foot traffic in cities presents unique challenges. "Security incidents related to conventional delinquency, such as theft, increase for plants located in urban areas," Prieto said. "You cannot use long-range perimeter devices to survey areas beyond your perimeter, which means that other perimeter protection systems need to be considered."


Paired with a preference for aesthetics, perimeter security in urban areas can opt for noninvasive systems such as buried cables or decorative fences, Katz said.


Outdated Systems
Most power plants are dated facilities, with traditional analog systems in place. Systems and parts become obsolete, which make integration with management platforms difficult. In security, the shift toward convergence is an appealing solution to all high-risk critical facilities, but power plants are adopting slowly.


"The maturity of the market is an issue, and often security managers at power plants, who have been trained and are familiar with traditional systems, are reluctant to switch out existing systems," Prieto said.


Aging systems are the most pressing issue, and at some point, when the system is no longer scalable or does not provide adequate protection, it should be replaced, Polowaniuk said.


Most security systems in power plants are stand-alone and manually controlled. For example, if an alarm from the perimeter sounds, a security operator will maneuver a joystick to pan a camera toward the detection zone. "This is the common practice," Katz said. A balance must be struck between manpower and technology — as technology develops and becomes more automated, power plants can save on manpower.


Experts agreed that the energy sector, once at the forefront of security technology, is now lagging. "Most of these systems are coming to the end of their useful lives, and next generation power plants will be free to go straight into IP-based systems," said Richard Lack, Sales and Marketing Director at ASL Safety and Security.

Looking Inside Surveillance Camera and DVR Modules

Editor / Provider: a&s International | Updated: 3/5/2010 | Article type: Component

Producing products from scratch requires significant R&D resources and time. Product manufacturers can increase their competitiveness with modules, lowering production costs and shortening time to market.


Board cameras and DVR boards are essential modules for video surveillance products. All components that a finished product requires are included, with software and firmware integration. Module manufacturers aim to build flexible and reliable product platforms. With open source codes and SDKs, these modules make customization easy for finished products.


Cameras
Strong camera know-how is a must for camera modules, enabling each component on the camera board works smoothly together.


Image tuning is required for modules designed with third-party image sensors. "Different cameras may use the same type of sensor, but it is the tuning that allows the cameras to function differently. The tuning of the camera module makes it capable of performing in different conditions, such as low-light, IR, megapixel or color cameras," said Upendra Patel, CTO at eInfochips. "A well-tuned camera can produce good image quality. However if a camera is not fine tuned, the final image will not be clear, no matter how good the processor and software are."


Image sensor selection is crucial. "Image sensors affect image quality. Choosing one from a good image sensor company is important, because image tuning require significant know-how from the supplier," Patel said.


Tuning depends on the platform. "Tuning on a simple image sensor platform requires additional license fees for 2A algorithms and communication between the camera company, image sensor company and the semiconductor vendor," Patel said. "However, tuning on an image sensor with built-in ISP only requires communication with users."


Power and size are concerns when integrating components. "Most camera designs are aimed at lower power consumption and size," said Patel. "Integrating all the features of a camera — including USB ports, Micro-SD cards, local display outputs, audio, PoE, auto iris controls on a board that is 100 by 44 millimeters — is a challenge."


Analog
Analog cameras still make up most of the market. "The electrical circuit of a quality camera module must be carefully designed," said Edwin Huang, VP of Technical Division at Sunnic Technology. "Other than programming, the MCU allows auto LED light adjustments and dynamic video surveillance parameters. We also developed patented transcoders to enable IP integration."


Peripherals
A quality board camera needs reliable power for a long life and low electrical impedance. "Power modules should have low output ripple noise. In low-light cameras, image noise reduction is linked to power modules and board design," said Henry Chung, Sales Director at E-On Optoelectronics. "Low-light cameras often turn up the automatic gain control (AGC) level for a clearer image. However, if there is noise in the image, turning up the AGC level will only increase the image noise."


The key to a power module is its aluminum electrolytic capacitor. "For this technology, we import high-quality components from Japanese companies," Chung said. "During the design phrase, our module goes through testing in 60- to 70-degree Celsius environments."


Edge Devices
Analytics adds value to cameras. Based on user requirements, analytics can be designed on the main camera board or a separate module. "With ObjectVideo's analytic software library and TI's DSP, we developed an individual module to run powerful video analytics software," said Alan Peng, Director at Zero One Technology. "Each image frame is analyzed by a set of predefined rules. The algorithm is programmed to detect violations, such as trip wire. The minimum size for the detection of an onscreen object is 10 by 10 pixels."


To ensure added value, integration must be seamless. Thorough testing must take place to ensure the module complies with application-specific regulations and standards. "It is hard for camera companies to integrate a poorly made analytics module on their camera board," Peng said. "The module's interface must meet industrial standards, such as SPI/BT 656 for image formats. Everything should be open architecture with no proprietary designs."


Communication is key. "When customers wish to install analytic modules on their cameras, their hardware, firmware and software engineering teams need to cooperate with our engineers," said Peng. "Our know-how on software and hardware integration is crucial to ensure the module's flexibility for different applications. We also provide technical specifications, application notes, knowledge and service to our customers."


A camera's networking components are often outsourced. They are mostly standard, such as Ethernet connection for TCP/IP and RTP/RTSP protocol for streaming. PoE and Wi-Fi are also available. "The stability of signal transmission is taken care of by the protocol and error resilience implemented in software," said Patel.


Stand-Alone DVRs
The market for stand-alone DVRs is competitive. Finished product makers can optimize cost and differentiate products with new component technologies.


Quality components must be chosen. "For DSPs or SoCs, the selection criteria are the number of channels supported in the chip, power consumption and overall cost," said Patel. "Host processors must be able to have the capability to handle the network and storage management.” The right processor depends on customer requirements. "The benefit of using DSPs is the scalability of design and reliability," Patel said. "The DSP provides room for image quality improvement in software and implementation of algorithms, like image stabilization, filtering and compression. The disadvantage is increased power consumption and cost compared to ASICs, which come with preprogrammed encoding engines from semiconductor vendors."


Hybrid Solutions
Hybrid DVR modules must support both analog and network camera inputs, requiring R&D know-how to switch between the two. "Our video compression is handled by a separate DSP, while network management and storage is handled by a separate processor. The decoding for network channels is handled by another DSP," said Patel. "This architecture provides flexibility when choosing the combination of network and analog signals."


"A high-end stand-alone DVR module should support up to 16 analog camera inputs at D1 resolution and four to 16 network camera inputs," Patel said. "Our module can simultaneously display up to 20 analog or network camera inputs on a local display."


The market trend toward hybrid DVRs means component suppliers must support all network camera formats. "In the future, we expect that ONVIF and PSIA will make a difference in smoothing out this transition," Patel said.


PC-Based DVRs
PC-based DVR boards require suppliers to write software and test the performance of components or chipsets before selection.


"Good PC-based DVR companies mostly came from IT backgrounds. To design a quality overall system, the R&D team must have IT know-how to enable seamless integration between the PC hardware and the surveillance software," said Young Hwa Oh, President at Chance-i.


Software is the main focus, but some companies produce their own hardware for better integration and performance control. "With the powerful CPU and chipset calculations, our system processes images faster," Oh said.


Benefits and Challenges
PC-based DVRs install a capture card on a customized motherboard, enabling scalability and good system performance. "Users can view 32 channels by installing two 16-channel capture cards on their motherboards, without having to hook up two 16-channel DVRs," Oh said. "Access control and PoS can be integrated."


Inserting capture cards sounds convenient, but faces development challenges for system compatibility. "The technology for motherboards changes quickly, as well as VGA display cards for surveillance," Oh said. "Sometimes a user's existing motherboard cannot support the DVR capture card."


Outlook
Modules provide a cost-efficient solution. The development of modules will advance towards higher performance and lower prices.


"Big companies who wish to include the latest technology without losing their original R&D focus are sourcing modules from us," Patel said. "Smaller companies are also sourcing, who may not have the R&D resources to develop a finished product from scratch."

Seeing More with Improved Image Sensors

Editor / Provider: by a&s International | Updated: 3/5/2010 | Article type: Component

Image sensors boast more pixels, sensitivity and dynamic range today. They deliver real results for effective video surveillance.


Image sensors make or break video quality, making them a top priority in camera selection. With more suppliers, camera manufacturers have extra options.


The market experienced the recession firsthand. "Image sensor revenue across all surveillance cameras will decline from more than US$700 million in 2008 to $435 million in 2013," In-Stat said in a prepared statement.


Video surveillance cameras have little margin for error. Downtime could result in the loss of footage, thus requiring cameras to perform stably for long periods of time.


A surveillance image sensor must be up for the task. "Security cameras need low-light performance, WDR and higher speeds than average consumer products," said Cliff Cheng, Senior Business Development and Marketing Manager, Aptina.


Security video requires quality over quantity for resolution. "Consumer products such as digital still cameras and mobile phones are heavily focused on increasing megapixels, while security applications require the best possible low-light sensitivity and image quality," said Roy Karunakaran, Product Marketing Manager, OmniVision Technologies.


Cameras monitor constantly, helping human operators. "If the ultimate aim of a security camera is to replace a human observer at the scene, WDR is essential," said Clairpixel, a CMOS provider. "The human visual system is efficient at extracting information in extreme conditions. A camera must do the same or better."


Unique security requirements include low-light performance — surveillance imagers can be 30 times more sensitive than consumer ones. "Another is global electronic shutter, which removes the problem of rolling shutter artifacts," said John Monti, VP of Marketing and Business Development, Pixim. Fluorescent flicker reduction is also exclusive to security.


Sharp Images
Image sensor improvements have resulted in higher resolution video. "When selecting image sensors, we look for HD support at 720p or 1080p, as well as small data packet size," said Hong Yuan Chu, Engineer, Dali. The manufacturer deploys Sony CCDs in several cameras.


Sensor resolution affects manufacturer purchase decisions. "As a manufacturer of network cameras, we rely on sensors that can support the highest quality resolution," said Daniel Cremins, Product Marketing Manager, Edge Devices, March Networks. "It's important to note that high video resolution affects more than just a camera or recorder specification."


HD's large file sizes require efficient video compression for real-time transmission. "Effective compression for higher resolution, which is H.264, is essential," said Christine Lim, International Sales, iCanTek. The manufacturer deploys Pixim CMOS for several network cameras.


Capturing larger images makes video analytics easier. "Smart cameras are a small segment of the market, but Pixim sees them continuing to grow at faster rates than the overall camera market," Monti said. "The primary contribution an image sensor can make to an intelligent camera is to capture low-noise, color-accurate, WDR video with the fewest image artifacts."


Other image sensor providers corroborate a spike in edge devices. "We are seeing more new camera designs incorporating analytics," Cheng said. "Aptina is putting in features like statistic engines, WDR and context switching in our sensors, assisting intelligent algorithms to run more efficiently."


Network versus Analog
In general, traditional analog cameras use CCDs, while network cameras deploy CMOS.


Each technology offers unique benefits. "CCD sensors typically deliver high performance in low-light environments, while CMOS sensors are better at providing WDR," Cremins said. "However, advances are being made in both areas, and we constantly look to evaluate new technology as it becomes available."


The large pixel size of CCDs captures light better, but means fewer pixels can fit on a single sensor compared to CMOS, Cheng said. CMOS have lower power consumption, enabling PoE on network cameras.


A single CMOS chip fits in more features compared to a CCD one. "CMOS technology enables all the functionality of a complete camera to be integrated on a single chip, versus more expensive and bulkier multichip solutions used in CCD," Karunakaran said.


Sensitivity
Imager sensitivity depends on the application. "Outdoor applications require a camera with good low-light sensitivity to ensure the capture of high-quality images regardless of the time of day or the weather," Cremins said. "Cameras with WDR are needed in sites with a combination of lighting sources, such as a campus building with large windows and significant natural sunlight."


An Aptina sensor enables sub-0.1 lux image performance, Cheng said.


The Pixim solution provides low-light and WDR performance, with 0.5-lux minimum illumination in color, Monti said.


Chip Size
Imager sizes vary by application. Pixim estimated 1/3-inch sensors account for 90 percent of all cameras shipped, making it the de facto sensor format.


Aptina offers 1/3-inch sensors as well as other sizes. "For the low-end market, our 1/4-inch format VGA sensor supports dual output — digital and analog," Cheng said.


Smaller sensors use smaller pixels, hurting low-light performance. "For this reason, 1/4-inch image sensors have largely been relegated to consumer and DIY applications where the best low-light performance is not an application requirement," Monti said.


High-resolution cameras prefer imagers with bigger surfaces for more pixels. "For the 1/2-inch market, we supply multimegapixel sensors — 3-megapixel,
5-megapixel and 10-megapixel — which require high-resolution and electronic PTZ functions," Cheng said.


Larger sensors come at a cost, along with taking up more space. "All 1/2-inch image sensors used for video applications are niche products, as the lens infrastructure for the 1/2-inch format is limited, and so the lenses are expensive," Monti said. "Pixim estimates 1/2-inch image sensors have less than 1-percent share in the security market."


Standards
The migration to IP enables greater connectivity, but true integration is still a long way off.


Standard compliance is considered for solutions. "We're monitoring the movement on standards, such as ONVIF and PSIA," Lim said.


Openness is becoming part of product design. "Although emerging IP standards from ONVIF and PSIA don't directly affect how we, as a manufacturer, select components, they are necessary to ease integration challenges," Cremins said. "Manufacturers, integrators and customers alike can look forward to a time when the industry abides by one standard to ensure that any IP video edge device can work with any VMS or networked DVR system. This will also allow customers to mix and match best-in-class products from different manufacturers more easily."


Standards, however, do affect component integration. "Compliance with industry standards is becoming a requirement for security equipment suppliers," Monti said.


The HDcctv standard promises to upgrade analog devices to broadcast-compliant HD video at a lower cost than megapixel cameras. At the same time, ONVIF and PSIA are tackling one of the growth inhibitors of the network camera market — vendor interoperability.


On the Horizon
A highly usable solution trumps a complex one, even if it has the latest bells and whistles. "Increasingly, organizations are demanding products that are quick and easy to install, which is forcing manufacturers to think more about the whole user experience when designing their products," Cremins said. "From camera mounting and positioning to loading software or updating firmware, you can expect technical specifications to reflect features that make system installation a more straightforward process."


Designing for ease of use will feature in component development. "The security market values easy-to-install, no-excuses, low-maintenance products," Monti said.