Secutech Int'l 2012: Industry Perspectives from Taiwan (Part 2)

Editor / Provider: a&s International | Updated: 6/19/2012 | Article type: Hot Topics

With a strong presence at Secutech in Taipei this year (April 18 to 20), Taiwanese exhibitors capitalized on home court advantage by demonstrating the latest products/solutions along with R&D prowess. As dark clouds of uncertain world economy continue to linger, hardware and software developers were eager and determined to promote more cost-effective but tailored solutions with good quality and reliability.

HI SHARP ELECTRONICS
Our new o fferings are complete HD-SDI solutions, including panoramic cameras with embedded defog function along with 1,080p resolution at 30 fps and mobile DVRs.

Our commitment to customers is to provide creative products, quality assurance and good service. Our main focus now is on HD-SDI products, and we are getting good feedback — mostly from Europe. The Southeast Asian market will be our next region of expansion in the near future. HD-SDI is just at an early adopting stage, and we believe that SDI will gain more market share with lower overall cost. We will continue promoting HD-SDI solutions and pursuing to be the No.1 provider in HD-SDI products by 2015.

Our marketing strategy is to promote new, creative products to current partners and keep finding new partners through word-of-mouth recommendations.

MERIT LILIN
We are showcasing our latest NVR series with touch screen capability. Mouse clicking and joystick moving are very “last-decade,” so we hope this new series will “touch” customers' heart.

Also, we are collaborating with Taiwanese e-learning platform design company, Mao-Lin Digital Technology. By integrating our video/audio capability with the intuitive e-learning platform, cram school students can enjoy learning even if they cannot be physically in the classroom. To meet this unique requirement from the education vertical, our WDR and HD features are quite a perfect fit.

Another unique feature is that Mao-Lin has put a QR code into video footage to prevent end users from copying or recording the video. If students try to record with their smartphone without authorization, notifications will be sent to the corresponding school or teacher.

PLUSTEK
We are demonstrating our latest hybrid recording solutions at Secutech. Our slim series features a fanless design with low power consumption, making them fit in tight corners and run silently while requiring less power than traditional DVRs and PC-based NVRs. The series is especially suitable for ATMs, transportation and traffic/city surveillance. The most challenging part was to keep everything small in size without sacrificing functionality while retaining great efficiencies in heat emissions and low power consumption. In working with numerous network camera models, the key is to maintain great relationships with camera manufacturers. Since we do not manufacture cameras ourselves, our camera partners are more willing to share their APIs.

With the overcast in Europe and North America, we are looking for more system integrators in emerging countries, such as India. To avoid price competition, we always focus on projects instead of unit-selling. By proactively attending road shows and sharing dealer/ integrator partnerships with our camera partners, we believe we are stamping a strong impression on many key local players.

QNAP SYSTEMS
On display are our full lineup of 2- to 8-drive VioStor NVR models along with the latest VS-12100U-RP Pro VioStor NVR series available in 40, 48, 56 and 64 channels with Intel quad-core Xeon E3 processors — a wide range of options to suit various needs. We feel that the current NVR market is saturated with embedded models, so we will focus more on providing high-quality NAS and CMS solutions. Our greatest strengths are our hardware reliability, heat dissipation performance, fail-over design and easy-to-use setup. We are confident that end users can complete system setup within our six steps.

While keeping steady growth in the European and North American markets, we are optimistic about the potential in Russia, South Africa and India. We have local companies with 24/7 support to meet customers' various requirements in time.

UTECHZONE
Utechzone was founded in 1992, with automated machine vision as core technology. One of our highlighted products on the show ground is the Eye Key for access control. It features the latest pupil-tracking technology, which automatically detects where the user is focusing on. Users can enter the password/code by looking at the numbers on the screen in the right sequence and unlock the door/lock, eliminating the hassles with lost or stolen keys. Applications include credit card authorizations, ATMs, bank vaults and laboratories. Our target markets at the moment are Japan and China.

VIVOTEK
We are showcasing our latest smart-stream, region-of-interest camera feature, supreme series with WDR, fisheye camera with PTZ, vari-focal features for retail applications, and a 10-megapixel trial run.

We are also demonstrating our first 5-megapixel solution, the FD8372, which has a viewing resolution of 1,080p at 30 fps. It is equipped with a smart focus system for easy installation and maintenance. Lenses with built-in stepping motors are implemented for installers to remotely control the focal length and precisely adjust the camera focus. We are very excited about the launch and are confident that many applications, such as stadiums, parking lots and industrial warehouses, will benefit from it.

ZAVIO
Our highlight this year is the latest D5210 dome camera, featuring 2 megapixels, 1,080p full HD, vari-focal auto-iris lens, removable IR-cut filter and IR LEDs. It is designed for 24/7 indoor surveillance with vivid image quality. The LEDs' working distance is up to 15 meters. The D5210 also offers PoE, micro SD local storage support and free bundled 32-channel NVR software.

Targeting home and SMB applications, our R&D is dedicated to making sure an intuitive user experience while maintaining stable and superb product quality. Whether in Europe, North America or emerging countries, we are seeing constant demand for quality products at affordable prices. We will keep focusing on meeting such demand and put forward products that best address customer needs.

Secutech Int'l 2012: Industry Perspectives from Taiwan (Part 1)

Editor / Provider: a&s International | Updated: 6/18/2012 | Article type: Hot Topics

With a strong presence at Secutech in Taipei this year (April 18 to 20), Taiwanese exhibitors capitalized on home court advantage by demonstrating the latest products/solutions along with R&D prowess. As dark clouds of uncertain world economy continue to linger, hardware and software developers were eager and determined to promote more cost-effective but tailored solutions with good quality and reliability.

BRICKCOM
Currently, most of our cameras are wired cameras; however, we see the potential of the wireless market and would like to demonstrate our R&D strengths in wireless cameras during Secutech this year. As major companies are promoting 3- to 5-megapixel network cameras this year, we will highlight and test the waters with our 3-megapixel wireless network camera and see if the market is ready for it.

COMPRO TECHNOLOGY
We feel that retail owners may not be used to the usual distorted, 360-degree fisheye view, and we are promoting our 1.3-megapixel NC2200 dome, featuring a 105-degree view, PoE and two-way communications specifically designed for retail applications. It is perfectly suited to corner deployments, and customers can take advantage of its zoom-in function along with broader view without any distortion. Also, considering the average room where the PoS system usually resides in, the size of our NVR is designed to sit beside the PoS.

Aside from our SMB/retail solutions, we are showcasing our home surveillance solutions with mobile apps and remote setup capability.

Our channel partners include retail stores and telcos. We will continue to focus on the SMB, retail and home surveillance markets, as we see these verticals demand quality cameras at affordable prices. Also, we are optimistic about the integration of home entertainment and home surveillance usually resides in, the size of our NVR is designed to sit beside the PoS.

DYNACOLOR
We are showcasing our 5-megapixel camera with quad-video streaming features so that video footage can be accessed remotely without lowering processing efficiency. We are also promoting our latest region-of-interest function that can be applied to ALPR. Plus, we will demonstrate our latest fisheye camera with zero blind spot, while featuring PTZ and two-way communications.

Through OEM projects commissioned by top brands around the world, we possess critical know-how and proven reliability to serve our clients based on their specific needs.

Via road shows and exhibitions, we will keep focusing on total solutions that combine surveillance cameras, DVRs and system control units.

ETHERWAN SYSTEMS
We are demonstrating our latest PoE switch with full 30 W from each 10/100TX port and two Gigabit ports. We are also showcasing our latest extender which works with telephone cable infrastructure reaching 300 meters at 50 Mbps and up to 1.9 kilometers at 1 Mbps.

We do notice our non-IT system integration partners' gradual and cautious approach to our PoE solution as they used to be reluctant to even consider PoE. They now have a more open attitude when purchasing PoE products.

Our greatest strength is product reliability, and we will keep updated with regional/national safety certifications and environmental compliances for harsh and extreme operations. Our target verticals will continue to revolve around harsh outdoor environments, such as transportation, utilities and industrial automation.

EVERFOCUS ELECTRONICS
We have changed our role from a manufacturer to a megapixel solution provider. We now provide IP megapixel solutions, HD-SDI solutions dedicated to gaming and banking verticals, and mobile systems. Moreover, we started our access control production in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Our highlight at the show this year is the PowerFocus Plus. The CMS can work with unlimited channels of network cameras, managing all devices on one single platform. The CMS simplifies the complexity of network surveillance management with one intuitive GUI. It has built-in zone management and alarm analysis functions, well suited for city surveillance and companies with overseas branches.

GKB SECURITY
We focus on HD surveillance, offering a free, 64-channel cloud NVR for our own IP cameras. This solution helps end users manage large-scale systems remotely and solves the usual challenges associated with monitoring and controlling.

Our solutions have been widely adopted in Southeast Asia, especially the Philippines. We mainly cooperate with distributors and system integrators overseas that have the ability to take on large-scale projects.

We are going to launch the ccHDTV system this year. The technology allows end users to use existing analog wiring infrastructure to deliver high-resolution video. This system will solve storage issues seen in HD-SDI by compressing images at the camera, sending full HD video through coaxial cable via the DVB-T standard.

ccHDTV features serial connection capability, which aligns and integrates all cameras in a complete surveillance system with just one single coaxial cable.

960H — The Future Trend of Analogue

Editor / Provider: Donna Chan | Updated: 6/18/2012 | Article type: China Corner

Entering into the high-definition and intelligent dominated era is the predominant trend for the security industry. Despite the growing demand for high-definition, this has not spelt the end for the analogue system. In fact the new hot talk of the security industry is the high-definition analogue system better known as 960H/700 TVL camera. a&s International China Best Buys, talks to China's manufacturers to reveal which direction this new trend will be heading.

Following the inevitable high resolution trend, the 960H or also known as the 700 TVL camera has debuted in the market. The main feature of this camera is its high definition and its ability to capture intricate details. The 960H solution was jointly developed by Techwell and SONY, the majority of these analogue cameras utilize SONY's newest 960H CCD sensor in conjunction with the SONY Effio DSP. The pairing of Effio DSP and this CCD has created a 960H camera which is featured by color resolution of over 650 TVL, black and white resolution of 700 TVL. In comparison with the ordinary 540 and 600 TVL analogue camera, the image quality has been enhanced.

Apart from SONY, other companies have released their own solutions and chips, Samsung have their SV5 and Panasonic have SD6. In addition to this companies such as Nextchip, Richnex and MIKTAM have developed their own 960H DSP.

Catering to Market Demands
Over the past few years the security market has been dominated by high-definition solutions and more than often news has tended to be orientated between IP and HD-SDI. In the process of providing the high-definition solution analogue has been neglected. However, according to IMS research reports between 2011 and 2015 the analogue market will continue to have a steady growth of 18.4%, suggesting that there is still demand for analogue. "Through our company statistics, industry calculations and the consideration of the current transition situation of high resolution and network integration, 960H remains one of our main solutions," said Million Wan, Director of the International Business Division at CSST.

The ever increasing demand for image quality has paved the way for 960H. "The appearance of 960H technology and front-end devices in the market are gradually becoming a trend," said Lynn Cheng, Technical Supervisor and Analogue Product Manager at Dahua Technology. "High-definition and the increasing use of the internet is the future trend, but the analogue market share still remains, therefore a transitional period has been created due to the different Internet level of different countries, this transitional period will not be short lived and this is where 960H assumes the role."

960H Advantages
From a technological point of view, the main advantage of 960H is high resolution, wide dynamic range and its steady performance in low light environments. The stability of the 960H system is the same as the traditional analogue system. Over the years the traditional analogue system has gone through refinement, therefore its mature technology has created a considerably stable system. When put into use, real-time and zero latency are not a problem, an issue which has yet to be overcome with network cameras. On the other hand although HD-SDI can deliver the high-definition and real-time playback, expensive transmission and storage costs are still a concern. "High definition products require all the related components to be high definition for it to be actually deemed as a high definition solution, also currently the IP and HD-SDI solutions are CMOS and does not perform well at night compared to CCD, this is an advantage of 960H," said Wang Zhenhua, R&D Manager at Wanjiaan.

Another main advantage of 960H is the interoperability. Front-end 960H cameras can be used with ordinary DVRs and back-end 960H DVRs can be operated with ordinary analogue cameras. The transmission remains the same as the traditional analogue system. There is no need to re-wire if end-users already have wiring for an existing analogue system, unlike the network camera where installation and interoperability remains problematic.

Analogue Setbacks
No one solution has all the answers to all the problems, the same applies to the 960H as it is not susceptible to flaws. Currently in order to reach the best results the 960H must complement 960H DVR. "Using any new solution, new problems are always encountered, in comparison to D1 analogue 960H resolution has increased by 30%. From a manufacturers' point of view, one concern is finding suitable components which complement each other, such as lens, DVR coding storage, and decoding display," said Wan.

Another fundamental setback of the 960H is its lack of technological growth, it is unable to reach 720/1080P resolution and in terms of system extension it cannot compete with the IP solution, hence why it is not suitable for large scale projects. "Its main disadvantage is its inability to provide network storage like the network camera," said Zhong Wei, Domestic Market Manager at Dowse Electronics. Moreover, according to Ying Zhongyang, Camera Engineer at Hikvision, due to the design of the 960H camera system it processes more pixels, which requires a higher frequency, therefore this complicates the design of the hardware.

Distinguishing Products
Being able to have individualistic products and providing a unique solution is what end-users expect. However, with the 960H as mentioned before the majority of these cameras are implemented with SONY's Effio and CCD, therefore being able to distinguish different manufacturers' products is where the difficulty remains. "Currently, most camera manufacturers have all released their own versions of the 960H camera, in most cases all manufacturers' have used the SONY Effio-E solution therefore, there is no substantial difference in terms of image quality, the main differences remain with outer design and functions," said Huang Liang, Product Manager at Tiandy. "This problem applies not only to analogue cameras, but also network cameras, it is chip manufacturers who have the core technology," said Stephen Wong, Executive Director of Coop Security.

"The majority of 960H camera solutions all utilize SONY Effio, our aim apart from utilizing the chips solution to the fullest is also to pay close attention to the stability and quality of our products," said Cheng. Other manufacturers have added different technology to their product line in order to give their product a unique edge. "Using SONY references, we do a ground up design based on our own technology, we consider heat issues and installation into multiple housing shapes and formats," said Ann Wu, Vice President of Sunell Technology. "In comparison with other 960H cameras in the market, our products have been implemented with mechanical filter switching technology, which allows the product to operate at its best whether in terms of color restoration or infrared illumination," said Zhong.

The Future for High Definition Analogue
The future for the 960H camera remains bright, according to Chinese manufacturers. "In the future, 960H camera will become the main market trend, it will replace other analogue cameras in the market due to its inexpensive price, there is still room for lowering of prices," said Huang. Further developments which can be anticipated for the product are largely the same and are dictated by market requirements and demands. "However, a main concern is that 960H CCD and ISP solution will be dominated by a monopoly, which will cause front-end manufacturers into homogenization and pricing wars," said Wong.

"What to look out for in the future is manufacturers' releasing top quality and innovative products, this should not be based primarily on image quality but other criteria such as functions," said Ying. "What needs to be emphasized is that image quality is not based on high resolution alone, other factors such as wide dynamic range and low lux are also part of the criteria, and any technological breakthrough in this area should be greatly anticipated by the market."

Now that market has become familiar with 960H the question of the release of an analogue camera with an even higher resolution is something which comes to mind. "Currently in the market there is not an analogue solution which exceeds 960H/700 TVL in resolution, even if a new solution is to become readily available it will require approximately two years before it can fully expand in the market," said Cheng. Wan agrees with this, he further states that there is currently no new developments for the product in terms of higher resolution, the costs of a higher resolution CCD solution would prove to be rather costly.

1280H solution should not be ruled out. "In terms of technology it is possible to reach 1280H, but this will depend on the market," said Ying. "But should the resolution exceed 960H, then it will be a CMOS solution which is required," said Wang. Wu further develops this point stating that there is uncertain future for CCD sensors unless the CMOS solution cannot perform with the higher resolutions, but it is expected that CMOS will be the dominant force for analogue.

The future outlook of 960H from China's manufacturers is that over the next few years this product will replace the traditional analogue system, however it is agreed between the manufacturers it will become the main stream analogue trend, but it will also only be a transitional product until IP and HD-SDI technology becomes mature.

Preparations for IP Video Storage

Editor / Provider: a&s International | Updated: 6/12/2012 | Article type: Tech Corner

- Users can reserve channels in advance, so that no additional cost is required
- Servers are better at handling larger expansions.
- Proper planning by consultants or integrators is a key requirement for a cost-effective solution meeting the required security levels

A very important consideration when setting up a video surveillance system is foreseeable expansion. The number of channels that an end user foresees expanding will have implications during the original installation. Small expansions are easily accommodated. Since NVRs come with specific channel numbers, extra channels can be saved for future expansion. “For future expansion, users can reserve channels in advance, so that no additional cost is required,” said Ricky Law, Sales Engineer at Ensec Solutions. However, adding extra appliances will require system downtime and rewiring.

Servers are better at handling larger expansions. Extra cost is needed in additional licenses for additional channels, but extra servers may not be needed as extra hard-disk drives (HDDs) can be directly added to existing servers.

Failsafe Measures
For added assurance, common points of failure should also be considered. By thinking ahead, the amounts of downtime and lost data can be minimized. As HDD failures occur frequently, many vendors offer servers and appliances with RAID options for video surveillance: 0, 1, 5 and 6. Hardware RAID is more expensive and is better at preserving data. Software RAID is less expensive but requires more processing power. If your data is mission-critical, hardware RAID may be a safer bet. “When NVR activity exceeds NVR capacity, when NVRs fail, and when NVRs are upgraded, these all require manual intervention in the field and can lead to system downtime,” said Lee Caswell, founder and Chief Strategy Officer, Pivot3.

Design features could help minimize the damage or downtime from an NVR or server. The number of channels per server or NVR could be limited to reduce the number of black cameras in the case of a server or NVR failure, Stephen Beckmann, Video Product Marketing Manager in EMEA, American Dynamics, (a Tyco Security Products company).” suggested. Backup storage, perhaps in the form of another NVR, could be configured in hot failover mode, to take over when the first NVR fails. Due to the flexibility of NVRs, an integrator can simply bring a dysfunctional NVR back to the laboratory to do repair work and minimize cost, whereas the service required with PC servers is much more intensive and requires longer hours out in the field, Law said.

Bigger Picture
A recording and storage solution that accounts for all of these factors — system architecture, storage distribution, system management, computing power, stability issues, foresight — will be better able to cope with the end user's current and future needs, and be more cost-effective in the long run. “Proper planning by consultants or integrators is a key requirement for a cost-effective solution meeting the required security levels,” said Beckmann.

It can get very complicated with large jobs, Larson cautioned. A recently completed video installation with 1,900 megapixel cameras fed video information into 40 servers, and then passed the information into a SAN for centralized, long-term storage. “In this scenario, you can't just take in all the cameras to the 40 servers, and then have all the 40 servers send all those cameras to the central storage,” said Tom Larson, Director of Global Accounts, BCDVideo. The case was handled by holding storage in the servers for a day or two, before dumping the data from the servers into the storage array on a schedule. This meant that a lower-performance SAN and a lower-bandwidth network could be used, reducing the overall cost. “If you had 30 to 40 servers do live storage, it could get very, very expensive.”

As the vast majority of monitoring was going to be done in store, with occasional bandwidth passing outside of gas stations, only a series of NVRs were used to achieve what was needed. A suitable video installation can come with a reasonable price tag.

“You have to start planning and engineering the total solution early on,” Larson said.

Keeping IP Video Reliable and Resilient

Editor / Provider: a&s International | Updated: 6/11/2012 | Article type: Tech Corner

- Window-based software is more prone to stability issues, hacker issues and requires firewalls.
- Linux-based software is comparatively low-maintenance.
- When PCs play a bigger role in the recording and movement of data, the processing power is of greater importance.

In IP-enabled environments, management software is just as important as any piece of hardware. Windows-based software is easier for R&D, and thus usually has more advanced functions than embedded software. On the other hand, Window-based software is more prone to stability issues, hacker issues and require firewalls. “Firewalls aren't necessary with a Linux-embedded system,” said Andrew Yu, Security PM at Qnap Systems. “It's a little more difficult for R&D, but for end users, it's much less likely to attract hackers or viral infections.”

The firewall may conflict with third-party VMS, however. “For daily operation of a PC plus servers, there is a risk that the firewall or anti-virus software may crash with the recording function,” said Ricky Law, Sales Engineer at Ensec Solutions. There may also be compatibility issues between the management software and the PC's operating system (OS). “This can only be solved through firmware updates from the manufacturer. Even then, the firmware may not be stable and may require the system integrator's constant attention or frequent adjustment.”

Another problem that could arise is that VMS developers may stop updating their software. “System upgrades or expansions, which might be needed for extra functions or new cameras, could become challenging,” Law said. It would be more difficult for end users who only have basic IT knowledge to solve these problems.

Linux-based software is comparatively low-maintenance. “With a hardened Linux OS, the service and maintenance cost for a video server is close to nothing, because a software update is the only requirement when the end user wants the latest video features,” said Stephan Beckmann, Video Product Marketing Manager for EMEA, American Dynamics (a Tyco Security Products company).

Power Play
PC capabilities should also be taken into consideration in installations with client-server architecture. If the PC is just a client, then the failure of that PC will not affect the main recording and storage. This is helpful as users' PC habits can be unpredictable. “Sometimes, we don't know what the user will use on that PC,” said Aaron Yeh, Sales and Marketing Director for Surveon Technology. “If the user runs a lot of applications on the same client, this can cause the client to crash. A modularized design, however, will not impact the recording server.”

But if the processing power of the hardware within the monitoring station is not enough, users may attribute lag to the system, when actually the PC is at fault. “One of the most underrated issues is the processing power of the computerused to monitor video streams,” said Florence Shih, GM of Thecus Technology. “Displaying dozens of cameras on four to six screens requires a lot of CPU power than most would expect, and users may experience a major system slowdown, but when in fact, it's a simple lack of processing power from the monitoring station.”

When PCs play a bigger role in the recording and movement of data, the processing power is of greater importance. “High-end PCs are required for deployment in a complex environment, as performance of management software is heavily dependent on computing power,” said Syo Luo, Product Specialist at Synology. In such cases, splitting functions among different PCs is advised. “To reduce loading, some solutions provide two PCs to perform live view and recording, respectively.”

Sending Security Video Through Thin Air

Editor / Provider: a&s International | Updated: 6/13/2012 | Article type: Tech Corner

The wireless technology market for security is growing at a double-digit rate, as systems become easier to user and more cost-effective. Beyond city surveillance, there are other surveillance applications where wireless networks show a lot of promise, including transportation/transit, utilities and remote industries.

Wireless technology is becoming more capable of handling burdensome video data that is needed for backhauling video surveillance. “A low-end HD camera today requires 3-Mbps TCP/IP throughput,” said Xu Zou, Senior Director for Outdoor Strategy and Technologies, Aruba Networks. “Some high-end HD cameras demand 50 Mbps and above useful throughput.” Most companies seem to adopt MIMO radios that allow for redundancy in the network. However, there is some debate and tension among different technologies.

For video installations of more than one camera, one of two topologies is often used: mesh or point-to-multipoint (P2MP).

Mesh is appealing because of its flexibility and its ability to get around barriers and line-of sight (LOS) issues. Mesh is able to create dedicated streams for each HD camera. “A best practice is to have a multiradio, multifrequency architecture so dedicated radios are used for each HD video stream, rather than one radio carrying multiple streams,” Zou said. Mesh can also create redundant paths if one path is not working. “Networks should always be designed with redundancy in mind.”

According to Zou, there are four issues that may cause degradation during wireless transmission, especially if multiple hops are involved: packet loss, packet reordering, delay and jitter. Given the multiple hops that may be necessary to backhaul video, some problems such as variable data rates and bandwidth spikes could arise for the video data. “H.264 is especially sensitive to packet loss and jitter with its high compression ratio, as each frame carries more video quality information,” Zou said. “If any frame is lost, reordered, delayed or experiences varied latency (jitter), the overall video quality is likely to degrade.”

Geoffrey Smith, VP of Business Development and Strategic Accounts, Proxim Wireless, argues that instead of mesh, it is better to use P2MP topologies so that data travels along a deterministic path, and radios work in a coordinated manner. “One master radio controls the access of all the other radios connected to it. A scheduled or poling mechanism controls all the communications among all the radios. It's like a traffic cop. The traffic cop controls traffic flow over a given wireless network, whereas wireless mesh works like stop signs. In rush hour, it will take you longer to get through stop signs than traffic lights.”

While P2MP might be more reliable, others argue that it might be less able to handle the high bandwidth generated by megapixel cameras. “Traditional P2MP wireless backhaul technology works well with traditional low-resolution cameras,” Zou said, “but a single radio-based P2MP architecture is unlikely to provide sufficient bandwidth for multiple HD cameras because of each camera's high-throughput requirements.”

Ensuring that radios connected to megapixel cameras are able to handle the data rates will go a long way in ensuring a P2MP deployment will work. “You need to understand the capacity required by each radio when planning a wireless network. For HD or megapixel, sometimes cameras require 10s of Mbps of throughput, and some 360-degree cameras require 20 Mbps of capacity. So you need to ensure your infrastructure can handle more than 100 Mbps of capacity to support multiple cameras in the same network,” Smith said. “P2MP MIMO radios can easily handle this capacity, supporting many megapixel cameras in a single network of distances exceeding several miles.”

Given that most of today's wireless offerings are proprietary products, the results of wireless deployments can vary from vendor to vendor. “Designing a camera wireless backhaul network could include disparate solutions such as mesh, point-to-point (P2P) and P2MP. For example, in challenging LOS locations, a mesh topology could be used to bring the video from the cameras to an aggregation point. The video can then be backhauled using P2P/ P2MP/fiber back to the storage or viewing location,” said Mrinalini Lakshminarayanan, Video Solutions Strategist, Motorola Solutions. “Most of the time, a combination of different solutions are used, including leveraging as much wired as possible. This is done based on specific location, interference, LOS and accessibility issues.”

Minnesota Twins Enhances Fan Experience With Avigilon

Editor / Provider: Avigilon | Updated: 6/7/2012 | Article type: Commercial Markets

Avigilon announced that Target Field, the home of the Minnesota Twins baseball team for the 2012 baseball season, has deployed the Avigilon high-definition surveillance system to gain complete coverage of the facility and provide immediate access to clear video footage of fan disturbances, medical emergencies, and customer service levels to enhance the entertainment experience of its more than 3.3 million annual guests. The Avigilon high-definition surveillance system was selected for its impressive image clarity, intuitive user interface, and storage capacity.

“With so much traffic onsite, we need to control building access, ensure that no dangerous materials enter the facility, verify that health and safety standards and guest service expectations are being met, and address fan-related issues quickly to ensure the safety of all guests,” said Dave Horsman, senior director of ballpark operations for the Minnesota Twins Baseball Club. “Avigilon provides three times the image resolution, integrates easily with our access control system and IT infrastructure, and delivers up to 65 days of storage capacity while staying within budget, giving us the best possible return on investment.”

Security personnel manage the high-definition surveillance solution in the Ballpark Operations Center and Event Command Center using the Avigilon Control Center network video management software (NVMS) with High-Definition Stream Management (HDSM) technology. Target Field installed a combination of 170 fixed and Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) cameras throughout the facility, installing Avigilon HD cameras ranging from1 MP to 16 MP at all entrances/exits, concourses, gates, back-of-house areas, parking lots, and on the exterior of the building for complete coverage. The stadium also relies on several Avigilon analog video encoders to improve the performance of its other surveillance cameras. Target Field has installed eight Avigilon Network Video Recorders (NVRs) to store up to 65 days of continuous surveillance footage and will also take advantage of the Avigilon Control Center Mobile solution for the first time this baseball season.

Target Field was able to easily integrate the Avigilon high-definition surveillance system into its network infrastructure for greater redundancy and its access control system for improved security while meeting its 65 day storage capacity requirement and staying within budget. Using Avigilon Control Center, the stadium has dramatically expedited its response times with quicker access to more and better information to handle situations appropriately. Target Field relies on the Avigilon system to monitor building access and traffic, manage employee safety and productivity, and enhance guest service. It has also prevented 18 complaints related to guest behavior or injuries from becoming claims, which require time and dollars to defend against.

“Like all baseball stadiums, Target Field must be prepared to handle fan disturbances, accidents, customer service complaints, and other issues such as foul balls and broken bats as efficiently and effectively as possible,” said Keith Marett, VP marketing and communications at Avigilon.

Security 50 Annual Summit: Convergence in 2012

Editor / Provider: Jill Lai | Updated: 6/5/2012 | Article type: Security 50

Going IP is a clear trend in security. In Asia, the migration from analog to IP is just about to take off. More new solutions, services and business models are being introduced to the market, which inevitably bring more opportunities as well as challenges. For the first time, a&s International planned and organized the Annual Security 50 Summit at Secutech 2012 in Taipei from April 18 to 20, where top solution providers, including Axis Communications, Bosch Security Systems, Fermax, Honeywell Security, Milestone Systems and Verint Systems, had a roundtable discussion on convergence, market drivers and innovative ways to overcome business hurdles. At the summit, seasoned panelists shared their experience, viewpoints and modus operandi in further advancing the security industry. Here is a summary of the event highlights.

Panelists:
Fan Look, VP of North Asia, Axis Communications
James Feng, Mid Segment Product Marketing, Business Leader in China and Director for APAC at Honeywell Security
Kenneth Tsang, Director of R&D and Product Marketing, Video Intelligence Solutions of Verint Systems
Koen Rommel, VP of Sales for the China Region, Bosch Security Systems
Mads Bo Frederiksen, Director of Sales and Marketing for Asia, Milestone Systems
Wilson Teo, MD of APAC at Fermax

Education is Key
Education for Market Awareness
Axis and Milestone originally came from the IT industry. Axis invented their first IP cameras in 1996 and Milestone was founded in 1998 to be an open platform VMS provider. Verint was founded in 1994, with Actionable Intelligence solutions. These companies have advocated the advantages of IP solutions in security industry for a quite while. They provide education to help their partners and the security market bridge the technological gap from analogue to IP.

Dr. Kenneth Tsang, Director of R&D and Product Marketing, Video Intelligence Solutions of Verint Systems, pointed out “The CCTV platform is not open. With the introduction of IP technology, we are able to create an open platform now, which makes a great difference between CCTV and IP. We spent time educating our partners and the market what IP is. Now, we also would like to call attention to the situational management for the flood of information nowadays, and how IP solutions could support you to make a quick decision on large amounts of information from a variety of systems and sources.”

“Lacking enough education is the biggest barrier to the technology migration in the market. In North Asia, we spent much more time educating the market why IP cameras are better than analogue cameras. Now, we often talk about why Axis products are better than others. As one of the global leading IP camera manufacturers, we quite focus on the education toward our partners, end customers, consultants and the market as a whole,” said Fan Look, Vice President of North Asia, Axis Communications.

Education to Get IP Competitive
For the traditional security solution providers, the challenges come from not only the market awareness but also how they acquire the IP knowledge and mindset to adapt to the IP trend. Bosch has well developed their complete IP product lines ranging from video surveillance, access control to intrusion alarm and fire by recruiting new staff with IT background. Koen Rommel, Vice President of Sales, Bosch Security Systems, China also stressed that they had overcame the gap and acquired the full knowledge of IP through the training programs toward their internal (R&D) teams and sales teams. After that, they are able to focus on education toward their customers, system integrators and end-users. The 2nd phase of their training focus will be more about management software--how to adopt open standards to make their products easy to be integrated with and compatible for other security devices.

Honeywell Security Group acquired their IP technology around 2005 to 2006. Again, James Feng, mid segment product marketing director APAC and mid-segment business leader China of Honeywell Security Group, mentioned about the importance of their multi-education program-- towards internal employees and also partners. The multi-education helps their partners know not only what IP is but front-end transmission, storage, large screen display as well as security system integration technologies. Besides, they also focus on how to co-work with their partners to succeed in market space with the IP integrated solution.

Feng said they would ask their partners to understand what customers really need first, which proves to be more likely to generate results when customer needs are taken into full consideration. Honeywell would not just emphasize the advantage of IP but tend to give their partners the full knowledge about what system could be most suitable for them—analogue, hybrid or IP. “We should really understand our customers and help fix their problems along the way.”

Global Presence with a Local Touch
The more converged the market gets, the more technical supports the customers need from you. Multi-national companies may win with the global resources and knowledge, but may be weak at building the local networks. Delivering the right products and services to the specific market should be key. To fulfill specific needs for markets, Milestone regularly congregates regional partners from different countries to understand their actual demands and problems locally and then adapt their local sales and marketing strategies to special markets. “Every country is different. Compared to European and US markets, Asia has more high-rising residential projects and asks for more new functions in the products. The conventional system could not fulfill this demand. Fermax, with its core business in intercom, developed a new IP-based intercom, able to integrate with home automation systems, in just one single panel, which will be the real value added for Asia,” said Wilson Teo, Managing Director of Fermax Asia Pacific.

A multi-national company with global coverage and leadership can easily leverage their experience in the matured markets, such as the US, to Asia. “We should pick and choose the right content from the global to the local markets. Our local team also speaks the local language to meet our client's requirements,” said Look.

Localization is also the ability for customization. In addition to choosing the local languages used in local marketing materials, software and training, the level of customization directly reflects the ability for integration too, pointed out by Dr. Tsang. “We should make sure if we could provide the right and compatible vertical solutions for local vertical market sectors,” added Rommel. “When the client comes to us, we never say no. We have to fulfill every end-user's requirements. With the open platform, our local teams can respond fast locally to deliver the right solutions for our local clients,” continued Dr. Tsang.

Honeywell concluded that in order to serve better our local customers, the company needs to “be locally competitive” as a team--including sales, R&D, marketing and technical support as well as customer service teams—close to local customers, listen to the voice of customers and drive speed-to-market of innovative new products and solutions.

Addressing the Needs for End Users
The converged security market attracts more new players from IT industry. Security suppliers also quite welcome all the new partners from both IT and security fields. How well can the companies implement IP technology in security industry and how soon can they deliver the right products and services to their customers should always be considered before the sales. For system integrators, it is important to understand end-users' needs. Through education and training, system integrators can learn how to address their problems and fulfill their needs by the right technology. That would be the foundation for the long-term relationship with customers.

“The future for security is definitely IP. It is important to catch up with this trend and be well prepared for the IP future. Whatever you prepare for, you need to prepare for your end users. During the transitional time, you have to stay on the same page with your customers and end-users. You have to understand more about the existing situation of your customers and their future operation plan to keep the same pace with them. Therefore, you should not only serve your customers on single project base, but instead you need to build the long-term relationship with your customers,” Feng concluded.

Secutech 2012: Key Findings about Standardization, Storage and Cloud-Based Services

Editor / Provider: The Editorial Team | Updated: 5/23/2012 | Article type: Hot Topics

Interoperability
Interoperability for IP-based video surveillance systems is still a problem, as ONVIF is still not mature as a standard, yet. Products that are ONVIF compliant are not necessarily interoperable. Downward compatibility is another problem that generates confusion and frustration. The lack of coordination between cameras and other products ultimately cause headaches for systems integrators. Progress, however, is being made.

ONVIF recently introduced its "profile" concept, which is intended to allow users to "identify features supported by a profile without determining the compatibility between versions of the ONVIF specification." Instead of looking up whether specific devices using ONVIF 2.0 or later are compatible with clients that conform to ONVIF 1.0, users simply choose a profile that "offers interoperability at a specific functional level between units and software that fits their needs."

Currently, only one profile has been introduced: Profile S. It "describes the common functionalities shared by ONVIF conformant video management systems and devices such as IP cameras or encoders that sends, configures, requests or controls the streaming of media data over an IP network. The profile includes specific features such as pan, tilt, zoom control, audio streaming and relay outputs." ONVIF promises more profiles are coming this year, and that they will ease the product selection process for users.

Storage
As the quality of video increases, so will the storage capacity required to store the larger images. Seagate estimates video surveillance generates around 18 million terabytes of data per week. However, simply using additional, larger hard drives is not the solution. Many additional problems arise when more hard drives are needed, such as tighter spaces, higher temperatures, stronger vibration and increased power consumption. The accumulated affect reduces reliability and performance of a video surveillance system.

Seagate and Western Digital are touting storage solutions specific for video surveillance to address its unique storage requirements. Both hard drive giants have products targeting video, placing emphasis on tailored performance, lower energy consumption, reduced vibration, higher reliability and longer MTBF.

Hard drives had a disastrous 2011, with prices hikes in rare earth metals and natural disasters in Japan and Thailand. Though the worst is behind us, it may take until Q3 or Q4 for production to return to previous levels. As of march, supply for high-capacity hard drives is still constrained.

Regarding solid-state storage, price per gigabyte is difficult to justify when a lot of storage is required. Currently, SSD remains complementary technology that is best suited for applications that require exceptional performance, but can get by with low storage capacity. Beyond 500GB, SSD becomes cost prohibitive for most applications.

The cost for SD cards, on the other hand, is continuously dropping, though storage capacity remains static. While SDXC has been increasingly used in the consumer market, few camera manufacturers support beyond HCSD, which maxes out at 32GB. As storage on edge devices becomes more and more common and prices drop for SD cards that are capable of 64GB and beyond, perhaps more manufacturers will soon support the new standard.

Cloud-Based Services
A big trend in security is the adoption of cloud-based services and generation of RMR. Mobile platforms and cloud-based services are either ready or planned, with camera and access control manufacturers preparing for the inevitable boom of mobile devices. However, there seems to be few open platforms when it comes to the cloud. At the moment, manufacturers are still playing their own games. In addition, while cloud-based services will no doubt become common in the near future, vendors still need to address concerns over data security and bandwidth consumption.

Chinese manufacturers may have a disadvantage when it comes to networks and data. Australia recently banned Chinese network vendor Huawei from bidding on contracts for Australia's National Broadband Network. Considering the allegations regarding China's cyber attacks on the rest of the world, users may not be comfortable with entrusting their data to Chinese companies or companies that reside their servers in China.

In Other News
Many camera manufacturers are touting improved low light performance and WDR, which has become pretty much a standard feature. Also, average megapixel count seems to be increasing to three megapixels, though the current sweet spot is still at two. Cameras with wireless connectivity are also becoming increasingly common.

Momentum of 180/360-degree imaging continues to build up, with camera manufacturers introducing or refreshing their 180/360-degree imaging solutions. Chip manufacturers such as Ambarella, Avisonic Technology, Geo Semiconductor, Intersil Techwell and Nextchip are also building hardware-based lens distortion compensation into their chips. In addition, whereas in the past camera manufacturers generally had to convince software vendors to support dewarping for their 180/360 cameras, ImmerVision's "ImmerVision Enables" ecosystem ensures compatibility with other certified products. Many major VMS vendors already support the technology.

Video surveillance also gains depth of view with Huperlab's stereo 3-D camera. Using two lenses instead of one, the stereo camera mimics the human eye and calculates depth in the scene, which greatly enhances the practicality of video analytics by eliminating many types of false positives.

An interesting product introduced by Utechzone is a credential authorization terminal that utilizes pupil-tracking technology. Specializing in gaze-based interaction devices for people with motor impairments, Utechzone takes their technology to security. The technology allows users to enter passcodes into the terminal via pupil movement, complete with virtual panic and intercom "buttons."

Refining the experience of using existing product types is also critical. Attempting to address configuration irritations, Merit LILIN introduced an NVR that allows configuration via touch screen; no keyboard or mouse required. To reduce installation pains, PoE is included in more product types and is now better accepted than it was a year ago.

Time and attendance loggers are also increasingly moving away from paper or tokens. Systems from manufacturers like Hundure Technology and Fingertec bring biometrics into this area, though markets with stronger hygiene awareness may prefer contactless options, such as face recognition, over fingerprint or finger vein recognition.

Another product trend is entry-level cameras targeted at home surveillance and retail. Utilizing existing expertise to design consumer-oriented products is a smart move, as the potential volume is huge. The market, in terms of units shipped, for DIY video surveillance cameras has been doubling each year, and is expected to surpass professional security in the next few years. Characteristics are wireless, high-resolution network cameras that are low cost, aesthetically pleasing and easy to use.

Secutech 2012: HD Remains Strong; HD-SDI still in Early Adoption Phase

Editor / Provider: The Editorial Team | Updated: 5/22/2012 | Article type: Hot Topics

With relatively weaker markets in Western Europe and North America, and first-to-market opportunities forgone in BRIC, the next gold rush lies in CIVETS. In these price-sensitive markets, it is easy to become engaged in price wars when Chinese competitors offer hard-to-beat prices.

Manufacturers should be aware that channel partners are changing their business models, shifting from dumb box-moving to solution-oriented packages. Compared to the consumer market, volumes in physical security is much smaller and requires much more customization, communication and technical support — a margin of 10 percent is simply not good enough.

Fortunately, the industry is refocusing on helping channel partners adjust for increasingly complex technologies while also maintaining sustainable profits. Simplifying installation and configuration processes is an effective way to help systems integrators control their costs.

Diffusion of Innovations
The diffusion of innovations explains how new ideas and technologies are adopted over time. In this theory, five characteristics of an innovation influence a person's tendency toward adopting an innovation: relative advantage of the new technology, compatibility with existing systems, simplicity compared to existing implementations, the ability to test the new technology and the visibility of the change.

Currently, around 90 percent of video surveillance systems are still analog. In terms of units shipped, analog systems will still out-ship IP-based systems for years to come. While there is little doubt that HD is the future of video surveillance, the transition has not been as quick as anticipated. Not only because of the increased complexity and additional required skillsets, but also the fact that many channel players still have a lot of analog stock to clear up.

With HD-SDI still in its adolescence, network cameras remain the Primary means toward HD video surveillance. That sales revenue for network cameras will outsell analog ones is mainly driven by demand for better image quality, which has not been an easy demand to satisfy. Besides the difficult transition from the elegantly simple analog world where everything just works, other headaches appear when considering HD video, such as transmission, storage and compatibility. Multiple solutions have been proposed to help ease adoption of HD video surveillance by reducing complexity. This year they appear to be more mature, marching forward at a steady pace.

HD via Coax
Sony's money is on SLOC, a technology advocated by Intersil Techwell and marketed by Sony as "IP over coax." SLOC allows SLOC-enabled network cameras to run through existing coaxial cables, along with the analog cameras that are already in place. Products are finally coming to market that combine the low latency and simplicity of analog with HD video, all while allowing existing infrastructure to be reused.

HD-SDI is another alternative path toward HD. Manufacturers have significantly improved performance and reliability of their devices and it seems like total solutions are finally materializing, with DVRs now capable of recording 16 channels at 7 to 10 fps, up from four channels at 2 fps. Companies like Calsys are also beginning to boast total solutions and large-scale installations. Adoption for HD-SDI is picking up and prices are expected to drop in Q3 or Q4.

Something new popped up as well. ccHDTV is another technology that allows end users to capitalize on existing analog wiring infrastructure to deliver 1,080p video. New it may be — indeed, a Google search does not bring up anything — it is another response to the market, which demands simplicity and maximizing value of existing investments. ccHDTV claims to be "the best… HD solution without all the network hassles and HD-SDI infrastructure limitation." It also attempts to resolve storage issues seen in HD-SDI by compressing images at the camera, sending full HD video through coaxial cables via the DVB-T standard. The main markets it wishes to tackle are large-scale installations in South East Asia.

For the time being, many manufacturers are riding on both the IP and HD-SDI trains, waiting for the fog to clear. In any case, much emphasis has been placed on simplifying things for users and channel partners. When it comes to system architecture, installation, operation or maintenance costs, simplicity is something all parties appreciate.

In terms of education, training the SI on how to use products effectively is critical, since they are the ones that are pushing the products to the end user. On the end user's side, the increasing collaboration required between IT and security departments means that both parties must be equally informed of how a particular product will affect other components in the system.

Tides of Change
Never say never when it comes to technology. Even Apple's iPad was heavily criticized before it took the world by fire. IP-based video surveillance, HD over coax and many other technologies were all at some point "crazy ideas" (some still are). While disruptive products and services generally experience slow uptake due to caution or lack of understanding, it takes time for awareness to trickle down the distribution chain.

However, what is most important is the value delivered by these new technologies to the customer. While innovation is appreciated in any industry, not all innovation is equal. Manufacturers must get their heads out of the sand if they wish to develop compelling solutions that truly cater to their customers. At the end of the day, those who value and provide value to customers are the ones that walk away with a big smile and a fat check, while those who fail to adapt to new demands from the market will ultimately suffer.