IP Video Surveillance and Wireless Networks - A Successful Partnership

WiMAX
Worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) supports wireless broadband access over large distances as an alternative to cable and DSL. It is different from Wi-Fi, which covers hundreds of meters; WiMAX provides coverage over kilometers.

An example is the Acuicola Marina fish farm in Spain. Its offices and a warehouse are located 3 kilometers inland, with the fish farm facilities located 10 kilometers offshore. The valuable fish stock is a target for poachers, making it difficult to police offshore facilities.

To overcome this, Acuicola Marina deployed a wireless video system. Its network infrastructure consists of a local Wi-Fi network covering the offshore facilities, with a 7 megabits per second (Mbps) WiMAX link to the on-shore offices 13 kilometers away. Along with providing security for the fish stock, it also offered operational benefits with submersible cameras monitoring fish stocks and food distribution.

Mobile Wireless Broadband
This provides high-speed Internet access through existing 3-G mobile phone networks. It is an established technology used on phones to access the Internet on the go. It can be a tool for law enforcement officers to monitor live and recorded footage from surveillance cameras on laptops mounted in police vehicles.

This was demonstrated by the integrated public video surveillance system developed in Lansing, Michigan. Here, video is streamed at 30 fps across various network technologies including ShDSL's, fiber, mesh wireless and mobile 3-G broadband. The police department's 60 vehicles each have a laptop with 3-G, allowing officers to view and control any camera in the system.

Long-term evolution (LTE) is a fourth-generation (4-G) mobile broadband standard, aimed to be the successor to 3-G. LTE offer higher throughput and low latency,providing an ideal wireless platform for IP video streaming.

Satellite
Satellite broadband access is expensive, but is often the only option for remote areas. Since data has to travel approximately 35,000 kilometers to reach its destination, latency can be more of an issue than with standard radio-based wireless networks. It can be affected by weather and climatic conditions.

A wireless surveillance system is helping to cut crime and provide a safe and secure environment at the Grand Canyon West Resort, Arizona. IP video has been deployed at the popular tourist destination, operated by the Hualapai tribe. The resort includes Skywalk, which allows visitors to “Walk the Sky” on a horseshoe-shaped glass bridge that overhangs the Grand Canyon.

Several sites, including Eagle Point (home of the Skywalk), Guano Point, a hotel, fuel depot and airport, are all centrally monitored from the airport terminal building. The facilities are located several kilometers apart and have no cabling or infrastructure between them. Each local IP network is connected using a satellite broadband network.