CCTV Products

Aug 1, 1997 12:00 PM, Staff

The MR-7 seven-inch dome housing from Videolarm, Decatur, Ga., accepts one fixed camera and is designed to be installed from below a suspended or hard-surface ceiling. It can be installed by cutting a hole in the ceiling and placing the unit inside. Once the unit is in place, wing clamps swing out from the inside of the dome and clamp to the ceiling. The top of the MR-7 is fire-rated metal and meets all fire codes, according to the maker.

The Millennium series of digital video security products from DigiSpec Corp., Westlake Village, Calif., includes the MS-4, MS-9, MS-16 and MS-16B/W. Features of the series include: printing video alarm pictures directly to printers; digital tours and salvos; four-, nine- or 16-image display of alarm events; indoor/outdoor digital motion and activity detection with day/night settings. The series also allows up to four video sequences to be programmed and assigned to two video outputs. Timer functions can be linked to video switching sequences and motion detection activity.

Display cameras in quad, full-screen or freeze-frame with the JQ603 real-time monochrome quad from Javelin Systems, Torrance, Calif. Features include: a built-in automatic sequential switcher, built-in video loss detection, relay output, looping inputs, remote control and a time/date/title generator. Available in EIA andCCIR models, the quad is available as a separate product or combined with Javelin cameras.

The model MN421E DSP CCD color micro camera permits one camera control unit with 1/2-inch CCD and 1/4-inch CCD camera head interchangeability, according to maker Elmo Mfg., New Hyde Park, N.Y. It delivers more than 470 TV lines (H) resolution and features an automatic electronic shutter ranging from 1/60 to 1/50,000 second. The shutter also incorporates nine selectable speeds from 1/60 - 1/10,000. The camera head weighs 0.6 ounce without lens/cable and measures 0.67 inch in diameter and 1.53 inches in length. Illumination is 5 lux at F1.6 to 2 lux at F1.0. Other features include an on-screen menu display and RS232C control through a PC. S-Video and composite outputs are built in.

Adpro Axiom, a modular, outdoor remote video intrusion detection system, can be used stand-alone or can be integrated into existing systems. From Vision Systems, Hingham, Mass., the system features an alarm-homing, auto-sequencing video switcher and a print-logging facility. Automatic "scene-learning" detects genuine intruders and rejects alarms from wind-induced movements and shadows, and "enviro-filters" adjust for clouds, rain and snow, according to the maker. Other features include perspective-compensated sizing, speed measurements, target tracking and more than 1,000 detection zones.

It looks like a mirror but it is a camera in a housing. From Visual Methods, Westwood, N.J., the HC401 Series Mirror Cyclops features a plastic front mirror, a painted steel housing (not visible once mounted), concealed mounting hardware and tamperproof screws. Model HC401 uses a 420 TV line, 0.1 lux monochrome CCD camera, and the wide-angle lens provides a 100-degree field of view. Model HC401C uses a 330 TV line, 5 lux color CCD camera and views through a small aperture.

The Instant View SD300X remote management and security system features video transmission at up to three frames per second, simultaneous two-way audio and monitoring of up to 192 cameras. From Los Angeles-based International Protection Security Systems (IPSS), the SD300X transmitter, with software, converts a remotely located CCTV system into a video monitoring system through a standard phone line. DOS and Windows 95 compatible, the system can be activated by motion detection through a regular camera or connection to an existing alarm system.

Camera raising and lowering systems allow designers to place cameras at efficient heights, minimizing the number needed to provide coverage, and increasing field of view, according to Camera Lowering Systems (CLS), Broadview, Ill. A disconnect unit incorporates a multi-pin, electrical connector that directs camera functions such as power supply and video signal. The system also features components sealed in a stainless steel chamber and a contact suspension system.

New systems from Meridian Technologies, Inwood, N.Y., transmit bi-directional signals on one fiber strand. Series PT/PR-300iR-V8/8 are frequency modulated fiber-optic video and duplex RS-485 data that interface to the Panasonic Proteus PTZ control system, and Series PT/PR-600iR-V2D interface to Proteus and the VD2 Panasonic camera in which sync is also transmitted. Stand-alone modules operate on 12VDC or 24VAC. Card units are rack-mountable in EIA 19-inchx3Ux18 slot sub-racks and feature SpectraSmart, a microprocessor-based link status monitoring, diagnostics and network management tool.

Choose full- or split-screen viewing in live, record or playback mode with model CMX-400, a four-channel color duplex multiplexer from Chugai Boyeki, Commack, N.Y. A trigger input synchronizes the multiplexer for time-lapse recording. The unit also provides channel alarm inputs with alarm notification.

The Clockwatch is a fully functional clock radio with a CCTV camera and an FCC-approved wireless transmitter built in. From Adler Video Systems, Glendale, Calif., it comes with a matching receiver and can be operational in minutes using any video monitor or television, according to the maker.

A line of varifocal and fixed lenses is available in the United States and Canada from Japan-based Tokina Industrial, which now has offices in California and New York. Heading the new lens line is model TVR-331, a 1/3-inch varifocal F1.4 that has a focal length of 3.3 to 8mm. It is available as a manual, DC or video-type iris lens.

Where are we going?

Darrell D. Gray

I installed my first time-lapse VTR system in 1971. It included five cameras, a sequencer, VTR (reel-to-reel) and a 9-inch monitor. The time-lapse was 108 hours on a 7-inch reel of 1/2-inch re-usable video tape. We had a closet in which to store our hundreds of tapes. The picture resolution was 300 lines, and if you manually positioned the tape, you could obtain a stable picture on the monitor for at least 2 or 3 seconds - enough time to snap a Polaroid picture, and presto, we were in the CCTV business.

But 26 years later, that sounds like the performance spec for jobs we are still installing. Why?

Wouldn't it be great if we could capture pictures only of persons detected by a reliable method? Wouldn't it be possible to encode alarm data into the vertical interval of the video signal from the camera, combining the picture and "alarm" on the same camera coaxial cable? Pictures and alarms from multiple camera locations could be constantly polled and examined by a computer. When an alarm is identified, the computer could command the corresponding coaxial camera cable to initiate a series of captures.

Think about finding any captured picture in less than 1 second. Why couldn't the computer store each picture such that time/date and an identification number would be remembered? Camera location and "alarm" number could be remembered as well.

Finally, digital pictures could be stored on removable cartridges and printed, enhanced, or moved to other computers on a network. The network could be connected via LAN, WAN, or standard phone lines with a modem. Expensive telephone systems would not be necessary, because only pictures of detected persons would be sent, eliminating the need for wide bandwidth usually associated with "live" video surveillance.

Are we going to move with technology, or are we going to wait for the MIS and computer departments to replace us?

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