Sen jull15

July 2015 Issue 367

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Sensor Size Matters

New Gear at Security 2015

l Chris-Tech installs IP at The Strand l Special report: Camera Sensor Size l Mobotix Masterpiece at NGA l Review Axis H.264 Zipstream l New Product: Ness MEZZO l The Perfect Alarm System l Sony SNC-VB630 1080 60S Review l New Product: Paxton Net2 Plus l SkyCity Casino’s Dallmeier solution

Partner with Genetec and Panasonic!

Hills are making security easier by offering 8, 16 and 23 channel Genetec and Panasonic kits!

All kits include the Panasonic WV-SW155, a Super Dynamic HD Vandal Resistant Dome Camera, and the SV-32 Network Security Appliance, a turnkey system to easily deploy a unified or standalone video surveillance and access control system.

The kits offer you: l Rapid deployment l Easy installation l Total security solutions

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l 16 x Panasonic IP Cameras

l 23 x Panasonic IP Cameras

l 1 x Genetec Network Security Appliance

l 1 x Genetec Network Security Appliance

l 1 x Genetec Network Security Appliance

l 8 x Genetec SV-32 Licenses

l 16 x Genetec SV-32 Licenses

l 23 x Genetec SV-32 Licenses

l 1 x 16 Port PoE Switch

l 1 x 24 Port PoE Switch

l 1 x 24 Port PoE Switch

l 1 x 22” monitor

l 1 x 22” monitor

l 1 x 22” monitor

l 1 x Keyboard and mouse

l 1 x Keyboard and mouse

l 1 x Keyboard and mouse

Trusted by some of our nations most significant sites and with 70 years experience, you’ll secure more business with Hills.

For a free demonstration visit your local branch today.

Call 1800 685 487 or visit hills.com.au/branches to find your nearest branch.

editorial s ec u ri ty e l e ct ro n i c s & netwo r ks j u ly 20 15 i s sue 367

Security 2015: Most Awesome Product

E

LECTRONIC security technology never stays still long. The space of 12 months inevitably sees the birthing of last year’s embryonic technologies, some of which are certain to change the nature of our industry’s future.

At Security 2015 we’ll get to see some technologies whose day has finally come.

For a start we’re seeing the maturation of UHD as the next generation standard for video surveillance cameras. UHD is not perfect – not in low light – but the higher resolution of 4K is a glorious thing to behold and it has real operational value. When companies like Hikvision, Bosch, Panasonic, Sony with its new Generation 7 SNC-VM772R camera, Dahua, DVTel and Axis are all onboard with 4K UHD, then it’s time to sit up and pay attention.

UHD is officially no longer future-tech and having tested a DVTel UHD camera recently, I can say there’s no doubt that in applications that suit 4K and with light levels of 15 lux or more, it simply rocks.

Arm-in-arm with 4K are changes to compression technology.

Yes, H.265 (HVEC) is coming but it’s not quite mainstream yet. What does

By John Adams

UHD is not perfect – not in low light – but the higher resolution of 4K is a glorious thing to behold and it has real operational value. seem to be trending is clever new interpretations of H.264 that save on bandwidth while remaining compatible with the existing standard. Bosch transcoding was first and now we have Zipstream from Axis and Smart H.264+ from Hikvision just released.

Another area we are going to see sparks fly at Security 2015 is competition at the affordable end of the CCTV market. QSS has FLIR, CSD has Hikvision 2-line, Seadan has Dahua and now C.R. Kennedy has been appointed sole distributor for Uniview’s competitive range of IP cameras. There are also quality lower end offerings from Axis, Sony, Panasonic and a crowd of others.

From the point of view of end users and installers, there’s now loads of choice from quality suppliers. The more competition and the more choice, the lower prices will go.

Security and home automation systems are now joined at the hip and you’ll see plenty of this at Security 2015. Honeywell will be showing Vista VAM with Z-Wave, while Ness will be displaying its new MEZZO home automation solutions.

MEZZO is designed to be a control device for pretty much everything.

It supports multiple comms paths and manages to looking amazing at the same time. Ness also has SmartLiving panels.

Also in the mix this year is CSD with Paradox Insight, a solution that combines HD video and audio

with a motion detector and a self-monitoring app that lets you remotely monitor your home or office. Bosch too, has been ramping up its home automation offerings with the 2000 and 3000 alarm and automation panels and new devices. Hills’ ZeroWire is another security and home automation solution that deserves a good look.

Then there’s Tyco’s DSC NEO and 2GIG Go!Control from QSS – both are great systems in their own right.

And don’t forget Risco. There’s no doubt at all that at Security 2015 we will see that home automation and security have finally merged.

Other fun things to see at Security 2015 include C.R. Kennedy’s 149MP Panomera solution, Paxton Net2 plus IP access controller and devices, FLIR’s affordable optical and thermal camera solutions, Samsung Wisenet Lite, Sylo’s beautiful 14MP Logipix One camera, the Alarm.com app, Mobotix Moonlight camera, Ness’ surprisingly awesome NView HD-SDI solutions – high resolution with no latency – Bosch’s new 360-degree panoramic camera, Canon’s new camera range, Panasonic’s new camera range, Sony’s new camera range, Hikvision Darkfighter and Lightfighter from CSD, as well as the new Darkeye lens. But the most awesome product at Security 2015 is likely to be something we haven’t even heard of yet. zzz

se&n 03

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Technologies come together in the most spectacular way.

Flexible by virtue of the modular, hardwired system, coupled with the simplicity of wireless devices and peripherals, PowerSeries Neo is ideal for scalable commercial security installations. PowerG – the industry’s leading-edge wireless intrusion technology, infuses the system with powerful tools such as visual verification to offer superb system reliability. With optimized partitioning, integration potential and compatibility with leading-edge interactive solutions supported by DSC, infinite opportunities make PowerSeries Neo an undisputed first-class investment for the long term.

PowerSeries Neo by DSC is Security Redefined. www.dsc.com © 2015 Tyco Security Products

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surveillance solution at the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra in just 4 days.

22: Paxton Net2 Plus

jul 15

Paxton Net2 Plus intelligent controllers, distributed locally by Security Distributors Australia, are powerful and affordable IPbased single door access controllers that link to give control and reporting for systems of up to 500 doors and 50,000 users.

Ness has released Mezzo, an inhouse developed smart home controller, which combines wireless, Z-wave and IP technologies to handle multiple automation functionalities.

24: Spectacular ocean views

58: Installation tips

32: Size matters

42: Mobotix masterpiece Intrinsic Security installed a Mobotix video

We saw a Zipstream-enabled camera for the first time at SecTech Roadshow in Perth where it caused a definite stir, using considerably less bandwidth than any other camera. Given its power, Zipstream compression is well worth a second look.

50: Ness MEZZO

The Strand at Coolangatta has the best ocean views of any retail complex in Australia and a video surveillance solution to match after Chris-Tech Security Alarm Systems completed an installation comprising 60 Sony IP cameras and a Milestone video management solution.

4-5 years ago only a handful of CCTV cameras used large sensor sizes, most notably GBO’s S1080. Most other manufacturers used 1/3inch sensors. But over the last couple of years things have changed and there’s a notable trend towards larger sensor sizes.

44: Power of the press

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If you can identify the biggest stumbling blocks for installers trying to make sense of HD IP video surveillance then it’s easier to work towards planning for them or expanding your skill set, making installations faster and solutions more effective.

62: Sony SNC-VB630 Review Sony’s SNC-VB630 is a full body 1080p HD camera that combines strong WDR performance with good low light performance and very low latency. In our test the VB630 offers useful situational

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regulars

awareness in low light levels and positively eats backlight for breakfast.

12: news Latest business, product and technical news from Australia and around the world.

70: Sea change Byron Shire Council will install video surveillance at multiple locations in the township of Byron Bay, with the installation to be completed by November 2015, in time for Schoolies Week.

54: monitoring

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82: The Sky is the limit With its head office in Auckland, the SkyCity Casino group owns 6 casinos, 4 in New Zealand and 2 in Australia. Having a first-rate experience with SkyCity Casino Darwin’s switch to digital, the whole SkyCity group has chosen Dallmeier’s proven system.

What is the perfect alarm and home automation panel in the current market?

What features should installers be looking for when they think about upgrading customers to NBN-compatible solutions?

86: editor’s choice What’s new from our manufacturers.

88: helpdesk Our team of electronic security experts answers your tough technical questions.

July 2015 Issue 367

+

SenSor Size MatterS

new Gear at Security 2015

l Chris-Tech installs IP at The Strand l Special report: Camera Sensor Size l Mobotix Masterpiece at NGA l Review Axis H.264 Zipstream l New Product: Ness MEZZO l The Perfect Alarm System l Sony VB-SNC630 1080 60S Review l New Product: Paxton Net2 Plus l SkyCity Casino’s Dallmeier solution

PP 100001158

Publisher Bridge Publishing Aust. Pty Ltd ABN 11 083 704 858 PO Box 237 Darlinghurst NSW 1300 tel 61 2 9280 4425 fax 61 2 9280 4428 email info@bridge publishing.com.au

Editor John Adams Advertising Manager Monique Keatinge Customer Service Annette Mathews tel 61 2 9280 4425 annette@bridge publishing.com.au Design Tania Simanowsky e: taniasdesign@ optusnet.com.au

Subscriptions 11 issues per annum One year (11 issues)

WEBSITE www.securityelectronics andnetworks.com.au

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No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form in whole or part without prior written permission of Bridge Publishing.

Overseas 12 months $A155.00 (incl GST) 24 months $A270.00 (incl GST)

Gallagher Expands Hong Kong Team p.14 Dahua Partners with Seadan Across Whole Range p.16 Security Exhibition & Conference 2015 p.18 Metro Trains Considering Video Analytics p.20

news in brief j u ly 2 0 1 5

Rob Meachem Appointed GM of BGW Technologies

c o mp i l ed b y j o h n adams

Rob Meachem

U.S. Stadiums Continue Blanket Metal Detection Installation

■

NEW York Giants and Jets Fans entering MetLife Stadium for sports games will now have to walk through metal detecting magnetometers when they arrive at the venue. Costing $US1.6 billion upon completion in 2010, Metlife Stadium is the most expensive sports ground ever built.

Officials at the 85,000-seat stadium have installed 92 magnetometers around 5 gates, with 3 guards managing each machine on game days. The magnetometers cost about $USD500,000 at 2013 prices, according to AAP. The detectors are similar to those used by the Transportation Security Association (TSA). Unlike airports, fans will not have to remove their shoes or belts.

All MLB stadiums in the U.S. are adding metal detectors to improve fan security. Other venues, such as the Levi Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., and Oakland Coliseum are

using them too. Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass, will be next. The NY announcement follows news the San Francisco Giants will install biometric verification system at AT&T Park. Yankee Stadium has also added metal detectors at all its entrances.

According to reports, fans will be asked to remove cell phones and all large metal objects from their pockets before walking through the metal detectors. The detectors will support current bag checks. Fans who choose not to go through a walk-through metal detector will have the option of being manually checked with a hand-held detector.

The push to metal detection at major public events reflects the seriousness of potential terror threats to large, vulnerable public gatherings, as well as suggesting big sports venues are taking full ownership of their duty of care in the face of such threats.

ROB Meachem has been appointed to the role of general manager of the BGW Technology business and will join the company mid-July. Meachem was appointed state manager for Direct Alarm Supplies back in 1994 and finished his tenure as group general manager (electronics, security, IT) for Hills Ltd in 2014. Most recently he was general manager – Australasia for wireless comms tech house, Simoco Group.

“Robert has worked for some of Australia and New Zealand’s largest B2B value-added importing, distribution, manufacturing and integration technology organisations based around communications, electronic security and IT,” said BGW Group CEO, Laurie Murphy.

“Robert will be responsible for ensuring the successful growth of the BGW Technology business and leveraging the tech business across the entire BGW group of companies.

His broad experience and strategic thinking will help to lead BGW Technologies into the future.

“I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Ron Jackson for his ongoing support and dedication while looking after the BGW Tech business.”

Panasonic Appoints BGW Technologies Distributor For Australia

Robert Wensing

12 se&n

n PANASONIC Australia has appointed BGW Technologies as a distributor for its lineup of security products in Australia, commencing June 1, 2015.

BGW Technologies will offer the complete suite of Panasonic Security products to its customer base.

“We see BGW Technologies as an important partner to enhance our growth, with their capability to offer turnkey solutions

for systems integrators,” said Robert Wensing, group manager, Panasonic Security.

“The new agreement is in line with our strategic direction, with Panasonic recently ramping-up our support for the channel with the announcement of a Security Partner Program designed for integrators.

“Panasonic offers security solutions that are customer centric and provide customised marketing and analytical capabilities. We

are focused on building sales in vertical markets such as retail, university, transport and logistics, and local government.”

Recently released Panasonic offerings include intelligent surveillance cameras with ultra-high 4K resolution, 360 degree field of view and in-built analytics tools; and a facial recognition analytics platform that provides face matching, face searching, people counting and age and gender statistics

capabilities for video surveillance systems.

“Our organisation specialises in offering systems integrators a complete solution,” said Ron Jackson, general manager, BGW Group Technologies Division.

“The partnership is a great opportunity for both companies to grow their business. Panasonic, with its strong brand name and wide range of products, is a perfect fit for the BGWT approach to the market.”

The Easy Way to Protect and Connect Home

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For more information contact Alarm.com (international@alarm.com) or your local DSC distributor (info@dsc.com)

From Tyco Security Products

news

QSS Distributing Seagate Surveillance HDD with Data Recovery Services

j u ly 2 0 1 5

$US50 Million Paid for Cloud Access Control Company n CLOUD access control company, Brivo Systems, has been acquired by Eagle Eye Networks CEO, Dean Drako, who plans to combine technologies to create an on-demand cloud-based security management system combining access control and video surveillance.

“Brivo will operate standalone but the companies will have close relationships and close ties on integration, on partnership, on teaming up,” Drako told SSI recently.

Brivo builds Software as a Service (SaaS) applications for security management, providing access control

services for small and medium businesses, as well as scalable and centralized management for global enterprises.

The company’s solution currently facilitates more than 6 million users and more than 100,000 access points.

“Brivo’s true cloud architecture and open API approach put it a generation ahead of other access control systems.

Cloud solutions provide exceptional benefits and Brivo is clearly the market and technology leader,” Drako told SSI. “Brivo has also been committed to strong, long-

standing relationships with its channel partners, which I believe is the best strategy for delivering extremely high customer satisfaction.”

Drako told SSI he would apply the strategy and execution processes he used at his other successful companies, including Barracuda Networks, to leverage Brivo’s technology lead and growth trajectory. In particular, Drako sees the opportunity to accelerate the cloud technology shift already underway in the physical security industry by combining Brivo’s cloud-based access control

with the on-demand, secure, cloud-managed Eagle Eye Security Camera video management system (VMS).

“This is a really exciting time for us.” The Gallagher name is gaining a reputation in Asia for outstanding quality, service, and support, that’s leading to more and more business opportunities for us throughout the region.”

Gallagher has been supplying the Asian market since the early 1990s. In 2011 the privately owned New Zealand company announced it would establish a permanent Asia-based team, with staff located in Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia.

Comprising a mix of

local citizens and New Zealanders, Gallagher’s Asia sales team is a multicultural, multi-lingual, group with a wealth of experience in the security industry.

Dean Drako

Gallagher Expands Hong Kong Team n GALLAGHER’S security business in Asia is thriving according to vice president, EMEA & Asia, Peter Francis, who this month added more staff to his growing team in Asia.

Peter Francis

14 se&n

The newest members of Gallagher’s sales team join the main office in Hong Kong – Jin Hui as a business development manager focused on the North Asia region and Samuel Yan Sze Kit as a technical account manager.

According to Francis, over the 4 years since Gallagher introduced a local sales base in Asia, the team has grown by 300 per cent.

“Expanding the team is essential in order to keep up with the demand and growth of our business throughout Asia.” said Francis.

Expanding the team is essential in order to keep up with the demand and growth of our business throughout Asia

QSS is distributing Seagate’s Surveillance HDD, the industry’s only surveillance – optimised HDD platform with 1-6Tb capacities. Seagate Surveillance HDD is ideal for NVR, embedded SDVR, hybrid SDVR and PC-based SDVR applications. Seagate’s Surveillance HDD is tested and tuned to handle high write-cycle workloads typical in video surveillance applications.

Features include 3-year data recovery services, rotational vibration (RV) sensors for reliable performance, support for up to 32 cameras per drive and 16 bays per system, quick time-to-ready, Idle3 support for motionactivated cameras, 1-6TB capacities and 7200rpm SATA 6GB/S, 3.5-inch.

As well as being designed for demanding surveillance systems, Surveillance HDDs are supported by a new 3-year Seagate Rescue Services Plan, which recovers an industry-leading 90 per cent of your data in the event of data corruption caused by system, power or mechanical failure. This includes drives covered within a RAID array.

www.centralsd.com.au • 1300 319 499

news j u ly 2 0 1 5

Dahua Partners with Seadan Across Whole Range n DAHUA Technology has announced Seadan Security & Electronics as its exclusive brand distributor in Australia.

Established in 2001, Dahua Technology has grown to a total solution provider in surveillance, whose product portfolios include advanced series of front-end, back-end, display, software as well as alarm, access control, intercom and intelligent traffic solution.

“We are quite confident about the prospect of this cooperation,” said Rita Chen, sales manager at Dahua Technology.

“Australia is a mature yet evolving market, which has high acceptance to new technologies yet is open to new brands. “As

16 se&n

a joint venture, we will provide Seadan with strong support to ensure customer satisfaction in order to further satisfy its market needs.”

Meanwhile, Seadan Security & Electronics is a leading wholesale provider of an extensive range of security system solutions throughout Australia with branches in Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Canberra and Brisbane.

“Seadan is optimistic and values this new partnership with Dahua,” said Ian Harris, managing director of Seadan Security & Electronics.

“As you know, Seadan only partners with quality leading brands to ensure our customers to have the

best products to choose from. Dahua is a leading global manufacturer with

strong market presence.

We are delighted by this new joint venture.”

Australia is a mature yet evolving market, which has high acceptance to new technologies yet is also open to new brands.

Our focus is making professional video surveillance easy for  everyone

Safe data storage and excellent usability When securing a business, you want to work with a professional surveillance system that doesn’t require special expertise. With the DIVAR IP 2000 EZ storage unit, Bosch offers the ability to create a professional video surveillance solution that is both easy to install and easy to use. The unit is especially designed for 24/7 continuous video recording and is easily viewed and controlled from anywhere, regardless of available bandwidth. So now, you can easily keep an eye on your store from anywhere, any time.

Learn more at www.boschsecurity.com/hdsecurity Security Master License No: 409 400 739

news j u ly 2 0 1 5

Security Exhibition & Conference 2015 n Security Exhibition & Conference 2015 sees the return of some of the oldest names in the industry with their latest technologies including Hills, Gallagher, Inner Range, Mainline Security, Canon, Mobotix, Sylo, Assa Abloy and Ness Corporation to name a few. Joining them are new players including Proscan Australia and Chip Development.

Security 2015 hosts the ever-popular The New Product Showcase, a platform for 10 of the most innovative security solutions to hit the market in the last 12 months. This year’s showcase is now finalised and features

cutting-edge solutions from progressive suppliers, including SALTO Systems, Pelco

by Schneider Electric, Security Merchants Australia, Modicam Asia Pacific, Q Security Systems, Mobotix, Canon, EVVA, Gallagher and Protrac ID. In addition to leading brands and new products there is education in abundance with the ASIAL Security Conference and Executive Briefing offering security operations people the opportunity to find out about what’s next for the industry, as well as looking at looming security challenges including social media

and cyber-security.

Running parallel to the conference is the Security Seminar Series, hosting a

free program of practical seminars for security installers, including 4K cameras and an NBN

update. Find out more and register for the Security Exhibition & Conference at securityexpo.com.au

C.R. Kennedy Appointed Exclusive Uniview Distributor

CONTRACT MANUFACTURING SMT & Through Hole Assembly Component Procurement Full Turnkey Solutions ISO 9000 Accredited IPC 610 Standard

Duet Electronics is unique in that we offer world class electronic manufacturing services and support, targeted specifically to meet the requirements and budgets of small to medium sized customers.

“50 units this week 100 next week and 2000 the following week?

No problem.”

(03) 9380 6454 | info@duet.com.au

www.duet.com.au 18 se&n

n CHINA’S third largest CCTV manufacturer Uniview, has appointed C.R.Kennedy as sole distributor for its surveillance products in Australia and New Zealand, effective July 1.

According to C.R. Kennedy’s MD, Malcolm Kennedy, the timing is opportune.

“Uniview has some very exciting and advanced products ready for launch, particularly in IP networking, 4K and H.265,” Kennedy said.

Uniview creates security technologies, including NVRs, cameras, VMS software and accessories. C.R.Kennedy brings to the relationship a fully operational service and support division for surveillance equipment, with a dedicated local support network right across

Australia and New Zealand.

Customers are supported by dedicated technical advice from C.R. Kennedy’s state offices or authorised resellers around Australia and New Zealand.

Central warehousing and significant stock holdings ensure prompt delivery across Australia and New Zealand.

Kennedy said he sees tremendous potential for market expansion in Australia and New Zealand with Uniview.

“We look forward to taking the Uniview brand to the next level,” he said.

“Our business is building brands and Uniview is one of the world’s great CCTV makers, with a spectacular future.”

Visit Axis at ASIAL

Security Exhibition 2015

Stand C41 Melbourne Australia

Elephant proof.

Our cameras are much tougher than they look. That’s because we don’t just give them a few strikes during testing, as you might expect. Instead, we subject them to about 30 heavy strikes – directly on their weakest spots. Don’t worry though, we keep them away from elephants.

It’s just one of the tough tests Axis cameras face, so you can be sure you’ll always get the best image quality and high performance – no matter what’s thrown at them.

Learn more about Axis’ quality assurance work at axis.com/quality

news j u ly 2 0 1 5

Metro Trains Considering Video Analytics n METRO Trains Melbourne has shortlisted candidates for the supply of a software-based video analytics solution for use with Metro’s existing 6000-camera CCTV security monitoring system. In a tender that closed late May, MTM sought responses from prospective suppliers

20 se&n

which could demonstrate that their solution’s functionality met Metro requirements and was compatible with existing conventional CCTV surveillance cameras (both analogue and digital). Potential suppliers needed to be experienced in implementing and deploying such systems

in environments similar to MTM, for instance, in areas of mass public gathering such as within a busy transport or retail environment.

Shortlisted suppliers will be invited to participate in further due diligence activities enabling them to submit a definite response for the supply of a solution

and associated services to MTM. Metro Trains Melbourne operates a fleet of 407 3-car train sets on 837 kilometres of track in Melbourne. There are 16 regular service train lines and one special events train line. The train fleet travels more than 30 million kilometres and provides more than 228 million customer boardings each year, more than 14,000 services each week and carries over 415,000 passengers each weekday.

Metro Trains Melbourne is also responsible for 215 railway stations and employs a workforce of 3,500.

CCTV is used in and around Melbourne’s metropolitan and regional train stations for a number of purposes, including monitoring train movements, passenger safety, and deterring

and investigating crime.

Camera numbers vary, with large stations like Flinders Street Station having approximately 150 cameras and Southern Cross Station having 180, all operating 24 hours a day. Most cameras show a fixed view (only a few have zoom, pan and tilt functions), making them ideal for IVA. At larger stations, CCTV footage is monitored from an onsite control room, while on suburban lines footage from several stations is monitored from a central suburban station. Control room operators and Department of Transport personnel can view footage live, but do not have access to recorded footage, while recorded footage from cameras at train stations and inside trains is accessible only to management centre staff.

A Winning Integrated Solution Integriti Wired Access Control

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Aperio Wireless Access Control Together as one system and functioning in real time.

Come and chat to us and see our new products at the 2015 Melbourne Security Exhibition & Conference Inner Range stand C7 or CSD stand F20 T: +61 3 9780 4300 E: IREnquiries@innerrange.com W: innerrange.com

T: 1300 319 499

W: centralsd.com.au

n ew p ro d u ct

Paxton Net2 p lus

Paxton Net2 plus Paxton Net2 plus intelligent controllers, distributed locally by Security Distributors Australia, are powerful and affordable IP-based single door access controllers that link to give control and reporting for systems of up to 500 doors and 50,000 users.

22 se&n

P

axton Net2 plus intelligent controllers are single-door networkable access control units that connect with any TCP/IP network.

With Net2 plus, Paxton’s associated access control devices, including readers and keypads, are all IP. The drop cables of these devices are fitted with RJ45 plugs for easy connection to local networks.

Made in the UK and distributed locally by Security Distributors Australia, Paxton access control solutions have a long history and are reliable and flexible access control systems that offer integrators economy and operational firepower.

Net2 plus supports 500 doors, 50,000 users and comes with a 5-year no-quibble guarantee. There’s no licensing, you get the dependability and speed of flash memory, while backwards compatibility allows easy upgrades. Installers can use Paxton or 3rd-party readers – including legacy readers.

Fundamentally, Net2 plus is a networked access control system that offers the advantages of central

control, event reporting and flexible control of a users’ access control solution leveraging local network assets for comms and power. Importantly in terms of distributed intelligence, each Net2 plus control unit is part of a network but can run independently, making its own decisions and remembering events.

Each Net2 plus control unit handles access control for one door. Control units are sold as a PCB board or in a plastic housing. TCP/IP network connection is facilitated through a standard RJ-45 port. Importantly, Net2 plus can replace a TCP/IP converter and it can connect to RS485 drop cables.

The Net2 plus controller features diagnostic LEDs for fast troubleshooting and that flash memory means quick firmware upgrades. Net2 plus supports Paxton Access and 3rd party readers and a dedicated intruder alarm connection is provided.

Importantly, you can mix Net2 plus, Net2 classic and Net2 nano control units in a single system.

And one Net2 plus control unit can be the network interface to the LAN and run a wired RS485 daisy chain of other Net2 plus or Net2 classic units, removing the need for an independent TCP/IP to RS485 converter. Making installation faster, Net2 plus is available with a Power over Ethernet (PoE), allowing use of a single network cable for power and data. Net2 plus with PoE simply plugs straight into the existing LAN using a standard RJ45 plug (providing it’s powered by either a PoE switch or a PoE injector). Net2 plus unit with PoE+ power is supplied in metal/plastic cabinet.

Installation is designed to be simple. There’s a label on the Net2 plus control unit that clearly shows colour coded connections for reader, power supply, etc. The unit has a voltage-free relay, so it can switch any lock or electrical device. This means exit buttons, door contacts, tamper switches and alarm devices may be connected. There are diagnostic LEDs mounted close to their relevant terminals to assist with trouble free installation. End of line resistors can be switched into the circuit as required.

External terminating resistors are not required.

Control units communicate with the PC via standard TCP/IP protocol of a LAN network. In these applications, Net2 plus is given a fixed/static IP address. When installing and commissioning a Net2 plus control unit, all configuration is done using the Net2 Configuration Utility. Important in any networked system, changes made at the central PC are immediately communicated and stored at the remote control units.

Operationally, a Net2 plus can be used as the TCP/IP interface for a daisy chain of other Net2 plus or Net2 plus classic units. In this case, a TCP/ IP converter must first be detected using the Net2 Server configuration utility in the same manner as a TCP/485 converter. When used on a data line, any required termination resistors are linked across the data pairs by a simple slide switch.

With Paxton, it’s not all about the controllers.

There’s a whole ecosystem of devices, including prox reader, keypad and intercom systems that orbit around the Net2 plus.

In all there are 3 site layouts – in the first a number of Net2 plus ACUs are individually connected to Net2PC via the site LAN network. The second layout sees Net2 plus ACUs hardwired on a daisy chained RS485 data line with one connected to the Net2 PC through the site’s data network. In the third configuration, a Net2 plus ACU is used as the TCP/IP converter for a line of Net2 plus and Net2 classic ACUs. With Paxton, it’s not all about the controllers.

There’s a whole ecosystem of devices, including prox reader, keypad and intercom systems that orbit around Net2 plus. In this context, Net2 plus is a remote system, database and intelligence, as well as being the gateway to carry multiple devices and functionalities onto a network. This gear is well-made, too. Paxton’s heavily built 316-stainless external keypad with its potted electronics, cast chassis and backlit keypad, contrives to look rugged and beautifully crafted. And when compared to the grey shrouded ubiquity of most access readers, Paxton’s prox reader is positively other-worldly – and these keypads and readers are pre-cabled and terminated, ready for connection to IP networks. zzz

Features of Paxton Net2 plus include: l RS485 Dataline and TCP/IP l 2 voltage-free relays l 2 reader ports & 1 intruder alarm port & relay l 12V DC readers only l 10/100 Ethernet port and RS485 data line connector l Switchable termination resistors with LED l Net2 plus and Net2 Classic work on same system.

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The Strand at Coolangatta

Spectacular ocean views The Strand at Coolangatta has the best ocean views of any retail complex in Australia and a video surveillance solution to match after Chris-Tech Security Alarm Systems completed an installation comprising 60 Sony IP cameras and a Milestone video management solution.

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By john adam s

F

ROM an operational perspective, retail centres like The Strand at Coolangatta in Queensland, are tough. There are multiple conflicting demands in complex environments. Surveillance must support safety, security and insurance risks, while being unobtrusive. The built environment includes variable lighting, challenging ceiling designs and compact spaces adjacent to vast open areas, including food courts and foyers that may challenge typical installation practices.

The security upgrade at The Strand is part of a $A60 million redevelopment designed to reinvigorate Coolangatta and create a unique retail, dining and entertainment precinct. The location is unprecedented. The Strand’s location on Marine Parade opposite Coolangatta Beach makes for a spectacular view appreciated by diners at a Landinidesigned 300-seat restaurant on level 1.

And while The Strand has its share of major retailers, its ground floor is dedicated to smaller specialist shops that exist nowhere else, giving the centre an edgier feel and injecting a sense of discovery that’s aligned with the centre’s atmosphere and location. While the multiplicity of smaller shops adds variety, from a security perspective it means centre management must assume greater responsibility, given few independent retailers have complex security solutions and procedures.

In terms of size, The Strand is a medium-sized operation with a floor area of 32,000 square metres over 4 levels, with retail on ground and level one and corporate suites on levels 2 and 4. The Strand also has associated car parking. Along with the usual operational needs, the installation of the new

video surveillance solution at The Strand was also designed to mitigate specific local challenges.

“Undesirable youth-related incidents are the primary challenge for the property,” says The Strand’s operations manager, Ken Howell. “The new video surveillance solution assists centre management in developing activity-based processes to manage risks relating to safety and security. The management team uses the system to develop proactive control plans to mitigate and control risks.

Howell says the management system’s features that make it ideal for the requirements of the site include safety, security and interestingly, marketing and promotion.

“The advanced search features which enable fast tracked activity reviews, along with the peoplecounting feature, which provides accuracy for our marketing team to measure promotional activities, are the key system functions for The Strand,” he explains.

System components In terms of hardware, this is a quality solution with

The new video surveillance solution assists Centre Management in developing activity-based processes to manage risks relating to safety and security.

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The Strand at Coolangatta

(From left) Ken Howell operations manager, Josh Brown cantre manager and Chris Wadsworth of ChrisTech.

We chose Sony’s Gen-6 cameras because of their image quality and also because we believe their WDR is the best on the market. plenty of firepower – not just in terms of cameras, but workstations, too. The application includes 60 Gen-6 Sony IP cameras, 3 Dell Servers, Cat6 data cabling, a 12-core optical OM3 fibre backbone, communications rack, 2 workstations, including a Dell i7 workstation for Milestone XProtect and another for Agent Vi’s SavVi unified video analytics software solution, which handles functions like people counting. The main server is a Dell RX720 with 32TB of storage. There’s also a Sony Video display wall and optical PoE managed network switches.

Chris Wadsworth of Chris-Tech Security Alarm Systems designed the system and you get a strong sense he was thinking about the future throughout the process. From lens to monitor, images go from the Sony WDR IP Gen-6 cameras to Cat6 cable and into field consolidation points. From here, a 12-core OM3 optical fibre backbone is daisy chained to the next consolidation point, to head end servers then to workstations. Although this is a dedicated closed network, the design of the system from edge/camera, to comms/network, to network room/ switch, to workstation/s or monitor/s is a testament to open architecture.

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“We chose Sony’s Gen-6 cameras because of their image quality and also because we believe their WDR is the best on the market,” says Wadsworth.

“After sales support and a 3-year warranty were other deciding factors. Now with 60 cameras installed and operational, the system is performing very well, which is just what we expected.”

How closely did you work with the Strand on this job? Was The Strand management certain of what it wanted?

“Throughout the process, we worked very closely with The Strand management,” explains Wadsworth. “While they were certain of the operational outcomes they wanted to achieve, ChrisTech Security Alarm Systems provided the final design brief which was approved by management.”

According to Wadsworth, an IP installation like this is virtually future-proof, allowing camera upgrades and extensions to existing network infrastructure.

“We used an unrestricted open platform such as Milestone due to its storage facility and so that future upgrades could be made at any time and additional cameras installed when and if required,” Wadsworth says.

Software solutions The Strand’s video surveillance solution is managed

by Milestone’s XProtect Professional VMS. The smart client interface allows operators easy management of live and recorded video, as well as control of cameras and integrated security devices.

Key features of Milestone XProtect include a multilayered map function allowing users to manage cameras and security devices, and overlay buttons that intuitively control cameras, camera integrated devices and connected systems via camera views.

There’s also a virtual joystick allowing easy PTZ control.

Other neat Milestone XProtect features include a single-point alarm management function, the ability to bookmark video sequences with attached notes, independent playback while viewing live video and multi-screen handling incorporating floating windows across multiple screens. Something else the system will do is email authorised users if it’s

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cas e st u dy

The Strand at Coolangatta

running out of recording space or there are critical failures.

XProtect also has a function called sequence explorer, which shows previews of recorded video sequences as time-based groups of drag-and-throw thumbnails that allow management to easily locate specific events during investigations. And useful for police are advanced export options with digital signature, as well as the XProtect Smart Client Player, which includes room for commentary.

Running alongside Milestone XProtect is Agent Vi’s SavVi solution, comprising real-time video analytics software designed to turn standard surveillance networks into intelligent systems. By performing real-time analysis of the video stream, SavVi identifies and generates alerts for userdefined events relating to people, vehicles and objects. SavVi is perfect for security, safety and business intelligence applications.

SavVi capabilities include people counting of customers entering and exiting the site (bidirectional) and provision of accurate footfall statistics illustrating traffic at various entrances/ exits across different time periods. There’s also heat map and site map to offer visualization of motion data and traffic levels (hot zones) within the area covered by a specific camera or across the entire site covered by multiple cameras, to ascertain the areas with greatest frequency and activity.

We used an unrestricted open platform such as Milestone due to its storage facility and so that future upgrades could be made at any time and additional cameras installed when and if required.

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A target path is used to identify dominant customer traffic paths and an advanced statistical tool is employed to receive comprehensive statistics reports about customer activity. There’s also forensic investigation to undertake rapid investigations of security incidents, including lost/missing children.

The installation As you’d expect with a large site like this, design and installation was not an overnight process but it took less time than you’d think. Chris-Tech designed, installed and commissioned the video surveillance system at The Strand in 3 months.

“Thanks to the team’s experience we only needed to undertake training for the Agent Vi analytics component of the system,” says Wadsworth. “ChrisTech has many Milestone sites and other major projects, so there was no major challenge associated with the installation outside this.”

Reflecting Chris-Tech’s capability, while many installations take place hand-in-hand with end user IT departments, at The Strand the dedicated private network was designed and facilitated by ChrisTech’s own network engineers.

What issues dominated the installation from a technical perspective, or were things managed easily with no particular challenges?

“As with any major project there are always some technical issues, however, our experience in the industry and the support we received from Agent

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The Strand at Coolangatta

Vi and Video Security Products made this a trouble free installation,” says Wadsworth. “We are also contracted to maintain this system and we envisage there will be no issues in the future.”

In any busy retail environment, planning is involved in getting the system installed and it can be necessary to work after hours. According to Wadsworth, this required liaison with the project/ site manager, centre management, retail stores and other trades during the refurbishment and construction process that was going on around the team.

“Time restraints were managed and the ChrisTech team of 4 technicians worked outside of normal business hours when it was required,” he explains. “All up about 380 man-hours of work was required to complete the installation.”

And while some applications are one-offs,

Wadsworth says that in this case there could be further upgrades of other stores in future.

“This retail group has multiple sites and is extremely happy with the solution put forward by Chris-Tech Security Alarm Systems,” he says. “We understand there are plans for further upgrades to other sites to the same platform.”

How involved was Video Security Products in this installation? What was their role and how supportive was the VSP team?

“Michael Omeros from Video Security Products was a supportive partner in the design and commissioning of this project,” Wadsworth says. “We were very impressed with the support we received from VSP, especially with Agent Vi analytic software.”

Meanwhile, Howell says the new system is an excellent asset to the centre.

“I’ve used a number of systems over the years and I’ve found this to be the best to date,” he says.

“The search features provides a quick response to incident activities to assist management in the continual improvement of risk control within the centre. We are continuing to learn new features of the management system.

“The camera selection, which offers excellent clarity, has without question enhanced the user experience in obtaining clearly defined detail for monitoring or investigation. I am very happy with the CCTV package.” zzz

Chris-Tech Security Alarm Systems l CHRIS-Tech Security Alarm Systems was founded at Tweed Heads in NSW 24 years ago and is owned and operated by Christopher Wadsworth. According to Wadsworth, Chris-Tech Security Alarm Systems services Northern NSW and Southern Queensland.

“Our team is a leader in innovative security technology, providing comprehensive security solutions to a range of customers such as domestic homes, businesses including small to large retail outlets, financial institutes, clubs and pubs, local and state government,” Wadsworth says.

“We use a wide variety of solutions and technologies including Sony, Mobotix, Axis, Milestone and Genetec to name a few and our security specialists are all trained and certified on the latest, state-of-the-art technology backed by powerful equipment and secure communication links.”

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Installed at The Strand, Coolangatta were: l 60 Gen-6 Sony IP cameras l Dell i7 workstation for Milestone l Dell i7 workstation for Agent Vi analytics l Sony Video display wall l 3 Dell Servers l 12-core optical OM3 fibre backbone l Cat6 data cabling l PoE managed network switches.

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n ews re p o rt

sensor size

Size matters About 4-5 years ago only a handful of CCTV cameras used large sensor sizes, most notably GBO’s S1080. Most other manufacturers used 1/3-inch sensors.

But over the last couple of years things have changed and there’s a notable trend towards larger sensors.

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A

ll other things being equal, a larger sensor size means better low light performance and/or the ability of a sensor to hustle higher resolution, with less impact on low light performance. Typical IP cameras employ 1/3-inch sensors – these are 4.8 x 3.6mm in size – slightly larger than mobile phone camera sensors. The reason CCTV cameras handle low light better than mobile phones comes down to resolution.

Some phone makers cram 14MP onto their tiny sensors, while typical 1/3-inch CCTV camera sensors have only 2-3MP. This means CCTV cameras have lower resolution, but comparatively excellent low light performance thanks to their larger photo sites. But the ongoing fight for higher performance means CCTV camera sensor size is unlikely to stay fixed for long.

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From an R&D perspective we are also now working towards launching 1 inch sensor models sometime before year end. long been battlegrounds for surveillance camera manufacturers and it’s these twin factors that are feeding into the trend towards larger sensors.

Manufacturers have worked hard to build processing drive trains that make the most of 1/3-inch sensors but there are limits to what can be achieved. Larger sensors mean better dynamic range, reduction of noise and noise suppression artifacts, as well as improved low light performance.

Something else that’s important is that larger sensors allow cameras to deliver wide angle views using less extreme focal lengths. Very wide angle lenses show strong barrel distortions that are tolerable but undesirable. Yet another factor is that larger sensors are becoming less expensive.

Something that was interesting while putting together this story was photographing the sensors of cameras sitting on my desk. There really are considerable variations and that can pose challenges – especially with lensing, though typically a larger diameter lens will work fine on a smaller sensor camera – but you can’t go the other way without vignetting.

Chris Tangsilsat of Axis Communications says there is a definite trend towards the development of larger sensor sizes in the market.

“This is definitely the case, even more so in the past year where we’re seeing a trend of various camera manufacturers all introducing their own ½-inch sensor models,” Tangslisat says.

“Part of this recent trend comes down to the cost factor, where not only is the price of larger sensor sizes becoming more cost efficient, so are the high quality lenses rated for these sensor sizes. For example, this year Axis launched its first ½-inch sensor model, the Q1635, which was featured during the HD Camera Shootout sessions at SecTech Roadshow last month.

“That being said, sensor size is not always 100 per cent of the story when it comes to low light performance. As an example, our first ever LightFinder model, the Q1602 launched back in 2011, was a 1/3-inch sensor model and even the current Q1615, which is one of our bestselling full body cameras, still utilize the same 1/3-inch sensor size,” says Tangsilsat. “This is because in addition to having a decent-sized sensor to capture more incoming light, a lot of post processing and image optimisation also takes place post capture within our ARTPEC-5 video encoding chipset on camera.”

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sensor size

Interestingly, Axis is not planning to stop its development at ½-inch sensors.

“From an R&D perspective we are also now working towards launching 1-inch sensor models sometime before year end,” Tangsilsat says.

According to Tangsilsat, the advantages of larger sensors include improved low light performance, along with the additional benefit of a wider field of view compared to other sensors using the same focal length lens.

“The other hidden benefit of larger sensors is better dynamic range due to the sensors containing larger pixels that are able to process a wider spectrum of incoming light.”

But there are disadvantages, too.

“Surveillance for the most part is always going to be a numbers game both on a technical and financial level,” Tangsilsat says. “At the technical level, resolution has to be balanced with low light performance, pixel density has to be balanced with lens selection and coverage area and at the financial level, camera models have to be balanced with available budget. Finally, camera location has to also be balanced with labour costs.

“Larger sensor sizes are more costly to manufacture and so are the lens options which are compatible with these sensor sizes. A good quality 15-50mm lens designed for a 2MP 1/3-inch camera may set you back roughly $A250, while the equivalent focal length lens designed for a 2MP ½-inch camera would most likely cost at least double that.

“So I think while it’s excellent to have better low light sensitive ½-inch sensors, planning and consideration still needs to be taken into account when deciding on the quantity and location at which these units are deployed.”

Do you think there is a perfect sensor size that balances cost and performance?

“I think whatever answer is given today would most likely become invalid in as little as a year’s time,” Tangsilsat says. “This really says something about how rapidly this industry is progressing in

n ews re p o rt

terms of technology innovations versus costs. If you asked this same question 3 years ago, I would say that ¼-inch sensors were the perfect balance between cost and performance. Today, the answer would be 1/3-inch sensors but perhaps this time next year lower cost could mean the answer will be ½-inch models. In my opinion, the perfect sensor size is a balance of the best sensor at the cheapest cost at that point in time.”

Ed Thompson, CTO of DVTEL, also says he sees a definite trend towards the development of larger sensor sizes to accommodate higher pixel counts.

“As resolutions increase - from HD1080 to 4x higher 4K - the pixel sizes which influence sensitivity are getting smaller and larger sensors with new back-side-illumination (BSI) technology, permit these higher resolution sensors to achieve low light capabilities similar to previous 1080p sensors,” Thompson says.

“We are currently using 1/1.8-inch sensors in our most advanced 4K cameras and we see advantages in low light performance thanks to sensitivity and signal to noise ratio improvements that permit the cameras to operate in low light, giving brighter images with better compression efficiency.”

According to Thompson, there are additional considerations to take into account with larger sensors and higher resolutions.

“4K cameras require better lenses with better coatings to reduce flare and other undesirable characteristics which did not bother lower resolution cameras,” Thompson explains.

“However, these costs are often balanced with the high resolutions cameras requiring fewer cameras to cover a given area.”

Thompson doesn’t think there’s a perfect sensor size that balances cost and performance – instead he argues that operational requirements are key.

“Performance is dependent on meeting the customer’s needs,” he says. “We still use standard 1/3-inch sensors for HD1080 camera applications.”

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sensor size

At Sylo, Mark Hartmann says there’s much more to camera performance than simply sensor size.

“We’re constantly given conflicting information regarding sensor sizes and their respective performance benefits, usually marketing spin from the various sensor and camera manufacturers,” says Hartmann. “It’s obvious that larger sensors present a greater surface area from which light information can be gathered but this is no guarantee of better performance.

“Many factors contribute to the light sensitivity and image reproduction capability of a camera.

In general it can be said that any late model, large sensor camera will outperform a smaller sensor counterpart of an equivalent resolution, however, this is a very broad statement. All components along the image acquisition and delivery chain from the lenses and filters to the monitor presenting the final image play an important role.

“Evaluating cameras based on sensor size and resolution is a good first step, just as you shortlist shoes based on style before foot size,” Hartmann explains. “Ultimately a camera should be selected based on the customer’s requirement, be that high detail for evidence gathering, or low detail offering situational awareness.

“I believe there’s a general misconception that high resolution cameras are for special circumstances and should be used sparingly. I often hear comments like ‘I don’t need to count a person’s freckles’ or ‘we don’t need anything over 2MP’ but that simply demonstrates a lack of understanding. “Designing a system correctly using a quantifiable measure such as pixels-permetre will accurately determine the resolution required to cover a scene, and it may be that a single high resolution camera can replace multiple low resolution cameras - saving on camera, infrastructure, licensing and maintenance costs.

“We live in the age of data acquisition where more is better, and fast, sensitive, high resolution sensors satisfy our hunger for more,’ Hartmann says. “Bandwidth and storage costs are constantly in decline, making a very good case for longer retention of ever increasing megapixel data. So for me, the future is clear.”

Ultimately a camera should be selected based on the customer’s requirement, be that high detail for evidence gathering, or low detail offering situational awareness.

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According to Panasonic group manager - security Rob Wensing, larger sensor sizes facilitate higher resolution without compromising sensitivity.

“As the number of sensor elements per area unit increases, the size of each individual element must be smaller and thus light sensitivity is compromised,” he explains. “Panasonic has identified the value of larger sensor sizes as evidenced by the newly-developed 1/1.7-inch sensor, which is included in our newly-developed 4K dome and full body cameras, and the new 9MP 360 degree cameras. These new cameras include 12MP in a backside-illuminated (BSI) MOS sensor.”

Wensing says low light performance is the big advantage of larger sensors but there’s more to it than size.

“It’s not just sensor size – backside-illuminated (BSI) technology contributes to achieving high sensitivity,” he says. “Eventually exceptional low light performance of 0.3lx at color mode can be achieved in our 12MP camera using the 1/1.7-inch sensor.”

But there are disadvantages, including a larger camera body and a bigger lens.

“A larger lens is required for a larger sensor,” says Wensing. “The size of camera bodies will get bigger and heavier accordingly. This is the reason why a smaller sensor is mostly used for PTZ cameras. “The challenge is that the incorporated lens must support higher resolution. Panasonic has developed a lens which utilises a sophisticated aspherical design, accurate molding technology, production quality control and a variety of provideo technologies.

“In order to create a sharp image with clear texture, 12 lenses in 4 groups are used to provide the ultra-high resolution expected of 12M pixels in every part of the image, from centre to edge. Both a higher level of representational precision and a more compact lens system are achieved. Plus, all lenses are glass, while aspheric lenses are also used extensively to reduce aberrations to the ultimate degree. The clear depiction, sharp resolution and

38 se&n

sensor size

The larger the sensor, the larger the pixels, the more light they capture - this is certainly a key reason for using larger sensors, but you typically also get better dynamic range and less image noise. beautiful colour reproduction necessary for higher resolution monitoring have all been successfully achieved.”

At Hikvision, Michael Bates agrees there’s a push for larger sensor sizes in order to improve low light performance.

“A camera with a larger sensor will generally outperform a higher megapixel sensor camera in low light,” he says. “However, the vast majority of cameras being installed at 1080P or 3MP work well with a 1/3 or 1/2.8-inch lens and this tends to be the most common sensor size in the market today.

“Hikvision is increasingly using larger image sensors in our SMART IP range. The Darkfighter range uses a 1/1.8-inch sensor at a maximum resolution of 1080P and this is widely regarded as the best low light camera on the market, as evidenced by the recent HD Camera Shootout at SecTech Roadshow. We also use a 1/1.8-inch sensor on our recently released Ultra HD range. This range provides 3072 x 2048 resolution at full frame rate and the larger sensor size provides outstanding low light performance for an ultra HD camera.”

When it comes to advantages, Bates believes low light performance is key.

“The larger the sensor, the larger the pixels, the more light they capture - this is certainly a key reason for using larger sensors, but you typically also get better dynamic range and less image noise,” he explains.

“Meanwhile, the main difficulty for most manufacturers is finding the right lens to suit the bigger sensor. Fortunately for us, Hikvision manufactures its own lenses so we are able to use the best image sensors and couple them with outstanding glass,” says Bates.

“The Darkfighter box camera has a 1/1.8-inch sensor and, coupled with our 0.95f 7-33mm Darkeye lens, allows around 50 per cent more light to pass through the lens to reach the sensor.

The end result is a market leading product which can effectively retain colour and picture quality at extremely low light.”

According to Bates, the size of the sensor should not have a significant impact on cost.

“It’s one of many components used in the manufacture of cameras and it certainly has not affected Hikvision’s position as the best value for money manufacturer on the market,” Bates says.

Over at Hills, Kieron McDonough also sees a clear trend to larger sensor sizes in the Hills’ stable.

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n ews re p o rt

sensor size

“Yes, there is certainly a trend towards a larger sensor as we move towards 4K resolution cameras,” McDonough says. “I can see this trend in most of the major camera manufacturers. With sensor sizes such as 1/2.3-inch, 1/2.5-inch very different to the normal 1/3-inch and ¼-inch sensors we are accustomed to. Even lens sizes of 1/2.7-inch are available now to better match the 16:9 aspect ratio.”

What size sensors are you using or working towards?

“The new Panasonic 4K camera WV-SFV781L has a sensor size of 1/1.7-inch; it’s a MOS sensor (variation on the CMOS with lower noise characteristics) and has approximately 12.4 mega pixels,” McDonough says. “DVTEL’s new 4K Quasar camera is also 1/1.7inch sensor and has a sensor array that is 4072 x 3076 pixels, equating to 12.5MP.” For McDonough, low light and improvements in colour without generating unwanted noise are the big things with larger sensors.

“There is only so far you can go with cramming more and more pixels onto a sensor without compromising the picture quality, particularly in low light,” he explains. “The larger sensors improve the light saturation capacity of the sensor so there’s

It’s all about optics when considering larger resolution cameras and currently there are not too many lenses around that accommodate 4K cameras

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lower noise and the camera gain can be then be increased to give a brighter picture.”

McDonough says with big sensors, the issues relate to lenses.

“It’s all about optics when considering larger resolution cameras and currently there are not too many lenses around that accommodate 4K cameras,” he says. “I’ve noticed a move to professional photography lenses but question if they are suitable for industrial applications. They also don’t have the varifocal range we are used to with CCTV lens. Also camera size increases with larger sensors and that pushes up manufacturing costs.

“Finally processing power has to be markedly increased to display a 4K image and you of course need a 4K monitor to display the image without compromising the quality.”

Do you think there is a perfect sensor size that balances cost and performance?

“From a Panasonic point of view the new 4K camera with 1/1.7-inch sensor has fantastic performance, a frame rate of 30ips at 4K (by 4K I mean 3840x2160 which is technically UHD), is very acceptable,” McDonough says. “It has equally brilliant low light performance. I believe with current technology any increase in resolution impacts on frame rate and low light performance, so the 4K resolution is the best balance of cost and performance.

“Then there’s the DVTEL Quasar camera, its sensor also incorporates new technology and the larger size is needed to be able to deliver the better low light performance at Ultra HD (4k) resolution at the high frame rate requirements.” zzz

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cas e st u dy National Gallery of Australia

Mobotix masterpiece Intrinsic Security installed a Mobotix video surveillance solution at the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra, Australia’s premier art gallery, in just 4 days.

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ANBERRA’S National Gallery of Australia is a complex application that poses multiple challenges for system designers and installers. This bush-hammered concrete building is a work of art and its design and position as Australia’s pre-eminent art gallery, containing around 170,000 works, makes it one of the nation’s more challenging sites.

At the NGA, space leads into space, ceilings soar 20 and 30 metres and voids pour sound and light through 3 levels. NGA has a floor area of more than 20,500 square metres and landscaped gardens, as well as car parks. This is a big site with plenty going on. Also stretching installation teams are operational parameters. Once a year, NGA shuts its doors - on Christmas Day. Because the NGA is built of reinforced concrete, there are the usual issues associated with cabling through concrete, accentuated by the fact building design meant drilling noise, dust and vibration would pass through architectural voids in the

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structure. Dust, noise and the risk of dropped tools are also problematic and demand that contractors work before and after opening hours.

Something else that can have an impact in galleries is that artworks might need to be moved or covered during an installation process. Because of the nature of art exhibitions, this can be tough to negotiate and as a rule time constraints are very tight.

It’s against this restrictive backdrop that something very unusual happened at NGA. At the height of the Australian tourist season, Maher Magrabi of Intrinsic Security received a call from Dean Marshall, facilities manager at NGA. At the time, Intrinsic Security was updating the NGA’s entire surveillance operation but that painstaking process was about to be turbo-charged.

Not surprisingly, international blockbusters are a major draw to the NGA and audiences for such major exhibitions make up the majority of visitors to the Australian capital at these times. A cancellation at a late stage could have disastrous consequences for the gallery.

With a major international touring exhibition due to open in less than a week, it had transpired that the current CCTV installation did not meet the requirements of the loan agreement. In short, if the cameras located in the exhibition space were not replaced within 7 days, the Masterpieces from Paris show could not go ahead. With so much hanging on a successful outcome, Magrabi knew he needed to act fast.

“I’d heard of Mobotix and thought it could be a good fit,” he explains. “We needed something which could be installed quickly and which would fit into existing gallery operations seamlessly. Mobotix technology allowed us to do that.”

Same as many art galleries, the most commonly occurring threat to works of art at NGA is accidental damage but the key operational issue in an art gallery is the changing nature of its display spaces.

For this reason, the latest generations of hemispheric cameras are ideal, given they capture constant 360-degree views and work well with high ceilings.

Having decided that hemispheric cameras would work best in the NGA exhibition space, Magrabi contacted Mobotix’ Sydney office to enquire about stock levels. The cameras, along with all other Mobotix products, are manufactured in Germany and there was not sufficient stock available in Australia at such short notice. Taking on the challenge, the Mobotix team got on the phone to Germany and within hours a special priority shipment was making its way to Australia direct from Mobotix HQ. In the meantime, Magrabi enlisted a local company to take care of the power over Ethernet cabling, which would transmit images onto the network and back to the control room. As soon as the cameras arrived, Magrabi raced to install and commission them. In just 4 days everything was up and running without a hitch. zzz

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p ro d u ct rev i ew

zip stream by john ada m s

Power of the press We saw a Zipstream-enabled camera for the first time at SecTech Roadshow in Perth where it caused a definite stir, using considerably less bandwidth than any other camera. Given its power, Zipstream compression is well worth a second look.

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zip stream

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OMPRESSION is a big deal in video surveillance. Smaller bit rates mean less bandwidth is used and less storage is needed.

That saves money and in larger installations it saves tons of money. Given this, it was no surprise to see so much interest in bitrate at SecTech Roadshow’s HD Camera Shootout.

But it’s not all about money. Lower bitrates make it easier to move video around WANs, which is becoming increasingly important. For these and other reasons, Axis Zipstream is a really big deal – it’s both a strong technology release and a harbinger of future development. Important to bear in mind, Zipstream is not a new compression method, it’s a reinterpretation of H.264 part 10, part of a standard that allows lots of room to move.

According to Axis’ Chris Tangsilsat, all VMS solutions that support H.264 would support Zipstream by design.

“Zipstream is not a proprietary encoding method – it’s H.264,” Tangsilsat explains. “Basically, it achieves between 20-80 per cent bandwidth and storage reductions in 2 key ways. The first method is dynamic compression level. The way dynamic compression works is that Zipstream analyses different parts of the scene looking for movement.”

Tangsilsat turns to the demo workstation and calls up live images.

“You can see in this scene of a railway station that the camera has established its regions of interest where people and trains are moving and in those areas it keeps the compression at our default level of 30,” he says. “But the rest of the image where nothing is moving is considered low priority.

“In low priority areas where nothing is happening, the camera will increase the compression level – you manually set Zipstream compression to low, medium or high. If you set Zipstream at the lowest setting, it will compress images by 40 per cent, set to medium it will compress images by 50 per cent and if you set it to high it will compress the image by 60 per cent. So just by juggling the compression rate in different parts of a scene, a Zipstream-enabled camera achieves much lower bandwidth and storage.”

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According to Tangsilsat, that’s just one layer of this 2-tier Zipstream process. The second layer is what Axis calls dynamic GOP length.

“The way dynamic GOP length works is that the camera analyses a group of pictures in a sequence and if it is low activity, it will increase the GOP length up to a maximum of 300 – whereas in a busy scene it will keep the GOP length at 32, or somewhere in between,” Tangsilsat explains. “By dynamically adjusting the compression level in a scene and by adjusting the length of the I frame, Zipstream technology is achieved.”

What’s going on behind the scenes is that the camera is manipulating the structure of the group of pictures – the GOP – in each coded video stream.

A GOP is simply a group of images created one after another from which visible frames are generated, and a coded video stream is a succession of GOPs. GOP structure is dictated by a pair of numbers – the first tells the distance between the I or P anchor frames, while the second tells the distance between the 2 full B frames – the GOP size is calculated as the M value.

Clever coding of H.264 compression allows the GOP distance to be minimised or increased by using hierarchical B frames as references when coding, instead of traditional anchors. This creates efficiencies

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that translate to more efficient compression while minimising the chance of errors. The results are notable – savings are enormous with static scenes and they’re considerable even with movement in the scene, as we saw at SecTech.

“If you look at this comparison you can see 2 video feeds being pulled from the same camera to these 2 VLC media player windows,” says Tangsilsat. “The first is Zipstream and it’s using 30Kbps. The second image stream is our standard H.264 and it’s using 600Kbps.

This is a low movement scene so we’ll get Wai King to walk across the camera view.”

As Wai King moves through the scene bit rate jumps but it’s the difference in bit rate between the 2 image streams that really stands out.

“You can see that with movement in the scene the standard H.264 stream is using 2Mbps while the Zipstream is only using 1.2Mbps,” Tansilsat says. “In a high activity scene you might get 30-40 per cent bandwidth reduction. In a low activity scene it will be 80-90 per cent reduction. That’s a huge difference.

“We calculate that a system storing 30 days of video recording may now be able to record 60-80 days, depending on ambient movement levels in the scene. Zipstream is a technology that’s not designed to improve picture quality but you’ll be saving a lot on recording or recording for much, much longer.”

According to Tangsilsat, Axis now has 8 camera models that are Zipstream-enabled.

“Zipstream requires more processing so it’s the newer cameras that run on our ARTPEC-5 chipset that are moving to Zipstream,” he explains. “Moving forward, Zipstream will be migrated across all the ARTPEC-5 products’ high frame rate models.

“But importantly, this is not just going to be available in high end camera models. Look at the cameras we have here – one is an M11 Series. The M11 is an entry level product. Then there’s the mid range P1365 and

48 se&n

zip stream

Zipstream is not a proprietary encoding method – it builds on top of existing H.264 which achieves between 2080 per cent bandwidth and storage reductions.

then the Q1635 high end – Zipstream is available at every price point in our range.”

As well as Zipstream, Axis is also migrating Forensic Capture WDR functionality across its range.

“Forensic Capture WDR capability used to be exclusive to the Q16 series but will now be added to our mid level cameras and to our entry level product,” Tangsilsat says. “So it doesn’t matter what level of camera you select, moving forward, all will have Forensic Capture WDR and Zipstream. It’s a migration of high end technology into lower tier products.”

More new products Something else Axis is doing that’s interesting is branching out of CCTV devices. It’s not an unprecedented move – Axis has networking in its DNA and already has an access control solution in its stable. As part of this demo I get to check out some of Axis’ new products, one of which is a new PoE horn speaker. This works very well and it speaks of a willingness to think laterally that could make for an interesting future.

“The idea behind the release of this speaker is the creation of an ecosystem of add-on PoE devices to support video surveillance systems,” Tangsilsat says.

“The speaker can be associated with a camera and managed through Axis Camera Station but it has its own IP address and web browser interface which looks just like an Axis camera interface – and that’s deliberate.”

Back on the CCTV side, Axis has also just released a 64Gb SD card developed in partnership with SanDisk.

It’s different from other cards on the market being optimised for continuous read and write, and comes with a 3-year Axis warranty.

“We warrant the SD card ourselves and will swap it free of charge if there is a problem with it,” Tangsilsat says. “We are seeing more local recording – this is a response to that evolution. Many VMS solutions now support SD card recording seamlessly so including optimised, compatible storage with a warranty means end users and installers have peace of mind.”

The last product we look at (we also looked at the latest version of Axis Camera Station but more on that in another issue), is the P56 Series PTZ camera, which comes in 2 variations the P5635 and P5624 – a 720p and 1080p version. It’s a nice unit and like other Axis PTZ cameras, it gives a good image – nice colour rendition and a natural field of view that’s easier to mentally process than some of the extreme wide angle views you often see.

“It’s the first PTZ in our range that features WDR Forensic Capture – WDR in a camera designed to dynamically move around,” Tangsilsat says. “In Q1 and Q2 we are migrating Forensic Capture through our full body cameras, dome cameras and PTZ cameras.

“We are putting WDR Forensic Capture into our outdoor PTZs because in external applications there’s always a time of day when the scene is exposed to strong backlight from sun glare.” zzz

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n ew p ro d u ct

mezzo by john ada m s

Ness MEZZO Ness has released Mezzo, an inhouse developed smart home controller, which combines wireless, Z-wave and IP technologies to handle multiple automation functionalities.

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ESS has been neck-deep in home automation for a very long time and it manufactures alarm panels and sensors here in Australia, so it’s no great surprise that the company has designed and manufactured its own home automation solution. What is new, however, is that the MEZZO system is open-ended thanks to its incorporation of Z-Wave comms. It’s also a very sexy looking beast.

According to Peter Mohan, MEZZO is the world’s most advanced smarthome controller integrating cutting-edge wireless.

“Mezzo combines Z-Wave and IP technologies to provide a seamless security, automation, energy

Integration into common management systems.

Integration into common management systems.

Integration into common management systems.

Further information can be found at: Further information can be found at: Further information can be found at: www.panomera.com

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n ew p ro d u ct

mezzo

Mezzo combines Z-Wave and IP technologies to provide a seamless security, automation, energy management, intercom, CCTV and medical solution into one wireless unit.

management, intercom, CCTV and medical solution into one wireless control unit,” Mohan says.

“The system is controlled by our MEZZO App via 3G and a dedicated WiFi router as well as having integrated intelligence that gives you instant control, anytime, anywhere. There’s also a new suite of video and automation devices developed by Ness’ Innovation Division that give installers the ability to offer customers highly flexible and innovative automation solutions.”

MEZZO’s built-in Z-Wave allows simple and powerful home automation control. MEZZO talks to Z-Wave devices wirelessly and securely and can be accessed and controlled remotely using the MEZZO app. You can add a small Z-Wave smart switch to any light switch or powerpoint to turn on/off or dim lights and devices from anywhere at any time. Z-Wave technology turns regular household electronics including lights, door locks and thermostats into smart devices.

MEZZO can control multiple security devices including wireless PIR motions sensors, wireless door switches, wireless smoke sensors and many more. The unit employs a smart and secure 2-way radio protocol between the hub and wireless devices for precise feedback on system and device status.

When it comes to video surveillance, you can view your high resolution MEZZO WiFi camera at home, at work, in fact anywhere in the world, via the MEZZO app, which also gives you cloud backup, pan/tilt control and record on demand. An optional MEZZO router with backup battery enables seamless interaction with your home and no lengthy delays on button presses, ensuring uninterrupted 52 se&n

connection. Customers can record up to 8 WiFi cameras with a MEZZO Premium account.

It’s also possible to add a uHoo Wi-Fi video door intercom so you know when someone is at your door, anytime, anywhere. This allows you to answer the door on your smart phone and see the caller from anywhere in the world. If you can’t answer, uHoo will take a video message for you to view at a convenient time.

Another capability of the system is energy management. You can monitor energy use in your house using information from real-time energy graphs in MEZZO’s app. MEZZO can pinpoint the times appliances are consuming the most energy, giving customers the power to manage their energy usage by taking advantage of off-peak energy prices and automatically turning off appliances that are not in use.

Also extremely valuable as a sales tool are MEZZO’s medical monitoring capabilities, which provide inactivity surveillance, pill reminders and peace of mind that loved ones are only a buttonpress away. And MEZZO tightly integrates with Smartlink Nurse Call and aged care personal safety products for the medical, security and aged care industries.

In terms of the hardware, MEZZO is a very polished solution. It looks absolutely fabulous and we’ve been aware of its development for some time.

This is no knee-jerk release but a thoughtful solution that integrates decades of alarm technology nous.

We’ll be reviewing Ness MEZZO in an upcoming issue but it’s one of the products installers should try to get a look at when they visit Security 2015 in Melbourne July 15-17. zzz

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State of perfection What is the perfect alarm and home automation panel in the current market?

What features should installers be looking for when they think about upgrading customers to IP-based, NBNcompatible solutions?

I

T seems a simple thing, laying out the features, functions and parameters of the perfect alarm system but as soon as you start it becomes difficult to do. My instinctive sense is that a perfect alarm system is defined by its communications capability. Above all things, this is the heart of an alarm panel. Trouble is communications is multifarious. Some comms is good and more is better – or is it? In some applications, the more open your communications channels, the more vulnerable your solution might be and there are layers of risk here, too.

For Fred Nerks, an alarm panel that communicates with every wireless path known to man is an extremely flexible solution that allows him to connect a vast array of devices to his security and automation system so he can best monitor the temperatures and drinking water levels inside the cages of his prize racing pigeons.

But for higher security applications – the kind whose owners believe the best form of network security is to have no network at all – such comms agnosticism is a violation of security procedures. And it’s not just high security sites that value communications security. If you install an open alarm system in a commercial or

54 se&n

government application and it’s breached, then things are not likely to go well for you.

Given these and other variables, the first thing to do is attempt to define what an alarm system is meant to be. Where does it begin and where does it end?

In my opinion an alarm system is the electrical path, including the control board, between the sensors/cameras/ inputs/outputs and the receiver/s in the monitoring station. The alarm system includes the local network and comms devices, and it includes the power supply in as much as it requires local backup for all components in the system’s electrical

paths. You might also argue an alarm system includes a monitoring station’s ability to detect and report a compromised panel’s polling failure.

The alarm system includes not only local keypads, but wireless keyfobs, and the smart devices and alarm management apps they are running. This latter is a whole science of its own. Unsecure smart devices running alarm management apps are potentially a serious liability. It’s not such a drama for the likes of Fred Nerks and his pigeons but for any commercial application, compromise of a smart device could lead to losses.

BY JOHN ADAM S

Your perfect alarm panel should incorporate the capacity for video verification of alarm events. The quality of these images is going to be a matter for consideration.

The alarm system certainly includes the nature and security protocols of the alarm management app and it should also include the security settings of the smart device supporting the app. Professional providers should at least recommend smart device settings that maximise the security of any common mobile device that might be used to manage their remote applications.

There are a number of common wireless communication paths that might be used by devices linked to a security and automation solution, including but not limited to the most common Aussie

wireless device bandwidth of 433MHz, as well as 866Mhz sensors, Wi-Fi, ZigBee, Z-Wave and others. Each has strengths and weaknesses.

433Mhz alarm sensors and devices (and anything in the 900MHz – 2.4Ghz range) are comparatively trivial to jam with a Jackson Research JR080 device.

At the same time 433 is vulnerable to false alarm from the emanations of garage door openers, baby monitors, HF/UHF radios and other wireless stuff. As a local sensor comms path, however, 433Mhz offers low power draw, decent range and no IP address that can be nibbled at by intruders

on the other side of the globe. Is 433MHz more reliable than hard wired? Not a chance. Is it easier to install? You know the answer to that and your perfect alarm system should give you both options and more.

Perfect alarm systems From the point of view of installers and end users, perfection is going to mean choosing comms paths that expose assets to the least possible risk. Thoughtful security procedures will need to be worked up in order to establish risk and risk mitigation. Monitoring comms paths are the biggest deal and you need multiple options – again these should be wireless and hardwired – to offer the necessary redundancy and flexibility.

Should the perfect alarm panel be supported globally by cloud applications?

Yes - given security can be maintained to an adequate standard, remote user access of key management functions is part of the perfect alarm system for almost every customer.

Another challenge for installers seeking a perfect alarm system is whether or not it should be a proprietary solution. Yes, you can buy stacks of third-party Z-Wave PIRs, flood sensors and whatnot over the internet and link them with a comms agnostic security and home automation system. Trouble is the quality of these sensors can’t be guaranteed. Are they dual pyro or single? Is that sensor lens Fresnel or just weirdly stamped poly?

What range are they really? What was the expertise of the maker? Did they TEM cell test at the engineering stage? Who knows?

The way around this may be to go with a proprietary solution – there are plenty of them – that has a good range of quality sensors as well as the ability to link some quirky third-party sensors that might provide functional sales hooks. The downside of proprietary is cost. It’s always more expensive to go with a quality brand name and the end user of the perfect alarm system may be a perfect miser. The panel you choose should have a sensor range that covers indoor and outdoor applications, and on the hardwire side it should be capable of supporting high end NO/NC sensors covering indoor and outdoor applications.

se&n 55

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Your perfect alarm panel should incorporate the capacity for video verification of alarm events. The quality of these images is going to be a matter for consideration. Most importantly, it should be possible to send those images to a monitoring station for assessment and the images should be fit for this purpose. That means they need to have enough resolution and the cameras need to have enough light to get the job done.

This is more complicated than it sounds – especially if the camera-PIRs are using low power draw, low bandwidth 433MHz comms.

The presence of automation capability is assumed but how much and how is this to be managed locally and remotely?

The complexity of systems varies considerably, with some manufacturers offering a handful of lateral devices, including outputs for lights, air conditioning and gate opening, etc, while others offer a constellation of devices.

These might include things like flood sensors, temperature sensors, moisture sensors, gunshot sensors, intercoms and associated door locks.

On the subject of door locks, should the perfect alarm system have access control capability? Generally, I think it should have this potential. The ability to handle 2-4 doors of access control expands the perfect alarm system’s ability to meet the demands of more discerning home owners, as well as supporting the requirements of small businesses.

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A perfect alarm system should be easy to install and easy to use. There are plenty of alarm systems that don’t get installed properly or used properly because they are too complicated or too frightening.

For techs, it might come down to choosing an alarm system that is not too complex to properly program using an LCD keypad, or going for a solution that can be set up remotely. It might mean menu programming on a touch screen.

For end users it might come down to requesting the system has a longer arming delay on entry and exit, or installing the internal siren somewhere that doesn’t give workers or home owners heart attacks 30 flustered seconds after opening the front door. End users will also value a coherent interface that doesn’t look like it was designed in 2005.

A perfect alarm system should be easy to install and easy to use. There are plenty of alarm systems that don’t get installed properly or used properly because they are too complicated or too frightening.

The perfect alarm system has the ability to be divided into areas/partitions so it can be installed with more flexibility. And it has perimeter protection capability so users can arm the front line of the system and then move around the house with impunity, with no fear of being assaulted by 120dB of screamer that will add grey hairs and offend the neighbours.

The perfect alarm system has very long life wireless key fobs with good but not kilometres of range that can’t be accidentally activated when tossed into over-stuffed handbags. These fobs should be manufactured to a quality standard, should be weatherproof and compact.

LED feedback on the fob is good and if combined with audio feedback, that’s better.

When it comes to user interfaces, a good alarm system has multiple options – starting with LCD and going through to touch screens. There are still some LEDbased user interfaces around, which is very 1975. Our perfect alarm panel can communicate with users with audio messaging and tones as well as using icons or text alerts/updates on its keypad.

It can also communicate using text and email.

The ability to communicate with users via multiple channels in an intuitive way is a great asset for any system. Are touch screens more perfect than LCD? Given their capacity for enhanced communication with the user, yes they are, though they don’t last as long. LCDs are limited – not just when it comes to communication but during programming and troubleshooting, too.

And on that topic of troubleshooting, the perfect alarm panel allows secure, remote system status checks, troubleshooting and firmware updates. That’s because the perfect alarm panel is built by a company that continues to care about making perfect alarm solutions and has built its perfect system with the ability to be enhanced throughout its long service life. Such a capacity was no advantage for alarm systems in days of yore, but today it’s possible to download a whole new skin for a touch device that might include mapping or a new-look interface, or to tweak input and output values to meet new challenges. zzz

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s p e ci al re p o rt

installation by john ada m s

Installation tips

If you can identify the biggest stumbling blocks for installers trying to make sense of HD IP video surveillance then it’s easier to work towards planning for them or expanding your skill set, making installations faster and solutions more effective.

T

RYING to commission HD IP cameras can be challenging but it’s even more challenging when you’re constrained by bandwith issues, required to position cameras in less than ideal locations, or forced by a low budget to employ a camera that might not be up to the job.

But what are the key stumbling blocks? There are so many factors to consider including managing storage, handling bit rate over public WANs, tweaking camera performance parameters for 24-hour operation, wrangling massive bandwidth demands in very busy scenes, the challenge of installing cameras to capture face recognition, as well as situational awareness.

According to Bruce Maxwell of Seadan Security Distribution, the best way to avoid stumbling blocks is to actually stumble…just once, and in a controlled environment.

58 se&n

“Some manufacturers offer excellent on-line planning tools which are very comprehensive, but are still conservative in their calculations,” Maxwell explains. “Nevertheless, they will provide a good guide to the critical elements to consider, and as a byproduct, generate graphics and bills of materials which are great to include in proposals.

“Generally, issues most often arise in large projects, not in coffee shops. An approach which incorporates a pilot installation will be seen as soundly based and those not taking this approach will be at a sales disadvantage. There are also a wide range of tools from manufacturers including Pelco, which offers a 3D Camera Placement tool which converts 2D AutoCAD files into 3D site maps. These tools are excellent for planning.”

Neil Morgan, national products engineer at Ness, takes a technical perspective to the challenges of installing HD IP cameras.

“Ultimately, regardless of compression and frugalness of bandwidth, the bigger and better an image is, the more bandwidth, processor power and storage that is required,” says Morgan. “A lack of power creates a snowball effect within the system, from live display to playback, archiving and stability.

“My first tip for any and every installer, regardless of the system is to reduce the frame rate. Halving the frame rate to 12 frames from 25fps will reduce system processing while increasing storage. In most cases, you simply don’t need more fps. You should

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s p e ci al re p o rt

work on a worst case scenario for storage but it is better to overestimate your storage needs than under estimate them and have storage issues.”

Damien White, surveillance product manager at CSD, believes network planning is the key issue most installers face. (Based on my own experience with network issues it’s impossible not to endorse the point he makes).

“Overall the major stumbling block is failing to take the time to plan the networking requirements of the project,” he says. “More than 60 per cent of calls that my technical support team take are related to networking configuration or design problems. It is absolutely essential to treat the network design and configuration as being as important as the selection of cameras and recording equipment.

“On the camera side, focusing of IP cameras can be difficult and is often rushed. Having a laptop or test monitor at the location of the camera allows the camera to be more accurately focused in less time.”

For Chris Tangsilsat, senior sales engineer at Axis Communications, the 2 main challenges he sees are related to one another.

“These challenges are image usability and storage consumption,” Tangsilsat says. “It’s because poor image quality results in higher storage consumption.

As an example, if a camera is placed in a location with poor lighting, more noise will be evident in the image, resulting in higher bandwidth consumption.

This means that using a low light sensitive camera or adding illumination will address 2 key installation challenges.”

Steve Malesevic of Bosch says not having a basic to intermediate understanding of IP networking is an obvious issue for some installers.

“Other issues include not bothering to adjust bandwidth settings to suit requirements, or placing lighting in incorrect positions compared to camera position (or visa versa),” Malesevic says. “Selecting a system that can have transcoding implemented can solve image quality issues when viewing across low bandwidth WAN connections.”

According to Andrew Cho, product manager at EOS Australia, The key stumbling block for HD IP camera is managing bandwidth over existing network infrastructure or public WAN. “Techs should promptly test their camera prior to the installation and calculate the scenarios to ensure they do not have any time wasting problem-solving on site,” says Cho. “Nowadays, manufacturers provide useful bandwidth calculator tools and techs should use these tools to ensure systems will function as expected.”

For Hikvision’s Michael Bates, light is the key issue because of the impact it has on bandwidth.

“Installers frequently fail to take into account the effect that low light has on bandwidth,” Bates says.

“The issue with H.264 is that even though it is far more efficient than other compression types it is still variable. In low light scenarios the camera ramps up the gain in an image and this increases noise and therefore bandwidth.

60 se&n

installation

Some manufactures offer excellent on-line planning tools which are very comprehensive, but are still conservative in their calculations

“Often installers are not getting the storage estimated as a result of this, so a camera with quality noise reduction software can be a huge benefit. A consistent theme of feedback we receive is that Hikvision’s bandwidth is at the lower end of the scale compared with most other manufacturers. As discussed earlier our soon to be released Smart H.264 and the eventual uptake of H.265 will have huge benefits.”

Sony’s Steve Charles agrees with others that issues usually arise with the network design and support of the CCTV system in general and he believes training is a key solution.

“We offer certified training programs on Sony cameras covering system design and installation, setting up of the cameras and featured analytics including camera software and Sony Toolbox applications,” he says.

“In our experience, some installers also use nonstandards-compliant battery POE injectors which could potentially damage the camera. We’ve seen instances where these types of devices have been used for simple things like firmware upgrades and the device ends up starving the camera of power or the battery has failed, which in turn could corrupt the cameras new firmware and even the flash memory. This is a major problem for most camera manufacturers in the industry.”

For Lou Mavrelis at Hills, one of the easiest ways to simplify video surveillance installation is to simplify the systems themselves.

“There are various plug and play cameras and NVR’s out there that overcome most of the addressing and setup issues leaving the installer the task of fine tuning the cameras to suit the application.” Mavrelis explains. “For other VMS systems, installers need to have a good understanding of IP addressing/network systems.

“When it comes to the system design, often a system is quoted and specified and during the commissioning stage the installers will sometimes struggle to understand what part of the system they need to tweak so that the system meets the specifications. Hills offers a professional service in that where required pre-staging/acceptance testing can be provided to overcome these difficulties.” zzz

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p ro d u ct rev i ew

Sony SNC -VB630

Sony SNCVB630 Review Sony’s SNC-VB630 is a full body 1080p HD camera that combines strong WDR performance with good low light performance and very low latency. In our test the VB630 offers useful situational awareness in low light levels and positively eats backlight for breakfast.

62 se&n

S

ONY’S Gen6 SNC-VB630 features a 1/2.9-inch progressive scan Exmor CMOS sensor, with approximately 2.14MP. This day/night 1080p camera claims a minimum scene illumination of .1 (0.06 lux, 30 IRE) of a lux at a shutter speed of 1/30th of a second in colour, or down to 0.05 lux (30 IRE) in monochrome. I don’t go this low but I think under 1 lux at the lens in monochrome is getting towards the minimum for useful situational awareness in street applications. That’s a good number for an unassisted camera. In our test we get down around l lux at the lens in our darkest target area.

Sitting behind the Exmor chip and handling much of this camera’s functionality is Sony’s IPELA Engine EX, an integrated signal processing system that combines Sony’s various signal processing

By john adam s

The transitions from light to dark are very seamless, the colours remain consistent.

Looking through the office towards the glass backdoor, the image is great.

DEPA Advanced Intelligent Video and Audio Analytics triggers alarms according to userdefined rules. In-camera analytics are enhanced by additional features such as face detection, left-object and removed-object detection, and intelligent motion detection. I don’t test these capabilities but they are there if you need them.

The camera has a 2.8-8mm lens, which gives a field of view between 114 degrees at the wide end and 40 degrees at the long end, while aperture moves from a very fast F1.2 wide to a still quick F1.95 with tele. With its 2.8-8mm f1.2 lens, the VB630 has an optical zoom of 2.9x and a digital zoom of 4x. The latter is a cropping tool at full frame, though it would definitely be useful if you were viewing an image stream on a VMS tile. I stay at full screen throughout this test.

WDR performance in office

and analytics technologies. These include an XDNR noise reduction processor to tidy up images in low light, View-DR which works to enhance light and dark areas of a scene, and the simultaneous DEPA Advanced Video analytics module. There’s also a Colour Adjustment module, and Encoding and Packetizing modules. The high frame rate mode – 60 fps in the model I’m testing – delivers smoother, more natural movement.

A feature worth discussing is View-DR, which at 90 dB is designed to give clean images in tough backlit and high contrast conditions. It’s an interestingly modest WDR number that one - 90dB. But despite this apparently low number, the VB630 is an absolute bull in backlight - probably the best camera I’ve ever tested. I have no idea how or why, but it’s very strong.

Looking out to courtyard

Sun in the frame

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p ro d u ct rev i ew

Sony SNC -VB630

Norman at 8 metres

Norman at 12 metres

In terms of setup via the camera browser there’s exposure control, exposure compensation, auto white balance, AGC, shutter speed, and iris control as well as image stabilisation and visibility enhancer. There’s a heap of other settings you can access through the browser. These include white balance which includes ATW, ATW-PRO, fluorescent, mercury, sodium vapour, metal halide, white LED, one push WB, and manual. I stay at auto, though using sodium vapour might have been the best option.

There’s plenty more to play with here – the browser is as simple and effective as a commissioning tool and I use it to test the VB630 on SEN’s dedicated Dell 9020 server workstation.

This setup has an Intel i7-4770 3.4GHz quad-core processor (8 threads per core), 8GB of RAM, and an AMD Radeon R7 250 graphics card with 2GB of RAM. Power and data are handled by a dedicated Netgear GS108P ProSafe 8-port Gigabit switch.

The VB630 is among the best full body cameras against backlight available on the market today.

Test driving the SNC-VB630 As soon as I power up the VB630 in the office I notice how good it is against backlight. It’s very strong and as the afternoon wears on my opinion is confirmed again and again. The VB630 is among the best full body cameras against backlight available on the market today. Generally speaking,

Rear ports

64 se&n

all low end cameras, as well as some better cameras with monster WDR numbers, put so much effort into noise reduction their backlit image streams look like they were produced by Will Vinton.

With the VB630 there’s not the image smoothing you often see and this suggests there’s either not a huge amount of digital noise reduction going on under the hood, or what’s going on is very clever indeed. Something else you see with backlight management of many cameras is inconsistency of coverage between the dark and bright portions of the scene. Low cost cameras are the worst offenders but even good cameras can be strained by this.

The VB630 seems oblivious. The transitions from light to dark are very seamless, the colours remain consistent. Looking through the office towards the glass backdoor, the image is great.

My settings include a constant bitrate of 8000kbps, H264 Profile 1 set to high, WDR is on, visibility enhancement is set to the middle, backlight compensation is on, Auto gain is at maximum and shutter speed between 1/10000 and 1/25 of a second (it’s selectable between 1/10000s and 1/1s). I have auto white balance on, the XDNR is on high and all my image settings are at default.

Bear in mind this camera supports variable bit rate (VBR) and maximum storage efficiency using VBR capped with frame-skip.

Just to see what happens, I drop noise reduction to low – the result is more noise in the form of pixel swim, so I go back to the high XDNR setting. I also start to play with image settings but the light is good enough and the camera is capable enough that there’s no great issue with colour rendition and I

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p ro d u ct rev i ew

Sony SNC -VB630

The lens does well in tough conditions.

decide I’m adjusting colour and hue just because it’s there. The colour rendition is very neutral and true.

Because the VB630 is a 1080p camera and the last camera I looked at was 4K, I’m very aware of the difference in resolution and have to re-adjust my expectations. Discounting resolution, this is a quality image and later on I see this camera’s strength coming through as light levels plunge. It can do things UHD cameras can’t do unassisted in low light.

When I put the VB630 outside for the first time it’s about 1pm, the sun is in the top of the image – right smack in the image. With other cameras this would lead to blooming, muted colours or weird colour shifts but not with the Sony. It just soaks this up. Even wisps of cloud around the sun are clearly visible. There’s no flare or ghosting from the lens, though there’s some purple fringing on high contrast areas. Overall, with 85,000 lux at the lens I think this is the best image I’ve had out the back in terms of colour rendition. It’s true and it’s subtle in terms of discernment. There’s also very little latency – watching a helicopter fly across the skyline this is very noticeable.

To begin with, I have the lens at its widest setting and focus is out towards infinity. There’s predictable barrel distortion out wide but the centre of the image is solid. Later on, I tighten the view so I’m towards the wide end of the middle of the 2.8-8mm range. I stay at this focal length of about 4.5mm for the rest of the test until I take the camera out the front after dark and open it up.

This lens is quick at f1.2, the front element of the lens is coated and in terms of performance, the optics work. It’s clearly built to a price, with a plastic mounting thread and a lightly built feel – most lenses I handle are the same way. Regardless, it holds up well to the beating I’m giving it and I find the zoom and focus adjustments to be smooth and progressive. It’s not got the ooze of brass helicoids but the plastic internals have just enough resistance to create feel.

66 se&n

Later in the afternoon there’s about 75,000 of bright winter sun in the year courtyard and the Sony stays tight. There’s still some purple fringing caused by chromatic aberration in the lens on the edge of a nearby office tower but at this 4.5mm mid focal length I’ve lost most the barrel distortion and have good coverage of the lane – it’s deep and wide enough for my purpose.

Something I keep noticing when looking at images from traffic in the lane is the lack of latency in this 1920 x 1080 image. When I check the frame

At 7 lux and 4.5m, wide angle

8m, 7 lux and 4.5mm focal length

Norman at 16m, 14 lux at face

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p ro d u ct revi ew

Rear lane at 5000 lux

rate and find it’s still set to 25ips I’m surprised – I was certain the camera was at 60ips with such low latency. Every time a vehicle moves through the field of view that lack of latency hits me again.

As the afternoon progresses, conditions pass through various challenging stages but throughout this period, depth of field and colour rendition remain strong. Also noteworthy is lack of digital smoothing and absence of flare. The 1080p resolution of this sensor means you’re not getting the detail of UHD but in all other respects, this is a superior image. It will be interesting to see Sony’s UHD camera – combining such fundamentally capable performance with high resolution will be something else.

At about 4pm in the afternoon I start losing light from the weak winter sun. As usual, the image quality just keeps improving as light levels fall and digital noise reduction has less impact on detail in the image stream. Depth of field increases, colour tones look more balanced, fine detail in the distance sharpens – in fact the whole image looks best at 11 EV (about 5000 lux).

It’s interesting that despite only being 1080p, at the wide end of the range the VB630 makes the most of its resolution to give a very layered scene. I spend a lot of time looking at the image trying to work out how the camera is managing this. Finally, I decide it’s due to the quality of the colour rendition. Even very subtle variations of colour are coming through and that adds detail and colour contrast deep into the scene. The unobtrusive nature of Sony’s View-DR must be contributing, too.

At only 4.30pm or so, the street lights come on, highlighting the watery nature of the late afternoon winter light. By 5.10pm we are down to 4.2 EV (about 40 lux) at the lens. The image is still good – there’s processing swim to be seen now but colour is still warm and true. There’s no noticeable blooming from the streetlights. Depth of field is still good. At about 5.20pm we are down to 1EV (5 lux) but we still have colour. There’s now blooming of light sources

68 se&n

Sony SNC-VB630

Rear lane at 40 lux

as the shutter slows and/or ISO winds up.

As light goes down to .5EV – 3.5 lux at the lens – the image gets a little smoky but retains depth of field. I have noise reduction on high still and the smoothlooking image is a result of this setting. We are still in colour. Situational awareness remains good, as does depth of field. When a car goes by there’s a little blooming but not too much and motion blur is well handled so shutter speed is not too slow.

At 5.30pm, just as I’m starting to wonder if I’ve accidentally set the VB630 is set to hold colour, the camera goes to black and white. By 6pm light at the lens is -1EV which is just over 1 lux. The image is being smoothed but with absolutely no support from IR, there’s still full situational awareness out the back. There’s now a wee ghost being created in the lens elements by the adjacent streetlight. From here on, light levels drop below the level my Sekonic can read (1.25 lux) at the lens but we retain good situational awareness in the lane.

Next, I cart the tripod through the office. Out front the VB630 goes back into colour and stays there – the streetlight in front of the office has been replaced and it’s a little lighter out here than usual. I measure 7 lux at the lens, which is a fairly typical light level for public surveillance applications.

I have AWB on and light around the camera looks white but deeper into the scene and further from the lens, colours from the low pressure sodium lamps are tending towards orange. I could shift my light settings to sodium vapour but don’t. General situational awareness in this scene is very strong, despite the fact there’s no supporting illumination.

Norman’s face when at 7m from the lens is easily identifiable and there’s good contrast in the scene and across Norman’s target area.

At 16m Norman is out front of Yaffa with 14 lux on his face from a movement – activated lamp. We are not getting face recognition at this distance but we are getting the number plate and clear delineations of the colour and monochrome patterns from C onwards – A and B patterns have merged. At 25m we

k

5 lux

are not getting face recognition or the plate, but we are getting colour and delineation between D and E markings on Norman’s targets.

All these images are at the same mid-point focal length of 4.5mm, which I decide is the most effective focal length for this street scene. A wider view would liberate too many pixels. The longer focal length gives me better depth of field and there’s more than enough light to support this lens setting. Before I finish up, I take the lens out to wide angle and place Norman 4.5m from the lens. This is a good contrasty image, with clear face recognition and full coverage of the target area.

Going back to wide angle hands me back some of the aperture I lost at my mid-point focal length.

Given the lens is f1.2 at wide and f1.95 at tele, I estimate I was at about f1.45 for a great part of the test. The faster aperture setting is noticeable in low light – no question about that – but I don’t think it impacted on my wide shots out the back in full sun.

The VB630 was easily handling that scene with the lens wide open.

Sony’s SNC-VB630 is one of the best performers of the current crop of 1080p cameras. It offers unassisted situational awareness at under 1.25 lux at the lens and colour performance from about 3-4 lux. At 7 lux, which is a realistic ambient reading for street surveillance, the VB630 offers excellent situational awareness and colour rendition, as well as face recognition at 12-14m. License plates are discernible to about 18m, which is good performance, too.

While low light performance is solid at realistic shutter speeds, backlight performance is the standout feature of the VB630. WDR performance of this camera is the most accomplished of any camera we’ve tested and colour remained true even with two-thirds of the sun inside the frame.

Other strong points of this camera are its low latency. With a higher grade lens, there’s no doubt that the overall performance of Sony’s SNC-VB630 would be better still. zzz

1.25 lux or less at lens – ghost is bottom right

At about 4pm in the afternoon I start losing light from the weak winter sun. As usual, the image quality just keeps improving as light levels fall and digital noise reduction has less impact on detail in the image stream.

Sony’s 1/2.9-inch Exmor CMOS sensor

Features of the Sony SNCVB630 tested include: l 1920 x 1080 resolution at 60ips l 2.8-8mm f1.2 varifocal lens l DEPA Advanced IVA l Face detection, tamper alarm l Noise Reduction XDNR l Privacy masking (20 masks) l View-DR with WDR 90dB vSD card edge storage l Bitrate 64Kbps-32 Mbps l Triple streaming l G.711/G.726/AAC audio.

se&n 69

n ews re p o rt by ron bay

The strategically placed cameras will act both as a deterrent and record illegal activity to assist the police in putting offenders before the courts.

Sea change BYRON Shire Council will install video surveillance at multiple locations in the township of Byron Bay, with the installation to be completed by November 2015, in time for Schoolies Week.

B

YRON Bay’s CCTV system is being installed to help deter anti-social behaviour, reduce the fear of crime and improve public safety and the perception of safety in the area. It will be installed to cover the beach front public space of Apex Park, as well as parts of Jonson St between Apex Park and Marvel St. This 4-5 block stretch is the heart of Byron Bay’s entertainment precinct and is busy at Schoolies Week and during the more sedate celebrations associated with the huge Byron BluesFest, which draws 100,000 visitors to the town every Easter.

In the original tender, Byron Shire Council pointed out that budget was limited and depending on the final price of the chosen system, council may elect to only have part of the system installed. However, given price falls over the last couple of years Byron Shire Council probably got most, if not all, of the coverage it required.

When the project was announced, Nationals candidate for Richmond, Matthew Fraser said $A200,000 in funding would come from the federal government’s $A50 million Safer Communities Program to help make the streets of Byron Bay safer.

Fraser said CCTV cameras would be installed in hot spot areas, primarily along Jonson St.

70 se&n

“For a long time now business groups, community groups and residents have been pushing for CCTV in Byron Bay,” he said. “The strategically placed cameras will act both as a deterrent and record illegal activity to assist the police in putting offenders before the courts.”

Fraser said the cameras won’t be continually monitored, but would record activity that could be accessed at a later date. Similar CCTV programs at Murwillumbah and Kingscliff have resulted in a reduction of crime on the streets.

At the same time, Byron United president Paul Waters said CCTV cameras would help curb alcoholfuelled violence in Byron.

“It is really good news for Byron Bay because it is a positive step towards our multi-pronged plan to make the streets safer,” he said. “That includes CCTV, more visible and engaged police patrols, better lighting and better design concepts, including an integrated transport hub.”

Council will enter into a maintenance agreement with the successful tenderer to provide periodic maintenance services to the system for a period of 3 years with 2 extension options of 12 months each.

The maintenance agreement will start on the date of practical completion of the system installation. zzz

s p e ci al re p o rt

s e c u r i ty 20 15 ex po / security 2 01 5 exp o / security 2 01 5 exp o / security 201 5 exp o / sec

security 2015 expo

Tecom Mobile App TECOM’S portfolio continues to grow and meet customer demands through a number of exciting developments. The brand new Tecom Mobile app allows users to perform the most important functions on their favourite Apple or Android device. The latest version of Challenger panel firmware gives you the ability to control your building’s lighting via CBus automation controls and let’s not forget about Security Commander.

With a number of exciting new features including integration to 3rd party video, the latest developments from Interlogix gives users and installers even more reason to install a Challenger solution. Visit the website at www.interlogix.com.au to find out more. n Contact: Interlogix n Contact: +61 3 9239 1200 n Stand: H20

Axis Zipstream Technology AXIS Zipstream technology is fully compatible with the H.264 compression standard and can be used with the latest Axis cameras and the market’s leading video management software without additional investment. Optimized for video surveillance, Zipstream technology is a radically more efficient H.264 implementation, lowering bandwidth and storage requirements by an average 50 per cent or more.

Axis’ Zipstream technology can be used with a range of the latest cameras from Axis and video management software. It enables user to drastically reduce bandwidth and storage needs without compromising on important image details. For example, more than twice the video footage can now be stored on SD cards ora NAS in small systems built on AXIS Camera Companion as well as other edge recording applications. n Contact: Axis Communications n Contact: +61 3 9982 1111 n Stand: C14

Multipath-IP T4000 INNER Range Multipath-IP T4000 security communicator is a highly advanced and cost effective field device used to connect any Contact-ID dialer equipped alarm panel to a central monitoring station via Dual 3G and Ethernet alarm transmission paths.

The T4000 signifies the next evolution in the Multipath-IP solution. Built from the ground up, the T4000 supersedes previous models and delivers unprecedented features never before seen within the security industry. Whilst the T4000 is incredibly sophisticated, its core strength focuses on ease of installation, ease of operation and low-cost security monitoring.

The T4000 is fully capable of providing a communications path for upload/ download programming of many popular alarm systems and its small footprint allows it to easily retrofit into existing alarm system cabinets. n Distributor: Inner Range n Contact: +61 3 9780 4300 n Stand: C7

72 se&n

cur ity 20 1 5 exp o / s e cu ri ty 20 15 ex po / s e c u r i ty 20 15 exp o / security 2 01 5 exp o / security 2 01 5 exp o / secu ri ty 201 5 exp o

Honeywell Vista VAM SAY hello to opportunity! Honeywell’s groundbreaking VISTA Automation Module (VAM) provides VISTA users with easy, affordable home and business control on mobile devices. It’s an excellent way to reach new prospects by delivering the lifestyleenhancing services they demand. With millions of VISTA systems already installed, it’s an ideal, economical solution for upgrades and retrofits, and the perfect way to differentiate your business and safeguard your accounts. Users can also view cameras, control their security system, lights, locks and thermostats, locally or remotely via their mobile device — with no monthly fees. Mention SE&N Magazine to receive a free Z-Wave Appliance Module with every purchase of VAM during the month of July and August. n Distributor: Honeywell Security Group n Contact: 1300 234 234 n Stand: J24

Comnet redundant ring switch COMNET introduces Industry’s first plug & play redundant ethernet ring switch (no configuration or laptop required!). Using CNGE2+2SMS to add IP Video to a network is easy and is designed for use in harsh environmental applications. This gives customers the opportunity to save about 25 per cent versus using managed switches in installations. Weighing less than 1kg and only measuring 10.4 × 9.4 × 3.7 cm, is probably the smallest switch available on the market and ideal for use in confined spaces. Made in USA, it comes with lifetime warranty as standard. n Distributor: ComNet/Allguard n Contact: +61 3 9378 2450 n Stand: F43

Hikvision expands SMART IP range Hikvision continues to expand the most comprehensive product range in the industry to meet customer needs on any application, from Plug ‘n’ Play to high end projects.

The SMART IP camera range is being enhanced with our Ultra HD camera series, providing 3072 x 2048 pixel resolution at full frame rate to deliver spectacular images.

Hikvision is also launching SMART H.264+, a new codec that will reduce bandwidth by as much as 50 per cent, making our Ultra HD an even more attractive solution. n Distributor: Hikvision Digital Technology n Contact: 1300 557 450 n Stand: E28

se&n 73

s p e ci al re p o rt

s e c u r i ty 20 15 ex po / security 2 01 5 exp o / security 2 01 5 exp o / security 201 5 exp o /

security 2015 expo

Meet the future at Hills MEET the future of trusted security, surveillance and IT technology at the Hills stand this year. We will be showcasing the latest and most innovative product technologies from our industry leading brands such as Vivotek, Genetec, Panasonic, Interlogix, Tyco Security Products, Juniper, Pacom and much more.

Make sure to visit our stand and enjoy a free coffee while speaking to our industry experts about tomorrow’s technology trends, relevant vertical markets and applications to help grow and improve your business. n Distributor: Hills Limited n Contact: 1800 720 000, info@hills.com.au n Stand: i8

QSS launches FLIR QSS is proud to launch the new range of FLIR IP Visual bullet, dome and PTZ cameras and recorders designed with outstanding HD resolution for both indoor and outdoor installation, and with IR and low light capability for exceptional night vision.

The range features 1-5 MP resolution cameras, third-party VMS software compliant/ ONVIF and remote cloud based viewing via iOS, Android, PC and Mac. Visit us at Security 2015 Stand Number E14 to experience the complete FLIR solution for all your thermal and optical security requirements. n Distributor: Q Security Systems n Contact: +61 3 9676 7000 n Stand: E14

Seadan launches its CCTV Pro-Division at SEC 2015 SEADAN is launching its CCTV Pro-Division at this year’s show, with an impressive range of leading-edge CCTV products from Dahua Technology and Pelco by Schneider Electric. Come meet the members of the new Seadan National CCTV ProDivision, established to assist you win more project business and see state-of-the-art technology in action.

We’re showing Dahua’s amazing long range 2MP analogue HDCVI technology, 4K, IP solutions in dome, box, bullet and PTZ cameras as well as NVRs and DVRs. Our Pelco range will showcase the Evo 360, the Sarix Series, the Spectra and the Digital Sentry range. Be blown away by these advancements in CCTV technology and see the latest capability, functionality and capacity. n Distributor: Seadan Security & Electronics n Contact: 1300 366 851 n Stand: C8 & D8

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full turnkey solutions • • • • •

VIDEO/CCTV INTRUSION ACCESS CONTROL INTERCOMS STRUCTURED CABLING AND much MORE

QUALITY PRODUCTS HIGHEST LEVEL OF SERVICE + TECHNICAL SUPPORT

CALL US NOW ON 1300 135 905 68 BELL ST HEIDELBERG HEIGHTS VIC 3084 E: SALES@APOL.COM.AU W: WWW.APOL.COM.AU

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security 2015 expo

FLIR Security Range FLIR is the world leader in thermal imaging technology, offering the widest range and highest standard of any supplier with unsurpassed support in before and after sales service. With systems fielded in military, law enforcement and security applications, FLIR offers unmatched experience to the security market. By designing and manufacturing critical technologies in-house, FLIR brings military hardened products to the security market at commercial prices. On top of this FLIR offers 2 or 3-year product and 10-year detector warranty on most products. Now FLIR introduces its day/ night range of security cameras. Find out more at Security 2015. n Distributor: FLIR Systems Australia n Contact: 1300 729 987 n Stand: H37

Sony Advanced Imaging Capabilities SONY is adding 4K imaging to its line of security technologies, with the new Generation 7 SNC-VM772R camera. The new model combines the enhanced resolution of 4K with low-light sensitivity leveraging 1.0 type back-illuminated 1-inch 20MP Exmor R CMOS image sensor with 90db of wide dynamic range, bandwidth optimisation features with region of interest (ROI) technology and intelligent scene capture capabilities to adopt the best picture quality.

Couple this with dynamic light response capability can effortlessly handle rapid shifts in illumination and you have the camera ideal for license plate recognition, city surveillance, transportation, railway, traffic monitoring and airport surveillance operations. n Distributor: Sony Australia & New Zealand n Contact: +61 2 9887 6666 n Stand: C28

Paxton Net2 Plus Intelligent Controllers Paxton Net2 Plus Intelligent Controllers are single door networkable access control unit that connect with any TCP/IP network. The Net2 Plus supports 500 doors, 50,000 users and comes with a 5-year no-quibble guarantee. There’s no licencing, FLASH memory, backwards compatibility allowing easy upgrades and the ability to use Paxton or 3rd-party readers Net2 is a networked access control system that offers the advantages of central control, event reporting and flexible control over users’ access. Each control unit is part of a network but can run independently making its own decisions and remembering events. n Distributor: Security Distributors Australia n Contact: 1300 882 101 n Stand: F7

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Conventional Camera

DON’T

be left in the dark!

DarkFighter Camera Shows You What You’ve Been Missing Under the poorest of lighting conditions, the DarkFighter sees in colour where others can only see in black and white, a fraction of what the DarkFighter can see. DarkFighter delivers exceptional low-light colour images at up to 60fps high frame rate. During the day, with its superior WDR, it can see through the overly dark or extremely brightly lit areas to deliver perfect images. In a surveillance world that needs to see 24/7/365, the DarkFighter delivers where others can’t.

Headquarters No.555 Qianmo Road, Binjiang District, Hangzhou, China Tel: +86-571-8807-5998 Fax: +86-571-8993-5635 Email: overseasbusiness@hikvision.com Technical Support: support@hikvision.com

Hikvision DarkFighter Camera Series

To find out why the world is turning to Hikvision for their CCTV solutions, contact Central Security Distribution (CSD)

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security 2015 expo

149MP Panomera!

THE 3rd Generation of the Panomera multi-sensor CCTV camera system now features ultra-low light capability and even higher resolution - up to 149MP. This camera system offers a unique panoramic overview and simultaneous real-time recording (up to 25 FPS), delivering highly detailed images of large areas and significantly reducing infrastructure requirements. Projects which previously required large numbers of HD cameras can now be realised with a single Panomera camera system. At this year’s show, C R Kennedy will demonstrate the latest generation Panomera Nightline, as well as 5200 series Ultra low light cameras. n Distributor: C R Kennedy n Contact: www.crkennedy.com.au/surveillance n Stand: J14

DVTel safe city Imagine a city where citizens live without concerns about safety, a place with secure neighborhoods, where police and first responders, faced with dangerous or hazardous situations, use the latest technologies to make smart decisions, in real time. DVTel’s video innovation does just that.

At DVTEL we focus on providing smart solutions for safer cities. At Security 2015, discover our powerful full HD PTZ, Quad HD with True WDR, and 4K cameras; scalable VMS solutions; smart full HD and thermal cameras with built-in video analytics; TruWitness live mobile video streaming; and integrations, such as license plate recognition, gunshot detection, and GIS mapping. n Distributor: Hills n Distributor: Q Security Systems n Contact: +61 3 9676 7054,

n Contact: 1800 720 000, info@hills.com.au

n Stand: E14

n Stand: I8

Ness MEZZO smart controller MEZZO is the world’s most advanced smarthome controller integrating cutting-edge wireless, Z-Wave and IP technologies to provide a seamless security, automation, energy management, intercom, CCTV and medical solution into one wireless unit.

Controlled by our revolutionary Mezzo App, 3G and a dedicated WiFi Router as well as integrated intelligence, Mezzo gives you instant control, anytime, anywhere. When combined with a new suite of unique video and automation devices from Ness’ Innovation division, MEZZO makes the desirable possible today. n Distributor: Ness Corporation n Contact: + 61 2 8825 9222, sales@ness.com.au n Stand: J2

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Smart Solutions for Safer Cities Imagine a city where citizens live without concerns about safety, a place with secure neighborhoods, where police and first responders, faced with dangerous or hazardous situations, use the latest technologies to make ‘smart decisions,’ in real time.*

PTZ Camera 1

Quasar Camera 2

Video Innovation to Secure Your City » Powerful full HD PTZ cameras, Quad HD cameras with True Wide Dynamic Range, and 4K cameras for evidentiary detail » True enterprise VMS solutions » Smart full HD and thermal cameras with built-in video analytics » TruWitness: Turn first responders into live mobile camera operators » License plate recognition , gunshot detection, GIS mapping *Quote courtesy of European Union

www.dvtel.com

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security 2015 expo

Samsung Security is downunder Samsung Security is now downunder, from the new cost-effective Wisenet Lite series backed by 4,8,16CH PoE NVR solutions to a 64CH NVR enhanced with a new video summary feature allowing users to analyze their recorded video footage by object class or colour of the object.

Samsung Techwin has a solution to meet your security or marketing needs.

The 4K resolution camera and new 5-megapixel cameras with ground breaking H.265 technology will project the new trend of CCTV technology. n Distributor: Samsung Security Australasia n Contact: 1300 239 419 n Stand: Central Bar

Raytec Vario IP RAYTEC’S award winning range of VARIO IP PoE network illuminators provides remote set-up and operation via web interface, VMS/BMS, or directly with camera applications, and enables the most intelligent security systems and instant response to live events.

VARIO IP PoE can be automatically triggered on alarm via other network devices to deter crime, or illuminate an area for personnel; used only when needed, reducing running costs.

Live, manual adjustment also ensures outstanding CCTV images at any time, with group operation allowing easy control of large sites. You can see VARIO IP PoE demonstrated live with Axis cameras on Axis’ stand at Security 2015 in Melbourne. n Distributors: Anixter, Pacific Communications, Suretek n Contact: amyquinn@rayteccctv.com n Stand: C14

Paradox Insight PARADOX Insight is an advanced security system that leverages HD video and audio with a motion detector and a self-monitoring app that lets you remotely monitor your home or office. Equipped with an advanced HD video camera, the system lets you see exactly what’s happening, while it’s happening, day or night.

Unlimited live HD video and audio streaming – right from your smartphone – lets you make informed decisions in real time. You can even record events on demand! You no longer have to imagine what’s happening when you can have real insight. n Distributor: Central Security Distribution n Contact: 1300 319 499 n Stand: F20

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27th

ConferenCe

Security riSk management getting it right !

31 August – 2 September 2015 National Convention Centre Canberra www.ag.gov.au/sig register now at

www.ag.gov.au/sig for qUeries ContaCt

conference@conlog.com.au aBn 92 661 124 436

the sig 2015 Conference program will: • consider the evolution of security risk management in recent years; and • focus on case studies, best practice and current and emerging issues that impact on getting security risk management right. speakers include: • Senator the Hon George Brandis QC, attorney-general • Duncan Lewis AO DSC CSC, australian security intelligence organisation (asio) • The Hon Theresa M Grafenstine, inspector general Us House of representatives & isaCa international Vice President • Dr Carl Gibson, La trobe University

cas e st u dy

skycity casino

The Sky is the limit With its head office in Auckland, the SkyCity Casino group owns 6 casinos, 4 in New Zealand and 2 in Australia. Having a first-rate experience with SkyCity Casino Darwin’s switch to digital, the whole SkyCity group has chosen Dallmeier’s proven system.

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B

ACK in 2008 something novel happened in our industry that went unnoticed. SkyCity Casino in Darwin changed its old analogue 350-camera system, based on the famous Maxpro MAX-1000 analogue matrix, to a digital system.

It was special because it was the first switchover from an analogue matrix to a digital network system without any downtime.

As most people would know, casinos are not allowed to operate without a surveillance system by law. Shutting down an analogue system and putting a digital solution in whenever convenient to the installer, was not an option. SkyCity Casino’s existing system had to remain in place and operate until the new one was installed, using the same cameras.

This was a real challenge. The only way it could be done was to have the old analogue system

By Vlado Dam jan ovski

The digital revolution is inevitable, with old analogue systems sooner or later having to be converted to digital. Existing casinos have either switched or are planning to switch to the IPbased network matrix switching.

running in parallel with the new digital system being put in place. This required some good installation practices and project management skills. Each shift of operators was carefully trained on how the new digital system worked while remaining shifts did their normal duty with the old system.

One of the advantages of going digital is that you can run a control room anywhere there is a network connection. Just one Gigabit cable is sufficient, instead of hundreds of coaxial cables.

Taking advantage of this, SkyCity Casino operator’s kitchen area was converted into a temporary digital training room. Once all the operators were proficient and comfortable in using the new system, it was decided to make the switch.

It all happened one fine morning in 2008 at

around 4am, when there were the least number of visitors at the casino. The old analogue Maxpro MAX-1000, after so many years of dutiful service, was turned off and the new Dallmeier based digital system was engaged. Simply and quietly, with the flick of a switch – and without anybody noticing on the gaming floor - history was made: A casino analogue matrix system was replaced with a digital network system.

The digital revolution is inevitable, with old analogue systems sooner or later having to be converted to digital. Existing casinos have either switched or are planning to switch to the IP-based network matrix switching. Not only the analogue matrix is removed from the core of the system, but also analogue cameras are gradually replaced with HD IP cameras. All this change needs to be seamless and it is now happening with the SkyCity Casino Group.

The company delivering these solutions is C.R.Kennedy, the exclusive Australian and New Zealand

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skycity casino

In a Dallmeier casino system, each recorder has a redundant power supply as well. Each power supply rail runs on a separate phase of a redundant UPS. Each SeMSy server has its own stand-by server and each network switch has a redundant path through redundant core switches. Being able to guarantee the surveillance system continuous operation is what casinos are after. This is what Dallmeier systems deliver and this is why they are considered the best in the field.

New Zealand’s integrated solution

To date, Dallmeier through its joint venture with C.R. Kennedy, has commissioned more than 20,000 camera systems running over IP networks as well as more than a dozen casinos in Macao, Singapore, the Philippines and South-East Asia. distributor of the high quality German brand Dallmeier, one of the biggest names in the casino surveillance industry. C.R.Kennedy’s experienced technical team, including David Payne, Trevor Joseph, Steve Maynard, Nadir Sahiner, Paul Cafeo and Amir Pirani; ably supported by Dallmeier engineers, continues to be invaluable in providing the final touches with high-end technical commissioning for SkyCity.

To date, Dallmeier through its joint venture with C.R. Kennedy, has commissioned more than 20,000 camera systems running over IP networks as well as more than a dozen casinos in Macau, Singapore, the Philippines and South-East Asia.

These casinos are some of the largest in the world - like the Venetian and City Of Dreams – with more than 5000 cameras each and well over 5 PB (1 Peta Byte = 1000 TB)) of storage, all running smoothly with multiple operators and a multi-redundant Dallmeier SeMSy management system. There are no analogue matrix switchers in these systems – it all happens over IP networks.

With nearly 20 years experience, Dallmeier has been a pioneer in casino digital surveillance systems, commencing with Melbourne’s Crown Casino in 1996. Dallmeier systems are guaranteed to run with high up-time due to their careful redundant design. The hard disk redundancy is only one of the many redundant components.

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SkyCity Casino in Auckland, with more than 3000 cameras, is the largest casino in New Zealand and a most recognised landmark. Visitors to Auckland would know the SkyCity tower and the wonderful SkyCity restaurants and hotels around the casino, with their splendid conference rooms and exhibition venues.

There are 2 smaller casinos within the SkyCity group, one at picturesque Queenstown in the South Island, and one at Hamilton in the North Island. All 3 casinos have chosen to go with Dallmeier SeMSy. Interestingly, in a new innovation in the casino industry, all 3 casinos can be supported remotely from either Auckland or, in Queenstown, from one site to the other (supporting each other as a hotstandby).

The SkyCity casinos in New Zealand have also implemented numerous Dallmeier High Level Interfaces (HLIs) needed in the gaming industry. One of Dallmeier’s strong points in casino surveillance systems is their HLIs to various systems. For example, these HLIs connect the surveillance system to the AngelEye playing card monitoring system, improving control over the purity of each game, and minimizing casino losses due to scams. Each deck of cards is noted and counted individually, allowing the casino to overview all games and their outcomes.

Furthermore, there are HLIs to the point of sales (POS) Micros system, Bally’s Gaming Machines, Cardax access control and similar. All such interfaces have been integrated very securely into Dallmeier’s SeMSy so that anything can be searched for at any time, even intelligent game analysis can be added if requested by the casino. Dallmeier casino surveillance systems are not only digital large scale IP systems but also profit management tools, game video analysis tools, inventory tracking tools, people traffic analysis tools and building management tools, all in one. When more is needed, it is easily added to the Dallmeier SeMSy by way of using standard interface protocols, such as OPC or ONVIF. The innovative ideas of the SkyCity management have initiated the development of an RFID card tracking system, which will integrate with Dallmeier SeMSy. This tracking system is an

Australian development by Vision Technology Systems and will be implemented this year.

“There are thousands of CCTV exponents in the world today, however, Dallmeier and C.R.Kennedy have delivered outstanding support and service to my operations, providing a product tailored to our unique environments involving thousands of cameras, innovative recording solutions, video analytics and end user simplicity,” says Bill Bonar, general manager of corporate asset protection & surveillance for SkyCity Entertainment Group.

“For me, Dallmeier, supported by C.R.Kennedy, provides excellent turnkey solutions with ongoing support and service.”

third generation, with so much functionality that everything a casino operator may require is covered.

The new SeMSy v.4 just around the corner pushes even further the boundaries of user friendliness and functionality, and I am sure it will lift some eyebrows.

As its logo states, Dallmeier ensures that customers will... ‘see more than others’ and when you consider the company’s success in Australasia from 2008 to today, it will continue to do so. zzz

Adelaide going digital SkyCity group also owns 2 casinos in Australia SkyCity Darwin and SkyCity Adelaide. As we’ve seen, SkyCity Darwin was converted to Dallmeier 7 years ago. Since then, this casino’s system has grown to 525 cameras of which around 166 are HD IP. It has also added the AngelEye card tracking system, as well as interfacing to the Micros POS system.

Adelaide SkyCity followed suit in 2012, when it started introducing Dallmeier recorders and IP cameras while keeping the existing analogue as long as needed. SkyCity Adelaide is an old casino, located in the top 3 floors of the historic Adelaide Central Railway Station. SkyCity Adelaide previously had an old Maxpro analogue system but it was only a question of time when the support for the analogue system would cease, so in 2012 management also decided to begin converting to digital. The Adelaide SkyCity Casino now has close to 1000 cameras, of which over 80 per cent are 1080p HD IP cameras.

“A decision was made to provide improved camera coverage throughout the Adelaide SkyCity Casino in conjunction with the building upgrades,” says Geoff Stow, surveillance engineer at SkyCity Adelaide.

“As a result, new HD IP cameras were installed and we now have approximately 80 per cent IP HD cameras operational, all of which are fully recorded on the Dallmeier recording system and available to all operators.

“I was very pleased with the professional approach taken with regard to the replacement of the previous recording system,” Stow says. “We were able to maintain a fully operational surveillance system during all parts of the change over without the loss of any major camera coverage.”

Continuous improvement of the SeMSy, cameras and recorders, as well as the ability to interface to third party systems – including ONVIF cameras – is an important part of the big picture Dallmeier paints in its business strategy. Since the early days of SeMSy version 1, first installed at the Sands Casino Macau in 2002, SeMsy has evolved into its

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editor’s choice

What’s new in the industry

Hikvision Expands DarkFighter UltraLow-Light Range

Honeywell Video Analytics

l HIKVISION, distributed by CSD, has expanded its Darkfighter

enhanced security and surveillance solutions by automatically monitoring video for specific people, vehicles, objects and their associated behaviour within a camera view. Active Alert can provide real time alarms based on user defined rules to detect abnormal or suspicious behaviour without the need for human supervision. This powerful capability enhances both manned and unmanned operations by working 24/7, reducing the amount of video data operators must review, and enabling a high level of monitoring for any size video system.

Honeywell’s video analytics software is accurate and high performance and is capable of monitoring and analysing the behaviour of up to 20 objects per camera view, both indoors and outdoors. There are 3 packages available including Active Alert, People Counter and Smart Impressions. Active Alert is available in 3 levels: Base, Standard and Premium. Each of these enables a different set of detectable behaviours.

range with 6 new models, including bullet, box, outdoor dome and PTZ variants.

All 6 new DarkFighter models boast industry leading low-light specifications, including large 2 MP progressive scan CMOS image sensors, full HD 1080p video at up to 60 fps, triple video streams, 3D DNR and 120dB WDR. The result is crystal-clear color images down to as low as 0.001 lux and B/W to 0.0001 Lux for sharp color images in conditions that would defeat conventional low-light models. The 8-strong DarkFighter range now consists of 2 box cameras, 2 bullet cameras, 2 outdoor dome cameras and a pair of 23x network PTZ dome cameras, 5 of which come with vandal-proof housings.

At the same time, ultra-low-light performance is also boosted with the release of the DarkEye SLA lens, which offers a constant fast aperture of f0.95 across the entire focal range for supreme low-light performance from close-up to maximum zoom.

l HONEYWELL’S suite of video analytics products enables

Distributor: Honeywell Security Group Contact: 1300 234 234

Distributor: Central Security Distribution Contact: 1300 319 499

Yale Pro Wireless Alarm & Automation Platform

Panasonic 5 Series Network Cameras

l WITH integrated video verification, IFTTT automation sequences

range. Suited to indoor and outdoor applications, the 5 Series provides outstanding images and wide dynamic range performance, incorporating Enhanced Super Dynamic capabilities for clear and easy identification in high contrast scenes and backlight situations. The range includes an outdoor vandal resistant dome (WV-SFV531), an indoor vandal resistant dome (WV-SFR531), an indoor dome (WV-SFN531) and an indoor fixed dome (WV-SPN531).

“The new 5 Series dome cameras deliver great performance and a dramatically reduced cost of ownership,” said Robert Wensing, group manager, security at Panasonic Australia. They offer high sensitivity and provide clear images in low lighting conditions.

With Full HD 1080p resolution at up to 60 frames per second, they are capable of capturing rapidly moving objects from bills in banking environments to vehicle licence plates on the road, or moving chips and cards in casinos.”

“All of our fixed network cameras are designed to withstand harsh conditions both outdoor and indoor which make them highly durable and reliable.”

and ZigBee support, Yale’s Professional Series has transformed the wireless alarm into an automation and security platform.

Video or image verification PIRs are activated on alarm and can also be interrogated at will. The SmartPhone APP or browser can activate Lockwood’s wireless Digital Deadbolt, power switches and wireless relay modules allowing you to activate lights, appliances and other devices.

In addition to outstanding control, Yale Professional boasts a 2Km wireless range and without any additions caters to IP, 3G and GPRS reporting, making the Yale Pro much more than a wireless alarm.

Distributor: Security Merchants Australia (SMA) Contact: 1300 663 904 Stand: G14

l PANASONIC has released its new 5 Series network camera

Distributor: Hills Contact: 1800 685 487

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duct showcase / n ew p ro d u ct s h owcas e / new pr o d u ct showcase / new p roduct showcase / new p roduct showcase /

Mobotix M15D AllRound Dual Camera

Bosch Flexidome 360 Panoramic

l AVAILABLE from Mobotix, the M15Dual is a weatherproof

l FLEXIDOME IP panoramic 7000 MP indoor camera from

thermographic PoE camera that includes sensors for both thermographic detection as well a standard sensor module for identification. The thermal sensor is capable of detecting in complete darkness and/or through smoke, smog, or a thin plastic film and can be combined with a variety of standard sensors, including 5MP or 6MP, colour or B/W, and options for telephoto to hemispheric. Additionally, M15D cameras utilise MxActivitySensor technology to deliver extremely reliable video analytics. Mobotix camera software can activate the dual image display on one of the 2 image sensors (thermal or standard), or both simultaneously.

Bosch offers a 180-degree or 360-degree overview with 12MP resolution at 30 frames per second using a fish-eye lens.

Combined with the Video Security Client software the user can select up to 6 different viewing modes. The FLEXIDOME IP panoramic 7000 MP camera features a full suite of onboard intelligent video analytics to ensure that operators are alerted when needed and relevant information is delivered most efficiently both live and in retrospect.

For indoor and outdoor applications the FLEXIDOME IP panoramic 5000 MP offers the smallest 360-degree dome design available on the market combining a 5MP sensor resolution at 15 frames per second with a fish-eye lens. Both camera models ensure a complete overview in a single image without blind spots and the easy capture of moving objects, significantly improving the performance of any video surveillance solution.

Distributor: Central Security Distribution Contact: 1300 319 499

Distributor: Bosch Security Systems Contact: 1300 1 BOSCH (26724), stsales@ au.bosch.com

HID iCLASS SE and MultiCLASS SE

Vivotek CC8130(HS)

l AVAILABLE from CSD, the iCLASS SE and multiCLASS SE mobile-

l VIVOTEK is pleased to announce the launch of a new height-

enabled readers form a part of their HID Mobile Access solution for iOS and Android. Ideal for new and existing installations, the readers can be configured to be used in a similar fashion to a physical credential, with a simple tap of the smartphone against the reader or alternately utilising HID Global’s patented Twist and Go gesture technology. The interoperability of the iCLASS SE and multiCLASS SE readers support a variety of industry-standard technologies, including iCLASS Seos, iCLASS SE, MIFARE, MIFARE DESFire and HID Prox.

strip network camera, the CC8130(HS), featuring 1-Megapixel video resolution at 30 fps, a 180 degree wide-angle lens and height-strip housing design, allowing the camera to deliver clear images for reliable facial recognition with no dead angles. In addition, the plug-and-play design makes the CC8130(HS) installation both simple and rapid. Combining low-profile and high-level features, the CC8130(HS) is ideal for discreet indoor applications, such as retail, banks, restaurants, small businesses and particularly in cashier areas. The CC8130(HS) opens up new horizons for surveillance users who need a system that blends in, but want images that stand out.

Distributor: Central Security Distribution Contact: 1300 319 499

Distributor: Vivotek Distributors Contact: +886-2-8245-5282

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re g u lars help desk

helpdesk

Q: How safe are low voltage security systems to work on?

A: WORKING on extra low voltage systems does carry an inherent level of safety with it but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take care. Even if you’re really only protecting components from static with your rubber mat, there’s an additional layer of safety being applied.

Arcing is not going to be a huge issue in low power installations but you should be wary of short circuits – especially if there are batteries in the circuit. A battery can whip up a high discharge current to a short and there’s always the low risk possibility of cell explosion.

Large capacitors in legacy access controllers need to be treated with a measure of respect.

The key thing as an installer working on low voltage is to keep things dry – that means not just the environment but your skin. Carry a hand towel when you’re in a roof space to deal with sweat. Another key is to keep power out of the circuit while you’re messing about with it. Tweak connectors, strip cables and do your shrinking while the system is powered down. If that means dragging yourself down a ladder to disconnect power, it’s worth going to the trouble. When testing circuits avoid live terminals and cables, use the correct multimeter ranges and employ properly insulated tools, as well as fuseprotected meters. Sure, most of this is overkill but should you accidentally stray to a cable or a termination where 12-volters don’t belong ingrained best practice might save your life.

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Our panel of experts answers your questions.

Q: I was interested in the idea of using a camera view to tell a story from the point of view of investigators, as outlined in last issue’s editorial. It’s not a point commonly heard, perhaps because in many applications there are too many operational requirements being forced onto a single camera by limited budget and installations being undertaken too rapidly. Do you think there is a single camera that might offer a broad perspective, as well as giving sufficient depth of field to allow useful investigation within a scene?

A: This is a very good question. Many cameras are removed from the box and installed default. Generally speaking, installers and end users favour cameras that take the least time to install so as to minimise labour, which is the largest expense in a typical install. That means a camera is often never optimised to suit its application. There are some exceptions – in challenging low light and backlight applications where end users complain about poor performance, installers might tweak a camera to improve its performance. But this is not common practise as it’s time consuming.

Given default is so common, it’s appropriate to consider whether any particular camera type will be more flexible out of the box and frankly, it’s another of those balancing acts. More pixels means better resolution throughout a wider and deeper field of view.

It also means poorer low light performance.

The best low light cameras are typically

720p or 1080p but the difference between the amount of detail you get with HD and UHD in reasonable and good light is considerable. Only under 15 lux do you start seeing UHD battle with the business of amplifying and then smoothing image streams from its crowded sensor’s smaller photo sites. These processes lead to loss of detail. But if the light is ok or better and bandwidth is accommodated or well handled by camera compression, UHD is unquestionably superior.

In our opinion, a perfect camera for default work would be UHD and have a 1-inch sensor. The sensor and optical formula would be sufficient to ensure the signal was not overworked by too much amplification and too much suppression of resultant noise. It would use compression algorithms and ROI mechanisms that allowed it to perform at full resolution at a bitrate under 5Mbps through a 24-hour light cycle and in the presence of typical scene movement.

This camera hasn’t been built yet but we think it’s coming.

Many CCTV applications are certain to fail to meet operational requirements because they try to offer situational awareness and facial identification at the same time.

It’s very difficult to do both with current technology using one camera. ID with HD cameras means a field of view so tight that a temporal comprehension of unfolding events cannot be ascertained.

The result is that in court, video evidence in inconclusive. At the same time, situational

awareness in a larger scene using wider angle lenses means low resolution images that fail to provide identification. As a result they too, deliver video evidence that’s often inconclusive.

Q: I saw the SecTech Camera Shootout recently and for the most part cameras were high end and expensive – from $1000 to $1700 including lenses.

For many installers those sorts of cameras are too expensive. You might have a large client securing serious infrastructure or locations hard to access that depend on CCTV to operate using such cameras but many installers put in low cost integrated bullets and domes. The question I have is how much of a difference there is between the high end and low end when it comes to CCTV cameras.

A: Another good question. I think if you buy a camera with an integrated and un-adjustable lens and match it with an application, installing it sympathetically as part of comprehensive and interlocking coverage, then it will serve you well. Where things go off the rails is when low cost 720p and 1080p cameras with fixed wide lenses are used to cover large areas in the expectation they will offer court admissible facial ID day and night, or useful digital zooming.

Fixed optical length mini domes will offer facial ID towards 10m during the day, while at night it’s going to depend on ambient light or the presence of integrated IR. You might get face recognition at 5m with IR on a sub-$200 dome. When it comes to digital zoom, wide angle lenses on standard HD resolution lenses will lose detail with each digital millimetre of focal length an operator drills into a given scene.

The question is really operational. What do you want the CCTV system to achieve?

I’ve seen a number of CCTV applications that are more idea than reality. The end user requested a solution with capabilities they were not prepared to pay for and the integrator gave the end user their money’s worth. There are fewer and fewer on-site shootouts these days and that’s not a good thing. Camera performance does vary and quality often, though not always, costs a little more.

End users need to see what a camera can do, even if only by walk testing options in a distributor’s demo room or car park.

Can a 1080p mini dome with a fixed 4mm focal length give both an 80-degree view of a streetscape and court admissible face recognition at 15m? No, it can’t. But it will give you situational awareness to about 25 metres and face recognition under 10 metres during the day.

Q: How robust are IR photoelectric beams in very challenging external environments?

A: IF you’re thinking about installing photoelectric beams consider that these aren’t happy with heavy moisture or fog over the acrylic cover or lens cover. Nor do they cope well with direct sunlight on the lens. In humid areas if the units have heaters, disconnect them. This will stop large

temperature variations between the inside and the outside so moisture will no longer condense. Make sure the beams have a small drain/ventilation hole in the bottom of the case. In summer, light is going to be a problem. Try to make sure the receivers of the stacks are located away from direct sunlight and be sure that tx and rx modules are aligned correctly, producing the correct output alignment voltage. Some PE beams will slowly lose their alignment voltage before failing (and false alarming). Aside from these fundamental issues, keep the target area between the beam stacks clean.

Weeds won’t please a PE beam installation.

Q: We installed an IP66-rated dome camera externally that has failed due to ingress of water. Shouldn’t IP66 cameras be impervious?

A: Some are and some are not. It’s likely the water got into this camera from above, leaking through a ceiling and chasing the cabling into the housing. Even when you know a camera’s cable entry is waterproof, it’s still worth a glob of elastomer – silicone sealant. This gooey stuff is made of silicone, carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, is nonreactive and can handle temperature ranges from -55 to 300C. A good sealant that does not contain too much costreducing filler, will protect cable entrances not directly exposed to weather for the lifetime of a camera. zzz

se&n 89

events July 2015 Issue 367

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SENSOR SIZE MATTERS

NEW GEAR AT SECURITY 2015

Security Exhibition & Conference Date: July 15-17, 2015 Venue: Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre Contact: Kylie McRorie on 03 9261 4504 or www.securityexpo.com.au for more information.

Australasia’s premier security industry event, the Security Exhibition & Conference, will return to Melbourne in July 2015.

In 2014 more than 4500 security professionals attended, there was a record number of individual registrations and 170 brands exhibited on the show floor.

l Chris-Tech installs IP at The Strand l Special report: Camera Sensor Size l Mobotix Masterpiece at NGA l Review Axis H.264 Zipstream l New Product: Ness MEZZO l The Perfect Alarm System l Sony VB-SNC630 1080 60S Review l New Product: Paxton Net2 Plus l SkyCity Casino’s Dallmeier solution

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25/06/15 9:39 AM

Secutech Vietnam 2015 Date: August 18-20, 2015 Venue: Saigon Exhibition & Convention Center (SECC), Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam Contact: 886 2 2659 9080 ext. 668 Going onto the 8th year, Secutech Vietnam continues to be the No.1 choice for manufacturers & distributors of security and safety products from local and around the world to connect and explore new business opportunities in Vietnam.

Security in Government (SIG)

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Date: August 31, September 2, 2015 Venue: National Convention Centre, Canberra Contact: 61 2 6141 3717 The SIG Conference enables delegates from Australian government to engage with public and private sector security experts from a diverse range of fields. The extensive trade exhibition attached to the conference features over ninety security-related service providers who work closely with both the government and private sector to provide cuttingedge solutions to protective security issues.

CPSE 2015 Date: October 29 – November 1, 2015 Venue: Shenzhen International Convention & Exhibition Center, Shenzhen, China Tel: 86-755-88309123 Founded in Shenzhen, served more than 8600 security companies and 524,000 buyers. The largest exhibition in the world and the most influential exhibition in Asia, holds its 15th event.

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ISC West Date: April 6-8, 2016 Venue: Sands Expo & Convention Center, Las Vegas, NV Contact: 1-203-840-5602 With more than 26,000 industry professionals and more than 1000 exhibits, ISC West is the largest security technology event in the Americas. ISC West’s attendees represent more than $US50 billion in buying power.

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