IP Video Management Features – Event Management

January 4, 2011 by Nathan Miloszewski

Moving along in this IP Video Management series, event management is responding to events that have been triggered by built-in features of IP cameras, video servers, or intelligent monitoring software.

An event can be scheduled or triggered and once one has occured you can automatically program alerts and notifications to be sent to cell phones, via email, or even pop-up windows on a computer screen.

One of the most important functions of event managment is saving bandwidth and storage space. That is, video will not be needlessly viewed or recorded unless an event has happened.

Further, you don’t have to worry about constantly monitoring your IP camera surveillance – You will be notified if something happens.

There are several ways an event can be triggered and there are many options for setting up the responses.

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IP Video Management Features – Recording and Viewing

December 22, 2010 by Nathan Miloszewski

Managing the video captured from your IP cameras is an important function of your surveillance system. I’ve talked about the hardware platform and software platform options that are available. Once you’ve made the right hardware and software choices for your surveillance system what features and functions can you expect from the video management system?

This post is about recording and viewing features which probably sounds like the simplest and most obvious functions but, there are interesting options available that you may not have considered.

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Are Analog Cameras Cheaper Than IP Cameras?

December 16, 2010 by Nathan Miloszewski

A couple days ago I linked to an Axis study that set out to prove that the cost of IP surveillance is now less expensive than its analog counterpart.

Now there is a healthy debate over at IP Video Market Info about the validity of this study. Check it out:

Debating Axis’s IP vs Analog Cost Comparison

Some of the major sticking points are:

The Axis’s study assumes that no surveillance equipment is currently being used (i.e., ‘greenfield’). A majority of organizations buying surveillance systems already have some cameras and cabling installed and a large portion of that infrastructure can and regularly is reused.
For any given feature set, IP cameras always cost significantly more than analog. While a DVR costs more than PC plus VMS software, that increase in cost is less than the savings on the camera side.
Is IP still worth it? Cost isn’t everything, a price comparison can still favor analog, and Megapixel IP camera resolution (a big IP advantage) was not mentioned.

The flexibility, scalability, and high quality images set IP cameras apart from analog. Remote access of live images from anywhere in the world including viewing video surveillance on your phone puts analog in the backseat, in my opinion.

Like any other kind of technology, over time, functionality continues to increase as the price goes down. There may be debate now over some marginal price differences but that surely will not last.

IP Video Management – Software Platforms

December 15, 2010 by Nathan Miloszewski

IP video management plays an important role in your surveillance system. I’ve already discussed the hardware platforms options. The physical devices that manage video. Now we need to move on to software platforms.

The IP camera software you choose allows you to view your IP video in different ways. The platforms include:

Built-in web interface
Windows client-based programs
Web-based software

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Cost of IP Surveillance

December 14, 2010 by Nathan Miloszewski

Thanks to the heads up at Security Products, a study has been released by Axis Communications that compares the cost of a traditional analog surveillance system to that of an IP video surveillance system:

Total cost comparison study of analog and IP-based video surveillance

This study was conducted in the Spring of 2010 by the research group Lusax. Some highlights include:

There’s a perceived higher cost of IP cameras versus analog
Cameras are only one part of a video surveillance solution, and the total cost of a complete system is dependent on a number of factors.
Recording is the most significant cost category in the analog alternatives
Savings derive from off-the-shelf IT and server recording equipment
Scalability and flexibility are mentioned as two main arguments favoring IP-based surveillance systems.
Superior image quality accelerates the shift from analog to IP

Further, Security Products quotes Bodil Sonesson Gallon, vice president of global sales at Axis as saying:

“The market for IP security products has developed rapidly and is much more mature than only a few years ago,” he said. “The cost differences are becoming insignificant and focus can shift to the real advantages that come with the superior functionality of IP solutions, such as image quality and flexibility, the factors that really drive return on investment.”

IP Video Management – Hardware Platforms

December 13, 2010 by Nathan Miloszewski

What is video management? Once you’ve got your IP cameras up and running video management is an important tool to properly manage, record, store, and view video.

Not much happens in the majority of recorded video – you need a smart system to control this so you don’t consume too much of your time, bandwidth and storage space.

Depending on the size of your IP surveillance system there a couple systems to choose from.

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VoIP Supply Named Top 100 Private Company

by Garrett Smith

For the sixth consecutive year VoIP Supply has been named one of the Top 100 Private Companies in Western New York.

VoIP Supply originally debuted on the list in 2005 at #96 and has risen 40 spots since then to appear #56 for 2010. The annual list is put out by Buffalo Business First and is designed to highlight some of WNY’s most successful, privately held businesses.

“Being named once again to the top 100 private companies in Western New York is a tremendous honor for everyone at VoIP Supply,” said Benjamin P. Sayers, Founder and CEO of VoIP Supply. “To be named to the list for the sixth consecutive year is testament to the dedication, hard work and persistence of the entire staff.”

Despite a weak economy stemming from 2008’s financial collapse, VoIP Supply has continued to grow, with 2010 expected to be the company’s most profitable year ever. VoIP Supply expects to add four to six new positions in 2011, in addition to a new facility and a new operational division.

IP Camera Storage – New Media

December 10, 2010 by Nathan Miloszewski

I’ve been talking about the different video storage options for your IP surveillance system and I happened across a good article that goes into more detail about server-based, network-based, and camera-based storage architectures. Additionaly, the redundant storage options that focus around RAID and hot standby servers.

There’s an interesting mention too about the growing capacity and reliablity of the on-board camera storage options of flash drives and SD cards — that eventually months or even years worth of video will be able to be stored within a camera.

Check out “Eye on Video: New storage media; Revolutionizing the way we archive video,” by Fredrick Nilsson, GM of the Americas for Axis Communications:

Until recently, storage was a bottleneck for video surveillance and represented a very large part of the cost – not to mention a point of contention between physical security managers and their IT counterparts. Exponential advancements in storage media and architecture, however, are rapidly changing that.

More efficient H.264 compression, along with capacity doubling on a yearly basis, and more reliable solid-state storage media are giving users more flexible, redundant and cost-effective options than ever before. We have come so far with storage technology already that it makes the days of changing video tapes every eight hours seem like ancient history. In another 15 years, today’s solutions and recording times will probably seem like ancient history, too.

IP Video Surveillance Storage – Best Practices

December 8, 2010 by Nathan Miloszewski

The previous post talked about the different methods for IP video surveillance storage. When selecting the right kind of storage for your IP surveillance system, you’ll need to review your current server set up and ask yourself what you’re aiming to accomplish from your surveillance video information.

Keep in mind that once your IP cameras capture images you need a system that handles all of these video functions:

Monitoring
Recording
Managing
Archiving

Those factors are an important consideration when determining server configuration and the amount of storage that you will need.

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IP Video Surveillance Storage

December 7, 2010 by Nathan Miloszewski

Storage of IP surveillance video is driven by cost and, based on your application, how long you need to store the video.

High quality, high resolution IP surveillance video can take up a lot of space and can be a sizable cost of your IP surveillance system. But with today’s technology, driven by Moore’s Law (“The number of transistors incorporated in a chip will approximately double every 24 months.”), any size of storage system that you need can be arranged.

That is to say video frame rate, number of cameras, and video retention time can be handled. IP video surveillance storage systems have varying degrees of performance, cost, and scalability.

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IP Video Management Features – Event Management

IP Video Management Features – Recording and Viewing

Are Analog Cameras Cheaper Than IP Cameras?

IP Video Management – Software Platforms

Cost of IP Surveillance

IP Video Management – Hardware Platforms

VoIP Supply Named Top 100 Private Company

IP Camera Storage – New Media

IP Video Surveillance Storage – Best Practices

IP Video Surveillance Storage

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