I remember a few years ago when all we could talk about was IP vs. Analog. In some of our minds it was like comparing Digital Video to VCR’s in 2000 as video streaming using Windows ’98 became a reality and the DVR was born. The difference was that many of the security decision makers were intimidated by necessary network to support the technology, so the IT department came along and took control of the security network. The normal decision makers lost power and we began to sell to the CIO who was more concerned about his network that he was about his physical or human assets. Their biggest concern was that they were always one hack away from losing their job. Thus the birth of the “convergence movement” began, which is still a driving force today.
In the ever increasing reach of today’s video security and surveillance systems, many security professionals are finding that the quality, bandwidth and distance needed to perform even the most basic surveillance is beyond the reach of coaxial and UTP cabling. In fact, even though IP-based video security systems are gaining popularity, they face a serious distance limitation of 100 meters (328 feet) or less over UTP cabling infrastructure. This poses an insurmountable hurdle when trying to monitor the many outreach locations of a typical surveillance installation. While fairing slightly better in copper distance limitations, most analog-based CCTV systems prove effective and economical only if the coaxial cabling runs are held to less than 750ft (228m). Utilizing coax beyond that distance, however, poses a number of problems, some of which are not immediately obvious.
For instance, let’s say your monitor is located 1,000 ft (304 m) from the camera. In that scenario, without any active signal conditioning, approximately 37-percent of the high frequency information will be lost in transmission, providing a seriously degraded image. In fact, since you cannot see information that is not there, you may not even realize that information has been deleted. To accommodate lengths greater than 750 feet (228 m) on a coax infrastructure, you must make certain that some provision has been made to guarantee the video signal's transmission strength such as the use of signal amplification, ground fault correction and surge protection. Installing these items will inevitably increase the cost of the system considerably, making alternative cabling methods more attractive. In fact, the use of fiber optic cable will allow for cable runs of over 1500 meters (5,000 feet) on multimode and distances of over 10km (6.2 miles) on single mode cable.
Local area networks (LANs) very commonly deploy fiber optics as the network backbone between buildings or in vertical risers of multi-story buildings. Utilizing this infrastructure already in place would be an attractive transmission alternative to risking the distance and quality issues common to coax and UTP video systems. Accessing this fiber optic cabling can be a challenge for most video security professionals as the majority of new cameras and monitors on the market today are not available with fiber optic ports on them. In addition, most existing video security and surveillance systems were designed and installed with coax or UTP cabling. To improve the quality, bandwidth and distance of these existing systems by transporting the video on fiber optic cabling, a method is required to convert the electrical video signal over to an optical format.
Media Conversion Can Ease the Transition to Fiber, for those not familiar with the technology, media conversion products transparently connect one type of media, or cabling, to another – typically copper to fiber. Bridging the gap between legacy copper infrastructures and fiber growth, media conversion products provide an economical path towards extending the distance of an existing network, extending the life of non-fiber based equipment, or extending the distance between two like devices. Whether distance extension or simply utilizing existing fiber optic infrastructure, media conversion can be a cost-effective way to integrate fiber optic cabling into an existing copper-based video security system. In addition, the video media converters can be designed to actually perform many other functions in addition to transporting the video signal over fiber optics such as transporting the serial information necessary for control of PTZ cameras or even providing a means to transport the video over the Ethernet-based LAN.
Media converters come in a variety of form factors and sizes ranging from miniature, stand-alone devices that attach directly to a camera to managed, chassis-based devices allowing for full SNMP monitoring and management of the media converters.
In addition to providing a means for transparently connecting one type of media to another, media conversion can provide a cost-effective method for integrating a hybrid video security and surveillance system into one, seamless and manageable entity. Imagine the cost savings that can be realized by utilizing an existing, analog-based CCTV infrastructure, while implementing the latest technology of IP-based cameras for specialized video capture, storage or analysis as well as additional surveillance locations.
While coaxial, UTP and fiber-optic cabling each have definite benefits making them the optimum choice for a given installation, designing the cabling infrastructure does not need to be limited to the connector available on the output of a camera or input to a monitor or storage device. Media conversion can provide an economical and effective means to convert to the cabling medium of choice for the best performance, highest bandwidth or greatest transmission distance needed to provide for an optimal video security and surveillance system.
By justifying network infrastructure upgrades within your proposal, utilizing existing technologies whenever you can and removing the burden and concerns of the CIO at the same time you will make more friends in the sales process and create a road map for upgrades as technologies change in the future.
