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Q1 : What is an IP Camera
and Speed Dome?
IP is an
abbreviation for Internet Protocol,
the most common protocol for
communication over computer networks
and the internet. IP Camera and
Speed Dome is a camera and speed
Dome that creates digitized video
streams and transfers via a wired or
wireless IP network, enabling
monitoring and video recording as
far away as the network reaches. In
other words, using an IP camera and
speed Dome can save a lot of money
on installation since most
facilities are already wired with
LAN cables. Wiring coaxial cables is
the major expense when implementing
analog cameras and speed Dome. Also,
it allows users to have a camera and
speed Dome at one location while
view live video at another location
over the network / internet.
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Q2 : What is the
difference between a web camera and
an IP camera?
A web camera is
connected to a PC, normally through
USB, and uses the PC to make video
available to other viewers. It will
not work without a PC locally
connected to the camera. An IP
camera usually stands alone, and
combines the functionality of a
high-end web camera, the PC and
network interface into one
network-ready product.
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Q3 : How much bandwidth
does an IP Camera need?
It depends on both
the resolution and frame rate. It
also depends on the compression
technology the IP camera is using.
Below are three of the most popular
compression technology and the
required bandwidth and other
important information.
?
|
Compression Protocol |
M-JPEG |
MPEG-2 |
MPEG-4 |
|
Compression Rate |
6 |
30-40 |
200-500 |
|
Resolution |
352
x 288 |
720
x 576 |
720
x 576 |
|
FPS |
25-30 fps |
50-60 fps |
25-30 fps |
|
Bandwidth Required |
1.5Mbps |
4-15Mbps |
10K-1Mbps |
Also, please note
that 30 frames/s (NTSC) is the
required frame rate to provide
continuous motion and good quality
(DVD like) video.
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Q4 : Can I save
video from the camera?
Yes. You can record
the video at remote / local by using
the software provided by the IP
camera manufacturer. The ability to
record the video at remote site is a
major advantage of IP camera over
traditional analog camera. NAS
(Network Attached Storage) is very
useful in video storage, and is easy
to install.
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Q5 : Do I need to have
internet access to use the cameras?
No. The camera works
fine also in local network without
the internet connection. If the
remote users are in the same local
network, it's not necessary to
connect the IP cameras to the
internet.
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Q6 : Do you have cameras
support wireless LAN?
Our products support
wireless LAN will be available in Q3
2004. Current wireless LAN (802.11)
doesn't support wireless LAN QoS
(defined in 802.16), and therefore
is not suitable in security
surveillance application. The IP
camera that support wireless LAN
right now are mostly for home
security and entertainment
applications.
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Q7 :
What's the advantage
using MPEG-4?
MPEG-4
provides DVD quality video, but uses
lower bit rate so that it's feasible
to transmit digitized video streams
in LAN, and also in WAN, where
bandwidth is more critical, and hard
to guarantee. MJPEG's bandwidth
requirement is a little bit more
than MPEG-4, while its resolution
and frame rate are much worse.
MPEG-2 can provide DVD-like video,
just like MPEG-4. However, MPEG-2's
bandwidth requirement is so high
that it?s not possible to use in a
LAN or WAN environment.
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Q8 : Why
is MPEG-4 ASP Compliant important?
Is ASP same as Short header as some
other manufacturer claims?
There are MPEG-4 ASP
(Advanced Simple Profile), MPEG-4 SP
(Simple Profile), and MPEG-4 Short
Header in the market now. MPEG-4 ASP
provides all I, B, P frames and
therefore provide better compression
rate, while both MPEG-4 SP and
MPEG-4 Short Header provide I and P
frames only. In current practice,
MPEG-4 ASP and SP are deployed by
ASIC, while Short Header is most
commonly deployed by DSP. For the
same video quality, the bandwidth
required for MPEG-4 ASP is smaller
than that of MPEG-4 SP or Short
Header. Here is a video quality
comparison between ACTi?s video
server and a competitor?s MPEG-4
video server. It?s obvious that
although both video servers use
MPEG-4 compression technology,
ACTi?s video server has better video
quality since ACTi is MPEG-4 ASP
compliant, while the competitor is
MPEG-4 Short Header compliant. The
right-hand picture is ACTi?s video,
while the left-hand one is from the
competitor. Other Product - MPEG-4
Short header - Resolution : CIF -
BitRate : 384kb/s ACTi SED-2100R -
MPEG-4 ASP - Resolution : CIF -
BitRate : 384kb/s.
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Q9 :
What's the advantage to use MPEG-4 ASIC over DSP?
Current most popular
DSP cannot provide enough processing
power to process MPEG-4 full D1/30
fps encoding algorithm. The video
quality processed via DSP cannot
compete with that processed by ASIC.
Current DSP usually supports up to
CIF (360x240) right now, while ASIC
can support not only CIF, but also
full D1 (720x480).
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Q10 :
Why is it so important to have DDNS support in IP
camera?
If an IP camera can
support DDNS (Dynamic Domain Name
Server), users can set the IP camera
at a virtual domain name (such as
cam1.kitchen.Taipei.xxx.xxx) at
dynamic IP, and be able to view this
IP camera anywhere that has access
to the internet. It saves money when
setting up the broadband with
service provider, whether it?s ADSL
or cable modem, since fixed IP is
not a must.
Some IP camera manufacturers claim
to provide DDNS. However, they are
software solution that needs to be
installed at client site's PC.
Therefore, it requires users to see
those IP cameras at the PCs that
have installed the specific AP from
manufacturers. This is not as
user-friendly. ACTi have DDNS
function built-in the IP camera so
that users can view the IP camera
from anywhere.
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Q11 :
Why is it important to have WAN and
LAN on the IP camera?
ACTi's IP cameras
provide two RJ-45 connectors. One is
WAN and one is LAN. Both of them are
10/100. The difference between a WAN
and a LAN is that WAN is to be
connected to the internet, while LAN
is to be connected to a local
network. Since the internet's
bandwidth is very critical, ACTi
provides hardware QoS (Quality of
Service) on the WAN port to ensure
the bandwidth when uploading video
streams through the internet. Also,
the WAN port is equipped with PPPoE
(Point-to-Point Protocol over
Ethernet) which enables the IP
camera to be connected to an ADSL or
cable modem without the need to go
through a router first. If the IP
cameras are to be deployed at a
large area, it will be very costly
to provide routers to each IP
camera. Using IP cameras with PPPoE
built-in, installers will be able to
save a lot of cost over routers.
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Q12 :
What does "Digital Time Code Embedded"??mean? Why is it important?
The "Digital Time
Code Embedded" function is embedded
in MPEG data stream. Therefore,
the exact time each frame is
recorded will be stored. It is very
useful when users want to find the
video at an exact time or a certain
time interval. If an IP camera
doesn?t support this function, users
have to search for the whole video
stream by looking through the video,
which takes a lot of time. Some
cameras provide software solution to
simulate this function. However,
this is not as accurate. Video
streams with Digital Time Code
Embedded are so-called "Smart
Video", and can enable a lot of
useful applications at client site.
The other advantage
of Digital Time Code Embedded is
that it provides watermark on the
video streams. Since the time code
is written in the video stream, if
the video is modified by others, the
time code will disappear from the
video stream, and therefore, the
time code can act like a watermark
for the video stream and users will
find if the video is modified by
unauthorized people.
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Q13 :
Does ACTi's IP camera
provide motion detection function?
Yes. ACTi's IP camera provides
built-in motion detection function
in the IP camera, not in the AP
installed at client site. If the
motion detection is in the AP, there
will be latency between the time the
event occurred, and the time the
camera reacts.
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Q14 :
What kind of software is provided by
ACTi together with IP camera?
ACTi
will provide SDK (Software Developer
Kit) along with a simple AP for
reference.
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Q15 :
What's
the applications for IP camera?
IP cameras can be
used in professional security
systems and enable live video to be
viewed remotely by authorized
personnel. The IP cameras are easily
integrated into larger, complex
systems, but can also function as
stand-alone solutions in entry-level
surveillance applications. IP
cameras can be used for surveillance
of sensitive areas, such as
buildings,
casinos, banks and shops.
Video of those areas can be
monitored from relevant control
rooms, at police stations and by
security managers from a variety of
locations. IP cameras are also
effective substitutes for analog
cameras in traditional
law
enforcement applications,
such as keeping public places safe.
IP cameras can be used for
access control.
People as well as vehicles can be
recorded with time stamps that are
easy to locate and review. The
images can be stored in a remote
location, making it impossible to
steal the information.
IP cameras are easily connected to
the existing IP network and enable
real-time updates of high-quality
video to be accessible from any
computer on the network. Sensitive
areas such as the server room, the
reception area or any remote site
can be closely monitored in a
cost-effective and simple way, over
the local network or via the
internet. IP cameras enhance the
monitoring of a
retail
location by ensuring that everything
is in good order. An IP camera is a
useful tool at the
office.
Areas like the reception area, and
conference rooms can be monitored
for activity. In addition, users can
keep track of who has been in the
server room and take appropriate
action when problems occur. IP
cameras are useful tools for the
manufacturing
industry. Monitor robots, other
machines and production lines from
the office or home and allow service
engineers to access the cameras
remotely. With Pan/Tilt/Zoom cameras
it is possible to look at
comprehensive as well as detailed
views.
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