Upgrading the Home CCTV security

Well it's been a fair while since I posted on this blog as so much has been happening, but I thought it was time I did a short update.

At the start of the year we installed a 6kW solar system and that has been the topic of a fair few of my recent blog postings

• SAMIL® Solar Production GraphJan~Jul 2013Latitude:...
• New Version of SAMIL SolarPower Browser™ (v3.1.0.0...
• April/May 2013 SAMIL 5200 generation stats
• Successful SAMIL v1.20 firmware upgrade
• Upgraded Samil 5200 Firmware to v1.20
• April 16 2013 update to: Ongoing experience of TRY...
• SAMIL Generation Statistics for the first three mo...
• March 10 2013 update to: My experience of Networki...
• SAMIL™and CSUN™Other posts relating to the IESPost...
• Continuation of SAMIL update
• An Update to: My expierence with our SAMIL 5200TL-...
• My experience of Networking our SAMIL River 5200TL...

As per my earlier posts on home security...;

• Premises Security (part 12) Summary
• Premises Security (part 11) Power Protection and S...
• Premises Security (part 10) Power Protection and S...
• Premises Security (part 9) Non-video surveillance
• Premises Security (part 8) Non-video surveillance
• Premises Security (part 7) Non-video surveillance
• Premises security (part 6) Non-video Surveillance
• Premises security (part 5) Remote Monitoring
• Premises security (part 4) Using Your Computer for...
• Premises security (part 3) Wired or Wireless ?
• Premises security (part 2) Local vs Monitored also...
• Premises security (part 1) System Types

... my el-cheapo system has been serving us well , apart from having to replace a  2TB hard drive which apparently 'wore out' from constant access.

As a quick recap, we have a central PC system which acts as the security server.

This has 2x 4port TE104 capture cards using the CONEXANT 878a chips

To these cards we have connected 5 hard-wired CCD cameras

and 2 2.4GHz wireless cameras

 

These are all managed by the original version of the Pico2000 software

We also purchased our first PTZ IP camera

but sadly the Pico2000 software doesn't understand the concept of an IP camera so I've been using the supplied WANSCAN software separate from the Pico system but this is quite tedious and their recording compression isn't great so I've been on the lookout for a "budget" replacement for the Pico software and think I may have found it.

It looks like the

Argus DVR software

will provide management of hard-wired composite, IP and USB as well as control of PTZ cameras all for a fairly "reasonable" price of US$118 for 8 cameras, so as soon as I've saved my pennies, I plan on giving this a whirl.

Of course I'll also need at-least one PTZ controller interface as well 

but I'll post about that once I have it all bought and working

Premises Security (part 12) Summary

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Premises Security (part 12) Summary

So the sensors are chosen, the cameras are installed. The recording system has been chosen. Power has been assured for an acceptable length of time.
Let's do a final summary:

Part 1 discussed the different types of security systems.

Part 2 explained the differences between Local and Monitored alarms and Perimeter vs. State-change detection along with a look at some different video security surveillance cameras.

Part 3 looked at wireless vs. wired security systems.

Part 4 looked at setting up a video security installation.
Part 5 covered remote monitoring of the video installation and security risks associated with that. It also considered using Motion Detection.
Part 6 Began an overview of NON-video surveillance devices.
It covered;
The “closed loop”, Micro/Magnetic Reed/Thermatic & Pressure Mat switches
Part 7 Continued the overview of NON-video surveillance devices.
It covered detection of environment change rather than physical switch operation
It considered;
Pulsed Infra-red beams, Passive Infra-red (PIR) movement detectors, Proximity detection
Part 8 Completed the overview of NON-video surveillance devices.
We considered that security is more than just Intruder Detection so then looked at Temperature and Light/Darkness security sensors such as;
Thermal Fuses, Thermistor or semiconductor temperature monitors, LDR or Semiconductor light sensors.
Part 9 Considered the two points raised in Part #1 of this series.

The first point was the trade-off of cost & size vs functionality, risk and aesthetics. That led into the discussion in Parts #2 thru #8, of the various types of security system and the devices used.

The second point was the possibility of having the "best of both" in a small easily installed surveillance system AND
extended power coverage by use of a "UPS" as a power backup.
Parts #10 & #11 talked about battery life, working out run-time calculations and the different types of UPS. It also touched on power quality and preferred brands of UPS.

So that wraps up a very high-level view of premises security using digital video surveillance.
I will gladly discuss any specific questions which this series of articles may have either left untouched or perhaps stimulated.

In my next post, I'll start to look at some of the forgotten aspects of security of computer data, caused by corruption, theft or malicious intrusion by virus or hacking.

Premises security (part 4) Using Your Computer for DIY Video Surveillance

Hi People
Tonight I want to look at connecting a video security camera installation to a computer and using that computer to record and send alerts to remote recipients.

In summary to-datePart 1 discussed the different types of security systems.
Part 2 explained the differences between Local and Monitored alarms and Perimeter vs. State-change detection along with a look at some different video security surveillance cameras.
Part 3 looked at wireless vs. wired security systems.
So now we come to Part 4 which starts looking at what we can do with the inputs from those perimeter and state-change sensors.

Lets start with my favourite topic - Video surveillance

We have our wired or wireless cameras, now what can we do with them?

Let’s start with the Wired variety

Purpose built recorders

There a number of purpose-built multi-channel video surveillance loggers on the market.
These range in price from about A$998 to over A$2000 depending on how many camera channels they support, what media they record to (video tape/fixed-disk/DVD), what polling and motion-capture features are built into the units and what remote access capabilities they provide.
The sheer range of options is too vast to discuss in this general forum but specific questions can be entered via comments and I will do my best to address them.Have a quick look at this link to get an idea of the range of equipment available
http://www.rfconcepts.co.uk/index.htm
with specific reference to this page which shows some recorders
http://www.rfconcepts.co.uk/digital-recorder.htm

As a very high-level summary, I would be looking for a self-contained unit which has remote management capabilities via secure web access, records at-least four camera channels simultaneously or in rapid-poll sequence, overlays date/time on the picture and has motion-capture facilities.
Four cameras should be the minimum, as this potentially covers along all four sides of a 15 meter square building in total darkness (0 lux) using InfraRed imaging.

[Note as an aside: lux is the measure of light available
On the Sony website, LUX is defined as "Relative amount of light that will produce a viewable image”
According to the International System of Units, "LUX" is defined in terms of lumens per meter squared (lm/m2)

Unless you are deeply versed in the realm of scientific units, these definitions were probably not very enlightening. Back in 1909, with the advent of electric lighting, it became necessary to find units to discuss how bright something was; several first world countries adopted "the international candle" as the amount of light something generated - how many candles it took to generate the same amount of light. Unfortunately, in the 1940s some bright spark figured out that different candles produce different amounts of light.

The irony is that the term "LUX" is used to define how much light something produces; however, camera marketers use this figure to profess how sensitive the camera CCD is to receive light.]

Connecting the cameras

The connectivity is as simple as locating the cameras in a suitable position to ensure they operate within their environmental specifications. It pays to position them so they do not look directly into bright light at any time.
Eg. Straight at a street lamp; the rising or setting sun; car headlights or security flood-lights.
Route power and video cables through secure conduit or via roof/wall cavities from each camera to the Digital Video Recorder and connect each camera to a separate channel on the recorder. Set up the software and you're off-and-capturing.

A PC Based Recorder

As an alternative to a dedicated DVR, a PC can double as an office-tool by day and a surveillance system by night.
The main thing I have found is that the system needs to have LOTS of disk storage available [depending on how many days of video history you want to keep], with lots of memory (RAM).
Having used several different camera software packages, I’ve found a safe spec would be a 2.6GHz processor, absolute minimum of 1GB of RAM, at-least Windows XP or later and 250GB or more of disk storage.
Several of the software packages that I am familiar with are CAMGUARD, Watcher, and GeoVision, but there are lots more available too.

Connectivity to a PC can be achieved one of two ways.
Via a USB receiver, either wired or wireless
Via multi-port video capture cards. These often come in four-port format so multiple cards can be used to increase the number of cameras which can be monitored.

The Wireless option

In the USB scenario, either a wireless receiver is connected to the USB port and set to poll the local wireless cameras or a USB video concentrator is connected to the USB port and the camera signal cables connected to the video inputs of the USB concentrator.

Surveillance Software

Software for the surveillance varies from product-to-product but in general consists of setting camera parameters such as format (NTSC/PAL), brightness, contrast, frame-rate etc. Set up the motion-capture or time-capture parameters. Set up the history housekeeping. Set up the alerting mechanism (remote-web, email alert, SMS, etc)

Live Video Output

As an after-thought, some wireless camera receivers allow their output to be passed directly to a composite video display device, so in it’s most basic format the cameras could be displayed live to a video monitor somewhere.

Next session I’ll talk a little more on remote-web connectivity and may start on non-video monitoring.

Premises security (part 3) Wired or Wireless ?

Last installment we looked at a couple of different cameras which can be installed to give fairly good picture quality.

One thing I forgot to mention was that the light-handling ability of some of the cheaper cameras is VERY poor.
I have returned several indoor cameras because they simply wash-out the scene when it becomes brightly lit - such as in full sunshine.
The moral here is to check before destroying the packaging !

Today I want to look at the first of the topics you should consider if you've decided to give Do-It-Yourself surveillance a go.
This topic is Should I Use Wireless or Wired security?

First of all, it needs to be said that no matter what type of system you install, they are all susceptible to intentional disruption.

There are a number of wireless based home security systems on the market.
Most reputable wireless units have jamming detection built into them, which will dial a monitoring service if radio-based interference is detected.
One I have personally found to be quite adequate for my purposes on small security installations, is the LYNX security system from ADEMCO.

Differences between the two types
The major differences between a wired and a wireless installation are that the sensors all need regular battery maintenance and that intrusion can be effected without having to actually enter the premises.

Obviously wireless installations lend themselves to difficult sites and also for speed and ease of installation. On the other hand the cost of the sensors is greater as too are battery maintenance costs.

Wired installations are conversely more difficult to interfere with because physical access is necessary. They also support cheaper sensors, although this can easily be offset by the cabling costs.
Wired installations also have the benefit of a central power source rather than having to maintain relatively expensive long-life batteries (often Nickel Metal Hydride) in a dozen different and often difficult-to-access places.

Special considerations for video installations
Where video surveillance is concerned, there are some additional issues which need to be considered.
The cameras still need a power source so they are NOT truly wire-less!

Because the publicly available wireless cameras operate on a public radio channel shared by many other devices and users, general non-malicious interference can cause such severe signal degradation as to render the image(s) useless. Also, because the signal is usually NOT encrypted, anyone within 100m can view what is being "seen" by the cameras.

Take care what the camera "sees"
This latter point may not be so bad in outside settings where no pattern of traffic is obvious nor anything of value visible. Within a building however, to monitor your heirlooms cabinet or your $10,000 home theatre equipment is rather like putting signs out within 100m of your premises to advertise what you have that's worth stealing!
Another thing that is forgotten when using wireless monitoring, is that your patterns of movement can be very accurately recorded so thieves know when you are likely to not be in a room or building.

Image Quality and Distance to Cameras
Picture quality and reliability is significantly superior with a cabled video system but does have distance limitations without signal repeaters.
Image quality is often more "noisy" with radio and also has distance limitations which are harder to overcome than with cable extenders.
My own experience with wireless cameras has shown that while 100m is possible with clear line-of-sight between the camera and the receiver, ANY obstacle will drastically degrade the distance/quality of transmission

Next installment I'll start talking about monitoring the devices and how they may connect.

If there is anything you disagree with me on, or want clarification about, please feel free to add comments

Premises security (part 2) Local vs Monitored also Use of Video Survellience

Local Security - continued from yesterday

With a "local" security system it may be possible to completely disable it, simply by removing the power for several hours !

If you're serious about electronic security, you really need to consider having a monitored system and/or some form of extended power supply. (More about power supply later)

The sad reality of unmonitored security systems is that by-and-large, audible and visible alerts will be ignored by the majority of people.
In Australia this problem is compounded by insufficient law enforcement officers for their timely attendance at any premises which may have an audible/visible alarm activated.

Before we move on in the topics, I'd like to share a little of my experience of "local alarm" security.

In one of my past lives, I was a registered security consultant and so got to see a wide variety of installations, ranging from the 'el-cheap-o' to the 'no-expense-spared' solutions.

In my opinion the best sort of "local" electronic security is made up of a mix of 'perimeter breach' and 'recorded digital video'.

Maybe at this juncture I should clarify what I mean by 'perimeter security', for those who are unfamiliar with these terms.

This first category, Perimeter Detection is often made up of some form of electronic security device(s) placed in the path of likely points of entry.

These devices are many and varied in today's digital security world, but some of the long-time favorites include:

• Door and window closure detectors which send a signal back to the control panel when the access-point is opened.
• Glass breakage detection
• Pressure mats in passageways
• Infra-red (invisible light) beams across access-ways.

These devices all detect a physical breach of the premises.
Damage has been done, (break-in) and someone has actually entered the premises.

The second category of devices can be classified as 'state-change' detectors and may include electronic sensors which either monitor and record events, and/or send alerts about the movement of a body or change of state within a monitored area.

These devices may include the likes-of:

• Passive infra-red movement detectors
• Proximity detectors
• Infra-red beams may also fall into this category
• In specialised installations, even things like moisture or noise detection may be used to monitor the security of the premises.
• Digital Electronic Security Cameras

Security Cameras

One of the technologies which has become affordable to the masses in recent times, is the use of digital electronic video recording.
The potential advantage of this type of security is that even if property is lost or damaged, with possible visual identification of the perpetrators, there is an increased likelihood of both recovering stolen goods, and of damages recovery.

As I said at the start of todays page,
The sad reality of unmonitored security systems is that by-and-large, audible and visible alerts will be ignored by the majority of people.

Recording Methods for Digital Security Cameras

With the minimal cost of large volume disk storage, this is probably the most common media for storing recorded security video.

Prior to the decreased costs and increased capacities of disks, the most common medium was the digital video tape, mainly because of the volume of data which could be stored on a single tape. The emerging option is to write the data directly to DVD.

Although I may dedicate more detail to it in a later blog, I'll just touch on it in this bit about cameras.

SWANN make a couple of quite reasonable little indoor/outdoor cameras for around the A$230~$250 mark
At the time I write this Dick Smith is selling them as shown on these links:
Wireless: L5980
Wired: L5981

ZTV make quite a robust indoor/outdoor wireless security camera range and matched receiver.
ZTV are now associated with AEE who market their products.
In Aust dollars these sell for around $250 each, so for a couple of cameras and receiver you'll only have to spend around $750. (That's pretty cheap for video security)
At the time I write this Jaycar is selling them as shown on these links:
CAT. NO. QC3564

As I said, I'll talk more about the pros and cons of wireless security in a later blog.

In future installments, I'll cover off setting up video security using your home computer and also the ability to remote-monitor your site via the internet.
I also want to mention the potential risks of doing that (remote monitoring).

Enough for tonight.
Hope you'll join me again for the next installment.

Premises security (part 1) System Types

If any of you have had any experience with security alarms for your home or workplace, you will no doubt be aware that the control panel and sometimes a remote sounder or strobe light will often have batteries fitted to them.
These batteries are often rechargeable cells which are recharged while mains electricity is supplied to the control panel. In the event of power loss, these batteries should maintain the operation of the security system until power is restored.

There are a couple of points to consider here.

The first is that there is always a trade-off of cost & size vs functionality, risk and aesthetics.

What I mean by this is that the designers can EITHER make a very robust electronic security system which will run without an external power source, for days on end, and allow for the added demand of an attempted break-in while STILL preserving the integrity of the system.
OR
They can build a neat little wall mounted unit which has lots of electronic "features" ... and a small rechargeable battery "in-case-of" power failure.

For the first design, we probably wind up with a fairly bulky (large storage-capacity batteries are not known for their lightweight & compact design), and probably not a very sexy looking system, which costs a lot and takes a large site to install in.

For the second design, the opposite is true.
Small, sleek, easy to install almost anywhere, and doesn't cost anywhere near as much.

The down-side to this, is that in a planned intrusion (such as while you are on vacation), power can be removed from your premises sufficiently in advance to allow the system to become inoperative.

In the case of many of the smaller Do-It-Yourself security kits, the internal backup battery may only support the system for between 2 and 8 hours.

Fortunately, most electronic security panels now-a-days have some "intelligence" built into them!

At this point, I should digress long enough just to ensure that everyone understands that there are a number of basic types of security installation:

1. At the top of the scale you have the site which has full closed-circuit electronic video camera surveillance and perimeter intrusion detection, backed-up by on-site security guards monitoring the cameras and doing physical checks on a random basis.

2. Next rung down might be the site which has full closed-circuit electronic video camera surveillance and perimeter intrusion detection being reported back to an off-site security monitoring center.

3. Down another rung the site might only have one or other of video or perimeter protection reported back to an off-site security monitoring center.

These first three examples are what is known as "monitored" or "back-to-base" security systems

4. Another step down might be the site which has full closed-circuit electronic video camera surveillance and perimeter intrusion detection, but no off-site monitoring, only a local siren and possibly a flashing strobe to draw attention.

5. Getting towards the bottom of the scale is the site which has only one or other of video or perimeter protection with no off-site monitoring. Perimeter-only detection probably being the most basic alarm system anyone would install

These latter two examples are what is known as "local alarm" systems.

With "local" systems, there are again several sub-categories.
1. You have the audible and/or visible deterrent type of system.
2. You have the video capture system where video security cameras record to digital data storage such as disk, DVD, or videotape.

While obviously there are many permutations of video vs perimeter, with/without physical site patrols/guards, local alerts vs monitored systems, for the purpose of this topic, suffice to say there are the two categories of Local vs Monitored systems

If your system is a "monitored" system, then when external power is lost, the unit may call the monitoring centre after a period of time. Failing this, when the battery nears exhaustion, a "battery low" warning may be sent to the control centre.

If your system is "local alarm", meaning there is no external monitoring, guess what happens ?

(Part 2)