Analog to IP Camera Technology Migration

In a recent project, PR was contracted to assist a client in the migration of a multi-campus, traditional analog closed circuit TV system to a modern IP digital network based camera and recording system. This is a growing trend in the industry as clients realize the benefits not only increased camera resolution and recording capabilities, but also leveraging corporate infrastructure costs to reduce the overall total cost of ownership for their company.

It goes like this:

Traditional CCTV systems use analog NTSC (or PAL in some countries) cameras which connect via coaxial cable or fiber optic cable to an analog recording device, matrix switcher, and/or monitor. Sometimes the recorders are digital video recorders, but there are still alot of VCRs out there recording to plain old VHS tape. All of the equipment is still using or manipulating an analog video signal in some way.

The conversion requires new field devices, new infrastructure, new recording equipment, and new monitoring equipment. It can be expensive to install. However, the paybacks are big. With the advent of megapixel IP cameras, it is now possible to get very high resolution images that can be recorded and monitored anywhere your corporate network can go, and beyond. Factor in digital PTZ technology that allows for continuous monitoring of 360° from a single camera in high resolution, and you can now replace multiple cameras with only one. There are some limitations however, as outdoor PTZ cameras in parking lots or on poles aren’t necessarily good applications for IP PTZ cameras just yet. But eventually technology will catch up.

Hybrid compromises are available too, where analog cameras can be converted to IP encoded H.264 streams and sent to network video recorders (NVR) which record network video streams. The resolution is only as good as the analog camera (usually no more than about 500 lines, or 704 x 480 resolution). This pales in comparison to 1080p cameras or even higher resolution megapixel cameras on the market today, but it is a good way to leverage some legacy hardware with new recording and transmission technology.

The biggest advantage of digital IP video is the flexibility it affords. Need to move a video stream to a different recorder? Just change the IP settings. Need to monitor the video in multiple locations? Just pull down multiple streams from different PC workstations. Need to move the monitoring to a remote location or disaster recovery site? No problem, just connected to the video servers from the alternate location. All of these features were MUCH more difficult with legacy analog video.

In short, digital IP camera technology affords a suite of new and enhanced features that give security operations response and investigation tools that previously were nonexistent or too expensive to implement. There is a cost to this technology, but the power and flexibility is well worth the price.