DIPOL Weekly Review - TV and SAT TV, CCTV, WLAN

No. 14/2008 (April 14, 2008)
Prestigious award for ULTIMAX. On April 8, 2008, Network Video Recorder ULTIMAX-716 - launched on the market by DIPOL - won Gold Medal of Intertelecom, for the best product at 19th International Fair of Electronic Communication INTERTELECOM 2008 in Lodz, Poland.
ULTIMAX - the market leader in digital CCTV recording
The contest was hold for the 15th time. The goal of the contests at INTERTELECOM is to promote products and services that contribute to the development of telecommunications in Poland. INTERTELECOM is the largest and most important exhibition of achievements, and indicator of tendencies in electronic communication in Poland and Central Europe. Among others, it attracts exhibitors from Belgium, China, Czech Republic, Germany, Italy, Taiwan, Ukraine, United Kingdom, US.

The Gold Medal for ULTIMAX-716 H.264
Cisco like a big tanker. At ISC West (International Security Conference - April 2-4, 2008) in Las Vegas, Cisco Systems, Inc. presented new IP video surveillance products.

The role of Cisco in IP-based technology is so important that it is worth to focus on the products and scenarios.
There was shown 4500 IP camera of 2 megapixel resolution (1920 x 1980), utilizing H.264 compression. For standard applications Cisco prepared 2500 IP camera, both as wired and wireless version (the latter supporting 802.11b/g/n standards). The "n" option makes it probably the first CCTV camera that supports the newest wireless standard (draft 2.0). The cameras can cooperate with Cisco Stream Manager 5.0, offered for about 300 US dollars per one channel.

The next, new field of activity of Cisco is IP-based physical access control. The company presented both hardware and software components utilizing IP network for integrated security operations.
Door readers, locks and biometric devices, and the Cisco Access Gateway - together with the software component - Cisco Physical Access Manager, make a complete and scalable platform that can cooperate with existing systems and other software applications (e.g. databases).

Cisco, like a big tanker, can only sail on the deep, along the main routes.
The solutions developed by this IP leader, based on H.264 compression and "n" standard, will be the lodestar for other, smaller companies.
The new direction of Cisco towards physical access control may be a strong impulse for quick development of this market segment.
The new direction of Cisco towards physical access control may be a strong impulse for quick development of this market segment.
Tower of Liberty. TV transmission towers are strategic buildings, very well protected. They allow to transmit TV and radio programs which can shape public opinion - a very important element of acquiring and maintaining political power.
The tower in the picture is especially important for the city and country which it is in. In January 1991, several months after the country declared independence, 14 citizens died there while trying to maintain the blockade against troops equipped with tanks. There were over 600 people injured.
Where is the tower? The answer at the end of this issue.

Where is the tower? The answer at the end of this issue.
Distribution of satellite signals in small and medium apartment blocks - MSR-524 multiswitches. The R70624 multiswitches with 24 outputs provide perfect solutions for medium sized buildings. The multiswitches are equipped with graded output levels (in three groups). It allows to equalize signal levels in wall plates located in different distances from the multiswitches. High isolation between outputs minimizes interferences between the receiving devices. For installations with above 24 outlets there are needed additional multiswitches, e.g. R70604, R70608, R70612, R70616. Signals from Quatro LNB and terrestrial TV should be previously split/tapped through TERRA splitters or taps - SS-504 R70515 (for similar/symmetrical branches), or SS-510 R70516, SS-515 R70517, SS-210 R70518 (for unsymmetrical branches). The multiswitches allow to power antenna preamplifiers with 12VDC.
Multi-input Antenna Amplifier: Alcad CA-310TV/SAT Wall Plate: Signal R-TV-SAT (terminal)Multiswitch Terra MSR-524 (5-in, 24-out, terrestrial TV amplifier)
Application diagram
ULTIMAX - digital video recorders for demanding customers - full range of choices. DIPOL has launched on the European market a whole family of 3rd generation network DVRs of ULTIMAX series. There are three groups of them, depending on the computing power of processors and some other features. The most powerful subfamily is 700 series, then go 500 and 300 models. The 700 series contains 16-ch and 8-ch DVRs, the 500 and 300 series also include 4-ch models. The flagship DVR of 700 series - M77160 - is capable of recording 4CIF (D1) images at 25 fps, simultaneously from all 16 channels.
ULTIMAX - the market leader in digital CCTV recording
The main common features of ULTIMAX family distinguishing it in the market:
  • 24 months warranty,
  • the newest and most efficient H.264 video compression,
  • recording and live viewing in 4CIF/2CIF/CIF/QCIF resolutions - see the table below,
  • many modes of triggering video recording (manual, schedule, motion detection, external alarms - in four daily cycles),
  • selectable bitrate (recording) from 32 Kbps to 8 Mbps,
  • multi-layer management with adequate access rights,
  • synchronous recording of video and audio,
  • support of largest hard discs (SATA) - up to 2 TB each. In some models there can be installed up to 8 such disks (total capacity of 16 TB)!.,
  • possibility of real-time recording on:
    • hard discs installed in the DVR,
    • external hard discs connected via USB,
    • Network Attached Storage (NAS),
    • computers with ULTIMAX client software installed,
  • playback of archives (from all above locations) with client software,
  • possibility of handing over the original disc to authorized services (police, court etc.),
  • easy backup of chosen sequences and recordings from the last day,
  • possibility of independent determination of all recording parameters for each channel (camera),
  • multi-tier information system for the operator about tasks being performed,
  • control of practically every PTZ device on the market,
  • bidirectional voice connection between the DVR operator and cameras' locations and operators of ULTIMAX client stations.
The differences among 700, 500, and 300 series are shown in the table:
Series 700 500 300
Available models (number of ch.) 16 M77160 M75160 M73160
8 M77080 M75080 M73080
4 - - - M75040 M73040
Recording speed (each channel) [fps] 4CIF 25 12 1.5
2CIF 25 25 10
CIF/QCIF 25 25 25
Live  viewing (every channel)
4CIF 25 fps
HDD interfaces
SATA 8x(max.2000GB)=16TB SATA 8x(max.2000GB)=16TB IDE 4x(max.2000GB)=8TB
Dimensions 19” rack (450x450x95mm) 19” rack (450x450x95mm) 14.25” rack (440x390x70mm)
In following newsletters we will describe in detail the main modes of operation and parameters of ULTIMAX DVRs
Comparison of typical PTZ cameras and megapixel cameras. Most cameras used in CCTV systems in stadiums are PTZ devices. It is due to the fact that one such camera can cover a large area and thanks to optical zoom - to narrow the field of view to the most interesting at the moment fragment in order to identify important details.
Despite these advantages, there are also significant limitations. In the case of two operators there is a risk of conflicts during PTZ control. In zoom mode the field of view covers only a small area - the rest is out of control at this moment.
These limitations are overcome by using megapixel cameras (very high-resolution cameras). Use of such cameras e.g. in stadiums allows to record a complete coverage of any event - the interesting details the operator/s can enlarge not only at the moment of live viewing, but also from the recorded video. No incident or detail will be overlooked. Below - digitally zoomed images from standard and megapixel camera.
Comparison of digitally zoomed images from standard and megapixel camera
How to configure the TP-Link TL-WR542G router? Router connects two or more logical subnets, e.g. external network with Internet access (WAN) with local network (LAN), making a bridge for information exchange. Without proper configuration the connection will be impossible. In most cases, router acts as a specialized computer (replacing a standard computer) working in external network, with software and hardware tailored to the tasks of routing and forwarding. It allows to create internal (local) network.
In this case, configuration of the computer includes:
  • taking down all settings of the NIC (working in external network),
    • IP address
    • Subnet mask
    • Default gateway
    • Preferred DNS server
  • changing the way of address assignment to dynamic (DHCP), or setting fixed IP address from the router's range,
  • connecting the computer with LAN port of the router.
More on configuration of TL-WR542G N2950 router in DIPOL Library - How to configure a router
Router connects two or more logical subnets, e.g. external network with Internet access (WAN) with local network (LAN), making a bridge for information exchange.
Vilnius. The Vilnius TV Tower is a 326.5 meter-high (1071 ft) building, the highest one in Lithuania. The tower was completed in 1980. Its structure is composed of a concrete base, a 190 m long hollow reinforced concrete pipe, and a 136 m long steel spike. At 160m there is an observation deck and coffee shop - in a concrete saucer. In 1991, 14 unarmed civilians lost their lives opposing the Soviet troops that wanted to seize control of the tower.
One of the most interesting buildings in Vilnius is St Ann church, built in the style of flaming Gothic
We have written about:

Vena - UHF antenna allowing to receive very low signals. Dipol 94/21-69 Vena (A3380) UHF antenna (ch. 21-69) with high energetic gain (up to 18 dB) allows to receive broadcasts from distant transmitters...
- archive DWR of March 17, 2008

Netstation - professional software for IP CCTV systems. NetStation is an advanced network system designed for managing video and audio material in video surveillance system. The software cooperates with majority of CCTV devices, especially from leading manufacturers...
- archive DWR of Jan. 14, 2008

How to increase system throughput - packet aggregation in Raptor devices. Because the 802.11 standard protocol does not guarantee efficient work with a large number of packets, THEMAX company has developed it own transmission protocol TFPP (Themax Fast Pooling Protocol). Aggregation of packets allows to increase channel throughput even up to 5 MBps, and to transfer up to 30,000 packets per second...
- archive DWR of Nov. 5, 2007
Welcome to our stand at Securex in Poznan, April 22-25, 2008 - no. 33 in pavilion 3A