By: Arthur Cooper
Submitted: 2010-07-13 13:00:38 | Word Count: 664
Some of the most popular security surveillance systems are the wireless security camera with DVR systems. It’s not hard to understand why these systems are in demand. They are simple and quick to install, they are a complete standalone system with great versatility that lends them to almost any application, and they are affordably priced.
A typical wireless security camera with DVR system has the following components:
• One to several wireless digital video cameras;
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• A wireless receiver unit;
• A processor/Digital Video Recorder (DVR) with a CODEC utility, and;
• A monitor for viewing live or recorded video.
While this is the basic configuration, many wireless security cameras with DVR systems may vary from one component to another to accommodate each individual user’s application needs. That’s one reason why these systems are so popular; they can adapt to almost any situation.
Basic wireless security camera with DVR systems work by sending their video images via radio waves. The wireless digital video camera captures the video image and converts it into an electronic signal. The electronic signal is converted into a radio signal and is sent to the receiver using the wireless camera’s built in transmitter and antenna. Most modern wireless systems use the 2.4 GHz or 5.8 GHz radio band technology (the same technology used with wireless home telephones). The receiver accepts the transmitted video signal in radio form and converts it back into an electronic signal. It then passes it on to the processor/DVR.
The processor converts the electronic signal into a digital video file. Digital video files are actually several digital photographs taken in succession in a small amount of time. Typically, high quality video files will contain about 30 photographs or frames per second. This can cause the size of the digital video file to be extremely large in a relatively short period of time (e.g. in just minutes). The processor uses software or hardware called a CODEC utility (an acronym for COmpression/DECompression) to make the file size smaller and easier to handle without sacrificing quality. The file is then displayed on the monitor for live viewing and also saved on the DVR for archiving or for later use.
Wireless security cameras are the key components to the versatility of a wireless security camera with DVR systems. The cameras can be categorized into indoor and outdoor types.
Outdoor cameras are just like indoor cameras except the cameras are built inside a cover or case. The cameras are usually rated as to the amount of protection the case provides from foreign objects getting inside and reaching the camera parts. This rating is an International Electrical code standard called an Ingress Protection rating or IP code. A rating of IP66 or IP67 is satisfactory for most outdoor applications. Both ratings indicate that the camera is free from dust entering it and IP66 means it is protected from powerful water jets while IP67 means it can be submerged in up to 1 meter of water.
The wireless security cameras used with wireless security camera with DVR systems can be used in a variety of lighting conditions. There are highly specialized cameras for many different lighting conditions. The two main types of specialized cameras are the day/night vision wireless camera and the night vision infrared wireless camera.
The cameras use and electronic sensor chip to create the video image. There are two different types of sensor chip each with its own set of advantages and disadvantages. One type is the Charged Coupled Device or CCD and the other is a Complimentary Metal Oxide Semiconductor or CMOS.
Day/night vision cameras have chips that are incredibly sensitive to small amounts of light and can therefore produce high quality color video in very low light conditions. However, they cannot produce a video image in total darkness; they must have some visible light.
Night vision infrared (IR) wireless cameras produce a high quality color video when there is sufficient visible light. When there is not enough visible light or in conditions of total darkness, these cameras can produce a high quality black and white or monochromatic video image using infrared light.
There are other options available for wireless security cameras used with a DVR system. These include recording audio, Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ), and networking capability using the internet.
What ever your situation requires, there’s bound to be a wireless security camera with DVR system for you. These systems are quick and easy to install and economically priced.
