DVR Secure - Protecting People and Property

Many elements must be considered before designing your surveillance system.

If you are new to it, the world of Digital Security Systems can be confusing. We will try to help you understand the basics.

1. To help IDENTIFY perpetrators.
2. To help PREVENT accidents or wrongdoing.
3. To help PROTECT people and property.
4. To help OBSERVE processes.

"Who can benefit from DVR Surveillance?"

• Homeowners can identify who is at the door, check on the baby or check the house if they are away.
• Small and Large Businesses can prevent or identify shoplifters or burglars and keep an eye on the business from home. Employee theft is now higher in retail businesses than customer theft - and monitoring retail employees is becoming necessary.
• Industry & Research can monitor processes as well as maintaining security surveillance.
• Education and Government can keep an eye on trouble spots.

All these things and many more are possible through video surveillance.

"What do I need to get started?"

As a minimum, you will need at least one CCTV (Closed Circuit Television) camera and something on which to display the camera images. This could be a monitor or a TV set (providing you have "video in" jacks).

If you wish to record images, you will need at least a VCR. CCTV Cameras can be Black and White (B/W) or color. The differences in cameras are explained on the Security Cameras page.

Camera lenses have a major bearing on the field of view of the CCTV camera. In varying light conditions, an auto-iris lens is probably needed. Vari-Focal (manual zoom) and power zoom lenses are also available.

More than 1 or 2 CCTV cameras require more complex equipment - traditionally a splitter or multiplexer (enable multiple cameras to connect to one recording/display port) and a time-lapse VCR for recording, as well as a display monitor.

However, with today's Video Capture Boards (add-in boards for computers) and Digital Video Recorders (DVRs), the multiplexing is performed by the video capture board, recording is done on the computer hard disk and camera images are displayed on the computer monitor. Recording need not be continuous but can be accomplished only when motion is present in a camera field, at pre-set times or on receipt of a signal from an alarm system.

Remote users can dial-in via modem, access over a Local Area Network or over the Internet. Now you can observe and control camera views as they are happening! You can see what is going on in any part of your business when you are at home or in other areas of your business. You can even access previously recorded videos.

Advances in technology offer greater benefits and functions than the traditional methods of multiplexing, recording and display - benefits that are often less costly than those provided by traditional video surveillance equipment.