When designing a surveillance system, the following questions should be considered:
- What is to be protected? Assets and/or personnel?
- What is the value of what is to be protected, and how much will it cost to purchase an appropriate surveillance system?
- Will you be installing an Indoor or Outdoor system? Where will the cameras be located? (Hallways, Interior, Parking Lot, or Perimeter?)
- What type, and how many cameras will be needed?
- Type of power needed for your camera (12VDC or 24VAC?)
- Should cameras be a light, medium, or heavy-duty type?
- Where should the cameras be placed to provide the best surveillance view?
- What should be the field of view (FOV) for each camera?
- Should the camera be fixed or be able to tilt and pan?
- Should camera mounts be Wall, or Ceiling type?
- Which cameras should be overt/covert?
- What type of lens will you need? (Wide Angle, Normal, or Telephoto?)
- Will the system be for daytime use only? Daytime/nighttime? Will added or existing lighting be used?
System Design – Doing a site survey with a tape measure to determine what you want to see when you want to see it. Decide on where you want to place your “Main” video surveillance system. Then choose where and how many cameras you may need. Take note of the lighting conditions of the areas to be recorded. Measure the distance from each camera to the “Main” video surveillance system. This will help you decide how many feet of cable you will need.
Equipment Selection- This is the most crucial step in obtaining the right surveillance system for you needs. All of our surveillance cameras include a power supply and approximately 10 feet of cable. Please read though our articles regarding choosing the correct surveillance equipment on the right hand side menu.
Pulling the Cable – Each camera that you install will need a power, video, and possibly audio cable installed with it as well. Plan your cable route from each camera back to the “Main” video surveillance system. Wireless video systems exist but, due to the high cost, are generally not used. Inexpensive wireless systems do exist however they hardly ever perform as expected. You will need coax cable for the video signal, and 24VAC or 12 VDC rated power cable. For CCTV installations these two are often combined on 1 cable referred to as Siamese cable.
Installing and configuring the equipment – Mount the cameras for the view you would like. Attach the video cable and the power cable to the camera. Adjusting the focus, focal length and other setting for each camera based on the design and the actual environment. Install the “Main” system and configure the system to properly handle the video feed from each camera. Setting motion, event, and other associated recording schedules as well as network access.
Testing – end-to-end testing of the system to insure it meets the design performance specification and your approval.
Glossary of Terms & Technical Specifications
Choosing A Digital Video Recorder
Frames per second Demonstration
Live Remote View Demonstration
Choosing A Surveillance Camera
