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Analyze the six factors that restrict the application of network camera scale

As the core equipment in the network video surveillance system, the application and popularity of network cameras represent the extent and stage of the development of network video surveillance. Undoubtedly, network cameras are gradually adapting to the current and future diversified needs, and will become the mainstream products in the field of video surveillance. However, for most users, the performance, stability and integration of network cameras are not clear enough and thorough, lacking in-depth, systematic analysis and research. Therefore, in the decision-making process, there are often more concerns and doubts, so that they dare not try, which also greatly affects the popularity and wide-ranging application of network cameras and network monitoring systems.

Combined with the feedback information encountered by the merchants in the actual promotion of network camera products, the influencing factors of the scale promotion of network cameras can be basically summarized into application habits, core technologies, network transmission, procurement costs, application values, resource integration, etc. Aspects.

Application habit

First of all, the user has formed an inertia from the concept that the video surveillance products with large circulation, wide application range and long survival time are the best choices. Therefore, DVR+ analog cameras, which currently dominate the market, are still the best choice. It has become the first choice of most users or engineers. Although some network camera products are also absorbed in many bidding processes, it is often the result of a combination of DVR+ analog cameras. This view of the new generation of network cameras will be brought into a misunderstanding invisibly. Users will think that new technologies and new products must be immature and prone to problems, such as performance. Unstable, complicated system installation and debugging, large impact from the external environment, and difficult to master the operation.

It can be seen that the concept of change is the fundamental factor that restricts the development of network video surveillance. Only by changing this concept of treating new things can network cameras be understood and recognized more quickly and comprehensively, and they should play their due advantages. Of course, there are also some industry users, such as the network penetration rate, IT application leading education, medical industry customers, from system design, deployment, to application, network camera-based network monitoring system solutions are readily selected, and It is also a willingness to invest money and other costs in this way. This is a very good start and is bound to have an important impact on the popularity of network cameras.

Core Technology

Although domestic network video surveillance products can be said to be a hundred schools of thought, most security vendors do not have their own core technologies, especially video and audio development, monitoring management software development and image processing technology, and are still in "takenism" and "downtime". A low level of technology. Such a technical atmosphere that has not yet unified specifications and is really close to the domestic market demand has added considerable unnecessary troubles to security engineers and integrators. It is often aimed at a network video surveillance system solution, looking for various monitoring. Manufacturers of equipment, to work together, but also to integrate design, not only wasted time and energy, but also increased the procurement cost of technology and products, so that it can not truly achieve confrontation and competition with international brand manufacturers, not to mention a stop Solutions and service systems. In addition, as far as the core video compression technology of the network camera itself is concerned, its development is constantly being updated, and has not reached a mature stage.

At present, the image compression technology widely used in network cameras has three methods: M-JPEG/MPEG-4/H.264. H.264 can obtain the highest compression ratio and has the highest processing platform requirements for the camera itself. In order to achieve higher resolution and achieve full real-time transmission, mainstream manufacturers use H.264 compression algorithm to achieve low bandwidth applications, but the actual effect can not be satisfied by users, and due to technology and chip investment and upgrade It also increases the cost of the network camera.

network transmission

The signal interaction of the network camera must depend on the network, but at present, there is still a lack of a good network environment in China, which is a very objective and realistic problem. Network video surveillance system, as its name implies, is a general network for video surveillance system deployment and application implementation. The network environment is the foundation, and is the carrier of the network video surveillance system. A good network environment can provide a good guarantee for the fluency and real-time performance of network video. Digital video transmission needs to occupy a large network bandwidth resource. In the environment of local area network and private network, it can basically reach 100 Mbps access, the degree of Gigabit convergence, and the corresponding network transmission quality assurance measures, the network bandwidth can be completely Guaranteed, network video surveillance systems can also fully express their characteristics; however, network monitoring needs to meet the needs of a wider range, more branches, more areas of application, which requires network video to be transmitted in the WAN environment. The status quo of the domestic network is very unresolved. Whether it is private line, ADSL, CDMA, 3G, etc., the bandwidth is very limited, and the actual and theoretical values are very different. Compared with advanced countries, the so-called broadband in China is huge. Most of them can only be defined as narrowbands, and digital video transmission will face a narrow road with multiple lanes, resulting in picture quality degradation, picture interruption, and excessive delay. Therefore, without good network resources, it will restrict the effect of the network video surveillance system, and it will not reflect the advantages of the network video surveillance system.

Construction cost

Users have a deep misunderstanding about the construction cost of network cameras and network video surveillance systems. They believe that the price of network cameras is high, and the construction cost of DVR systems is much lower than that of network video surveillance systems. Admittedly, DVR equipment is experiencing a general price cut, and its combination of encoding and storage is also an absolute cost advantage in many small and medium-sized projects with low monitoring requirements. However, as the user's needs gradually develop in the direction of network, high-definition, intelligent, centralized management, and system integration, the DVR system has become incapable in essence. In fact, we analyze from another angle, the network camera has the function of analog camera and DVR coding, and it has no comparable price with analog camera. If the construction cost of the network video surveillance system, including hardware cost and implementation cost, is analyzed and accounted for, the construction cost of the network video surveillance system is generally equivalent to that of the DVR system on the premise of meeting the requirements of medium and high-end applications. However, from a practical point of view, many users already have DVR systems in use. If a network-wide network transformation is to be carried out, a large number of monitoring devices will be abandoned, which will cause huge waste of the original investment, which is difficult for users to accept. Therefore, although the advantages of the network camera are obvious, in the actual product procurement and system construction, it is necessary to protect the original investment of the user as much as possible. It is gratifying to note that domestic well-known manufacturers such as Star Network Ruijie, Keda, Haikang, etc. have already launched products such as hybrid DVR and multi-system management platform, which can be changed without changing the original system structure and products. The realization of network transformation, to maximize the user's initial investment, to meet the comprehensive needs of economy, compatibility and advancement.

Value

At present, the network cameras in the market are dominated by megapixels. Many international and domestic manufacturers have launched a full range of network camera products, and some manufacturers have network cameras based on 3 million and 5 million pixels. However, high-definition network monitoring is also applied to various industries and fields in China, and it is still a realistic problem. For example, low-light processing and noise processing of high-definition video have high processing performance requirements for the internal ISP and SOC of the camera, and the nighttime effect is relatively poor for a relatively complicated monitoring environment, and in fact the security level at night should be higher than during the day. It is still a bottleneck for bank ATM machines and other areas with high levels of monitoring. In road monitoring, the megapixel network camera needs to capture the high-speed vehicle to grasp the facial features and vehicle details in real time. For the fill light, flash, exposure time, and code stream mode conversion of the bayonet, etc. The application is also not mature. It can be seen that the network camera products do have some flaws in essence, and they cannot be universally applied in some industries with high demand and high security levels. Moreover, users are generally more accustomed to the full real-time transmission of video, and in the actual monitoring process, especially financial, energy, production enterprises, etc., also have high requirements for real-time monitoring. Coupled with the current demand for wireless video transmission, network cameras can not meet the comprehensive requirements of high-definition fine image quality and smooth video effects. The delay problem is serious and cannot meet the requirements for real-time requirements. Therefore, network video technology can solve the problem that the monitoring industry needs to see clearly, but in practical applications, there are still various technical problems that need to be solved in practical applications.

Resource Integration

As the trend of IP surveillance is increasingly accepted by manufacturers, channels, and users, network cameras as a new monitoring product trend, so that more manufacturers participate in the IP market. However, the complex technology of network cameras also makes the cooperation between manufacturers in the industry chain closer. Lenses, sensors, and compression processing chips are all indispensable. Through close cooperation, we must improve compatibility and understand each other's characteristics and limitations in order to obtain better image quality. The video compression part relies on the close cooperation between the chip manufacturer and the camera manufacturer. The adjustment and continuous optimization of the software program requires closer cooperation between the two parties in terms of details. Faced with the problems raised by camera manufacturers, chip manufacturers have the ability to respond quickly to solve problems, which will become more prominent in network cameras, especially in the megapixel era. Moreover, the openness and integration of the network monitoring system also generate more unified management and linkage alarm requirements. The core of the management platform is the compatibility integration of the management platform with the network camera products of multiple vendors. This requires a network camera. Vendors and platform manufacturers have joined forces to cooperate and complete the overall construction of network video surveillance projects. At the same time, we must also clearly understand that video surveillance systems are also engaged in a technical standards battle.

Unlike analog video surveillance closed systems, the need to achieve system compatibility between digital video surveillance system products and products has become a serious problem in practical engineering. Differences in technical standards can lead to difficulties in the interaction of device search, real-time video, audio, metadata, and control information. Therefore, discussions on standards issues are increasing, and standards developers can guide and even control the development of the entire industry. This is also the most profitable part of the ring. For this reason, the two standard organizations of ONVIF and PSIA are competing with each other, and it is still unclear who the deer will die. In response to this situation, such as foreign ACTI, domestic Star Network Ruijie and other monitoring vendors, increase R & D investment, adopt a strategy of all the two standards to meet the status quo, to dispel user concerns and eliminate the hidden dangers affecting the normal operation of the system. .

Conclusion

The domestic network video surveillance market still has not formed a scale. Faced with a huge market, various camera products are dazzling for buyers, and most users still hold a wait-and-see attitude. In some network monitoring systems that have been built or under construction, there are still many technical and non-technical factors in the actual use process. Therefore, in terms of promotion and application, network cameras still face many challenges and obstacles. However, we are also delighted to see a few manufacturers, such as Star Network Ruijie, determined to be pioneers, diligently doing research and development, launched a series of high-definition, high noise reduction, high intelligence, low bit rate, low illumination cost-effective network Camera products have been successfully applied in many high-end industries and fields, which has opened a good position for the popularity of network cameras. The development trend represents the inevitability of the evolution of things. It is believed that with the joint support and efforts of major manufacturers and industries, the optimization of network cameras will be closer to the needs and practical environment of users, and the popularity of network cameras will be accelerated. pace of.