“Advances in Video Surveillance Technology,” reports end users are realizing the importance of networking as a part of video surveillance solutions and see the Internet connection as vital. According to Frost & Sullivan, vendors are building IP-networked systems that capture and transmit images in real-time to a variety of devices including computers and personal digital assistants (PDAs). The report says the growing demand for digital equipment from end users is directly related to the growing dependence on IP-networked surveillance systems. End users are holding off full digital because of the large investments they’ve made in current analog cameras. “A more economical option would be to purchase a conversion technology such as digital video recorders [DVRs] that convert downloaded video data into digital format for transmission over an IP network,” said Frost & Sullivan research analyst Michael Valenti. Other trends spotted in the report include the development of Ethernet-based video matrix switchers to simplify handling multiple video surveillance systems and the use of video servers to digitize images captured by analog cameras. “In the future, as competitive pressure increases, vendors will have to work hard toward improving the analytical capabilities of video surveillance systems,” Valenti said. “Chemical and biological detection instruments in particular must be made easier for nontechnical personnel to use.”

Toshiba plans to apply its break-through to the development of ultra-secure video conferencing and CCTV systems. The quantum video link enhances the security of communication systems by encrypting each frame with a unique digital key. The secrecy of each key is guaranteed by quantum cryptography, the most secure key distribution technique known. A prime advantage of quantum cryptography is that it also allows the key distribution link to be monitored for tapping. Cryptography, the science of information security, is essential to protect electronic business communication and e-commerce. It enables, for example, the confidentiality and identification of users and validation of electronic transactions. All of these applications rely upon digital keys which are shared between legitimate users, but which must be kept secret from everyone else. It is essential therefore to be able to distribute keys between users securely. Furthermore, in order to protect the system from crypto-analysis or key theft, it is important to change the keys regularly. Quantum cryptography allows users on an optical fibre network to refresh their keys frequently in a completely secret way. It takes advantage of the particle-like nature of light. In quantum cryptography, each bit of the key is encoded upon a single light particle (or ‘photon’). The impossibility of faithfully copying this stream of encoded photons ensures that an adversary can never determine the key without leaving detectable traces of their intervention. The encryption of streaming video with quantum keys follows Toshiba’s realization of a quantum key distribution system that can work without interruption. This was achieved using an active stabilization system, which manages and automatically adjusts the hardware to maintain continuous operation. The result is an efficient, easy-to-use system that serves keys for crypto applications and requires no user adjustments. The technology was demonstrated to financial institutions and government representatives in London by scientists working at the Cambridge Research Laboratory of Toshiba Research Europe where the system was developed. Dr Andrew Shields, who leads the Toshiba group developing the system, said, “Corporate networks are increasingly vulnerable to the theft of keys from the desktop, either by hacking, Trojans or fraudulent employees. The Toshiba Quantum Key Server mitigates this risk by allowing frequent key refresh. The Toshiba Quantum Key Server can be used to enhance the security of not just video and speech, but also a wide range of other high bandwidth data communications, ranging from sensitive legal documents to medical and tax records”. Professor Michael Pepper, Managing Director of Toshiba Research Europe Ltd, commented “This new advance extends the range of communications systems whose security can be enhanced using quantum techniques.”

TASC specializes in customizable and scalable electronic security solutions including alarms, access control, CCTV and video surveillance systems. The acquisition of TASC includes their offices in Amsterdam; Tokyo; San Francisco; Dublin; Leeds, England; and Melbourne and Sydney, Australia. Myles Hick, CEO of TASC, will join Diebold as president of the TASC subsidiary.

All up there will be more than 6000 new cameras as well as cutting edge digital infrastructure installed at Railcorp stations across NSW. There’ll be more updates on this story in the next few days…

The day/night IP-camera combines full, 360-degree views in low-light, no-light and infrared (IR) lighting-assisted environments. The high resolution, 2.0 megapixel day/night camera utilizes on-board lighting algorithms to automatically respond to ambient lighting conditions. The camera’s proprietary, multi-megapixel fisheye lens was custom-engineered for use in IR filtered and near infrared (NIR)-illuminated environments. It is capable of operating in low light (.5 lux color and .01 lux monochrome mode) and “lights out” (0 lux) environments using supplemental IR illumination. The CommandView Day/Night is compact, ready to use, and easily mounts to ceilings and walls. The durable enclosure has the strength of 10-gauge steel and can withstand 120 pounds of force, making it virtually vandal-proof. The CommandView Day/Night is sealed for all-weather outdoor use.

The new extended range of eight cameras are based on 1/4” CCD sensor technology and will offer a choice of either 18x or 26x optical zoom capability, and provide a unique spherical privacy zone masking (S PZM) function along with a host of other functions setting them apart from other high-end cameras in the marketplace. These feature-balanced cameras are ideal for security domes and general CCTV applications but are also well suited to other applications such as emergency vehicle monitoring, low vision and eye care applications. The four FCB-EX980 Series C cameras feature exceptional performance under low light conditions thanks to their 1/4” CCD sensor, providing significantly increased performance over previous models such as the FCB-EX780, which had lower sensitivity with a 1/6” CCD sensor. In addition, a SMART lens control feature that substantially reduces the lens wear – both features vital in 24 hour monitoring applications. They also deliver reduced smear and provide picture freeze functionality. The compact cameras’ form factor are compatible with Sony’s existing FCB-EX camera range across all new units, where previously higher end models had different footprints. The new devices have effective pixel dimensions ranging from 380,000 to 800,000, and provide the combination of 26x optical zoom and 12x DSP-based digital zoom allows users to home in on small or distant objects with exceptional clarity. The new cameras’ spherical privacy zone masking function ensures conformance to national and international privacy requirements, and is an essential feature for dome cameras used in wide-area monitoring applications. It allows masking to be automatically interlocked with the camera’s tilt, pan and zoom operations, regardless of camera angle. In contrast with competing solutions, the system automatically adjusts the size of the masked area as the zoom is operated, and can keep masked areas covered even when the camera is circling. The FCB-EX980 cameras offer an extremely wide field of view of up to 54°, and can capture images at illuminations as low as 1.0lx, thanks to the use of 1/4” type Ex view HAD CCDs. An image stabilisation function, included in the functionality of the FCB-EX980S model, allows the elimination of image vibration due to the effects of wind or other external factors, and an electronic flip (E-Flip) function can electronically invert an image so that it is displayed correctly. This last feature is particularly useful to obviate the need to provide mechanical flip capabilities for use in situations when a camera dome system is tracking an object which then moves directly beneath it. A high-speed (38.4kbit/s) serial data interface and TTL signal-level control using the VISCA protocol allows easy systems integration. The new devices also offer 16bytes of free internal EEPROM space, allowing the storage of data such as product serial numbers and camera/system ID numbers. They provide electronic shutter/slow shutter features, a choice of internal or external sync, and low power consumption of 1.6W with motors inactive. In addition to the launch of the FCB-EX980-type devices, Sony is also enhancing the existing members of the FCB-EX series – the FCB-EX48 and FCB-EX480 models – with the addition of improved spherical masking and a smart lens control feature have also been added to the Series C range. These new features satisfy the needs of users in applications such as traffic monitoring, emergency service vehicles and eye care, providing image capture at exceptionally low illumination – for some models down to 0.7lx. All of the new FCB Series C models are available immediately.

Raising the stakes further, the company’s Australian managing director, Reg Bohler, says there will be strategic acquisitions in the near future – possibly somewhere in the cash-in-transit or manpower businesses. Diebold has been growing steadily since its acquisition of Vangren Technology and Cardinal Brothers around 18 months ago. There are now has 240 Diebold staff in Australia and around 80 company service vehicles on the road, while turnover has trebled. Bohler is reluctant to say too much about the company’s plans but it’s clear he sees plenty more growth to come. “With the acquisitions of Cardinal Bros and Vangren Diebold is able to offer financial organizations full security solutions from security doors, rising screens, anti-jump barriers and vacuum tubes to the full gambit of electronic solutions,” Bohler explains. “We’ve been going for 18 months and things are beginning to take off for Diebold,” he says. “We’re looking for expansion not just in terms of acquisition but through organic growth by pushing our customer base outside of banking.” The company’s long term association with the banking sector goes back to the middle of the last century but according to Diebold’s NSW state manager, Jeff Tonazzi, that mix is rapidly changing. “About 18 months ago our business would have been 50-50 between the finance and general business sectors but that’s changing fast – it’s probably 90–10 now with a huge increase in government, retail and prisons…” Tonazzi says. According to Tonazzi, the company has been able to get strength from all the companies it has acquired and is selling to that mix across Diebold’s entire product range. As an example, Cardinal Bros is now selling product to Diebold customers globally. Another plus for the company is that improvements in ATM security levels are leading to ATM upgrade or replacement. Manufacturing of ATMs is one of Diebold’s traditional strengths and both this sector and the security business have pushed the company’s worldwide profits to record highs in the past 12 months. “In 2 years we want Diebold Security and ATM Solutions to be much bigger in Australia,” says NSW sales manager, George Salmon. “But although we want to be bigger we want the same high levels of service to apply.”

The video solutions provider had net income of $US5.9 million in its first quarter, up from $US5.8 million the year before. Revenue for the first three months of 2005 was up 13 percent to $US66.1 million.