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Auto Gain Control 
(AGC)

Automatic Gain Control, an electronic circuit that amplifies the video signal when the strength of the signal falls below a given value

Auto Iris (Optical)

Automatically controls the shuttle speed 0~1/300,000 sec and adjusts the LUX sensitivity by the motor circuit. Which makes the light-receiving hole on a lens larger or smaller according to the amount of light received into the lens. Automatic Iris lenses are generally more efficient than the electric shutter since they actually control the amount of light reaching the sensor as opposed to simply adjusting shutter speed.

Auto White Balance (AWB)

Auto adjustment that makes sure the white color we view directly will also appear white in the image is referred to as white balance.

Back Light Correction (BLC)

A feature of the camera used to help correct an image with more light behind the subject being viewed and the subject appears dark without backlight compensation.

Balun

A balun, pronounced /'bælun/ ("bal-un"), is a passive electronic device that converts between balanced and unbalanced electrical signals. They also used to extend both monochrome or color video signal distance up to several miles over UTP cable. Baluns can take many forms and their presence is not always obvious. They always involve some form of electromagnetic coupling.

Baud

Pronounced bawd, the number of signaling elements that occur each second.

Cable Type for
CCTV Application

CCD

CCD Cameras are much more sensitive to power fluctuations, due to the fact that the CCD Sensors have 4 integrated processors compared to the one processor found on a CMOS sensor. CCD cameras usually have much better picture quality, resolution and color balance.

CdS Sensor

A type of sensor that turns on and off IR LEDs automatically at the designated LUX.

Communication Interface

RS-232C is short for recommended standard-232C, a standard interface approved by the Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA) for connecting serial devices.

RS 485 is used for multipoint communications: more devices may be connected to a single cable- similar to e.g ETHERNET networks, which use coaxial cable.

RS-422 & 423 are standard interfaces approved by the Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA) for connecting serial devices. The RS-422 and RS-423 standards are designed to replace the older RS-232 standard because they support higher data rates and greater immunity to electrical interference. All Apple Macintosh computers contain an RS-422 port that can also be used for RS-232C communication. RS-422 supports multipoint connections whereas RS-423 supports only point-to-point connections.

CMOS

CMOS cameras have a less-expensive image sensor than CCD cameras and the other benefits of CMOS are small size and low-power consumption.

Composite Video

In contrast, most computers use RGB video, which consists of three separate signals for red, green, and blue. In general, RGB video produces sharper images than composite video does.

Electronic Shutter

Controls the shuttle speed 1/60~1/100,000 sec and adjusts the LUX sensitivity by electronically. Recommended to use the cameras has a electronic shutter in the urban area or inside house, but not good for the bright places like beach.

Daynight Function

This day/night camera adjusts to a variety of lighting conditions to ensure the highest picture quality - even in extreme low light conditions. When the light level drops too low for accurate video identification in color, the camera automatically switches to black and white video to capture more detail.

Day Visibility

A visible range of camera sees clearly under the normal daylight condition that light intensity level (LUX) is equal or more than the camera specified minimum illumination LUX level.

dB (Decibel)

Is a measure for comparison of two quantities with one another. In common usage when two quantities have dimensions of power then their dB ratio is 10*log(Q1/Q2). So if Q1 is 10 times greater then Q2 it is 10 dB more. If Q1 is equal to Q2 then it is 0 dB more. Another popular measurement is "dBm", where a signal of strength Q1 is compared to 1.0 milliwatts. Then if Q1 is 10.0 milliwatts it is 10 dBm higher in power. If two quantities have dimensions of voltage then their dB ratio is 20*log(Q1/Q2) since power is proportional to voltage squared.

Diversity Wireless Receiver

A type of receiver that uses multiple antenna's to reduce the problems associated with multipath. There are two basic types of diversity systems. Those that use a single receiver and switch between antennas, and those that use multiple antennas and receivers and switch between receiver outputs.

DNR

The removal of unwanted artifacts in video material. The simplest noise reduction works primarily by comparing one frame to the next and removing tiny specks that are not the same in each frame. More advanced dynamic noise reduction (DNR) circuits not only handle temporal reduction (frame-to-frame), but also deal with spatial noise reduction, which detects and removes undesirable noise within the same frame. The major roll of Digital Noise Reduction (DNR) technology not only  improves the quality of the video by reducing noise, which lets reduce the video file size dramatically and you record for longer periods.

DSS

Digital Slow Shutter (DSS) technology improves the light sensitivity of the camera and extends its usable range in low light conditions.

Ex-View CCD

EX-View is a proprietary SONY technology in which the P/N junction of each photodiode in the CCD matrix is specially fabricated to have much better photon-to-electron conversion efficiency. In addition, each photodiode (representing one pixel in an image) has a microscopic lens fabricated over it to better capture and focus light onto the active semiconductor junction. This results in an improvement in light sensitivity of 2 times for visible light and 4 times for near-infrared (800 ~ 900 nm) compared to the conventional CCD versions offered by SONY. The LUX rating of the EX-View CCD is two times better than the premium SONY “Super HAD” CCD for both visible and near-infrared wavelengths

Field of View
(FOV) of All
Lens Sizes

Gain

An increase in voltage or power, usually expressed in dB.

Ground Plane

In telecommunication, a ground plane structure or relationship exists between the antenna and another object and a ground plane may consist of a natural surface, such as the Earth (or ocean) or an artificial surface of opportunity (such as the roof of a motor vehicle).

HAD

The HAD sensor is an abbreviation of the Hole-Accumulation Diode sensor newly developed by Sony. It is a photo sensor consisting of a hole accumulation structure added to an n+P diode.

Infrared 
Lighting (IR)

Frequency of light, invisible to the human eye, used for covert surveillance and low light camera use.

IP (Ingress Protection) Classification Codes

Basis of IP Rating System:
International Standard IEC 60529 outlines an international classification system that describes the sealing characteristics of electrical equipment. The classification system defines the level of protection provided by enclosures to prevent the ingress of foreign objects and moisture into the electrical equipment. The classification system uses the “IP”code,or “Ingress Protection” code, to define the level of seal. The IP code uses a system of two numerical digits to define the level of both foreign object and moisture protection. Although the IP classifications primarily used for establishing the level of seal in electrical equipment, it is adapted herein for determining the level of seal in passive electrical components.

Degrees of Protection (Foreign Bodies)...
The first digit of the IP code indicates the degree of protection against solid foreign objects from entering the electrical device. The table below outlines the level of protection against foreign objects for each level.

Degrees of Protection (Moisture)...
The second digit of the IP code indicates the degree of protection against the ingress of various forms of moisture (e.g. drip, spray, submersion, etc.) into the component. Tests to determine the level of protection are carried out with fresh water and do not take into account the use of solvents.

IR Filter

A filter that filters out the red light to keep the image colors looking natural and lets the camera to see the Infrared Light in the total darkness.

You must check if your existing camera is capable to see the IR light before purchasing the IR illuminator and to find out the result instantly, just aim any of wireless remote controls in your home, which IR LED normally built-in on top of the remote control, at your testing camera and press any button on the remote control to emit the IR light. Then if you can see bright white LED light emitting out of the IR LED on the remote control, your camera is capable to see the IR light, otherwise your camera is not capable to see the IR light and don’t purchase any IR illuminator. It would be more distinctive if you test it out in a dark room.

LED

Light emitting diodes, commonly called LEDs, are real unsung heroes in the electronics world. Basically, LEDs are just tiny light bulbs that fit easily into an electrical circuit. But unlike ordinary incandescent bulbs, they don't have a filament that will burn out, and they don't get especially hot. They are illuminated solely by the movement of electrons in a semiconductor material, and they last just as long as a standard transistor.

Invisible 950NM IR-LED
(Shows no sign when LED's on and the emitting IR-light is invisible to human eye)
Visible 850NM IR-LED
(Shows red glow on the tip of LED when it's on, but the emitting IR-light is invisible to human eye and it has a stronger emitting power than the invisible 950NM IR-LED)
White LED
(Shows white glow on the tip of LED when it's on and the emitting is also visible to human eye, but it has a stronger emitting power than the visible 850NM IR-LED)

Line of Sight

Is a clear unobstructed view between the transmitter to the receiver. An analogy would be a straight beam of light, like a flashlight pointed towards the receiver with nothing in the way.

LUX

LUX is a unit measuring the intensity of light and a CCTV camera requires a certain amount of light produced by natural or artificial illumination.

The amount of light is defined by LUX (Lumens per Square Meter) and one LUX is one candle light volume at one-meter distance.

Followings are some examples of natural lights expressed in LUX and these light intensity levels are where the LUX- specified CCTV camera begins to produce decent images.

Full daylight (10,000 LUX) - Very dark day (100 LUX) – Twilight (10 LUX)
Deep twilight (1 LUX) - Full moon (0.1 LUX) - Quarter moon (0.01LUX) – Starlight (0.0003 LUX)

Mounting

Flush mounting - The camera body portion is hidden behind wall or inside ceiling that only the lens portion is shown externally.

Surface mounting - The camera is mounted right on the ceiling or wall and whole camera portion is shown externally. 

Night Visibility

A visible distance in the total darkness only using the built-in lighting source on the camera itself and longer visible distance can be obtained using other external lighting sources.

Pixel

Short for Picture Element, a pixel is a single point in a graphic image and the quality of a imaging system largely depends on its resolution, how many pixels it can display.

Power

AC (Alternating current) refers to the form in which electricity is delivered to businesses via outlets.

Direct current (DC or "continuous current") is the constant flow of electric charge from high to low potential. This is typically in a conductor such as a wire, but can also be through semiconductors, insulators, or even through a vacuum as in electron or ion beams. In direct current, the electric charges flow in the same direction, distinguishing it from alternating current (AC).

Protocol

An agreed-upon format for transmitting data between two devices.

PTZ

Short for Pan Tilt Zoom.

RF

RF (Radio Frequency) is a frequency at which coherent electromagnetic radiation of energy is useful for communication purposes. Also, the entire range of such frequencies.

RFI

Radio Frequency Interference.

Signal System

The signal system used in America & Canada is called "NTSC".  Western Europe and Australia use a system called "PAL for color & CCIR for B&W", and Eastern Europe and France use "SECAM". Without standards conversion, it is impossible to view a video program that is recorded in a foreign country without first converting it.

Super HAD

Version of Sony’s high performance HAD (Hole-Accumulation Diode) sensor with improved sensitivity from the use of more efficient on-chip micro lenses that made possible to minimizing lost light and improving the overall sensitivity per pixel.

TV-Lines (TVL)

Resolution is measured differently in a video imaging system then in a photographic system. The maximum number of light and dark lines resolved horizontally determines the resolution level of a video system and the higher TVL means the higher video resolution. Each line transition is counted and expressed in TV-Line (TVL) or in Lines of Horizontal Resolution (LoHR) rather than in cycles.

Vari-focal

A lens with an adjustable FOV (Field of View).

Video
Connector Type

WDR

The WDR (Wide Dynamic Range) camera is for producing and delivering clear image to the objects surrounded by strong back light, while still keeping the background visible.

Accessory | Covert Cam | Night Vision Cam | PTZ Varifocal Cam | Voice Recorder | Wireless Video

Monitor-Alarm-DVR | Networking Cam | Underwater Cam | Portable Gadget | Bullet Cam | GPS | SCOPE

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