Wireless CCTV networks can offer significant advances in adaptability, usability and cost over their landlocked counterparts for installers and operators alike. Overt surveillance technology has emerged from the confines of the closed circuit to the flexibility of the open network.

Until recently, planning and installing analog urban and public-area CCTV networks was a time-consuming and costly process. The quantities of cabling and ancillary monitoring and recording equipment required to transport, process and store the received image was a significant burden to installers and operators. Efficiency of these analog networks was compromised by their innate resistance to scalability and flexibility, and monitoring was possible only at central locations.

Two factors changed all that. The digitization of the surveillance network allowed live image and audio transfer in the TCP/IP realm, opening up existing infrastructure IP networksincluding the Internetfor surveillance use and unleashing a wealth of software-based features such as video analytics, as well as removing analog constraints such as PAL/NTSC resolution limits. As a corollary, the wireless technology available to IP networkers found a new niche in both the data collection and monitoring segments of the CCTV net.

The application of wireless technology to digital video allows CCTV network operators to dramatically reduce the installation and maintenance costs associated with cabling and associated infrastructure. It also removes the possibility of downtime caused by cable malfunction or sabotage. Operators can also leverage existing wireless equipment, such as Metropolitan Area Networks or corporate wireless LANs, for use by the surveillance network. Users equipped with a wireless-equipped laptop and the requisite software can carry out remote monitoring from anywhere within the wireless network's coverage area. Furthermore, wireless CCTV systems are highly scalable, and allow new camera units to be easily integrated into the system without additional cabling, routing or infrastructure expenses.

Martin Renkis, founder and CEO of Nashville, Tennessee-based wireless IP video systems manufacturer Smartvue, felt that the recent upsurge in popularity of wireless IP video is down to industry players' acceptance of both the IP revolution and the wireless medium. "The security industry is historically a conservative business. IP video solutions are fundamentally IT products at heart, and IT companies are more willing to invest in new technologies. What we are seeing now is validation from technology leaders such as Cisco and IBM bringing to life the possibilities of this field."

Andrew Somerville, Chief Technological Officer of British wireless security distributor, 802 Global, agreed. "The main issue seems to have been the reluctance of integrators to adopt new technology until they have confidence that it can be deployed quickly and reliably. Many had their fingers burned with analog wireless systems that had poor quality images and did not scale. Now that there are many successful reference systems we can point to, the perception of risk is less and the compelling commercial arguments for wireless mean that it cannot be ignored."

A large part of that acceptance derives from the greatly increased data protection afforded by widely available encryption such as the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), approved by the U.S. government for internal communications up to the Top Secret level. Renkis said, "802.11n technology, AES hardware encryption, Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) software encryption, hidden service set identifier (SSID) as well operation in uncommon frequencies addresses the key security concerns of most of our customers today and offers a whole new way to look at wireless IP video." Noting that the wireless medium comes with its own innate security benefits, Somerville said, Don''t forget that cables get cut."

Making the Connection

Digital wireless video networks are comprised of several distinct elements. At the data collection end, either a digital or traditional analog camera can be used. If an analog camera is used, its signal is digitized with an outboard encoding unit. Once the signal is in the digital realm, it is sent out over the air through a wireless interface. Again, this can be an outboard or integrated unit. The data is then collected at a second wireless interface, usually with a connection to the wired network. In the case that an installation site has an existing wireless network, this interface may well carry regular network traffic in addition to the CCTV data stream. At this point, the data can be directed along the wired network to a central monitoring and command location, digital storage servers, and the like. On the return journey, data from operators to the cameras (PTZ commands and configuration information, for example) emanate from control points and are forwarded to the camera unit for which they are intended.

As well as feeding video and audio information back to traditional central monitoring locations, the signal can be sent out on the network, allowing users at remote workstations (on a corporate LAN, for example) to access the data. Often, wireless IP video units contain onboard hard disk recorders that allow monitors to access archived footage directly, without the use of external video servers. Furthermore, the data can be accessed on the same wireless network the cameras themselves use. The increase in flexibility is tremendous. For example, a surveillance team can access urban CCTV images from their vehicle parked in an adjacent street, and a first responder unit can scan a target area while in transit to a call.


The portable, cable-free nature of the technology also allows users to move cameras from one place to another easily and rapidly, either in response to developing events or in pre-planned rotation schedules. When the City of Edinburgh Council in Scotland began deploying mobile wireless CCTV cameras in an attempt to combat "anti-social" behavior, they found that they could have a unit operational within 24 hours of receiving a request. The same equipment was used to monitor citizens gathering at the heavily-protested G8 summit outside the city.

Wireless CCTV systems are highly scalable, and allow new camera units to be easily deployed without additional cabling, routing or infrastructure expenses. While each network has its own bandwidth limitations, or the amount of data that can flow at any one time, bandwidth management and service prioritization technology can be used to ensure that each video stream receives sufficient transmission space on the network. This is particularly useful in cases where camera feeds share the network with regular traffic; no one wants to lose potentially vital footage due to disruption from an office-worker's bandwidth-hogging Internet downloads.

Wireless CCTV equipment can use several communications technologies to transmit the data back to collection points. Many systems utilize IEEE 802.11a/b/g 2.4 and 5 GHz standards as well as the recent 802.11n standard while others operate on the GSM (Global System for Mobile communications) cellular network. In certain deployments where special environmental or geographical considerations applyoffshore oil facilities and gas pipelinesfor example, satellite uplink may be the most effective solution. In other circumstances where uninterrupted direct lines of sight exist, free space optics or data transfer through the atmosphere via tight-beam modulated laser light can be used. Camera units can be powered by battery packs, grid electricity or even solar power.

Case Studies

While systems can be installed piecemeal, whether in response to a user's particular requirements or as part of a CCTV network's expansion, other products are available as plug-and-play stand-alone systems. For example, Smartvue manufactures a range of Pixim-enabled IEEE 802.11n-draft wireless MIMO IP video systems, which feature a single base station that supports up to 10 remote wireless cameras and provides browserbased remote monitoring capabilities. The Smartvue system's key features are its ease of integration on two levels. Firstly, the base station integrates easily with an existing local area network and requires no software installation on a remote monitor's computer except for an Active-X plug-in. Secondly, the base station automatically recognizes camera units in the coverage area and automatically integrates them into the system without additional configuration.

Mobility and ease of use were paramount to Dean Montgomery, CEO of the U.S. residential construction company Homestead Contracting LLC. Of his decision to implement Smartvue's wireless IP video system, he said, "We looked for a high quality video surveillance system that would not only let us monitor construction sites remotely from a PC or cell phone, but also for a system that was easy and cost effective to set up and use. Another important concern for us was to ability to move cameras at the site as needed, and move the entire system from one site to another."


Similarly, the Smartvue system's network integration capabilities were important to Bryan Watmore, IT Manager at the University of Arizona's College of Optical Sciences, whose 47,000-square-foot Meinel research lab opened in 2007. "This solution solved our requirements to reduce the installation complexity, offered high quality video for our application and reduced the network challenges since it was a true edge device that put zero strain on our infrastructure. The system worked right out of the box and has been very simple to use." In addition to the standard selection criteria, aesthetic considerations played an important part in the selection of video equipment for the visually striking building, which received an Honor award from the American Institute of Architects (AIA)its highest accoladeas well as two regional International Interior Design Awards.

The perceived value of Smartvue's user-friendly, plug-and-play systems is further reflected in their selection by Securitas USA to provide wireless IP video packages to customers. "When a customer such as Securitas USA selects Smartvue solutions, they have a clear-cut understanding of our advantages," said Renkis. "The benefits of video-based security and visual business intelligence are that they will become simpler to implement, more cost effective to own, and more practical to use for businesses across the country."

Back in the U.K., Greater Manchester Police's Oldham division was experiencing common urban problems of escalating vandalism, assault and arson, exacerbated by the phenomenon of footballrelated violence. Much of this petty crime occurred in residential areas outside the city center, where there were no existing CCTV systems. The task force created to deal with these problems, the Tactical Crime Group, found that portability and ease of redeployment were of fundamental importance in their selection of a surveillance system, due largely to the seasonal quality of football hooliganism. CCTV units could be stationed near the stadium and other potential hot-spots around match time, then redeployed elsewhere at other times. The task force settled on implementing a GSM-based mobile wireless CCTV package from WCCTV, based in London and Manchester. Darren Tickle of Oldham Police felt the flexibility of the technology increased the force's efficiency. He said, "the system has been very costeffective, as it has reduced the cost of man hours needed to police certain areas."

In a similar British installation, London's Redbridge Council wanted to counter the problem of late-night, drink-fuelled violence in the city's center. Already using an all-IP system, it initially turned to wireless for cost reasons. However, it soon began to realize and leverage the strengths of their wireless systems, using the cameras for rapid deployment operations. Feeds from the fixed and mobile wireless stations seamlessly integrate with the existing system at the council's observation room or can be directly patched through to the Metropolitan Police Command and Control centre.


Market Forces

The nature of wireless communications opens up new markets and applications for video security. Areas with specific, missioncritical security requirements and a lack of existing infrastructure are prime targets. Of 802 Global's decision to open a branch office in West Africa, Somerville said, "Nigeria is a sleeping giant, with the largest population of any African country. It also has the world's 10th-largest oil reserves. Fixed communications infrastructure is very poor, so there are tremendous opportunities for wireless. We have a growing business supplying systems for broadband Internet access, corporate networks and surveillance."

Despite Nigeria's comparative stability, currently enjoying the longest period of civilian rule in its history, its growing threat of homegrown, open-source insurgency aimed largely at the oil industry in the Niger Delta can only underscore the utility of rapidly-deployable, reliable, visual intelligence networks.

Somerville also looks to mobile applications as a natural fit for wireless video's capabilities. "The emerging solutions for broadband mobility are going to extend the capabilities of surveillance dramatically in the public transport arena. Imagine a central control room being able to view real-time live video from any train, bus or tram in response to an incident report."

However, Renkis, who has more than 10 years' experience as a CEO in the software industry, offers a word of warning to fair-weather industry players whose products do not advance the state of play. "Many new firms will enter the video security industry as it moves to becoming more and more of an IT-focused business. Over the next three years 70 percent of these new entrants will go out of business. The people who create value innovation- -technological innovation that has true customer valuewill thrive, and those in it for the quick buck will crash."

Future Shock

Of the technology's future prospects, industry insiders believe that cornerstone systems are in place and that consolidation and service-delivery developments are key to evolution. Somerville said, "Technology will continue to improve progressively in terms of cost, size and bandwidth. Aside from mobility, we are going to see steadily increasing demands for communications bandwidth. Wireless is generally constrained from dramatic innovation by its requirement for harmonized spectrum."

Renkis emphasized that the video security industry will continue to undergo a fundamental shift towards an IT focus. "Compare the R&D budgets of IT-based companies to those of standard security companies. With larger R&D spending comes faster-paced technological change. I don't think we will see any 'giant leaps' such as that from analog to digitalbut we will experience a much faster pace of gradually improving technological change." Renkis sees improvements in ease of use as the way forward. "Advances in software that make IP video and video analytics simpler to implement and easier to use along with [recently-adopted IEEE wireless standard] 802.11n are the most exciting. They leverage many of the strengths that IT has to offer." Looks like the Wi-Fi eye in the sky is here to stay.