RSM-1600

8x8's monitoring system products are highly integrated and rely on the company's expertise in communications processor design, video and audio compression algorithms, network protocols and cost effective manufacturing. 8x8 has identified and marketed remote video surveillance equipment to a growing circle of business owners who need the ability to monitor their premises from a remote location 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The remote surveillance module RSM-1600 allows anyone within reach of a touch-tone telephone to monitor any similarly equipped location worldwide. It uses standard telephone lines to provide colour motion video and audio in real-time, making remote surveillance of businesses practical and cost-effective for the first time. A black box about the size and shape of a video cassette tape, the master transceiver connects to a standard telephone line and up to three cameras (or to an 8x8 RSM-700 video/alarm expander or multiplexer for additional cameras) and is fully compatible with existing CCTV systems. The video is viewed remotely using a second RSM-1600 connected to a monitor or TV. No computer is required on either end, making the RSM-1600 extremely simple and reliable to use.

• Three video/audio inputs with automatic video sequencing & remote selection control

• Auto Connection Mode with Personal Identification Number security

• Local video pass-through for in-store security monitors or VCRs

• Electronic pan, tilt and zoom for close-up views of subjects

• High resolution snapshot mode for freezing the video image and identifying subjects

• Expandable/upgradeable – supports 8x8's RSM-700 video/alarm expander.

With the addition of 8x8's RSM-700 video/alarm expander, the RSM-1600 master transceiver supports ten video outputs, eight with associated alarm inputs. Triggering an alarm causes the master transceiver to automatically switch to the video input associated with the alarm and to dial a remote monitoring station if it is not already connected to one.

A relay output on the video/alarm expander can be activated at the remote monitoring site for control of devices at the camera location, including VCRs, auto-diallers, alarm bells and more. The additional video inputs and alarm capability provided by the video/alarm expander makes the master transceiver perfect for central station monitoring applications and large enterprises with centralised monitoring facilities.

WHAT OUR EXPERTS SAY ...

Remote surveillance systems that send real-time motion video down an ordinary telephone line bring to mind Dr Johnson's famous remark on seeing a performing dog walking on its hind legs: "The wonder is not that it does it so well, but that it does it at all." Sending video by phone is indeed a remarkable feat when you consider that the public telephone network was never meant to handle anything more complicated than low quality analogue audio signals, yet it can be done, and done well as the Remote Surveillance Module from 8x8 Ltd proves most convincingly.

The system is based around a pair of identical transceiver units, designated RSM-1600. One is installed at the remote site, the other at the monitoring station. The basic system has three video inputs and an audio channel but it can be quickly and easily upgraded to handle up to eight cameras (and one sound channel) plus a set of associated alarm inputs using an optional RSM-700 Video/Alarm Expander module.

The technology owes much to developments spun off from the Internet and digital video compression systems. The latter uses a variety of techniques to reduce the amount of data in a colour video image, one of which is to compare the colour, detail and movement information contained in successive frames and only process those parts of the picture that actually change.

Simplicity of installation, set-up and use has been given a high priority. The RSM-1600 is a plain-looking black box, a little larger than a VHS cassette. The cases measure 41 x 24 x 124mm and weigh in at just over 1kg. On the front is a pair of phono sockets (for one of the three audio and video inputs), and two indicator LEDs showing power on and status. On the back is a pair of RJ-11 telephone sockets, four phono sockets for video and audio in/out, two mini DIN sockets labelled accessory and adaptor, a DC power socket and an on/off switch. The accessory socket is used to connect the RSM-1600 to an RSM-700 expander module or a third camera and an optional RF modulator uses the adaptor socket, so the unit can be connected to an ordinary TV, instead of a monitor. The RSM-700 is very slightly larger than the transceiver (50 x 27 x 120mm) and has a featureless front panel, apart from the manufacturer's logo. On the back is a bank of eight panel-mounted BNC sockets, one for each of the camera inputs. Next to the lower bank of sockets there is a set of mini DIP switches for setting video termination.

There is a captive lead with a mini-DIN plug for connecting to an RSM-1600 and a mini-DIN socket labelled 'Accessory'. The instructions indicate this is for 'future expansion'. To the right are two phono sockets for line level audio and microphone inputs and on the right side of the panel are two banks of screw terminals for alarm inputs and outputs. The cases are fabricated from steel and the cosmetics are smart but discreet; they look and feel very solid. General build quality is very good indeed. Inside the RSM-1600 modules are two very busy-looking glass-fibre PCBs containing mostly surface mount components. The larger main board is responsible for the video and audio processing, the daughter board is a modem with a relatively modest maximum transmission speed of 33.3kbps. The modem sits on top of the main board and the two are connected by multi-way connectors. All the input and output plugs and sockets are mounted on the PCBs, which bodes well for strength and reliability.

Installation is very simple indeed and once the various video, audio and telephone connections have been made at both ends the system is ready to run. Incidentally, only one monitor/TV is needed (at the monitor station) though one can be fitted to the remote transmitter if required. By now you may be wondering how the system is controlled in the absence of any obvious controls or displays. It is actually very easy, the designers have cleverly used the numeric keypad on the phone connected to the monitoring unit, to access on-screen displays, menus and control functions on both units.

In a basic one, two or three camera set-up the first step is to dial the remote station from the monitor unit's handset. The remote RSM-1600 picks up the line after four rings and sends a system ready signal consisting of three short bleeps. The user responds by pressing the # button on the phone's keypad, followed by digit 1 and the two units go through a handshake routine, followed by an exchange of data. The monitor screen displays a progress bar, confirming connection speeds and that data is being received. After about 20 seconds or so the inset screen, which has been blank until this point, changes and an image from camera number one appears on the screen. The operator can then change to a menu screen and switch between any of the connected cameras. Alternatively the user can enter the base-station and remote unit's set-up menus for additional configuration and status reports.

Options include changing the quality of the image by increasing or reducing the image refresh rate and altering the size of the displayed image. Additional facilities include taking still video snapshots, remote control of a pan/tilt zoom mount and there is provision to set a security code, to prevent unauthorised access. When an RSM-700 is connected to the remote unit, additional menu items appear allowing camera sequence and dwell times to be set, configure alarm and audio inputs and name alarmed cameras. To speed up operation and bypass the menus there are a number of so-called 'hot-keys' which select camera inputs or various operating modes with just one or two key presses.

The RSM-700 also includes an option for the remote unit to auto dial the monitoring station on receipt of an alarm. The monitoring station can be set to auto-answer the incoming call and display the relevant image. The monitor unit has a relay-controlled output to activate a local alarm. The system is capable of operating at four resolution settings, which trade picture size and quality against refresh rate. The best quality is 704 x 576 pixels at 0.5 frames/sec. Alternatives are 352 x 288 pixels at 1-3 fps, 176 x 144 pixels at 5-11 fps and 128 x 96 pixels at 15fps. Picture quality on the 704 x 576 pixel setting is very good indeed, depending on the camera, scene lighting and movement. The image is clear enough to be shown full screen and for an operator to make out fine detail, such as car number plates and facial features.

Colour fidelity is reasonable though needless to say so much digital processing involves a fair number of compromises when it comes to rendering subtle shades and graduations in brightness and contrast. At the high quality/big picture setting the image is basically a series of updated stills, which makes it difficult to analyse movement but at lower resolutions — with faster updates — motion is relatively smooth (albeit with greatly reduced detail). The snapshot facility is okay as far as it goes, but the system has no internal memory so it is important to have the monitoring unit connected to a recording device or video printer as the still image is lost as soon as the operating mode changes or the connection to the remote site is cut. Sound quality is fairly good considering. It is comparable with normal analogue telephone connections, certainly good enough for speech and incidental sounds.