What is CCTV: - this is a broad term used to describe the growing array of video systems within a building or public area used to visually monitor a location for security or industrial purposes.

A CCTV system is made up of:

• Camera - colour or black and white cameras are available. Cameras can be set in fixed positions or placed on pan-tilt devices which enable them to be moved from left to right. Use of a zoom lens allows the operator to get a closer view of an object or person.



• Monitor - is similar to a standard television set, but does not have the electronics to pick up regular television



• Time-lapse recorder - can record from 24 hours to 860 hours



• Control unit - where there is more than one camera, a control unit is required to control each video signal going to the vcr and the monitor. There are three types of video control units:
  • Switcher - these provide full screen images, one after another for approximately 3 to 5 seconds each. When one camera is on the screen the other cameras are not being recorded.
  • Quads - send up to 4 cameras to the screen and to the recorder at the same time. All of the information from each camera gets recorded.
  • Multiplexers - these units are high speed switchers that provide full screen images from up to 16 cameras. Multiplexers can playback everything that happened on any one camera without interference from other cameras on the system.


• Digital video recorder - a dvr in its simplistic form is a pc which acts like a vcr, it has the ability to record and playback images. The dvr takes feed from a camera and records it into a digital format on a storage device which is most commonly the hard drive.
• Real time viewing
• Multiple cameras can be viewed simultaneously on a single monitor
• Record only when motion is detected by time lapse by real time.
• View cameras from different locations, cities or countries.

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