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How CCTV Cameras Work

Thanks to vast improvements in today’s technology, we now have a much improved ability to monitor virtually any interior or exterior area. And these advancements in technology have also allowed for a greater variety in the types of cameras. This allows everyone from small home owners to vast corporations to find appropriate camera models for the level of security they require to comprehensively monitor their contents and property.

And one of the finest additions to the world of security technology is the CCTV camera. This camera has been providing an immensely valuable addition to areas such as crime prevention and prevalence, hacking and video art, industrial processes, traffic monitoring, transport safety and more. Continue reading for a brief overview of how CCTV cameras work.

CCTV is short for closed circuit TV. CCTV incorporates one or more video cameras for the use of sending video images and audio recordings to a monitor or entire bank of security monitors. In the simplest terms, these CCTV systems use cameras to transmit a signal to a main hub. This promotes very convenient internal monitoring because these special security cameras only transmit their signal to finite number of predetermined monitors. These transmissions are not publicly broadcasted like standard TV’s. Depending on the property or assets being monitored and especially taking the size of the security force being employed, these transmissions are either sent for live viewing or for recording to be viewed in the case of an actual break-in or theft.

These used to be low definition black and white system that did not possess the ability to zoom or pan which significantly reduced their viewing angles and accuracy. However, today’s closed circuit TV security models feature high definition color cameras that can focus and zoom with extreme accuracy. This ability is sometimes taken to yet another level in certain systems where the cameras are linked to a computer and the movement of objects can be tracked with a certain degree of automation.

One of the most commonly used categories of CCTV is analog. Within these analog systems you will most commonly find wired or wireless camera installations. The wired models use a wire or cable to link the camera and monitor, sending transmissions through a coaxial cable and the audio component runs through basic copper wiring. Multi camera systems make use of a multiplexer to convey multiple feeds on one monitor.

Wireless CCTV systems include a radio transmitter on the camera and a radio receiver on the monitor(s). Wireless systems often prove to be the clear choice when the length of the cable gets to be too long.