What our experts say…
The steady evolution of dome cameras, from nightmarish contraptions that would have made Heath Robinson proud to sleek masterpieces of precision engineering, has been a joy to behold. Early systems tended to be fiendishly complicated, heavy and often drastically over-engineered. While there is nothing wrong with manufacturers striving for reliability and longevity we suspect that the lot of the installer was sometimes overlooked, not least the difficulty of mounting or servicing several kilograms of bulky equipment in overhead or suspended installations.
The Ultrak Rugged KD6 is a good example of how much progress has been made in dome technology and it scores well in the looks department, inside and out. ‘Rugged’ refers to the vandal-resistant housing; the camera and its pan/tilt mechanism are encased inside a tough heavy-gauge cast aluminium shell with a key-lockable high-impact polycarbonate dome. The mechanics are refreshingly simple. The camera module is mounted on a single low-friction bearing; tilt motion (0- 90 degrees) is controlled by a high-resolution stepper motor linked to a pulley on the camera bearing by a toothed belt. The camera and tilt motor assembly rotates through a continuous 360 deg on a turntable with a slip ring carrying power, data and video connections. The same kind of stepper motor and belt drive arrangement is used to pan the camera. Maximum pan speed is continuously variable between 0.1 and 200 deg/sec while pan speed is between 0.1 and 400 (depending on the control system and operating mode).
Our camera was a high-performance colour model based around a 1/4-inch CCD with a claimed resolution of 460 lines and low light sensitivity rating of 3 lux. The autofocus lens has a focal range of 4.1-73.8mm with an 18x optical zoom plus a 4x digital zoom. A ‘NightShot’ function automatically switches from colour to mono operation in low light conditions. The camera module is housed in a black case and shrouded by a dome-shaped black-coloured mask so its orientation and movement is not obvious from the outside when the unit is fitted with a clear see-through dome.
Four alarm inputs are provided; when activated the camera can be programmed to move directly to a programmed location (PreShot), begin a VectorScan (tour of PreShots) or a PTZ tour of which up to three can be programmed, each lasting a maximum of two minutes. When a PTZ tour is programmed or ‘learned’ all actions are recorded, including camera position, zoom and focus settings. The system can store up to 100 PreShots, 10 VectorScans, 16 Sector IDs and 10 Privacy Zones. All of the control communications, power supply and video-processing electronics are taken care of by three large glass-fibre PCBs attached to the sides and underside of the cast alloy chassis. It is a sturdy modular construction with all of the components easily accessible for servicing or repair, though in most cases it will be quicker and simpler to replace the whole module, which can be done in a few seconds. The assembly is held in place inside the dome housing by a pair of quick-release clips that latch on to a pair of mounting plates. All of the connections (power, telemetry and video) are handled by a single multi-way connector on the underside (topside) of the camera/PTZ unit; the connector has a small amount of ‘float’ to allow it to line up with the matching male connector inside the dome housing. The connector plate in the dome has two banks of lever-lock terminals for telemetry and power (the dome requires a 24 volt AC supply) and a BNC socket for the composite video output.
Flexibility and easy integration with a variety of control systems has clearly been given a high priority. We used an Ultrak JPD-101 controller, which provides access to all of the KD6’s main features. The highlights include automatic or manual pan, tilt, zoom, focus and iris. Auto-pivot swivels the camera through 180 deg, enabling the camera operator to follow a subject as it passes beneath the dome, and pan and tilt reverse switches its direction. Pan and tilt speeds are automatically adjusted according to the zoom setting. Initial set up and on-site adjustments are carried from the control unit out using a set of menu-driven on-screen displays.
Six menu options are displayed by pressing the Shift + F1 keys on the control unit. Menu item 1 is for selecting the on-screen display operating language (English, French, German, Italian or Spanish). Item two is headed Display Options and this covers camera ID, sector title and pre-shot title on/off and positions. Menu item three covers Control Options and they include switches for the auto-pivot and auto pan/tilt speed functions, a program facility for the alarms, manual options for the P&T controls and autofocus on/off.
The fourth menu covers Diagnostic Options such as displaying P&T co-ordinates, displaying the error log, clearing the memory and error log, restore default condition and system reset. Menu five deals with camera setup options such as enabling the digital zoom and setting zoom speed, auto exposure level control and backlight compensation, white balance, NightShot mode, auto/manual shutter and Still PreShot (it displays a still image while changing camera views – simulates the action of a camera switcher). The final menu is responsible for Function Programming, which deals with setting up a PTZ tour. The dome and control system are very well designed, the layout and wiring all look reasonably intuitive so it follows that installation should be reasonably straightforward. But it goes wrong when it comes to making sense of it all from the manuals. All the information the installer is likely to need is there, it is finding it that’s the problem. The average installer, confronted with this unit for the first time, would do well to carry out a dry run or be prepared to spend a couple of hours wading through the manuals before trying to install and set up a system for real.
Camera performance is more or less as advertised, colour fidelity is good and the auto exposure systems cope well with rapid changes in scene illumination. Backlight compensation is fairly average and bright lights in a moderately well lit scene can occasionally fox the auto exposure systems leading to overcompensation. Low light performance is impressive and the NightShot feature works well, increasing sensitivity quite dramatically in poor light. Our standard intermittency test comprising a few sharp knocks with a rubber mallet failed to unsettle the picture. The P&T mechanism is responsive, positive and agile.
What the manufacturer says …
The ultradome high-speed camera dome range epitomises the true expectations of a professional CCTV security product – performance, ease-of-use and cost-effectiveness.
With an extensive model line-up that caters for literally every application, UltraDome provides both an efficient and truly effective solution for continuous surveillance requirements.
The new Rugged KD6 is a vandal resistant version of the original KD6 series, suitable for both high-risk indoor and outdoor locations such as car parks, prisons, housing estates and schools.
A heavy-duty, cast aluminium housing is combined with a high-impact lower dome and key lock, to protect the camera mechanism from unwanted attention.
A 24v AC heater/blower is also fitted as standard to maintain an optimum internal operating temperature.
With flexible, seamless integration to both Ultrak and other manufacturers’ control equipment, the award-winning KD6 series has become synonymous with the industry’s leading pan, tilt and zoom camera functionality.
All domes are measured by their speed, accuracy and camera quality.
As well as leading the field in these areas, the KD6’s impressive array of effective and often unique features set it apart from the competition.
Key features
