Dallmeier whitelists barox switches for Panomera camera range

Ethernet switches from barox Kommunikation have been whitelisted by Dallmeier electronic for use with the company’s range of Panomera multifocal sensor cameras.

In a recent performance test conducted by Dallmeier, in conjunction with a leading systems integrator, Dallmeier tested a mix of barox managed and unmanaged Ethernet switches integrated with a variety of Panomera cameras.

The exhaustive test involved data security specialists who went on to praise the built-in security and safety aspect of the barox switches and low Total Cost of Ownership, making them fit for purpose for high security, high throughput surveillance applications in conjunction with the Dallmeier Panomera cameras.

With Panomera cameras, any aspect of a scene can be selected and zoomed-in, giving operators unlimited ‘virtual PTZ cameras’ while maintaining the overall view – both in live and recording modes, so that users can capture video data over an extremely large area, with the minimum of cameras.

The cameras can be used with leading video management and PSIM (Physical Security Information Management) solutions, such as those available from Advancis, Genetec and Milestone.

Dallmeier integrators happy with choice

The barox switch/Panomera camera multicast capability is a specific requirement of the logistics project, to support disparate users within the site, where video data from a single source can provide multiple streams to distribute video to many monitoring stations. “This is a big deal for us”, said Kai Gronauer, Strategic Alliances Manager at Dallmeier electronic. “To explain, we had some Dallmeier integrators reporting problems when using Panomera cameras with products from some other well-known Ethernet data switch brands, and this was compounded by long delivery lead times and uncompetitive pricing.”

With the barox switch integration, the logistics customer can now rely on the data-heavy solution they wanted, to perform to the best possible outcome, using Panomera camera technology, with its combination of multiple lenses and sensors with different focal lengths, in one optical unit. Panomera cameras with Dallmeier’s multifocal sensor technology captures rear and middle images with the same high resolution as scenes in the foreground.

Kai said: “In summary, we’re very happy to work with barox and approve their compatible ‘Switches made for video’ technology. We like their functionality, such as the Device Management System (DMS), where the configuration and monitoring menu allows you to see the network architecture of devices, switches and servers, and view what data comes in and what goes out.

“We were also impressed with the depth of barox technical support; resources which some companies are missing. Device functionality and easy set-up, along with ‘always on PoE’ (which reduces IP camera downtime when re-boot tasks need to be performed), and automatic re-boot functionality, are all ideal features for Panomera camera surveillance of large open space applications, such as airports, cities, stadiums, retail, logistics etc.”

Reduced network traffic

“Dallmeier is pushing new boundaries with its flagship Panomera camera,” said Rudolf Rohr, barox Co-Founder & Managing Partner. “A multicast device, Panomera allows video images from one camera to be sent to many users, at the same time, without the need to send video across the network multiple times. With this advanced functionality, multicast can considerably reduce the volume of network traffic that is normally generated by repeatedly displaying the same camera images. Users log-on using the Internet Group Messaging Protocol (IGMP), and the barox network components ensure that as far as possible, only the multicast streams needed are transmitted. 

“Designed to deliver identical packets to many receivers, multicast applications present complex network challenges and many switch manufacturers avoid it. The main reason being that of performance, where the packets must often be replicated at an exponential rate, resulting in the need for staggering bandwidth and CPU requirements, however, barox fully support this challenging setup.”