CoVi Technologies Enhances Its Crystal HD Video System

June 7, 2006
2.0 version gets more storage, enhanced picture quality, camera-based motion detection

AUSTIN, Texas -- CoVi Technologies, Inc., a global leader in high definition video surveillance solutions, today announced enhancements to its Crystal HD High Definition Video Surveillance System. The Crystal HD 2.0 software upgrade delivers new features and functions for greater ease of use and more robust operation.

The CoVi Crystal HD system is the world's first and only High Definition, IP-based video surveillance system. Crystal HD's unique distributed architecture is a dramatic departure from the legacy centralized CCTV topology, and maximizes quality and functionality while minimizing network usage. Unlike standalone camera and DVR products, Crystal HD is designed from the ground-up as a complete system. Crystal HD integrates cameras, Digital Media Managers, and monitoring and management software to provide unparalleled performance and reliability. Crystal HD release 2.0 provides customers with increased storage, improved network utilization and enhanced picture quality. New features include: Camera-based Video Motion Detection and Event Generation: Unique camera-based Video Motion Detection (VMD) enables alerts to be generated on detection of motion in designated areas. With Crystal HD, VMD processing is managed on the camera versus streaming the video to a DVR, making the surveillance network more efficient. The VMD feature provides up to 3 configurable motion zones per camera, and supports pre/post event recording insuring video before and after the VMD event is captured for comprehensive forensics. Schedule-based and Event-based MultiStream recording: Crystal HD release 2.0 combines the power of the Crystal HD MultiStream feature with enhanced recording capabilities to provide users more flexible recording options. Crystal HD MultiStream delivers six different rates and resolution of video streams from Quarter resolution to High Definition, enabling users to select the level of video quality they require for monitoring and recording. Crystal release 2.0 now allows users to select their preferred quality video stream to record on either an event basis or scheduled basis. For example, to maximize network performance and storage, while insuring the highest quality video is recorded for forensics, users may elect to schedule recording of a continuous Standard Resolution video stream during normal business hours, while recording High Definition upon an event during non-business hours. Improved Video Processing and Configuration options Additional features include:
  • Enhanced picture quality with exposure and shadow detail improvements on the Crystal CVQ camera
  • Improved video stream compression, and user-configurable frame rates result in bandwidth efficiency and improved storage.
  • PAL and NTSC mixed camera support
  • Enhanced monitoring and management functions including: Improved logging of system health events and user actions (e.g. logins/logouts), Real time status for all cameras and DMMs using The Crystal System Network Monitor, and Zoom Zone (TM) and video full screen support in Security Station archive view
In addition, CoVi today introduced a new model of the Crystal DMM with 320GB HD providing maximum storage capacity. "Crystal HD continues to be adopted by serious security professionals in key applications including critical infrastructure protection, banking fraud and robbery surveillance, education, medical, retail, and travel and transportation," said Barry Walker, President and CEO, CoVi Technologies, Inc. "Crystal HD is unique in that it provides not only the highest quality video, but also bandwidth optimization, accessibility, management and security of the video information. With Release 2.0 CoVi continues to grow the power of the Crystal HD system for our customers." Crystal HD 2.0 software release is now available globally. Crystal HD 2.0 supports both PAL and NTSC models of the Crystal CVQ camera. Introduced in Spring 2005, Crystal HD is the first and only IP-based surveillance system to integrate cameras, recording, storage, monitoring and IP network management in an IT-friendly Security Camera Area Network (SCAN) that provides Dynamic Bandwidth Management(TM) and complete platform security. CoVi's unique end-to-end design has created the world's most powerful digital video surveillance solution and the only solution capable of delivering the benefits of HD resolution video monitoring and recording. CoVi Technologies is online at www.covitechnologies.com/.