| A/V |
Audio/Video |
| AVI |
Audio Video Interleave - An audio-video standard designed by Microsoft. |
| AES |
Auto Electronic Shutter - the ability of the camera to compensate for moderate light changes by adjusting the camera shutter without the use of auto iris lenses. |
| AGC |
Automatic Gain Control - this feature adjusts the brightness level of the video to keep it at a consistent level. |
| BLC |
Back Light Compensation - a feature on newer CCD cameras which electronically compensates for high background lighting to give detail which would normally be silhouetted. |
| BNC |
Bayonet Nut Coupling - A commonly used connection for audio/video (A/V) applications. Uses a mount similar to the way a bayonet knife is mounted onto the end of a rifle, BNCs are used to connect a variety of different coaxial cable types. After the plug is inserted, it is turned, causing pins in the socket to be pinched into a locking groove on the plug. |
| CAT5 |
Category 5 (cable) - the type of cable that is used in networking applications. |
| CCD |
CCD (Charge Couple Device) chips. CCD chips are higher quality and produce a better image than CMOS. |
| CMOS |
Complementary Metal Oxide semiconductor - Pronounced see-moss, CMOS is a widely used type of semiconductor. |
| CCTV |
Closed-circuit television |
| DVR |
Digital Video Recorder (a computer based video recorder which is storing video footage on a Hard Drive). |
FPS
or
IPS |
Frames per Second or Images per Second - in digital video applications, refers to the number of video images that can be captured, displayed, or recorded in a second. Also referred to as the 'frame rate' or 'refresh rate'. |
| IP |
Internet Protocol. A packet-based protocol for delivering data across networks. |
| IP Camera |
A “digital” camera which connects to a network and is accessible from anywhere within a Network/Internet. |
| NVR |
Network Video Recorder (a server based storage device which will store all video footage transmitted within the network). |
| PoE |
Power over Ethernet technology describes any system to transmit electrical power along with data, to remote devices over standard twisted-pair cable in an Ethernet network. |
| PTZ |
Pan-Tilt-Zoom - PTZ cameras allow you to adjust the position ('pan' is side-to-side, 'tilt' is up-and-down) and focus ('zoom') of the camera using a remote controller. Due to this added functionality, these cameras tend to cost much more than non-PTZ cameras |
| RG-59 |
An RG-59 is a common coax cable used in CCTV applications. |