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COMPUTAR CS SERIES SWITCHER AND TELEMETRY
CONTROLLERS
INTRO
Flexibility and ease of use are the key
features of Chugai Boyeki Computar CS series modular switching and telemetry
control system
COPY
Chugai Boyeki have clearly put a great deal
of effort into making their CS video switching and telemetry control system as
simple to install and operate as possible. The designers have adopted a ‘zero
redundancy’ strategy, which basically means a system can be upgraded and
expanded, without having to replace components. This philosophy extends to
making the telemetry system compatible with other manufacturer’s equipment, so
that it can be easily incorporated into existing installations.
The centrepiece of the range is the CS
switcher, available now in 4 and 8-way configurations; an 16-way switcher will
be introduced shortly. The switcher is a stand-alone device; the CS8-2P that
we’ve been looking at, can switch up to eight cameras, and it has two
selectable monitor outputs. Dwell time is variable, between 1 and 60 seconds;
it’s a universal setting, applied to all cameras in the sequence. The CS8-2P
can be used with a variety of other dedicated modules, including the CS8S slave
selector. This connects to the master unit by cable, terminated with a modular
telephone plug RJ45 interface, or by a two-wire twisted pair, up to 400 metres
long. The slave duplicates all of the switching and monitor control functions
of the master switch, with the exception of dwell time adjustment.
Both master and slave switchers have sockets
for a CS-TXP telemetry controller, again using modular telephone sockets for
the interconnection. Functions available include pan/tilt, auto pan, focus,
iris and zoom, plus four switched facilities (wash, wipe, lamp and aux). A
third modular socket on the master switcher handles the alarm connections, to a
CS-APCB alarm interface unit. The telemetry controllers communicate with CS-RXW
control boxes at each camera location, using the coaxial cable carrying the
video feed. The electronics and relays are housed inside cream-coloured
weatherproof wall-box, measuring 240 x 240 x 80mm. The control box is
mains-powered, with simple plug-in screw-terminal connections, for the camera
ancillaries.
Switcher and telemetry control units all
follow a common design theme. They’re, housed in discrete dark grey sloping
consoles, with purple-coloured keys and LED indicators. The CS8.2P and CS8S
master and slave switchers are 256mm wide and share the same control layout. On
the top panel there’s a gently curved row of numbered buttons and indicators,
one for each of the camera inputs. Below that there’s three buttons, for
setting camera skip, monitor output selection and auto/manual sequence. On the
rear of the master switcher there are ten BNC sockets, eight for the camera
inputs, the other two carry the switched monitor outputs. Three modular
telephone sockets handle connections for a slave switcher, telemetry controller
and alarm interface module. Next to the 6 volt DC supply input socket is a
small thumbwheel, for setting the dwell time. The only external difference
between the slave and master switcher lies on the back panel, where there are
just two modular sockets.
A single modular socket on the back of the
CS-TXP telemetry controller carries control signals and power. It is slightly smaller
than the switcher at 180mm wide, though the height and depth of the consoles
are the same. The top panel is dominated by a large circular pan/tilt control,
it’s surrounded on three sides by pairs of buttons for the iris, zoom and focus
controls. A row of buttons along the top are used to switch the various
functions, select and program up to four camera positions.
INSTALLATION AND OPERATION
The simplicity of the system is carried
through to the installation and operation procedures. There are very few
preliminaries; camera inputs are included or excluded in the sequence by
pressing and holding the ‘skip’ button, then pressing the relevant camera
buttons, an LED indicator shows whether or not the inputs are enabled. Camera
dwell time is set using the thumbwheel on the back. Monitor access, from the
slave switcher, can be enabled or disabled by holding down the skip button,
prior to powering up the unit. Pressing the auto button engages the sequencer,
it can be frozen at any time, and returned to manual control by pressing a
camera button. All settings are retained if there’s an interruption to the
power supply, though the unit reverts to manual control.
Installing and programming the CS-TXP telemetry
keypad is even easier; basic operation is largely self explanatory. Each
connected camera can have up to four positions stored. The camera is moved to
the required location, using the pan-tilt control, then the settings are stored
by pressing and holding the set and preset buttons, then one of the numbered
buttons. The autopan function engages a patrol mode, with the camera moving to
each preset position in turn, waiting for 30 seconds at each location, before
moving on to the next one in the sequence.
PERFORMANCE
Another spin-off from the simple design is
the almost complete lack of video processing, which means the signal passes
cleanly through the switcher, without any additional noise burden. Moreover,
there’s no reduction in resolution nor are contrast, brightness or colour
values affected in any way. There is a brief loss of stability at the
switchover point, lasting less than one frame period, so it’s not especially
distracting. The telemetry control functions all checked out and the units all
performed satisfactorily throughout our tests.
We have one or two operational comments
regarding the switcher. The lack of a dedicated VCR output is a disadvantage
and whilst the second monitor video output can be used, this operates
independently as it is tied into the sequencer. With that in mind it would have
been useful if, at switch-on or after a supply interruption, the switcher returned
to auto sequence mode, rather than camera one, by default.
CONCLUSION
Chugai Boyeki’s stated intention was to design a simple,
cost-effective and flexible switcher and telemetry system. They have succeeded,
though for comparatively little extra expense they could have added an extra
socket for a VCR output. Other refinements, like independent dwell times for
each camera and maybe a camera ident or time-date generator would have been
useful, though this would have pushed up the cost and made it less competitive.
The balance between cost and facilities has clearly been carefully thought out,
and will appeal to installers and end-users looking for a no-frills, simple to
use system, that can be easily upgraded to meet future needs.
PRODUCT SPECIFICATION
Camera Inputs: 8 composite CCIR/PAL (4 and 16 input versions also
available)
Dwell time: variable, 1-60 seconds
Telemetry functions: wash, wipe, lamp, aux, pan/tilt, auto pan, iris
open/close, focus near/far, zoom in/out
Master/slave single unscreened twisted pair
Power supply CS8/TX: 12 volt DC, supplied by
plug-in mains adaptor
CS-RXW 240 VAC
Dimensions CS8/S: 256 x 204 x 47mm; CS-TX:
180 x 204 x 47mm;
CS-RXW: 240 x 240 x 80mm
PSI RATINGS
Product
Product design ****
Build quality *****
Ruggedness *****
Operation
General functions ****
CCTV functions ****
Ease of use ****
Instructions ***
Manuf. support ****
Performance
Video quality *****
Switching ****
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Ó R. Maybury 1997 1004
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