THE FIRETIDE BLOG

Wireless mesh for surveillance: How it works and how it’s beneficial

Mar 20, 2015

2015-03-20 Wireless Mesh for Surveillance.jpgCurrently, a considerable number of communities and law enforcement officials rely on wireless surveillance capabilities to help keep their citizens safe. From major cities to small municipalities, the technology is being increasingly implemented to ensure a watchful eye is being kept on assets and high-crime locations. However, without wireless mesh networking technology, none of this would be possible.

How does wireless mesh work?
Wireless surveillance systems are enabled with wireless capabilities thanks to mesh networking. Security Magazine contributor Bernard Scaglione noted that wireless mesh nodes that create a network allow systems that were previously hampered by hardlines and wires to become wireless and mobile.

Although it sounds similar to a traditional Wi-Fi network, there are important differences that set a wireless mesh network apart. Because many wireless mesh networks use proprietary hardware and software, they enable a robust, dependable and protected network.

“Mesh networks create multiple paths of transmission so that if one of them goes down, another is instantly available to get information through,” Scaglione wrote. “This is critical for the types of city departments like law enforcement, which are dependent upon the wireless network.”

What makes wireless mesh beneficial for surveillance?
Besides ensuring that there is always an available path for important data to travel through, wireless mesh networks also offer other benefits for surveillance use.

Many cities are opting to deploy wireless mesh networks due to their cost effectiveness over traditional networks. Legacy systems require hardlined wires, which must be accommodated for in system plans. For example, if a community wanted to deploy several surveillance cameras throughout the city, they’d have to plan ahead for the time and expenses involved in digging trenches and laying the wires. With wireless mesh, the same project can have its timeline and cost significantly cut by deploying wireless mesh nodes to support the cameras.

In addition, wireless mesh is considerably flexible, enabling a network to be expanded with additional nodes as needed. In this way, communities can begin their initiatives on a smaller scale, deploying nodes and cameras in high-crime areas. As needs grow, the city can add more nodes and cameras in other areas as they see fit.

Wired contributor Primavera De Filippi noted that wireless mesh technology is also very responsive, and can adjust to changing network conditions.

“[Wireless mesh networks] can automatically reconfigure themselves according to the availability and proximity of bandwidth, storage and so on,” De Filippi wrote. “This is what makes them resistant to disaster and other interference. Dynamic connections between nodes enable packets to use multiple routes to travel through the network, which makes these networks more robust.”

While commonly seen in law enforcement deployments, wireless mesh networks are also being used for surveillance in other industries as well. For instance, many industrial companies are deploying surveillance systems supported by wireless mesh to ensure the safety of their workers, machines and other assets. The technology is also being adopted in transportation sector, where high speeds and continual location changes make it difficult for legacy systems to keep up.

To find out more about wireless mesh technology and how it is beneficial for surveillance, contact Firetide today.


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Category: Public Safety

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