6/26/2014 Audio - Technical guide | Axis Communications

http://www.axis.com/products/video/about_networkvideo/audio.htm 1/5
Audio
While the use of audio in video surveillance systems is still not widespread,
having audio can enhance a systems ability to detect and interpret events, as
well as enable audio communication over an IP network. The use of audio,
however, can be restricted in some countries, so it is a good idea to check with
local authorities.
Topics covered in this chapter include application scenarios, audio equipment,
audio modes, audio detection alarm, audio compression and audio/video
synchronization.
Audio applications
Having audio as an integrated part of a video surveillance system can be an
invaluable addition to a systems ability to detect and interpret events and
emergency situations. The ability of audio to cover a 360-degree area enables a
video surveillance system to extend its coverage beyond a cameras field of
view. It can instruct a PTZ camera or a PTZ dome camera (or alert the operator
of one) to visually verify an audio alarm.
Audio can also be used to provide users with the ability to not only listen in on
an area, but also communicate orders or requests to visitors or intruders. For
instance, if a person in a cameras field of view demonstrates suspicious
behavior, such as loitering near a bank machine, or is seen to be entering a
restricted area, a remote security guard can send a verbal warning to the
person. In a situation where a person has been injured, being able to remotely
communicate with and notify the victim that help is on the way can also be
beneficial. Access control that is, a remote doorman at an entrance is
another area of application. Other applications include a remote helpdesk
situation (e.g., an unmanned parking garage), and video conferencing. An
audiovisual surveillance system increases the effectiveness of a security or
remote monitoring solution by enhancing a remote users ability to receive and
communicate information.
Audio support and equipment
Audio support can be more easily implemented in a network video system than in
an analog CCTV system. In an analog system, separate audio and video cables
must be installed from endpoint to endpoint; that is, from the camera and
microphone location to the viewing/recording location. If the distance between
the microphone and the station is too long, balanced audio equipment must be
used, which increases installation costs and difficulty. In a network video
system, a network camera with audio support processes the audio and sends
both audio and video over the same network cable for monitoring and/or
recording. This eliminates the need for extra cabling, and makes synchronizing
the audio and video much easier.
Products Solutions Support Academy Where to buy Partner About Axis
Learning tracks
Axis Certification
Program
Classroom training
Online courses
Web articles
Videos
Webinars
Seminars
Educational apps
English
search
6/26/2014 Audio - Technical guide | Axis Communications
http://www.axis.com/products/video/about_networkvideo/audio.htm 2/5
A network video system with integrated audio support. Audio and video streams are sent over the same
network cable.
Some video encoders have built-in audio, making it possible to add audio even if analog cameras are
used in an installation.
A network camera or video encoder with an integrated audio functionality often
provides a built-in microphone, and/or mic-in/line-in jack. With mic-in/line-in
support, users have the option of using another type or quality of microphone
than the one that is built into the camera or video encoder. It also enables the
network video product to connect to more than one microphone, and the
microphone can be located some distance away from the camera. The
microphone should always be placed as close as possible to the source of the
sound to reduce noise. In two-way, full-duplex mode, a microphone should face
away and be placed some distance from a speaker to reduce feedback from the
speaker.
Many Axis network video products do not come with a built-in speaker. An
active speaker a speaker with a built-in amplifier can be connected directly
to a network video product with audio support. If a speaker has no built-in
amplifier, it must first connect to an amplifier, which is then connected to a
network camera/video encoder.
To minimize disturbance and noise, always use a shielded audio cable and avoid
running the cable near power cables and cables carrying high frequency
switching signals. Audio cables should also be kept as short as possible. If a long
audio cable is required, balanced audio equipment that is, cable, amplifier and
microphone that are all balanced should be used to reduce noise.
Audio modes
Depending on the application, there may be a need to send audio in only one
direction or both directions, which can be done either simultaneously or in one
direction at a time. There are three basic modes of audio communication:
simplex, half duplex and full duplex.
Simplex
6/26/2014 Audio - Technical guide | Axis Communications
http://www.axis.com/products/video/about_networkvideo/audio.htm 3/5
In simplex mode, audio is sent in one direction only. In this case, audio is sent by the camera to the
operator. Applications include remote monitoring and video surveillance.
In this example of a simplex mode, audio is sent by the operator to the camera. It can be used, for
instance, to provide spoken instructions to a person seen on the camera or to scare a potential car thief
away from a parking lot.
Half duplex
In half-duplex mode, audio is sent in both directions, but only one party at a time can send. This is
similar to a walkie-talkie.
Full duplex
In full-duplex mode, audio is sent to and from the operator simultaneously. This mode of
communication is similar to a telephone conversation. Full duplex requires that the client PC has a sound
card with support for full-duplex audio.
Audio detection alarm
Audio detection alarm can be used as a complement to video motion detection
since it can react to events in areas too dark for the video motion detection
functionality to work properly. It can also be used to detect activity in areas
outside of the cameras view.
When sounds, such as the breaking of a window or voices in a room, are
detected, they can trigger a network camera to send and record video and
audio, send e-mail or other alerts, and activate external devices such as alarms.
Similarly, alarm inputs such as motion detection and door contacts can be used
to trigger video and audio recordings. In a PTZ camera or a PTZ dome camera,
audio alarm detection can trigger the camera to automatically turn to a preset
location such as a specific window.
Audio compression
Analog audio signals must be converted into digital audio through a sampling
process and then compressed to reduce the size for efficient transmission and
6/26/2014 Audio - Technical guide | Axis Communications
http://www.axis.com/products/video/about_networkvideo/audio.htm 4/5
storage. The conversion and compression is done using an audio codec, an
algorithm that codes and decodes audio data.
Sampling frequency
There are many different audio codecs supporting different sampling frequencies
and levels of compression. Sampling frequency refers to the number of times per
second a sample of an analog audio signal is taken and is defined in hertz (Hz).
In general, the higher the sampling frequency, the better the audio quality and
the greater the bandwidth and storage needs.
Bit rate
The bit rate is an important setting in audio since it determines the level of
compression and, thereby, the quality of the audio. In general, the higher the
compression level (the lower the bit rate), the lower the audio quality. The
differences in the audio quality of codecs may be particularly noticeable at high
compression levels (low bit rates), but not at low compression levels (high bit
rates). Higher compression levels may also introduce more latency or delay, but
they enable greater savings in bandwidth and storage.
The bit rates most often selected with audio codecs are between 32 kbit/s and
64 kbit/s. Audio bit rates, as with video bit rates, are an important consideration
to take into account when calculating total bandwidth and storage
requirements.
Audio codecs
Axis network video products support three audio codecs. The first is AAC-LC
(Advanced Audio Coding - Low Complexity), also known as MPEG-4 AAC, which
requires a license. AAC-LC, particularly at a sampling rate of 16 kHz or higher
and at a bit rate of 64 kbit/s, is the recommended codec to use when the best
possible audio quality is required. The other two codecs are G.711 and G.726,
which are non-licensed technologies.
Audio and video synchronization
Synchronization of audio and video data is handled by a media player (a
computer software program used for playing back multimedia files) or by a
multimedia framework such as Microsoft DirectX, which is a collection of
application programming interfaces that handles multimedia files.
Audio and video are sent over a network as two separate packet streams. In
order for the client or player to perfectly synchronize the audio and video
streams, the audio and video packets must be time-stamped. The timestamping
of video packets using Motion JPEG compression may not always be supported in
a network camera. If this is the case and if it is important to have synchronized
video and audio, the video format to choose is MPEG-4 or H.264 since such
video streams, along with the audio stream, are sent using RTP (Real-time
Transport Protocol), which timestamps the video and audio packets. There are
many situations, however, where synchronized audio is less important or even
undesirable; for example, if audio is to be monitored but not recorded.
Next topic: Local area network and Ethernet
Popular
Downloads Press Glossary
About Axis Follow us
6/26/2014 Audio - Technical guide | Axis Communications
http://www.axis.com/products/video/about_networkvideo/audio.htm 5/5
Developers
System design tools
Investors
Career
Contact us
Privacy statement
Other Axis sites

Subscribe to e-news
Login
2014 Axis Communications AB. All rights reserved