Recently we used a Clover CDR4770 4 channel DVR with two Clover CM105H cameras to monitor the automated machining of a part. One camera would record the monitor getting the position of the machine, and the other was attached to the machine. When the tool broke, we could rewind to the exact point and restart the machine without redoing the old work. The resolution was good enough and we were able to record both channels at 15 fps. The software to navigate the DVR was a bit clunky though but did the trick. There was plenty of harddrive space, and unless there was a problem, old recordings weren't needed. What I didn't like about the Clover software was that you could not delete individual segments, but instead had to format the entire hard drive. Also the software to review videos wasn't too user friendly. It was easy to download a time segement to a USB stick, but fast forwarding and rewinding was hard. Plus you couldn't jump to a certain time if you knew what it was. And converting the files to windows media player was a pain and didn't work all the time.
Even with some of the software issues, we'd like to reapply this on a slightly larger scale to monitor another process, using upwards of 8 cameras. Here are a few of the features we'd like, if there is a system that could be recommended to meet them, that would be great!
1) Wireless would be nice, but we can run cables. My concern is signal issues around our process could be compromised and battery life as well.
2) At least 8 channels to be recorded.
3) High framerates, 15 fps worked okay for our first run, but 30 fps per camera would should be better.
4) Easy to use software. When an event happens it would be nice to be able to review it back and forth, or jump to a certain time.
5) Be able to convert the file so that it can be shared in windows media player without a special codec for easy distribution.
6) Would a PC based system be better than a stand alone DVR?
Thanks for any insight and help you can provide!
HD
