Etherstretch™ is Nitek’s trademark technology that extends IP communications over existing analog cabling infrastructure. IP based cameras and megapixel technology is rapidly becoming the norm and their deployment is greatly increasing in the video security market. One of the biggest hurdles we face with IP-camera installation is the cost associated with infrastructure to support such technology. The majority of existing camera systems were previously installed using coaxial cables as the primary method of connecting devices with cable distances up to and sometimes exceeding 1,000 feet.

With the deployment of IP-camera technology comes new challenges. First, the cabling intended for the installation of IP-cameras is a category rated UTP (unshielded twisted pair) cable. such as Cat5E or Cat6, not the security industry traditional coaxial RG59/U presently installed.

EIA/TIA (standards committees) networking standards limit the maximum cable distance between devices to 100 meters (328ft.). One of the biggest barriers we face in converting an existing analog site to IP is the cost associated with abating the coaxial cable while installing new UTP cable and meeting the networking standards for distance and terminations.

Further, many sites simply must use the existing cable, such as hospitals where cables are run behind walls and occupy the same space as oxygen lines and nurse call systems or require infection control measures such as tenting to gain access to the cable pathways.

Many older buildings contain cable pathways that may be exposed to asbestos and/or lead paint. Outdoor installations have even more challenges, cable distances exceeding 100 meters and aerial or direct burial cable that can no longer be re-routed due to construction, cable path congestion, or obstructions.

There are millions of miles of existing infrastructure connecting hundreds of thousands of devices through decades of legacy installations. Etherstretch products allow for installation of these new technologies utilizing this legacy cable.

Nitek’s award winning Etherstretch product line has features and functionality that deliver the networking needs established organizations need to take advantage of today’s IP-based physical security and video surveillance technologies.

IEEE802.3 PoE Compliance
To ensure acceptance into all network deployments, the Etherstretch products are uniquely designed to gain its system power from a PoE switch eliminating the requirements of additional power supplies for the transmitters or receivers.

The Etherstretch solution is also equipped with a PoE power source equipment chip (PSE) which is necessary to the compliance of the PoE signaling standard IEEE802.3.

This signaling allows the presence of a conformant (PD device) to be detected by the (PSE device), and allows the device and source to negotiate the amount of power required or available.

Adopting this design ensures the Nitek product will only send power to an IP device that requests PoE power and protecting other devices from damage or harm from connecting non-PoE devices to our system. This method maintains PoE by standards, as opposed to what others market as “PoE Pass Through” which is not standards compliant.

ONVIF Compliance
Incorporation of megapixel technology, bandwidth capabilities, and set up and configuration practices have raised the concern for ONVIF compliant devices to ensure interoperability among manufacturers in large IP based systems.

The Etherstretch products are manufactured with the most advanced technology available enabling a 100mbps link between devices up to 500 meters apart. An added feature of the Etherstretch solution is there are no IP addresses, MAC addressing, set up or configuration as the units are 100% plug and play.

Being ONVIF compliant allows the Nitek solution to be designed and integrated into any IP video or data system. There are several similar products available in the security market using older or outdated communication technology that limits bandwidth (in some cases less than 17mbps) and also require set up and installation before a link can be established.

System Integration
Continuing to add features and functionality into the Nitek product offering, the Etherstretch has a revolutionary multi-channel (eight or sixteen port) head-end solution with a Gigabit PoE+ network switch.

This solution reduces the number of connections to a customer’s network, while simplifying the migration of a large analog system to an IP solution.

Traditionally, the coaxial cables would attach to an 8- or 16-channel DVR. Simply remove the BNC connections from the DVR and connect them to the Nitek Etherstretch receiver. The receiver will begin to negotiate the PoE requirements of the connected edge devices while establishing a 100mbps data communication path.

The gigabit network port allows communication between the edge devices and the VMS and/or NVR. This is a significantly different solution then the rack mount kits or midspan interconnect solutions which are provided by other vendors and marketed as a multi-channel solution.

Adding to the overall system cost, these other options still require additional network hardware, cabling interconnects, set up, configuration, labor, and valuable rack space.

In addition to being fully compliant with all network standards, having the additional features, and providing a fully integrated head end solution, the Etherstretch product line has also been granted UL and NEMA TS1 and TS2 environmental certifications from independent testing agencies.

The NEMA certifications are commonly required in government and Department of Transportation specifications and also satisfy any requirements for “environmentally hardened” equipment, which are found in specifications for outdoor rated products in the security market.