Saying that certain camera manufacturers are making less than honest claims about the quality of the video surveillance products, IC Realtime CEO Matt Sailor is laying down the gauntlet by challenging the entire industry to abide by the new Underwriters Laboratories (UL) 2802 standard for camera performance.

UL 2802 Performance Testing Standard for Camera Image Quality was in the works for more than two years and was finally released in 2013. The new standard defines a method to assess video image quality through a series of performance-based tests that are conducted on production digital cameras.

Cameras are rated (on a scale of 0 thru 100) on a series of performance-based parameters, including image resolution, distortion, relative illumination, dynamic range, maximum frame rate, gray level, sensitivity, bad pixel count, and veiling glare.

Each camera tested is given a performance score for each individual test (except Signal-to-Noise Ratio and Field of View). The camera images analyzed for this test program are digital images that are generated by individual video frames or still image captures.

Both IP and analog cameras are being tested, along with associated digital encoders and related image viewing / configuration software, as applicable. The suitability of the camera for a specific use case is not determined by the standard. The resulting test scores are intended to provide objective information that will be useful when determining camera use applications (i.e., a camera that performs well in sensitivity and gray level tests may be a good choice for low light […]