HOW SKYHAWK ImagePerfect™ HANDLES 64 HD VIDEO STREAMS IN YOUR SECURITY SYSTEM

Vũ Khôi

Author at Wotech Electronics Blog

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Are you using standard PC hard drives in your security surveillance camera system? Missing pixels and dropped images can leave you blind to information at critical moments — and what your drive fails to record is often exactly what poses the biggest security threat to your business.

That is precisely why we designed SkyHawk as a hard drive platform to solve the specific problems you face when recording security video. Seagate invented drives for this very purpose decades ago, and our advances continue to outpace competitors across the industry.

The Seagate SkyHawk drive for security surveillance systems uses our ImagePerfect™ firmware to ensure sharp, high-quality HD video images with no lost frames. The solution features a larger cache to buffer HD video content without dropping a single frame. The drive is also optimized for 24/7 workloads with high write frequencies — such as security surveillance camera systems. Robust data recovery and error correction algorithms prevent lost frames (even when recording up to 64 video streams) and eliminate stuttering during playback thanks to high-speed error correction.

What Is ImagePerfect™ and Why Does It Matter?

We already know that SkyHawk's ImagePerfect™ guarantees image integrity with up to 64 video streams. The solution's intelligent algorithm reduces data errors, allowing the storage of perfect images without converting them into pixels, while also preventing dropped frames when recording multiple video streams.

So what are the technologies that make ImagePerfect™ so flawless? Let's look at some of the key advantages that make SkyHawk the best drive for security surveillance camera applications:

• Higher streaming speed with no lost frames thanks to ATA-8 Streaming Command support

• Optimized for 24/7 continuous applications with demanding write workloads

• Support for a larger cache

• Built-in powerful error correction code

• Consistent, fast command completion times

• AcuTrac® technology ensures stability against external factors

• RV sensor detects rotational vibration

A Closer Look at ImagePerfect™'s Technology Features

Higher streaming speed with a zero frame-loss rate

ImagePerfect uses the industry's most advanced standard — the ATA-8 Streaming Command set — which allows the host system to request data delivery within a specified time frame; it prioritizes data delivery time over data integrity. In addition, the ATA-8 Streaming Command set is optimized to handle large, sequential data block transfers, as typically seen in video files.

Optimized for 24/7 continuous applications with demanding write workloads

A security surveillance camera system can place very high demands on data writes, with write operations accounting for 90% of the time. To support such applications, ImagePerfect™ is optimized for environments that continuously stream multiple video feeds at maximum throughput performance. Beyond ensuring the highest video signal integrity during recording, ImagePerfect™ also enables real-time big data analytics.

Support for a larger cache

ImagePerfect supports a larger cache with better buffering for multiple video streams. What's more, it helps optimize write performance. The result is fewer physical read/write head movements between data streams when writing to or reading from the drive's storage media. Together, these features ensure higher long-term reliability.

Built-in powerful error correction code

Powerful error correction code and data recovery algorithms are built into ImagePerfect™, providing the highest assurance against lost video frames while multiple video streams are being recorded. The high-speed error correction code while the system is running ensures no stuttering occurs during playback. These features significantly reduce the probability of unrecoverable data errors or flickering footage in security surveillance camera applications.

Consistent, fast command completion times

Internal and background operations of the SkyHawk drive with ImagePerfect™ firmware can be interrupted and scheduled in a way that never slows down any request from the host system. Command completion times (CCT) are kept low to minimize buffer overruns or inefficient cache usage. This ensures no frames are lost during video recording and no frames stall during playback.

Stability against external factors, thanks to AcuTrac® technology

In cases of strong vibration in multi-bay surveillance systems, every drive in the system must be able to withstand the shaking caused by other drives and by chassis fans. Vibration from neighboring hard drives or chassis fans can negatively affect the performance of each drive, degrading the overall performance of the system. In a mildly vibrating environment, even a standard PC hard drive can suffer performance degradation. Under heavy vibration, however, a standard PC drive may stop working because the servo system can no longer track the data track.

The AcuTrac feature allows the SkyHawk drive to keep operating even under extremely strong vibration, with minimal performance loss. The drive is designed with a dual-stage actuator featuring a VCM micro-actuator and a PZT micro-actuator. The VCM actuator is responsible for moving between tracks at high speed, while the PZT micro-actuator handles fine movements within the track in the servo system.

Both the VCM and PZT control loops enable the servo system to react quickly to any vibration, maintaining optimal operation.

RV sensor for rotational vibration detection

The RV (Rotational Vibration) sensor sits on the circuit board of the Seagate SkyHawk drive to detect vibration along an axis that could affect the servo's tracking capability and the drive's overall performance. The RV sensor sends signals to the dual-stage actuator; those signals are processed by an advanced servo control system, which builds two feed-forward control tasks for both the VCM and PZT micro-actuator loops. This cancels out off-track head movement caused by vibration, thereby maintaining good track following.

By now, you understand why SkyHawk performs so reliably and why ImagePerfect™ matters so much for security video surveillance systems. Lost frames put your data at risk. Clearer, more complete footage helps you spot problems quickly and address them before they spiral out of control.

ImagePerfect™ technology ensures the Seagate SkyHawk security surveillance hard drive is always "Smart, Safe and Secure."

Learn more about ImagePerfect™ technology here.

Source: https://blog.seagate.com/business/imageperfect-how-skyhawk-handles-64-hd-video-streams-in-your-security-system/

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