Page 14 - Security Today, October 2019

to use the existing coax cable or UTP cable and now run Ethernet on it instead of the analog signal, and it can represent a huge cost savings versus pulling out the existing cabling.
The second most common benefit is being able to send an IP signal much farther than the standard hundred meters over cat six without having to switch to more expensive optical fiber cabling and optical fiber media converters. Many extended distance Eth- ernet media converters can transmit an IP signal over 2,000 feet.
The third benefit is a good reason installers choose this type of media converter. Pass-through PoE allows one power source, like a POE switch, power all devices on the line. Power is transmitted from the PoE switch, powering both of the media converters and also passing power up to the camera at the end of the line. This makes for a much quicker installation and means you don’t need to worry about finding power at the camera location.
Please note that the amount of POE you need at the end of the line will affect the distances you can successfully travel over any copper cable, so please consult our data sheets for spe- cific limitations. Although ComNet has several product lines that perform this media conversion, our most comprehensive and popular segment is Copperline® distance extending media converters. It comes in 15- and 30-Watt models, various useful form factors, five different ways to power the modules, and 1 to 16 channel units.
Consider the Expense
Last in the series of media converters are wireless Ethernet me- dia converters. This is a little different in that we are converting
the binary code of Ethernet from an electronic signal to a radio frequency signal and then back again. The number one reason people use wireless is, so the cabling infrastructure necessary to carry the signal is not required. Trenching for new cabling is very expensive, complicated, and difficult to accomplish in many envi- ronments. This all represents a huge cost savings by using wireless transmission methods. The second big benefit is the speed of de- ployment. If you have power on site, the installation of a wireless Ethernet media converter can be very quick and effective.
This application is a simple point-to-point solution. The Net- Wave NWK 11/M and NWK1 kits include everything needed to set up a wireless link. The kits are preconfigured in the fac- tory and MAC locked so that installation on the bench or in the field is simple, quick, and reliable. These preconfigured kits have allowed installers with no previous experience using Radio fre- quency products to successfully implement a wireless Ethernet media converter solution.
Since many of these applications are intended to be used in harsh environments, it is imperative that you select a product that can handle extreme temperatures and other environmental factors. In addition, it’s important to work with a company that has expertise in all types of Ethernet media
conversion and can work with you to deter-
mine what solutions are best suited for your
application.
Frank (Skip) Haight is the vice president of marketing at Communication Networks.
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MEDIA CONVERTERS