Comparison between Embedded and PC-based ATM Monitoring Systems

1. MPEG-4 encoding is difficult to implement
1. MPEG-4 encoding chip
At present, the application of MPEG-4 in embedded systems is mainly dedicated MPEG-4 encoding chips, and its usage is similar to that of MPEG-1, MPEG-2, and H.263 encoding chips. Many companies abroad have developed such chips, such as wisGO7007 launched by WIS and trimedia by Philips. In China, only Han Tang Technology has truly mastered the MPEG-4 encoding and decoding technology. The following shortcomings of
MPEG-4 encoding chips prevent them from being widely used at this stage.
(1) High price. Since MPEG-4 encoding technology is still in the development stage, its algorithm itself and the corresponding solidification technology are not mature enough, so the price of MPEG-4 encoding chips is relatively expensive.
(2) Average performance. At present, most MPEG-4 encoding chips launched by domestic manufacturers do not use true MPEG-4 encoding. In terms of performance, they are similar to the more widely used H.263 and H.263+, and have no advantages.
(3) No controllability and interactivity. Since multi-object coding requires image recognition and segmentation, which is difficult to accomplish with dedicated chips, MPEG-4 coding chips can basically only implement the VLBV (Very Low Bit-rate Video) part of the MPEG-4 video stream, without controllability and interactivity.
(4) Poor scalability. The hardware implementation of MPEG-4 coding has its algorithm fixed in the chip, which makes it impossible to conveniently modify and optimize the algorithm. When new algorithm modules appear, they cannot be added, resulting in poor scalability.
Another way to implement MPEG-4 on embedded systems is to directly develop MPEG-4 coding on an embedded software platform.
2. Software implementation of MPEG-4 on embedded systems
Although the direct implementation of MPEG-4 coding on embedded systems with software has advantages that coding chips do not have, due to the complexity of the MPEG-4 algorithm and the limited resources of the embedded system, the MPEG-4 implemented on the embedded system software platform is not efficient, does not have good real-time performance, and occupies too many embedded system resources. In terms of stability, it is even worse than PC-style.

2. No big advantage in stability
Since the ATM monitoring system belongs to a small-channel DVR (usually two channels), based on the current PC hardware, whether it is a software-based compression solution or a hardware compression card compression solution, a very stable system can be achieved. In addition, since there are indeed some quite stable PC-based ATM monitoring systems in operation, the embedded system has no advantage in stability under such conditions.

3. Professionalism seems to be inadequate
Professional ATM monitoring systems have their own particularities. They are different from ordinary DVRs. For example, they generally require:
1. Two-channel video synchronous real-time recording, two-channel video automatic switching, and even require two-channel video to be mixed into one video.
2. Real-time video synchronization image masking processing for the password keyboard area.
3. Overlay date, time, card number, alarm information, etc. in a WYSIWYG way.
4. Realize synchronous playback of two-channel video during playback.
5. Real-time video signal detection function. In order to prevent the video from being damaged, it is not only required to prevent the video signal from being lost, but also to prevent the camera hole video from being maliciously blocked.
6. Since ATM monitoring is an unattended system, it generally requires the preservation of effective video for one to three months, so the MPEG4 compression method is more suitable for this system.
As we all know, the processing power of embedded systems is weak, especially when it comes to video. The image chips used in embedded DVR systems at home and abroad are already reluctant to process video recordings, and the special requirements of ATM monitoring systems are even more inadequate.

4. There is still a certain distance in networking .
Compared with ordinary DVRs, ATM monitoring systems have special requirements for networks. Without network maintenance, a lot of manpower and financial resources will be consumed. Engineering companies usually consider this when choosing products, and the network function of embedded systems has always been unsatisfactory, while the advantages of PCs are self-evident.

5. Obvious lack of intelligence
Embedded systems are suitable for home electronic systems with single functions and simple operations. Banks are relatively high-end users and have higher requirements for product intelligence, scalability and ease of operation. Embedded systems themselves still have many insurmountable problems.

6. Lack of unified standards
The entire embedded processor market seems to be fragmented, and there are many contradictions between various manufacturers and software developers, which is in sharp contrast to the PC industry. In the PC industry, there are only three microprocessor manufacturers left, and Windows has become the de facto standard operating system. Therefore, consumers are the ultimate victims of the confusion of standards.

7. Expensive maintenance in the later stage:
From the comparison of the initial product prices, the embedded system seems to have a certain price advantage from the first purchase of the equipment. However, in the future use process of customers, due to the fact that the embedded system is independent and lacks a unified industry standard, and the equipment adopts a non-modular design, any change or repair of the product needs to rely on a specific manufacturer, which increases the user's dependence on the manufacturer, which will lead to uncontrollable maintenance costs in the later stage. This is also the reality that the final bank users have to face.

In summary, due to various restrictions, embedded systems are still low-end products. At the same time, due to the low technical content of domestic embedded DVRs (mostly simple imitations of Taiwan or foreign products), domestic manufacturers do not master the core chip technology, so its mature application in ATM monitoring systems still has a relatively long accumulation process.