Video and CPU usage

[Bozo]

I'm looking over a proposal for a company to install video monitoring system where I work. It would capture video images of our product in real time as it's being manufactured. The files would be about 9GB for each product.
The video capture method is proprietary. I have no idea how the files are stored (MPEG ???).
What I really don't understand is why this company is specifing dual Xeon CPUs in the computers that are attached to the monitoring system. ( I'm trying to get answers from the company)
The rest of the system is pretty much average: 1GB RAM, 80 GB hard drive, 10/100NIC etc.
Does it take that much processing power to capture video?

Bozo :mrgrn:

 

[MaxBurn]

Are they compressing it / encoding it on the fly? That would explain it. Usually with something like that you would need some good disk throughput too though?

 

[Buck]

I have installed video CCTV capture cards that would only reliably work with Intel chipsets. Possibly the capture hardware for these proposed systems have similar quirks?

 

[ddrueding]

I just installed one yesterday that spec'd a specific intel motherboard (chipset with onboard video). What a POS.

If they're doing on-the-fly video compression, they might want lots of CPU power. And if they're doing that, large throughput isn't that important. But if they are compressing, I wouldn't expect the file to be 9GB in the end! How long a process is it? What resolution are the working with? How many channels (cameras?)

 

[Bozo]

It's coil of aluminum, 50" to 60" wide, 80" in diameter, and usually .012" thick or less. They are looking at both sides of the sheet while it is traveling at 2000 FPM, checking for scatches and other surface defects. I would imagine that the resolution is extremly high. That's about all I know at this time.

Bozo :mrgrn:

 

[Santilli]

"The rest of the system is pretty much average: 1GB RAM, 80 GB hard drive, 10/100NIC etc.
Does it take that much processing power to capture video? "

Hi
I think the answer is yes. Also, if they wrote, or have a particular program in mind, perhaps it recommends duals?

I imagine capturing, reauthoring, and writing to disk take a lot of cpu power.

My limited experience is using the Plextor hardware converter, from VCR, and, it takes a long time, and, while writing to disk the finished program, it eats lots of cycles.

Dual Xeons can be had at a good price, and, they are going to be used in video capture, and writing to disk.

s