Longwatch has announced that it has added new features and functions to its Video System Version 5.0 to make it easier for users to integrate cameras in local and remote areas, combine video data with a wide variety of plant information, and enable operators to access video data from HMI terminals, cellphones or on a PC via the Internet. The enhancements integrate local and remote video systems, using existing plant infrastructure such as fiber and wireless networks, and a distributed system architecture that delivers scalability, performance and fault tolerance. The new Longwatch Viewer and Video Historian links video with a wide variety of plant information, such as process alarms and events, maintenance messages, batch tracking and historical trends. The new Video Historian links to the plant’s HMI/SCADA system, making it possible to store video with real-time plant data, so that operators can see what happened during various events. The Video Historian also features the new Longwatch Viewer which provides an intuitive platform to help the user retrieve, annotate, view and analyze video and process information. When viewing data in real time, users can command a camera from the HMI to start, pause, stop, pan and zoom. Real-time video can also be controlled based on external inputs, conditions detected in the camera image, or commands from a process control system. The enhanced Longwatch Viewer, a web-based user Interface, allows live or archived videos to be viewed over the Internet on a PC, handheld wireless PDA or a cellphone. Improvements to the Viewer include new viewing, filtering and grouping modes.