CST Maintenance and Troubleshooting 2

Question 1

A PTZ camera stops responding to control commands but still displays video. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

RS-485 communication failure

Answer

RS-485 is the standard control bus for PTZ cameras, and a failure on this bus would prevent control commands from reaching the camera while leaving video unaffected.

Question 2

When performing preventive maintenance on outdoor cameras, which environmental factor most commonly degrades image quality over time?

Accepted Answer

Moisture and condensation inside the housing

Answer

Moisture infiltration into camera housings causes lens fogging, corrosion, and sensor damage, which are primary causes of outdoor camera degradation.

Question 3

A technician notices that a camera's image appears washed out during daytime but looks normal at night. What should be checked first?

Accepted Answer

IR cut filter operation

Answer

A stuck or malfunctioning IR cut filter can cause images to appear washed out in daylight because the filter is not blocking infrared light from the sensor.

Question 4

What tool is best suited for verifying that coaxial cable terminations have acceptable signal loss in an analog CCTV system?

Accepted Answer

Cable certifier or TDR

Answer

A TDR (Time Domain Reflectometer) or cable certifier can pinpoint faults, measure impedance mismatches, and verify signal loss in coaxial cabling.

Question 5

A surveillance recorder's hard drive health check shows reallocated sector counts rising steadily. What action should be taken?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a drive replacement before failure occurs

Answer

Rising reallocated sector counts indicate impending hard drive failure; proactive replacement prevents data loss and system downtime.

(CST) Certified Surveillance Technician Practice Test

(CST) Certified Surveillance Technician Practice Test

CST Maintenance and Troubleshooting 2