ThruLink™ - a simple solution to complex transmission

When the engineers at KBC designed ThruLink[tm], the objective was simple: to find a cost-effective way to create a secure network within a public network for one of KBC's customers. As the development moved on however, ThruLink's potential for a whole range of applications became increasingly clear.

Today, KBC's ThruLink - a hardware VPN device (Virtual Private Network) - has become a critical component of network installations throughout the world. From secure, single-link systems to large-scale intelligent transport networks, ThruLink provides a simple, cost-effective method for establishing secure connections over a public network (such as the Internet).

ThruLinkCutting Out the Cost of Leased Lines

In Singapore, ThruLink currently provides the transmission for the Land Transport Authority's Junction Electronic Eyes, a system of surveillance cameras installed at major road junctions throughout the city. The system monitors and manages traffic along expressways, providing motorists with updated traffic information and, ultimately, a safer and more pleasant journey.

Originally, transmission back to the control room was carried over leased lines, but with costs unacceptably high and a second phase planned to extend the system to around 500 cameras, a more cost-effective solution was needed.

The solution included installing a standard capacity ThruLinkTM device at each camera site and high capacity ThruLinkTM concentrators at the control centre. This effectively created secure, encrypted VPN tunnels between the cameras and the core switches, and enabled the network video system to see the links as direct cable connections from the encoder to the core switch at central control. Today, rather than paying for the ongoing expense of leased lines, the Land Transit Authority benefits from using public IP channels at a considerably lower cost.

A Secure Link via the Internet for Banking Information

In Europe, an automated car park faced a challenge shared by a variety of organizations. With the car park located several kilometres away from its control centre and with no cable route between them, the installer had to find a way to set up a secure link to transfer motorists' payment information.

ThruLink provided the solution and now allows an encrypted link to be established over the Internet each time transaction details are sent back from the remote site. Car park users can now pay with a credit or debit card, secure in the knowledge that their banking details remain protected.

A Mobile Video Surveillance System

During the week, an industrial harbour is a bustling place, but at the weekend, activity slows down. The harbour authority of one such port in Europe was concerned that theft, accidents and alarms could potentially go undetected. To remedy the problem, a secure, mobile monitoring system was proposed.

Now, from Friday afternoon to Monday morning, a mobile unit patrols the harbour sending back the camera signals via a secure ThruLink connection and a wireless link. The harbour authority is able to keep the data within its own network and, if necessary, connect to the network via the Internet and view camera images from anywhere in the country.

Straightforward Setup

One of the many communications challenges facing police forces around the world is providing secure transmission channels for travelling embassy staff. With security and fast installation at the top of the priority list, ThruLink has provided one particular European police force with the perfect solution. ThruLink offers minimal setup and requires no specialist IP knowledge, allowing Government staff to establish secure links via the Internet when embassy personnel are away.

To learn more about ThruLink and how to set up a ThruLink device, please visit:

http://www.kbcnetworks.co.uk/thrulink/