Page 86 - Security Today, July 2017

Thermal Cameras are Hot
Networked solutions have been filling critical need for almost a decade
BNy E. Anthony Incorvati
etwork thermal cameras were first introduced to the security market in 2010 filling a critical detection gap in network video systems. Less sensitive to problemat- ic lighting conditions than visible light cameras, they excelled at detecting people, objects and incident un-
der adverse conditions such as complete darkness, smoke, haze, dust, light fog and even bright sunlight. At the same time they provided all the benefits that come along with being native IP network devices.
Strategic Applications for Network Thermal Cameras
In the years since their introduction, network thermal cameras have gained widespread adoption as a strategic component of physical se- curity and safety systems in a range of applications.
Search and rescue. Because of a thermal camera’s superior ability to detect humans, vehicles and animals, you can find them being used in search and rescue operations—spotting people in the water in a harbor, helping firemen see through smoke, even assisting police in tracking perpetrators attempting to flee in the night.
Perimeter protection. Thermal network cameras are a cost-effec- tive perimeter protection tool because they can cover long distances with few cameras and even detect people camouflaged against a back- ground. If someone trespasses a fence, the security manager receives a verification image at the operations center or on a mobile device.
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Because network thermal cameras support a variety of lens op- tions, they can cover everything from wide parking lots to long fence lines. Their low rate of false alarms helps security management cut costs by avoiding unnecessary responses by security staff. Conversely, the cameras can verify alarms, confirming that a motion detection alarm was actually triggered by a human. So security staff can act quickly to prevent costly vandalism or other criminal acts.
Public safety. In potentially dangerous environments, such as tun- nels, railway tracks and train platforms, thermal network cameras help prevent accidents by triggering alarms when detecting trespass- ers and objects where they shouldn’t be. Early detection of people and objects on the tracks can prevent accidents.
Process monitoring. Because heat signatures captured by thermal cameras contain distinctive thermal information, the cameras can serve as excellent tools to monitor processes and detect abnormal temperature changes. For example, thermal cameras can be found detecting heat leaks in buildings, providing early-warning signs that self-igniting material is about to combust, even predicting transform- er and switch gear failures at power substations.
What’s New in Thermal Camera Capabilities?
When network thermal cameras were first introduced, they support- ed a number of useful features, such as:
THERMAL IMAGING
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