Page 16 - Security Today, October 2017

Man Overboard! Saving lives with deployment of video analytics at sea
BMy Eric Olson
any of us have gone on a cruise vacation or know of a close friend or relative who has done so. Cruising is a popular vacation option enjoyed by families and individuals throughout the world. What is not so well known, though, is that man overboard events
board the ship, these camera systems are primarily used for basic surveillance or evidential activities, and are not designed to actively notify the ship’s crew in the instance of a person falling overboard. In most cases, MOB events are reported by someone who happens to notice the fall, or by a member of the person’s party who reports the person missing. This information must all be verified by the crew before taking action, which can take a considerable amount of time.
The facts are that the typical stopping distance of a cruise ship is one mile. If it takes 15 minutes to confirm an MOB event, a ship may have moved seven miles from the original fall location and a typical man overboard detection system can report a MOB event in less than one second.
Detection Using Intelligent Video
Accurately detecting a human falling from a moving cruise ship is no an easy feat. An object falling from the top level of a large cruise ship can reach speeds of 70 mph. A MOB system must be able to detect objects moving at these speeds, while mounted on the ship it- self, which is in a constant state of pitch, roll and yaw. Cruise ships are also very busy environments, with people moving about, blowing debris and a variety of normal operational activities that may involve the movement of items along the side of the ship (ladder deploy- ments, crew boarding, water spray from decks, etc.). Although most
continue to be a common occurrence within the cruise industry. Since 2005, 268 man overboard events have been reported. On average, 22 people fall off a cruise ship every year, and 86 percent of
those victims do not survive, or are never found.
Accurate Detection
Man overboard events (MOB) can happen at any time during the day or night, in all types of weather, sea conditions, and from almost any location on the ship, ranging from a few tens of feet above the water, to over 180 feet. Falls from these heights can injure, render unconscious, or even kill the victim. Likewise, falls from ships oper- ating along northern routes can expose the victim to extreme water temperatures, which can result in hypothermia and death.
Given these scenarios, one approach to increasing the survival rate of MOB events is to ensure accurate timely detection, followed by a rapid response protocol. However, few cruise ships in operation today have any form of man overboard detection system. Although they may have cameras and imaging systems to monitor activity on
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