Page 32 - Security Today, March 2022

Continuing
Camera Advancement
The new vision for intelligent surveillance cameras By Adam Lowenstein
Video surveillance tech- nology has come a long way over the past few decades, evolving into the intelligent network system endpoints they are today. Given our increasingly high expectations for HD quality on all video devices we use, it is hard to comprehend that security professionals were once happy to capture grainy black and white images from cameras employ- ing primitive tube technology. Not only can today’s professional surveillance cam- eras capture color images in near darkness and changing light conditions, they’re also exceptionally smart devices capable of cap- turing a wide range of useful data.
The ongoing, and now seemingly rapid evolution of professional surveillance cam- eras, is due to advancements in three core technologies: highly advanced image sensors, intelligent application software and powerful on-board processors. Together, these tech- nologies continue to usher in new milestones in performance and capabilities that tran- scendtheapplicationsforvideosurveillance beyond traditional physical security.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)
IS A GAME CHANGER
New next generation video surveillance cameras with AI-driven video analytics at the edge are elevating mainstream imaging to an entirely new level. By employing advanced processing engines and embedded software, these intelligent new imaging devices can autonomously detect changes in scenes that may otherwise go unnoticed in systems with large numbers of cameras. To ensure they capture the highest quality video possible, these intelligent devices also automatically adjust the settings of the scenes being analyzed, which increases their capacity to detect, analyze and provide new sources of data. This data-rich video effectively increases overall safety and security with new benchmarks in performance, cost
efficiency and effectiveness.
Perhaps the most significant advantage
of new AI-driven imaging devices is in their ability to transform traditional video surveillance systems from being reactive to proactive security solutions. The ability to alert security personnel of a possible threat or abnormal activity while an event is unfolding allows them the opportunity to prevent potentially harmful events from occurring or further escalating.
Auto event detection and analysis also effectively alleviates the need for security personnel to continuously monitor large numbers of cameras in real time. This further transforms traditional video and security operations from being manpower intensive to being an automated AI solution, while also helping to eliminate costly false alarms. Security personnel can then spend more time focusing on real events of interest and provide a greater range of support services, thus increasing the overall value of security operations.
This new generation of AI-powered video surveillance cameras delivers numerous intelligent features, most of which were only possible using expensive centralized software solutions requiring complex integrations. Some of the most highly desired AI-driven features/benefits that are now available in high-end video surveillanceimagingsolutionsincludethe following capabilities: •Advancedvideomotiondetection(VMD)is
a powerful feature to help detect suspicious activities such as loitering, cross line and movement direction. These advanced motion-detection settings can better protect critical locations and be applied to a vast number of applications including: ATM/ banking surveillance, mass transportation, retail/mall surveillance, manufacturing and more. VMD can also help eliminate the high cost and wasted time it takes security personnel to investigate and rectify false alarms caused by common anomalies like shadows, small animals, swaying trees and
plants, reflections and weather-related
events.
• Detection, differentiation and identification
of faces, humans, vehicles and motorcycles/ bicycles facilitate real-time identification and authentication of the subject matter. This enables security personnel to respond quickly and in the most appropriate manner to unfolding events.
• Pixilation of faces and/or human figures protects personal identities captured in scenes of interest in wide- area surveillance. This ensures privacy protection when disseminating video to aid in the search for wanted individuals or when video footage is used for forensic evidence in court. This also saves tremendous amounts of security and law enforcement personnel time from manually redacting facial images in order to best comply with the Freedom of Information Act .
• Auto adjustment of image settings, including shutter speed, auto exposure, gamma correction, and noise reduction, ensuresthattheseintelligentcamerasare always optimized to capture the highest quality images. This also increases the amount and level of metadata that can be extracted for analysis and search functions.
• Smart coding automatically adjusts video compression to help conserve bandwidth and minimize storage requirements. This allows the surveillance cameras to operate more efficiently in the background with the ability shift to low compression modes during triggered events or predetermined intervals.
• Sound classification can also be programmed to set alarms for targeted sounds like gunshots, screams or breaking glass to detect action that may be occurring outside of a camera’s field of view.
COST BENEFITS
OF AI-DRIVEN CAMERAS
By providing such an extensive range of powerful features at the edge, system
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MARCH 2022 | SECURITY TODAY
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE