Whilst there are some who believe that security is and always will be a grudge purchase, installers and integrators who are looking towards innovative solutions are aware that end users will invest in solutions which deliver real benefits. One of these is business intelligence.
As the use of video content analysis becomes more widespread, there are a growing army of manufacturers looking to build the functionality into devices. Whilst there are some very good basic VCA options available, there are also many that leave much to be desired.
VCA is not easy to do well, and often the various rules use very different algorithms and as such demand different considerations. Therefore when a manufacturer wants to load a device up with as many rules as possible, the odds are that something isn’t going to work as well as you might hope.
People counting is often considered as something which is added on as a last thought. However, the reality is that people counting – and the various ways in which the data can be utilised – represents real value for end users. FoxCounter from Foxstream Intelligence Video is a dedicated counting module, and can be loaded to Samsung and Axis cameras.
People counting can be a gimmick if – and it’s an important if – it doesn’t work very well. Sadly, all too often when people counting is bundled with a number of VCA rules it can be found wanting. Benchmark has tested devices with accuracy levels of around 10 per cent in the past.
When people counting is done properly, it delivers a host of security, safety and business intelligence benefits. At its simplest, it can be used to manage occupancy of areas. It will also report upon flow rates, and reports can be generated to indicate trends that can significantly impact upon the management of a site.
Operators of sites open to public, licensed premises, retail establishments, transportation and the like can all benefit from accurate counting and flow management. If a system simply displays a claimed number, it’s not going to cut mustard, but if it can deliver reports on a variety of the mentioned issues, then it will be of value to the user, and so is certainly not a gimmick.
FoxCounter is a high performance counting application which can be used to report on attendance figures, identifying times of high and low footfall. It can also deliver real-time updates with regard to site occupation, and reports can be generated hourly, daily, weekly or monthly.
Reporting can be gathered from multiple devices, using a single interface. It can deliver bi-directional tracking when used with a ceiling-mounted camera, and is resilient to issues caused by changes in ambient lighting and site conditions.
It can handle multiple simultaneous transactions, and when embedded on a suitable device can operate without network connectivity, storing data until a network link is established.