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Autonomous surveillance from Viasys

Late last year we saw the launch of Viasys Intelligent Video Analytics in South Africa, a company focused on embedded, plug-in video analytics. The company has recently announced a new self-sufficient product aimed at intelligent intrusion detection even without an electrical supply, as well as a further commitment to the local market.

The new product from Viasys is an autonomous pole with UMTS/3G network transmission. The solution is aimed at perimeter security using thermal imaging cameras. The intelligence built into the Viasys solution provides visual perimeter security with fewer false alarms due to the intelligence in Viasys’ embedded analytic engine.

Current motion detection products aimed at visual verification on the perimeter will not perform optimally in outdoor environments and will transmit too many images, consume too much bandwidth and occupy too much of the resources in the monitoring centre. 3D motion detection from Viasys reduces the false alarm rate by up to 95% compared with 2D motion detection and therewith enables economical service calculation.

The new system offers detection at a distance of up to 180 metres and reduces the influence of environmental false alarms from reflections or moving branches etc.

A winning feature of the autonomous pole is that it comes with a solar power generator to top up the built-in batteries. Designed in Europe where the sun isn’t always as bright as it is in Africa, the system can run for 48 hours on battery power alone.

The cellular connection allows for alarms to be raised as soon as an event is detected by the Viasys software, sending low-bandwidth images to a control room for visual verification. The system is widely used in solar parks in Europe, where it has proved its worth in remote locations.

When an alarm is raised, the signal is sent to a designated control room, or in the case of a single channel, to a designated individual’s computer or even a mobile phone. A decision can then be made on the visual evidence as to what the next step should be.

Delivering the smallest and fastest video content analytics algorithm, Viasys is able to run on limited CPU and RAM platforms, e.g. Quad core with 100+ channels. Viasys has three options:

a. Edge analytics (on the camera/encoder).

b. Server-based analytics.

c. Cloud-based analytics.

For multi-camera installations, the signals can be sent through the Viasys cloud-based control room, a new offering that allows for remote monitoring services from anywhere in the world. Of course, users can install the management software on their own infrastructure and monitor it locally. In these cases, where the client chooses to install its own pole, Viasys supplies the solar panel, power converter / battery charger, batteries, cameras, video server (for analogue cameras), analytical server and a router/3G modem.

In the near future, we expect to see further commitment to South Africa from Viasys, which we will report on in a future issue.

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