Combining 24/7 Perimeter Surveillance with Powerful Video Analytics

Advancements in perimeter security cameras capture a wealth of surveillance data around the clock – but this data needs to be analyzed in order to become actionable. Bosch’s new generation of starlight cameras combines detailed 24/7 surveillance and improved light sensitivity with powerful video analytics, even at the mid-range.

In our uncertain times, the stakes for securing the perimeter of travel hubs, transportation networks and industrial areas are constantly growing. Airports pose a powerful example: Although statistics about security breaches remain closely guarded, the Associated Press recently counted 268 perimeter violations at U.S. airports since 2004. The industry is responding accordingly: The global airport security market earned revenues of $8.22 billion in 2014 and is poised to reach $12.67 billion by 2023, with camera technology as one of the main growth segments (Frost & Sullivan).

The average security operator can miss 90% of activity after viewing a screen for only 20 minutes

On a positive note, the rise of powerful, more light-sensitive cameras in larger numbers – more than 30 million surveillance cameras operating in the US alone (NBC) – adds a wealth of valuable data to the perimeter security equation. To translate into real security benefits, however, all this data requires evaluation. Keeping an eye on relevant signals is an increasingly tall order for system operators, especially because the average security operator can miss 90% of activity after viewing a screen for only 20 minutes.

In response, the industry sees the rise of intelligent devices embedded with Video Content Analysis (VCA) software. A rapid growth segment expected to reach $1303.8 million by 2019 (IHS), Video Content Analysis software helps extract relevant information from increasing feeds of data – and sound the alarm whenever customized triggers occur. Previously the domain of government and industry-level applications, these kinds of content analysis capabilities now feature in scalable applications starting at the mid-range, with the new Bosch starlight IP 6000 cameras boasting video analytics on the edge.

Clear image, actionable data

First introduced in 2012, Bosch starlight cameras deliver the highest quality video surveillance under extreme low-light conditions. Starting in June 2016, the starlight portfolio is enhanced further, with a new generation of cameras offering higher light sensitivity and dynamic ranges, as well as video analytics as built-in standard. It’s the perfect combination of powerful hardware and the latest achievement in Video Content Analysis (VCA). And for the first time, this state-of-the-art level of security is also available at the mid-range: The new DINION IP starlight 6000 fixed box cameras and FLEXIDOME IP starlight 6000 dome cameras come factory-loaded with Essential Analytics capabilities.

Looking at the complete Bosch starlight portfolio, users can choose from a variety of form factors fit for a range of applications: from fixed cameras to fixed or moving dome cameras, all the way to explosion-proof cameras or highly ruggedized moving cameras for tough conditions. All latest starlight models – including the DINION IP starlight 6000 and 7000 and the FLEXIDOME IP starlight 6000 and 7000 – live up to the starlight name by penetrating darkness like no other cameras.

Bosch starlight cameras offer sensitivities of 0.00825 lux in color and 0.00275 lux in monochrome at 1080p resolution. In other words, they provide full-color images where other cameras go monochrome, and are still capable of delivering detailed monochrome images where other cameras fail to show any image at all. This capacity – yielding detailed images from the lowest-light conditions – is matched by the capacity to select relevant information from terabytes of video data thanks to built-in video analytics.

Essential Analytics and Intelligent Video Analytics

Cutting through the clutter of video data, Bosch starlight cameras use video analytics at the edge to interpret live feeds and decide what and when to stream based on configurable triggers.

Users can choose from two levels of Bosch video analytics solutions: Essential Analytics and Intelligent Video Analytics. Essential Analytics, provided on the DINION IP starlight 6000 fixed box and FLEXIDOME IP starlight 6000 fixed dome cameras as standard, can be used for advanced intrusion detection and enforcing health and safety regulations. However, it also possesses business analytics capabilities for retail environments, such as people counting and crowd detection.

Intelligent Video Analytics delivers the required level of accuracy for mission-critical applications like perimeter protection for airports and critical infrastructures or traffic monitoring. It filters out false triggers caused by weather conditions such as heavy rain, snow and moving trees, thus minimizing costly false positives. Intelligent Video Analytics is also extremely resilient against false positives caused by shaking of the camera.

Starting in June 2016, the new DINION IP starlight 7000 and FLEXIDOME IP starlight 7000 cameras will come equipped with the latest Intelligent Video Analytics, while the IVA-equipped FLEXIDOME IP starlight 8000 is already installed at sites across the world.

Both Essential Analytics and Intelligent Video Analysis share similar user interfaces and operating environments: users can set up rules and alarm triggers via the intuitive menu, specifying exactly what event – or combination of events – will trigger an alarm. Commonly used alarm triggers, programmed via pre-set rules templates, include movement and behavior patterns, as well as objects left in the vicinity, cars blocking exits or irregular crowd activity in protected areas.

As a result, analytics provide relevant alerts and key statistics. They enhance the accuracy of the video surveillance system, provide key data for various non-security applications, and substantially reduce the margin of error that comes with time-consuming 24/7 human surveillance.

In the bigger picture, actionable data is not only key in real-time scenarios but also after the fact: Targeted access to video data may be required as part of investigations for evidence, digital forensics or identification of suspects. To this end, Bosch video analytics add sense and structure to recorded video information by adding metadata, including details on objects entering or leaving the scene like speed, direction, color and much more. Video analytics can provide event recognition metadata during playback of recorded video, even for film events not originally set up as alerts thanks to the forensic search functionality. For instance, search tags such as “red car, going 50 km/h” allow operators to reconstruct breaches and incidents as evidence from countless hours of video data.

Outlook

The future of perimeter security will be driven by a combination of advancements in camera hardware and Video Content Analysis capabilities at the edge. The latter is a deep focus for Bosch: Together with our Automotive division, we continuously evolve our advanced Essential Analytics and Intelligent Video Analytics (IVA) algorithms to deliver the most reliable and robust solutions for IP video surveillance and beyond.

Setting the course for this evolution, Bosch has future-proofed its starlight camera portfolio: The DINION IP starlight 8000 model is already in use, while the new generation of DINION and FLEXIDOME cameras starts rollout in June 2016. And that is just the beginning: At the end of 2016, all Bosch camera series IP 4000 or later will come pre-loaded with analytics at the edge at no extra price so customers can enjoy state-of-the-art video surveillance that keeps getting more evolved as technology progresses.

Meet the new starlight family – The original just got better.

Available worldwide from June 2016, the new generation of Bosch starlight cameras raises the bar for 24/7 cameras with outstanding light sensitivity and video analytics at the edge. In a number of different form factors – including fixed, moving, dome and box models – these cameras offer:

• Excellent light sensitivity. Depending on the camera model, highly detailed 1080p color images can be captured in scenes with minimum ambient light (down to 0.00825 lux) and even when light levels drop to 0.00275 lux highly detailed 1080p monochrome images can be provided.
• Various resolutions: 720p, 1080p or 5 megapixel
• Excellent dynamic ranges up to 120 dB at 60 frames per second to capture moving objects, even in the most challenging light conditions
• Built-in video analytics capabilities at no extra price (either choose Essential Analytics or Intelligent Video Analytics depending on the application)
• Customizable alerts, triggers, security protocols