In the video surveillance industry, AI or smart surveillance cameras are among the fastest-growing markets.
Unset Standards
In the absence of standards or proof, there is no way of knowing what cameras are truly intelligent. With that being said, if a company claims to have an AI or smart camera, there is no guarantee that what they are offering is actually an AI or smart surveillance system.
Video Motion Detection or VMD
VMD is a feature that some cameras use to detect motion, however, it is not artificial intelligence despite some companies describing it as such. When used in some scenes that are very still, VMD enables the camera to correctly detect that no motion or individuals were present. Unfortunately one of the downsides is that VMD easily creates false triggers. VMD is typically inexpensive and analyses pixel change from different frames to detect movement.
Filters / Options for VMD
Several filters or options were added to the cameras to help eliminate false alarms while minimizing the computation and cost of performing analytics, which include:
- Number of Changes
- Length of Time
- Proportions of Movement
AI Verses VMD Object Recognition
Using analytics, VMD attempts to determine which movements are actual, such as gauging people of certain sizes and cars moving for an extended time. On average VMD systems are able to correctly determine 6 out of 10 events accurately. However, with that being said there is still a large area of error. True AI or smart cameras are able to effectively ask each object they perceive, “Is it a person, a car, a bicycle, a gun?” or a number of other options.
This is achieved through specific training used to improve the camera’s algorithms. This training process is automatic and allows the camera to analyze a large number of objects and memorize certain traits to better categorize items. AI or smart cameras take this a step further by understanding subcategories. For example they are able to register vehicles as trucks, cars, SUVs or buses. However, this is not yet completely accurate and still has trouble classifying males, females, children as well as other areas.
There are a small number of AI or smart cameras that continue to learn after they are installed, however most are pre-trained and will not update their analytics over time.
If you are looking to add new security features into your business, like VMD or Smart Cameras let RC Security help. Our continued research and partnerships with premium brands allow us to offer better quality every time.
