– Wilfried, you are an authoritative expert in the field of transport security, so let's start the conversation with this topic.
Let's do it, but you need to understand that our company produces network video cameras. We do not supply comprehensive solutions.
But, naturally, our products are an important part of any installation and implementation of comprehensive solutions.
This is especially true for the transport sector. Today, many of our cameras have been installed at such facilities as railway stations and airports. The next logical step is to install video cameras on rolling stock: buses, train cars, ambulances, police cars, taxis.
I would like to note that such systems are in great demand today in Europe, where public transport operators are interested in creating not only the most comfortable, but also safe conditions for public transport users.
– How can such a solution be implemented?
Let's take a bus, for example. Video cameras are installed inside the bus, as well as outside the vehicle. Video information received from the cameras is transmitted to the central monitoring station via wireless channels.
The situation in such a bus is under constant control.
In addition to security measures, the system can be used to control the entry and exit of passengers, check tickets.
In addition, the system has extensive multimedia capabilities. It provides broadcasting of almost any information needed by passengers, including entertainment programs and advertising.
On the way, anyone can use the Internet.
Cameras installed outside constantly transmit information about the situation on the streets along which the bus moves to the central station.
Operators thus receive a fairly complete picture.
By the way, such systems can be used for urban video surveillance.
Cameras installed on moving vehicles complement stationary cameras quite successfully.
And using GPS together with video surveillance allows you to determine the location of a vehicle at any time with maximum accuracy.
That is, any alarm signal can be positioned very precisely.
What I have told you is by no means a picture of the future. Such systems already exist.
– How difficult is the installation of such systems?
Installing video surveillance systems is generally a difficult thing, especially if these works are carried out outdoors. The most important thing is to choose the right cameras.
Often, the efficiency of the system depends primarily not on how many cameras are installed.
Anyone who thinks that there should be as many cameras in the system as possible is very much mistaken.
The main thing, I repeat, is to choose the cameras that are needed specifically at this facility and install them correctly.
Only in this case can you expect to receive a truly high-quality image. This is especially important if there is a need to identify a person, to understand exactly what actions he or she performed.
In this regard, video analytics is a very important area.
– Wilfried, you touched on a topic that Russian experts discussed at the traditional TZ round table. The report is published in this issue.
I will definitely take a look when the magazine comes out.
Unfortunately, I don’t know yet what exactly my Russian colleagues were talking about, but I think my opinion will not be dissonant.
So, when talking about video analytics, it is important to be realistic.
This means, first of all, a real understanding of what video analytics can do today.
The most common mistake of potential users and not very well-trained installers is to believe what they see on TV. In fact, the capabilities of video analytics are still very limited.
For example, if you want to find a terrorist, you need to have at least a very good and complete database of high-quality photographs of terrorists. And still, hoping for help from video analytics is, to put it mildly, naive.
Especially if the system works outdoors.
There are many difficulties in obtaining a high-quality image in systems operating outdoors.
For example, shadows cast by trees and buildings. During the day, the level of illumination changes, and quite quickly. And it can be very difficult to see the area where the shadows intersect. And how can you identify a specific person in such a situation?
And finding him in a crowd is even more difficult. Often impossible.
That is why the correct installation is important, in the process of which all environmental factors are taken into account as much as possible.
For example, how people move, what should be considered normal behavior, and what is not in line with the norm.
If you install video surveillance at a stadium, you need to monitor the entire facility not only during the match, but also at night, so that you have material for comparison.
– In connection with the recent terrorist attack on the Moscow-St. Petersburg railway, many Russian experts are debating the possibility of organizing track security using technical means.
This is a very complex task. To solve it, it will most likely be necessary to use several different technologies in combination. Perhaps it is worth starting with installing cameras directed outward, outside the trains.
This will be the basis of the future complex system. Then gradually it will be possible to develop the infrastructure, installing cameras along the entire length of the track. Focusing first on the main points most likely to be used by terrorists, then along the entire length of the track.
Thermal imaging cameras will definitely be needed.
You also need to think about the location of the cameras to eliminate the possibility of their theft, for example, mount them as high as possible.
And then, the video camera itself will not stop the intruder, which means you also need response teams.
Creating such an infrastructure is extremely difficult and very expensive.
– Is there similar experience in the West?
I am not aware of any examples of such large-scale projects. Light metro and tram lines are protected by video surveillance systems, but only within populated areas.
– What, in your opinion, are the main unresolved problems of video analytics?
There are two.
The first is identifying a person by face. This video analytics function works only to a very limited extent. There are too many conditions for obtaining a high-quality image: constant lighting (which is only possible indoors), the presence of a very high-quality database.
It is impossible to find a person by means of video surveillance using a photofit. And people can easily change their appearance.
So far, developers have not been able to fully solve this problem. It is not a fact that it can be solved in principle.
The second aspect: human behavior analysis.
It is very difficult to determine what behavior is normal and what is alarming.
This can be a difficult task even for a very well-trained and experienced police officer, and teaching this to a video surveillance system is a hundred times more difficult.
And you also need to clearly understand what can be considered video analytics and what is simple manipulation.
A banal motion detector, if it is not able to work in the most difficult conditions, at any time of the day, can hardly be called video analytics.