Trends in the development of video surveillance systems

Machine vision

Main article Video analysis (machine vision)

Machine vision technology is successfully used at production facilities. The term "machine vision" means computer processing of video information obtained from surveillance cameras. The technology allows you to automate some aspects of production, in particular, to monitor the quantity, quality and location of objects, while automatically reading information from various labels.

The system, which operates on the basis of machine vision algorithms, primarily includes an image capture detector and an image analysis and processing detector, which in production conditions makes it possible to solve an extremely wide range of problems. Today, both two-dimensional and three-dimensional machine vision systems are used, processing images obtained from a stereo pair of video cameras. The principles and algorithms used in machine vision systems have also found application in facial recognition systems.

Today, video surveillance systems allow you to automatically solve many problems without human participation. This can be a simple detection of movement in the observation area, and a high-precision counting of passing cars or past people. For production facilities, video surveillance is primarily the provision of safety and control of automated technological processes. With their help, it is possible to protect equipment and territory, monitor the production process to prevent and eliminate possible problems or prevent incorrect actions of employees that entail damage, monitor the implementation of safety rules, monitor the movement of goods, enter and exit vehicles and even analyze the effectiveness of personnel.

The most popular places for installing video cameras are office and warehouse premises, production workshops, loading and unloading areas, as well as checkpoints and parking areas. The use of video surveillance in places where access is difficult, for example, in remote fields, is especially effective. Here you can remotely control complex automated technological processes and in the event of a breakdown or other force majeure, take appropriate measures in time, without allowing a serious failure.

Control and analysis

The development of intelligent functions of video surveillance systems, namely video analytics, opens up a number of wide and often simply unique opportunities for their use in production. Intelligent elements built into the video surveillance system and operating in automatic mode, allow you not only to observe the events and collect them in the archive, but also notify the operator of various incidents, distinguish the person in the frame from other objects and give a signal about the presence of strangers in a certain area or implement any other sequences of actions in accordance with the analysis of the video image coming from the cameras. Thus, the use of video detectors greatly simplifies the control of the production process at various facilities of the enterprise and contributes to the efficient operation of the entire production.

2023: Integrating artificial intelligence into video surveillance makes these systems truly "smart"

An expert in the field of video surveillance and video analytics Igor Zimin spoke in December 2023 about the ability of domestic business to follow in line with global trends and whether the Russian market will cope with the consequences of the departure of leading Western companies. Read more here.

2022: Video surveillance and video analytics move towards cloud architecture

On February 7, 2022, IDC announced that, with the support of Ivideon, it had prepared a report on the development of video surveillance and analytics technologies and their demand among Russian companies. The study showed that cloud services, whose market grew by 29.9% in 2020, will give video analytics new opportunities for development in the future. Read more here.

2019: Axis Communications: Trends in CCTV and cyber security

Leveraging cloud and edge computing to maximize efficiency

Cloud computing relies on data centers. With the significant growth of connected devices and the expansion of the Internet of Things, the amount of data they produce is also growing. Even creating additional data centers and increasing their capacity does not eliminate the risk of system failures and overloads, which is especially important to consider in areas such as video surveillance, where a large amount of memory is required to store information.

Therefore, Axis Communications recommends, in addition to the cloud, using peripheral computing, which allows you to take data processing processes to the "periphery" of the network, close to the data collection point by the sensor and before transferring them to the data center - in the field of video surveillance, this means that data processing takes place in the video camera itself.

Personalization and Privacy Are a Valuable New Business Resource

In 2018, the topic of protecting confidential information and personal data was especially acute. Using services such as Facebook and Google makes life easier and allows you to personalize the content you receive in exchange for information about the user - date of birth, hobbies or geoposition. In the field of video surveillance, cameras allow access to a huge amount of confidential information, and it is extremely important for companies to comply with all regulations on its use.

The importance of trust between the company and its clients is constantly growing and has already become a new business asset: a study by the consulting company Accenture, published in October 2018, showed that there is a correlation between customer trust and the company's profit

Cybersecurity: Focus on the supply chain

The problem of network security will never lose its relevance, since cybercriminals do not abandon their attempts to find vulnerabilities. Cyber ​ ​ attacks are becoming more sophisticated, and the number of potential vulnerabilities and unreliable endpoints of web services is increasing exponentially. In the field of video surveillance, this issue is a priority: the lives of people and the safety of material assets depend on the reliability of security systems.

The supply chain has become the most vulnerable link in business processes in recent months. An insufficiently reliable network security system and external attacks can lead to a malfunction of both software and hardware. Therefore, the issue of the origin of products is critical, and manufacturers must be sure that each link in their supply chain is reliably protected.

Ecology and modern technology: smart sensors to protect the environment

The business already uses video analysis features to plan and manage office energy, which has a positive impact on the environment. However, new types of "smart" sensors significantly increase not only the accuracy of measurements, but also have a number of new capabilities: for example, they can analyze air quality or identify zones with irrational energy use using thermal images. It is such technologies that will play a central role in solving the problem of environmental pollution around the world: for example, sensors installed on the streets will allow monitoring air quality and thus reduce the negative impact of smog and exhaust on the health of city residents.

The use of smart technologies will help businesses and government organizations improve their energy efficiency, reduce costs, and achieve their goals for environmental protection and sustainable development.

A combination of sensors to make smart decisions

The use of high-tech sensors in itself is beneficial, but in 2019 there was a new trend: sensors can be combined and combined to perform "smart" actions. For example, in a smart city system, an environmental sensor can launch a video or thermal imaging camera to quickly detect fires or leaks, which in turn activates an alarm if necessary. Sensors can measure many parameters - weather, heat, movement, volume and their combinations open up endless opportunities for companies.

2016: "Vokord": CCTV trends

The main trend is the technical improvement of already established product lines: many offers of high-resolution cameras and an excellent picture. Special cameras, for example, capable of seeing in the dark, at a great distance, and at the same time produce a high-quality color image. Hybrid solutions - cameras combined with radars for early detection of objects approaching the protected area^[1].

At the same time, VMS software or simply video surveillance software as a topic moved away from the exhibition grounds, in fact, taking for granted a factor. Moreover, some solutions in this area can simply be found and downloaded on the Internet. And indeed, in our time, if you can surprise the market with something in the segment of video surveillance software, then, probably, something really complex, say, analytical detectors, triggered by observing a certain logic in the observed picture.

There is a breakthrough in the market for access control and control systems. Boom in the field of combining traditional MCDS systems with biometrics, namely cooperative face recognition. Signs of the upcoming explosive growth of this segment are evident: cooperative recognition technologies are mature enough for mass distribution (the accuracy and speed of recognition are quite adequate to the task), while manufacturers appear who are ready to present a finished solution ready for installation. The principle of operation of cooperative systems is simple: a person approaches an access control device with a built-in camera, looks into it and waits for a few seconds for the system to process the image, and then gives the command to skip or reject the request. At the same time, there are still problems associated with the traditional inconveniences of using cooperative systems - it is necessary to withstand the requirements for lighting and angle, and, the most important problem, speed - remain characteristic of such systems. The best representatives show a result of 3-7 seconds. For proactive systems of non-operative recognition, such indicators are unacceptable.

We can say that there have been several trends, the development of which will clearly divide the market into several segments, and possibly in the very near future. It is clear that new niche solutions have also appeared. The first of them are precisely the MCDS of cooperative recognition, which is important for the very fact of detection and is not at all important for speed. They are likely to occupy the niche of consumer goods. It will be a separate market - it already has its own players - and such products will receive distribution no less than ordinary intercoms. A kind of boxed product for everyone and everyone.

The second distinguishable trend is biometric non-operative recognition (when a person does not interact with the system). Such recognition can become a long-playing trend in ensuring the safety of objects with large flows of people (stations, stadiums, exhibitions, etc.), since they can already be used to create proactive solutions to prevent emergencies.

Here it is necessary to clarify one point that ordinary people may not notice: three tasks cannot be confused - face highlighting in the picture (face detector), cooperative recognition (MCDS) and non-operative recognition in the stream. Facial allocation is a separate product area. It has already been implemented in the solutions on the market, and will be improved in the future. It will undoubtedly be used on social networks. Let's say someone suddenly wants to figure out how many people on the planet look like him, and which Hollywood star they all look like together.

Interesting is the development of technologies in the third segment: in non-cooperative biometric face recognition. These are top-order systems, and they are used to solve more serious and complex problems, where high reliability and speed of face recognition are needed. Here, the trends are shifting from retrospective analysis to preventive measures so that security services receive a warning from systems about the detection of "dangerous" citizens, when such a citizen is still only on the way to a protected facility.

Few manufacturers today can supply such highly intelligent systems. Although modern technology makes it possible to obtain a high-quality image in unfavorable conditions, this is completely insufficient for reliable face detection. Recognition algorithms are needed here, and the main global trends are just aimed at improving them. Technologies become better, the processing speed increases, and thereby the soil is prepared to expand their application.

Non-cooperative biometric face recognition systems have been successfully used for marketing analytics in retail, for example.

Heavy universal and wildly expensive solutions become uninteresting. The market itself was divided into several segments. These directions do not intersect with each other, and are in demand by completely different consumers. An interesting trend follows from all this: system integrators now prefer individual niche solutions. But the number of large players who offer the market high-precision biometric recognition in non-cooperative conditions remained the same. Here, our technology and products are some of the best in the world (without false modesty).

This fully applies to our hardware and software traffic control systems. If we objectively assess the capabilities of automatic traffic control systems, then the fundamental difference between our systems is that they record the entire flow, and not just violators. Moreover, weather and lighting conditions, in which our complexes for recognizing car numbers are worked out by five points, an order of magnitude higher than foreign analogues.

2011: IMS Research: Surveillance trends

Wireless Urban Video Surveillance

Their popularity will increase taking into account several factors: firstly, the lower cost of infrastructure, compared to the traditional construction of communications, and secondly, the possibility of use in culturally significant areas, for example, in an urban historical center. Economic conditions also play into the hands of wireless video surveillance as a more flexible solution: moving cameras to another object in some cases seems more profitable than buying new^[2]

Safe City Systems is the most dynamic vertical market for wireless video surveillance. It is also used to transmit on-line video from police cars to control centers. Such a connection between mobile and stationary points can significantly help law enforcement officers.

Analysts consider the competence of system integrators to be the only possible problem for this market sector, but predict that over time more companies will begin to engage in wireless video surveillance technologies.

HD CCTV will occupy its niche in 2011

The HD CCTV Alliance, formed in 2009 to develop an open standard for high-definition video surveillance, includes companies that develop and manufacture packaged equipment. It is expected that in 2011, with their help, different brands of video surveillance products will begin delivering HD solutions.

The use of coaxial cable for image transmission in HD CCTV makes it possible to assume that high-definition video surveillance products will occupy their niche when upgrading video surveillance systems at facilities with existing infrastructure.

In 2010, there was a significant increase in the supply of HD- and megapixel cameras. The need for high-definition video surveillance will allow you to maintain such positions in 2010, with an advantage towards HD, since it is this technology that allows you to achieve high image resolution, but not to such a level when image storage and transfer become impossible. IMS Research predicts that by 2015, more than 60% of all cameras shipped will be HD and megapixel.

CCTV as a service

The emergence of the concept of "video surveillance as a service," based on cloud data processing, in 2010 aroused interest among video surveillance companies. The ability to remotely access video, ease of connection and the relatively low cost of the system will be factors in the growth of this market segment in 2011.

Analysts at IMS Research predict that Video Surveillance as a Service has a higher potential in certain applications, for example, if the customer needs to observe a large number of facilities with two to three cameras on each (retail, oil platforms, electrical substations.)

In order to go beyond small installations and overcome the dominance of analog systems and DVRs, companies providing "Video Surveillance as a Service" are advised to include in user applications also the ability to manage power consumption and sales points, home automation and access control systems.

Video Analytics: New Markets

Although there was no expected growth in the video analytics segment in 2010, IMS Research predicts new opportunities for this segment. They are mostly outside the traditional use of video analytics in security systems. Thus, it is assumed that video analytics can be used in the automotive sector, in defense, medicine, commerce and video advertising. For example, by the posture and gait of the driver, the video surveillance system can recognize drowsiness, and in the case of video advertising, it can determine some personal characteristics of people in order to display consumer-oriented ads. Although the use of video analytics in all these markets is still in its infancy, the possibilities for vendors of such products on them are indisputable.

HD to 3D

Could 3D, as in its time HD, be the next hot trend in the video surveillance industry? In 2010, the first examples of using 3D technology for video surveillance appeared, and at ASIS 2010 several vendors presented products for 3D video surveillance. But are the real benefits behind these new developments?

The main advantage of this technology is that it gives a new dimension, and thus allows you to create more accurate algorithms for analytics. A good example is the distinction between planar and volumetric objects: by being able to measure depth, one can distinguish a shadow from the object itself. However, IMS Research does not support the idea of ​ ​ widespread 3D technology among vendors and consumers. The main deterrents are high price, lack of support and technological conservatism. However, many manufacturers will begin experimenting with 3D technology.

2011: a turning point for IP video surveillance

Although the speed of development of IP-video surveillance technology is not in doubt, the question remains open: when will sales in this sector exceed sales of analog products? There is no exact answer to this question. Globally, this turnaround is unlikely to take place until 2015. Although for the American continent they name a different date - 2013, and for the European region - 2012. It is predicted that IP sales on the Russian market will exceed analog equipment sales in 2011.

There are differences in different applications: for example, in airports, ports and urban infrastructure, IP video surveillance is expected to prevail by 2012; in the educational sphere, this result was achieved back in 2010, but in retail and the banking sector there is a noticeable lag.

The main recommendation given by IMS Research analysts to popularize IP technology is to increase awareness, both for consumers and for system integrators. Since cost is often a decisive factor in choosing a system, you can expand the circle of consumers by reducing equipment prices and introducing alternative business models (for example, Video Surveillance as a Service).

Warming in the thermal imager market

The use of thermal imagers for video surveillance to protect important facilities such as airports, nuclear power plants, gas pipelines, state borders is quite a familiar phenomenon. The 2010 innovation was a new technology for thermal imagers, which allowed many vendors to develop them. This trend will continue in 2011. It is expected that prices for thermal imagers will be significantly reduced due to new technologies that will reduce the use of expensive materials.

At the same time, it is also expected that due to the growth in demand for thermal imagers and the expansion of sales markets, companies that previously produced these products will be able to avoid direct competition with new vendors.

1960: Video surveillance in "Crocodile" magazine

Magazine "Crocodile," No. 11, USSR April 1960.

1956: Video cameras on the streets of Hamburg

The next step in the development of video surveillance was taken by the Germans. In 1956, video cameras appeared on the streets of Hamburg - with their help, the police could monitor traffic on the street and control traffic lights. And four years later, the Frankfurt am Main police began to use the first automatic system for photographing traffic violations at traffic lights. Following Germany, the novelty was also appreciated in the UK. Here the cameras began to be used not only to control traffic, but also to ensure no danger in public places. In turn, the Americans were the first to adapt video systems to protect commercial premises from robbers. The first security television system cost businessmen $1.4 million at the 1968 rate.

Early video surveillance systems only allowed viewing images from cameras, and recording was possible in manual mode at the command of the operator. Continuous recording did not appear until the 1970s. And a decade later, video surveillance systems began to actively implement digital signal processing, which ultimately significantly expanded their functionality.

1949: George Orwell "1984" and the first commercial system in the United States

In 1949, George Orwell published the fantasy novel 1984, in which, in the darkest colors, he described the massive use of video surveillance to control human behavior. Since then, humanity has become convinced that, like any other scientific and technical invention, video surveillance can be "both poison and medicine." It all depends on the method of application. So, for example, at production facilities, where control and security are of fundamental importance, video surveillance becomes, if not a panacea, then, at least, the need for^[3].

It is not known whether this is a coincidence, or whether the author of the book was aware of the news of science, but the first commercial video surveillance system Vericon was released in the United States in 1949. The developers called the use of wires instead of radio waves the main advantage of the system and, as a result, referred to the lack of need to obtain permits for the use of this system.

See also

• Video Surveillance Systems Product and Project Catalog
• Video surveillance (Russian market)
• Video Surveillance (Global Market)
• Trends in the development of video surveillance systems
• Video Surveillance as a Service - Video Surveillance as a Service, VSaaS
• Video surveillance systems: Design features of cameras
• How to competently choose video surveillance cameras
• Video analytics
• 10 Ways to Boost Revenue with Hidden Video Surveillance
• IP video surveillance by retailers for security and theft prevention
• MCDS Access Control and Control Systems
• Biometric identification
• Video analytics (machine vision)