Even as Summer closes, neighborhood and apartment swimming pools and related facilities face break-ins and the associated liabilities such as trespassing, vandalism and etc. Perhaps even more risky is the fact that in the case especially of children and teenagers who decide to sneak past your perimeter can cause a legal suit for you to deal with should they injure themselves.
We have discussed the Videofied platform before in this blog. A series of wireless IP cameras, motion detectors, sirens, and a 4G modem to communicate in the event of a wifi outage are considered the core components to a system.
This “wireless, cordless, and weatherproof security system, Videofied has proven to be an excellent candidate for a large variety of outdoor applications,” and now features the new “Look-in” smartphone app management, as well as video alarm transmission that is now faster than it has ever been previously.
Videofied provides a quicker police response to real crimes than human operators are able to filter out false alarms. This is because Videofied has what is known as a “Video Verified” system of human operators who dispatch police for burglars and break-ins, but do not summon police by accident when a stray cat or shadow crosses the camera’s view.
The IP cameras used for outdoor operations are weatherproof and sturdier than their indoor counterparts. Skilled installation can cover a surprisingly large outdoor area by using fully integral combinations of indoor and outdoor IP cameras, optional outdoor and indoor sirens, and motion detectors. Smoke detectors and a unique device called the “Outdoor Visual Verification Detection OMV-VX” are also available. All of these device link via Wifi to a central control panel, but the system can also be monitored and interacted with via the phone app.
When you are securing a pool, Videofied often makes the most sense because of the portability, weather hardiness, and the ability to do things like sound or not sound alarms, depending upon whether you want to just scare off the intruders, or silently have police come to catch them in the act. While this is certainly not the only way to secure a pool environment, it does offer in-suite access control ability through the use of key-fobs, quality video, and the quickest response times in the industry while reducing or eliminating the false alarm rate.
Security Technology of South Texas, Inc. has completed several such projects and our technicians have the skill and confidence to build the last system you will ever need to protect your neighborhood or apartment pool complex.
For more information or to schedule an appointment, please contact us at 210-446-4863 or email admin@gostst.com .
Frontsteps HOA Solutions
/in Access Control, Community Security, Home Security /by Evan YoungmanSecurity Technology of South Texas, Inc. is pleased to announce a new marketing partnership with Frontsteps, the nation’s leader in HOA management and security automation. Fronsteps solutions for HOA and Condo communities feature all encompassing protection of residents and community assets via cloud-based security. In the cloud is stored vast amounts of data, keeping residents in the loop and assisting in their ability to self-serve, reducing the cost of employee overhead. Efficiency is improved by streamlining procedures and allowing workflow automation from a single dashboard interface. Here we will take a look at what makes Frontsteps an ideal solution for home owners associations in both condominium settings and communities of houses.
Frontsteps’ HOA solutions are a turnkey, singular answer to the needs of an HOA. The centerpiece of the solution is the centralized dashboard which allows residents to manage their maintenance requests, access documents from the cloud, and view calendar events, among other things. Email, text, and voice newsfeeds keep residents informed en masse with just a single log-in. Automated workflows allow the HOA to run more efficiently and hold on to more time in the day.
Equally important are the security solutions built into the system. Visitor management is a critical component of any large-scale security operation in a residential setting. Visitor entry is expedited with gated, guarded, and lobby-attended communities. Cars can be processed quickly and residents are notified through the system of guest arrivals. Residents manage their guest lists through the cloud using the app. If human guards are employed, they are aided by the ability to scan mobile passes and guest IDs. This logs the activity and sends guests quickly on their way.
Access control involved the monitoring of an unlimited amount of doors, entry points, and vehicle gates in real time. The software integrates with existing system infrastructure. This can include “clickers, key fobs, proxy cards, [and] vehicle transponders” (frontsteps.com) which gives another layer of security for community assets. This web-based system is backed with local storage, allowing admins to view status and connectivity of hardware in real time. Doors can be unlocked remotely and all transactions monitored. In this way, guards and admins can know who accessed a facility and when, improving incident reporting. Another high-tech feature is license plate recognition. In seconds, visitor and resident license plates are identified and logged into the system with entry either being approved or denied. Camera integration protects assets and residents through cloud-based surveillance camera integration. Again, existing infrastructure can be integrated here.
A key aspect of Frontsteps solution is “Mobile Patrol”. The fully mobile application allows security admins instant access “to patrol status updates and critical information, like incident reports and messaging.” (Frontsteps.com) Guards can give live updates in just seconds and share information for different checkpoints along a given patrol route. GPS GeoTagging assists in this process. This vastly improves the productivity and accountability of security staff as they must check in to their patrol checkpoints.
Security Technology of South Texas is happy to offer custom access control and surveillance solutions to the HOA market, designed either turn-key and from the ground up, or integrated into an already existing series of cameras.
Please contact us through email at admin@gostst.com on our website or via phone at 210-446-4863 24/7 to schedule a consultation.
Using Deep Learning Algorithms to Recognize Individual Faces
/in Business Security, Education /by Evan YoungmanFinding a particular face in a crowd is something human minds have difficulty doing in settings much larger than a café. We are able to use context clues in such a setting, like a friend waving their arm or a table with just one person sitting at it. But in something more akin to a major league sports event with 40 thousand people such a task is impossible. Technology which can “fast-track” through massive amounts of data (hours of surveillance video with changing lighting and moving crowds) is now increasingly in demand. Facial recognition allows alerts to be sent out when a specific individual(s) enters a location and helps in post-event investigations as it can identify and track the movements of an individual.
As we have investigated previously, Deep Learning algorithms are the go to solution for these types of tasks. These are the same algorithms used in everything from predictive advertising, crime prediction, and chess/game playing software. Yet facial recognition is uniquely complex and comes with its own host of challenges. Pouring through vast amounts of data or trying to connect old images to the current appearance of an individual is just the beginning, but can still paralyze standard surveillance systems unable to make sense of the information. System hardware is simply too slowed down with the sheer volume of data necessary to perform the tasks needed. Furthermore, traditional “intelligent video” needs a consistent and stable background. It is for these reasons and more that this new, smarter breed of facial recognition is the future of video surveillance.
Something we have not looked at before in our “Security News” section are the two key steps of facial recognition algorithms; “Feature Extraction” and “Classification Learning”, defined briefly below.
Classification Learning makes use of so-called “shallow” learning and analysis; the kind used in old intelligent video solutions.
Feature Extraction sets the new technology apart from the old. This is where human design of features allow the system to perform adequately in specific environments even with subtle changes in background and lighting. However, this brings about some degree of sacrifice in accuracy.
Employing Deep Learning in these tasks improves the accuracy of facial recognition to a significant degree. This is due to a greatly more sophisticated and modern algorithmic structure that more closely resembles human learning. The layers of such a program can reach above 100, permitting data processing in huge amounts and of increased complexity. Like the human learning around which it was designed, Deep Learning uses “layer by layer” feature-extraction processes. With each layer comes a different “weight”, which directly impacts what the program will learn about the components of visual data.
Because Deep Learning works alone and without human intervention, it can extract as many of these features as possible, even if they are abstract or even impossible to describe. Features like this are why the programmers of these systems often cannot explains how their software was able to learn something new. The code is simply too abstract. With more features comes greater accuracy. Through these means, facial recognition above human levels can be achieved, and in a tiny fraction of the time.
High level facial recognition of this caliber improves both security and investigation and has applications extending into many different industries. Banks, shops, hotels, and even bars and nightclubs all stand to benefit. Finding a face in a crowd of people almost instantly will only increase in demand in the near future.
Security Technology of South is proud to offer integration of this service and custom solutions for any and all security needs. Please contact us through email at admin@gostst.com on our website or via phone at 210-446-4863 24/7
Videofied for HOAs
/in Access Control, Community Security, Education /by Evan YoungmanEven as Summer closes, neighborhood and apartment swimming pools and related facilities face break-ins and the associated liabilities such as trespassing, vandalism and etc. Perhaps even more risky is the fact that in the case especially of children and teenagers who decide to sneak past your perimeter can cause a legal suit for you to deal with should they injure themselves.
We have discussed the Videofied platform before in this blog. A series of wireless IP cameras, motion detectors, sirens, and a 4G modem to communicate in the event of a wifi outage are considered the core components to a system.
This “wireless, cordless, and weatherproof security system, Videofied has proven to be an excellent candidate for a large variety of outdoor applications,” and now features the new “Look-in” smartphone app management, as well as video alarm transmission that is now faster than it has ever been previously.
Videofied provides a quicker police response to real crimes than human operators are able to filter out false alarms. This is because Videofied has what is known as a “Video Verified” system of human operators who dispatch police for burglars and break-ins, but do not summon police by accident when a stray cat or shadow crosses the camera’s view.
The IP cameras used for outdoor operations are weatherproof and sturdier than their indoor counterparts. Skilled installation can cover a surprisingly large outdoor area by using fully integral combinations of indoor and outdoor IP cameras, optional outdoor and indoor sirens, and motion detectors. Smoke detectors and a unique device called the “Outdoor Visual Verification Detection OMV-VX” are also available. All of these device link via Wifi to a central control panel, but the system can also be monitored and interacted with via the phone app.
When you are securing a pool, Videofied often makes the most sense because of the portability, weather hardiness, and the ability to do things like sound or not sound alarms, depending upon whether you want to just scare off the intruders, or silently have police come to catch them in the act. While this is certainly not the only way to secure a pool environment, it does offer in-suite access control ability through the use of key-fobs, quality video, and the quickest response times in the industry while reducing or eliminating the false alarm rate.
Security Technology of South Texas, Inc. has completed several such projects and our technicians have the skill and confidence to build the last system you will ever need to protect your neighborhood or apartment pool complex.
For more information or to schedule an appointment, please contact us at 210-446-4863 or email admin@gostst.com .
Avigilon Announces Their Next Generation of Advanced AI Cameras
/in Smart Security, Video Surveillance /by Evan YoungmanAvigilon has recently announced what they call a “next generation” AI capable camera system. Called the “H5 Smart Camera”, this technology makes use of Deep Neural Networks built into the devices themselves to provide the ability to learn, detect, and notify for events requiring investigation. So called “deep learning” or “deep neural networks” are the same type of AI tech used in the AI operations of companies like Google and Amazon. Deep learning AI works by sorting through massive amounts of data, the more the better, and modifying its own code based on what the program sees. Google’s “Watson” is a famous example of this kind of software, and gained public exposure when it defeated the world’s top player of “Jeopardy”. Deep learning was also used in the software that established computer’s as the top “players” of Go, a chess-like strategy game which is well known for its highly technical play and difficulty.
Avigilon is working with Intel, a leader in the emerging AI marketplace. Intel’s “Movidius” VPUs allow for power-efficient acceleration of hardware in deep neural networks. These networks are inspired by and in some ways modeled from the way that biological systems (brains and central nervous systems) process and interpret information. Intel believes this technology will “usher in a new generation of video analytics capabilities with deep learning approaches” (avigilon.com). The H5 camera line uses these AI facilities to develop more sophisticated event detection and automatic notifications. The cameras are to be displayed at the Global Security Exchange conference of 2018 in Las Vegas, and are expected to be launched into the market in 2019.
This is the focus that Avigilon has had in the industry for a while already and they have analytics systems available now. Yet as technology marches up an accelerating curve in processing power, we can expect more and more functionality in all AI systems to come. AI itself is a fascinating technology that we have looked at in more detail in previous articles, and is expected to radically change the markets in almost every industry and the global economy as a whole.
Security Technology of South Texas is an authorized integrator for Avigilon systems and has designed systems with this kind of functionality. Avigilon analytics is particularly useful in enterprise scale operations, school and college campuses, as well as car dealerships or any other large property where tight security is necessary. Please contact us at admin@gostst.com on our website or via phone at 210-446-4863 24/7.
Source: Avigilon.com