With their advanced processing power, modern IP network encoders and cameras are capable of far more than simple video transmission. In particular, embedding intelligent functions such as VCA at the edge of an IP network, i.e. in the encoders and cameras themselves, reduces traffic on a network since video is transmitted over the network or stored only in the event of an alarm. This saves significantly on bandwidth and storage. It also reduces human intervention as it relieves operators of the need to continuously watch the monitor screens, resulting in fewer errors and more reliable alarm handling.

Bosch took an important step towards realizing ‘intelligence at the edge’ in CCTV with the development of IVMD 1.0 for embedding in its IP Network Video products. The latest release, IVMD 2.0, takes this concept even further by extending the range of alarm criteria and providing additional functions to aid live surveillance and forensic searching. 

The range of alarm criteria now includes object identification on the basis of aspect ratio; idle-object detection for detecting suspicious items left at a scene or cars parked in sensitive locations; object-removal detection for monitoring displays in, for example, museums and retail stores; and trajectory mapping for detecting suspicious behavior such as loitering. IVMD 2.0 also features image stabilization for pole-mounted cameras. This provides stabilization on both the vertical and horizontal axes before the image is processed by the detection algorithm, ensuring reliable tracking even when the cameras are mounted on unstable supports.

As well as its improved detection algorithm, IVMD 2.0 embodies all the powerful features of its predecessor IVMD 1.0. This includes an advanced background-learning algorithm that saves computational power by suppressing unwanted alarms from spurious sources in the image and adapts to changes in background. As in IVMD 1.0, up to 16 independent detector fields can be set up within a scene for alarm generation with different trigger parameters. Moreover, alarm parameters such as size, speed and direction discrimination can be set up independently for each of the detector fields.

In addition to creating alarms, IVMD 2.0 also produces metadata that provides a description of how the algorithm has interpreted the analyzed scene. The metadata, which is transmitted over the network and recorded together with the video stream, can be used by Bosch’s VIDOS and Video Management System (VMS) solution to produce video overlays during live viewing that highlight suspicious objects or activities. It can also be used to provide a smart forensic search capability on archived recordings.

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