Integrators are depending more on video-based detection solutions for outdoor and perimeter security installations, not because traditional technologies aren’t working — it just gives them more options
Security dealer Sonitrol of Indianapolis used to install a lot of photoelectric beams for protecting the perimeter of commercial installations, but today the company relies exclusively on a wireless camera system for perimeter protection. As Sonitrol of Indianapolis Sales Manager, Mike McCalip, explains, the company uses the Videofied camera from St. Paul, Minn.-based RSI Video Technologies, which has its own power source, eliminating the need to trench for wires. The product also helps prevent false alarms because it sends a video clip to the central station when its internal motion detector senses a potential intruder. Central station personnel then can view the clip and determine whether the situation is a real emergency.
Compass Tech Systems, a security dealer based in Jacksonville, Fla., used to use alarmed fences for its perimeter installations. The fences had sensors every so many feet, making installation labor-intensive, notes David Sims, vice president for Compass Tech Systems. The sensors also were vulnerable to false alarms. For today’s perimeter jobs, Compass Tech Systems virtually always installs video cameras in combination with video analytic software from St. Louis-based Arteco Vision Systems that can be fine-tuned to trip only when they detect certain types of motion, depending on the customer’s needs.