Video Analytics, what is available to us regular consumers?

I have been using Zoneminder and it works well but with 4 IP cams it pegs the processor on an Atom D510 but does work properly. On my MacBook Pro (Core i7) it runs about 50% processor continous.
I suspect this product is also processor intensive? I have decided to build a box dedicated to ZM but am struggling with which processor to start with.

Edit: the 50% usage on the i7 is with frame rates set to max - I cannot do that on the Atom - causes errors.
 
Monk said:
I have been using Zoneminder and it works well but with 4 IP cams it pegs the processor on an Atom D510 but does work properly. On my MacBook Pro (Core i7) it runs about 50% processor continous.
I suspect this product is also processor intensive? I have decided to build a box dedicated to ZM but am struggling with which processor to start with.

Edit: the 50% usage on the i7 is with frame rates set to max - I cannot do that on the Atom - causes errors.
Click to expand...

Forgot to mention - Running all cameras @640X480. This is the lowest resolution I will consider. Seems to me that IP cams take more processing than analog cams - so it could be hard to compare against anothers "mix" of cams. Please do share your Vitamin D results as they relate to processor usage.

Also - I can tune ZM to work very well for me, motion wise - the ability to cause Homeseer events exists via XAP and I currently see no need to look elsewhere if it weren't for the high processor usage. I might just have to concede that it's the nature of this type of software. BTW - can this software talk to Homeseer?
Thanks
 
I am not noticing any CPU usage, but I am still using the free version, so it's all low res, and just a single cam. I'll post an update once I purchase my license. I have tried ZM, and I run into the same problem, plus it requires yet another machine since it's Linux based. As for HomeSeer integration, it supports executing programs, so you could create a batch file which communicates with Homeseer about what's going on (but something one can't test with the free version).

Neurorad, which software are you talking about? Looks like there is a basic video-based tripwire add-on for the cameras/servers, but doesn't look like it's free.
 
Alright, I have a view days under my belt now. First, I am using an Axis 240qvideo server. I have three cameras attached currently but have only got two feeding my instance of VitaminD. Over the past three days, I have had one false positive on VD seeing a "people" but it was outside of the rules I have configured and thus, didn't execute a save or email alert. So far, I really like it. It's super simple to use, has a nice GUI, easy to review the days events and has done a MUCH better job of motion detection than the Axis software. The Axis server events are, for the most part, unusable as it throws more false positives than one could ever live with. I had it set to send emails on motion for the front door and would ping me 10's of times a day with images of nothing while completely missing the UPS guy dropping stuff off on the porch. I do want to play a bit with executing programs but won't have time for awhile. CPU usage is negligible with two cameras. I'm running a dual core @2.4GHz and three GB of RAM and rarely see the machine spike past 15% (and that's with VD up, watching live video, streaming a movie to another XBMC box and doing general "office" work/web based stuff on the same machine).
 
Dan (electron) said:
I have tried many different products, and none of them can handle that big tree in front. Even if I block it out, its shadow is a big problem, and sudden lighting changes seem to trigger most products too. Add snow/rain, and I end up with a mailbox full of alerts ;) Take a look 'here' to see how it treats motion, and why it works so well. The product is far from perfect, but it seems to work ok so far.

And I agree with your wife ;) This camera is only being evaluated, it isn't permanent, but it's pointing outside, in front of the shades, so she's ok with this for a short time.

I also got a response back from the company. While they aren't doing any major new development right now, they are still supporting the product and might make minor releases. Not sure if this is a showstopper yet.
Click to expand...

I work with some $$ analytics at work and can honestly say that I have yet to see any of them reliably filter sudden lighting changes - and honestly think its close to impossible to do. They generally use a single "background" image to which they compare all subsequent frames, which is how they detect moving objects such as people. Unfortunately, doing it this way will cause false alerts on shadows and other moving objects such as tree branches and/or items blowing on the ground (depending on how your rules are set). Lens flare is another big one that can cause a lot of problems - this is also hard to adjust for as the angle of the sun changes over the seasons. If you setup your camera in the summer, when the sun is at a higher angle in the sky, you may get lens flare in the winter when the sun gets lower.

NOTE:Generally the background image does change gradually over time, so that it does adjust as the day goes by.

Also, the general way that analytics will detect humans vs. vehicles is simply by the width-to-height ratio. If the object is taller than it is wide, it will classify as a person, and if its wider than it is tall, it's a vehicle.

What the $$$ analytics will generally give you over the cheaper ones is a lot of flexability when it comes to the number of rules you can set on a single view, as well as the scheduling for these rules to be checked. For example, you could have a loitering area setup, where if anyone appears in a certain area of the view and remains for X number of seconds the rule is broken and an alert is sent - combine this with the idea that you can have that particular rule set to run only during the hours of 6pm and 4am, and have other rules for the day, it can get powerful.... but it takes a lot of tweaking.
 
So I am using a Kodicomm DVR with 8 analog cameras. It outputs VGA, and I have a 4-way VGA splitter. Is there something I can route the VGA signal to for processing (so 1 VGA feed has a 6-camera view up on it.) So is there a capture box/server I can use to have analytics ran on all 6 cameras? Dan mentioned he ran his output to an IP server, but is that just 1 camera feed, how does it work? =)

Vaughn
 
SupervisionCam uses a % pixels that have changed, and can ignore colors. I tuned it to be slightly on the "falsing" side, then used the motion to counter that.

I remember the one event I had, I couldn't figure out WHY it tripped...(as my e-mailed images at the time was really low res....only had 1x for data...ewww...). When I got home, I opened up the event's picture group...there it was...a bunny! So, I added a motion to give more "intelligence".

As I said, I've RARELY had any false trips, and using the thermal motion sensor for "second look" practically eliminated it (bird landed on the sensor once, then something else caught the camera's eye).

After I put the motion sensor on, didn't have a problem as the camera wouldn't capture unless there was motion near the door at least - (I think it was) 1-2 minutes. So, the thermal needed to have tripped at least 1-2 minutes prior to the event...then a capture was allowed.

As for my logic, sensor trips, then the camera looks (immediately). If the camera doesn't see anything for a few minutes, it "goes to sleep", where it will ignore everything until the sensor trips again.

--Dan
 
You should see my DVR and Logitech Alert camera with built in motion going nuts because of this snow storm. Every minute, I receive a new e-mail. Vitamin D has sent me 0 e-mails so far, using the same camera.

Vaughn, I haven't received the IP server yet, but the plan is to grab the quad-view output of the DVR, and treat it as a single camera feed. I might try to duplicate the analog outputs of the cameras themselves, but that's if I have more time. Since I am mostly interested in automation, this should be sufficient.
 
e - Axis Camera Station One is the free, single-camera software from Axis. Need to pay for Axis Camera Station for 2+ cameras.

Axis Camera Station One link

Need to purchase 3rd party sw, from an Axis partner, for advanced analytics, currently in production. They have 1 application currently available 'Axis Cross Line Detection'.

cec759c750004bc9cb2fde87c8dab4a0.jpg

crossline_system%5B1%5D.jpg
 
Neat, I've seen stuff like that.

In fact, I think I can setup something like that in Supervisioncam. It's not "technically" a trip-wire, but I can make it only care about specific areas, then have it trigger a second "sensitivity area" based on the first being triggered.

Neat!

--Dan
 
If you think that's neat - you haven't seen the link Dan posted in #15, this thread.

drozwood90 said:
Neat, I've seen stuff like that.

In fact, I think I can setup something like that in Supervisioncam. It's not "technically" a trip-wire, but I can make it only care about specific areas, then have it trigger a second "sensitivity area" based on the first being triggered.

Neat!

--Dan
Click to expand...
 
ver0776 said:
So I am using a Kodicomm DVR with 8 analog cameras. It outputs VGA, and I have a 4-way VGA splitter. Is there something I can route the VGA signal to for processing (so 1 VGA feed has a 6-camera view up on it.) So is there a capture box/server I can use to have analytics ran on all 6 cameras? Dan mentioned he ran his output to an IP server, but is that just 1 camera feed, how does it work? =)

Vaughn
Click to expand...

There are many video encoders available (analog video to IP). However, it has been my experience that Axis makes some of the best ones (www.axis.com). You can find them in varying models that support 1, 2, or 4 cameras with individual modules, or get larger rack mountable systems that can encode up to 48 or so I believe.

EDIT: It appears that Axis is now only offering 1 and 4 port encoders (as the individual devices).
 
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