Introduction  to Automated Video Occupancy Control

 

Responding to the ever-changing needs of our customers, and in response to the requirement of knowing how many people are in a facility at any given time, Sportsman is adding people counting functionality.  Currently, admittance through member swipes and daily passes in Sportsman gives us a good read on how many people enter the building but we don’t have any exit data.  While obtaining that exit data is difficult, we’ve found a solution that will not only be reliable, but also cost effective. 

Using AI (artificial intelligence) and by placing a video camera over your entrance / exit doors, this solution will identify people and count them as they enter and exit.  Given proper location and configuration of the camera, the accuracy is excellent, it’s completely automated and relatively inexpensive to implement.

This data ties into Sportsman and allows you to see the current occupancy of the building on the admittance screen as well as in the Sportsman Web dashboard.  You can see the occupancy over time of day and automatically trigger Sportsman’s Admittance Control to pause entrance if a threshold is received.  Taking it a step further, multiple cameras can be used to cover multiple entrance / exit locations.  For example, a camera could be placed over the door at the weight room door to track usage in that specific room.

 

 

Accuracy Considerations

As with any counting method, there are inherent issues that can challenge the accuracy.  This is true with any method of tracking entrance.

For example, a parent holding a child as they enter will be identified as one person.  If you have a rush of people in a crowd, this also increases the chance that some people may be missed.  However, most facilities have channeled flow in and out which makes it easy.  You can also put up some soft barriers that help direct people.

 

What’s Needed

Sportsman Licensed Modules: 

·         Core

·         Membership

·         Cloud

 

Peak provides

·         IP Camera with overhead view

·         Cat 6 Network Cable

·         PoE Switch (power over internet switch)

·         Video Processing Software

You provide

·         Labor from your IT department or electrician to install the camera.

·         Always On PC to Process Image Data

 

FAQs

I already have a camera, can I use it?

Maybe but probably not, it needs to be an IP camera and connected to the same network as your Always On computer.  Many security systems operate with proprietary cameras and put the network traffic on a different subnet.  If the video software can reach it, it is theoretically possible but you should plan for a dedicated camera.  Peak Software cannot help you solve the complex firewall issues in bridging networks but your IT department is welcome to try to get the video software to see the existing camera.

I have an old Analog Camera (coaxial cable), can we use that?

No, it needs to be a modern IP camera with a broadcast digital signal such as RTSP.

What Resolution Should We Have?

Generally, the lower the better.  The video software effective tries to identify large moving objects in its field of interest.  The higher the resolution, the more data it has to process.  A 2.1meg pixel resolution is plenty, 4m is really the max.  Often the cameras have multiple video streams and it’s best to hook to the lower resolution stream which is counter intuitive!

Can I record video from this camera?

Yes there are option for that inside the Video Software allowing you to record everything or simply snapshots of events like someone entering or exiting.  Sportsman however does not manage that video or photos for you.

Can I get the average time someone is in the facility?

Unfortunately no.  The software identifies people as blobs and does not implement facial recognition so it can only track in and out, it doesn’t try to connect the people.  However you do get the current count of people in the building.

What are the specifications of the Always On Computer?

Video processing takes quite a bit of processing and can be taxing on a CPU.  We recommend an Intel i7 processor with 8 gig of RAM or higher.  Unless you intend to store video or snapshot pictures, disk space is nominal at about 100 megabytes.  Typically, we see it consume about 10 - 12% of a CPU when minimized.  If you want it visible in the desktop, it takes 17-20%.  Obviously exact numbers vary from computer to computer.  In some cases, it may make sense to have a dedicated computer or even a dedicated virtual machine.  If you find it negatively impacts the computer, you first install it on, it is easy to move it to another PC.  We recommend you try it on your existing hardware before you make additional investments.

Does this computer work on Apple computers?

No, the video processing software does not work on Apple Computers, however you can use Apple PC’s to access SportsMan Web to view the real time data.

Is there an additional cost?

Manual mode is free and allows you to you to track occupancy right now. Click here for information on the Manual Occupancy Control feature 

The automated video feature requires equipment purchase as well as an additional license to cover the costs of that technology. We provide guidance for setup and implementation as well as ongoing support. Overall, the costs are very low.   Contact Peak Software Sales for additional information 801-572-3570 x1.

 

 

SM:DMM:I:May20