GoView Surveillance - Blog #Mobile Surveillance

SECURING LARGE CONSTRUCTION SITES

Sat, 24 Feb 2024 12:55:53 -0700

Securing large scale construction projects has always been a challenge. GoView provides solutions that have proven to be effective. Here are the steps we take to ensure your project is protected.

Planning

Every project starts with planning. At GoView we use specialized industry software for this purpose. We overlay your site plan on satellite imagery. The software automatically scales the plan. We can select the exact camera model and place it onto the map. We can test various cameras and determine the most effect location for the trailer or pole mount system. We can show you exactly what a face or license plate will look like at any distance from the surveillance unit. This is crucial to ensure the system meets or exceeds your expectations and accomplishes the goal of protecting the site.

Equipment

Without the proper equipment even the best plan could fail. Many providers deploy systems that are not capable of meeting the objective intended. This is where experience comes into play. We often find that a mobile unit from another provider has been improperly placed or that the site cannot be adequately covered with 1 unit. GoView has more than just a single solution which is vital when the site is large or complicated.

We provide:

mobile surveillance trailers

fixed mount options that can be added as satellite units to the main system

large site alarm systems to cover specific assets like job trailer.

Deployment

We deploy on the day you request and stick to the schedule and plan. During the term of the deployment we stay in close touch with you and move the units to new phases and areas as the project progresses. Sometimes that involves just changing the camera viewing area but we also anticipate physically moving the trailer to always ensure it is in the most effective location. Don't worry - these costs are all included.

Contact us to learn more about how GoView can protect your next project. If you have tried the rest, it is time to go with the best - Get GoView! Call us 1-877-446-8439

WHY SECURITY GUARD COMPANIES SHOULD ADD MOBILE SURVEILLANCE

Wed, 18 Oct 2023 12:57:36 -0600

GoView has recently partnered with several security guard companies to help them offer mobile surveillance services to their existing business plan. We see this as a win-win collaboration which provides increased security to locations that need full time coverage at a reduced cost point.

Mobile surveillance solutions are to the guard industry what automatic hamburger flippers are to the fast food industry. It is automation. It takes a redundant lower skill task (watching a jobsite for activity) and allows a higher skill person to cover more sites while the surveillance system does the "watching"

Here is an example. A construction site hires a security guard company to do nightly patrols of their site. 3 times per night a guard drives to the site and spends 10 minutes doing a patrol. The driver drives through the site and looks for any suspicious activity and then leave. Total time on the site is 30 minutes per night. The customer is frustrated because despite paying for security they still have problems with theft on a regular basis. The customer is considering full time security and having a guard posted at the site all night 7 days a week. The problem is that this type of security is costly and because the site is so large, it may still not fully stop the problems.

In this case a mobile surveillance trailer is the perfect solution. By deploying a mobile trailer to the location, the guard service can be notified of any human activity on the site. The surveillance unit deploys strobes and recorded voice warnings while the live security guard is routed to the site. This solution is 1/3 the cost which the customer appreciates. This also helps the security company to retain a customer that they might have lost to another competitor offering a mobile security solution. Most importantly, the solution is effective and stops the losses due to theft.

Advantages of offering mobile surveillance:

Improves customer perception as a leader in the industry offering innovative solutions to your clients
Win more bids and grow your company because you a better lower cost option between patrol and posted gauards
Force multiplier helps you cover more properties with less people
Improves customer satisfaction because they can have video evidence when a crime is prevented
Increase revenue without any additional upfront costs

Contact GoView today and get more information on our dealer and reseller programs designed specifically for guard companies. We have many options for your clients to fit almost any reasonable budge

PROACTIVE VIDEO SURVEILLANCE VS. REACTIVE: WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?

Thu, 12 Oct 2023 13:22:03 -0600

For many years video surveillance has been a reactive tool designed to collect evidence. We trusted in advances in technology to increase the megapixels, low light technology and better image quality for the purpose of capturing critical details that could be used to "catch" the bad guys. The problem remained that the most expensive camera in the world could be defeated with a $2 ski mask.

We used to joke in the industry that before megapixel IP cameras in the days of analog resolution we used to watch ourselves get burglarized and robbed in grainy resolution. Now we can watch ourselves get ripped off in 4K HD!

What is the solution? The solution is to combine live monitoring and video AI to provide proactive surveillance. Video monitoring on its own is not efficient and cost effective without artificial intelligence. Without Video AI a live human must analyze video streams in real time and look for anything suspicious that must be acted upon. One person with a proper video wall could likely monitor multiple sites and provide some measure of increased security, but with video AI, one agent can now monitor several hundred or potentially thousands of sites and finally achieve the goal of cost effective, proactive video surveillance.

Video AI makes it possible to only alert the live agent when there is actionable activity and problems that require human intervention. Don't just record the crime for later review. Call GoView and let us provide a solution that can stop the crime in real time. We can use active measures such as flood lights, strobe light, sirens, voice warnings, and 2-way audio to stop criminals and clear your jobsites or equipment yards.

WHAT IS A MOBILE SURVEILLANCE TRAILER?

Sat, 22 Jul 2023 15:26:00 -0600

A mobile surveillance trailer or mobile security trailer is a platform that allows organizations to rapidly deploy security systems to locations that might otherwise be difficult to install traditional security cameras. This is usually due to lack of power and/or internet in the specific location that needs surveillance.

An extreme example would be a crime scene. It would not be practical to install a traditional surveillance system but a mobile system could be quickly deployed and could potentially capture video of potential suspects that return to the scene of the crime.

These systems have several form factors but in general they are towable trailers. They typically have wireless internet routers, cameras, a power source such as solar panels, backup batteries, and devices that can be activated to deter criminals such as lights, sirens, and strobes. There are other styles of mobile surveillance too and we have a previous post that covers the most common platforms. Other movable platforms include: pole mounted systems, building mounted systems, pod style units, skid style units, enclosed trailers, and customized shipping containers. The trailer platform is ideal for many locations and organizations because it requires no equipment, other than the vehicle to tow it.

GoView provides several configurations with different solar arrays and battery storage banks. We can also customize the camera head with the specific technology required for your application.

HOW A MOBILE SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM WORKS

Wed, 05 Jul 2023 11:33:00 -0600

A Mobile Surveillance System can take on several form factors. There are pole mount systems, pod style systems, skid systems, and trailers. Each of the above systems can be powered from grid power, solar, generator or a combination of 2 or more power sources.

The most common in the United States is the trailer version. These units are gaining in popularity because they are easy to deploy and can be engineered with sufficient battery capacity to ensure reliable performance.

The systems have 5 main components:

Power supply or power generation components
Network
Cameras and Sensors
Deterrent Devices
Live Monitoring

How the system gets powered is probably the most important factor in the system design. A system that is not powered up has little value. You could have the most technologically advanced system with the highest quality customer service and best monitoring and if the power sources fail, then the entire system fails to perform its purpose.

A mobile surveillance system will typically have 1-2 PoE network switches and an internet gateway device. LTE/4G/5G is the most common but other options include satellite internet and WIFI (microwave, and point to point, mesh)

Cameras and sensors are the most visible part of the system. These devices are usually raised up on a pole or mast 20-30 ft in the air. This helps the system see over the height of most obstacles and also serves to keep these devices at a height that is difficult to tamper with.

Devices such as strobe lights, flood lights, sirens, and 2 way audio loudspeakers are an important part of any mobile surveillance system. These devices are used to let trespassers know that they have been detected. Strobe lights and audio alarms draw unwanted attention to the area. 2 way audio reinforces that action is being taken and a live agent is dispatching police.

Live Monitoring is critical to the success of the system. Criminals will test the system and when they determine that the system is just automated and no action is being taken, they may eventually ignore the lights and audio warning. In rare cases we have clients that choose to self monitor their own system. This is rarely effective for high crime areas unless the client employs people for that specific purpose. The most effective solution is to use GoView Live Monitoring. Trained agents will connect to the system for every event and determine when additional action needs to be taken. This ensures that no critical event slips by without an appropriate response. If the goal is to stop crime in progress, live agent video monitoring is key to the successful security plan.

WHAT IS THE APPROPRIATE SOLAR WATTAGE FOR A MOBILE SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM?

Sat, 01 Jul 2023 15:33:00 -0600

GoView trailers have on average 40% more solar generating capacity than most of our competitors. Some might ask, "Is that really necessary?"

Areas north of the sunbelt get significantly less sun during the winter months. When you couple this decreased sunlight with storms or overcast days, you can quickly run power deficits which can become unsustainable. Providers have long realized this problem and have come up with many solutions such as powering down key components during daytime hours, using diesel generators, and more recently using costly fuel cell generators.

In many cases these problems could be solved more cost effectively by increasing battery amp hour capacity and solar array wattage.

Here are the factors that must be used in calculating the solar charging system:

1. Load or current draw in watts: Add up the wattage of all the devices that will be drawing power from the system. This is the single most important number in your system design. This can be found in the specification sheet for all devices.

2. Solar Zone: Different parts of the country receive more sun than others. If you live in Seattle you understand this concept. Refer to the chart on the left to determine your solar zone.

3. Solar generation: Solar panels are not 100% efficient. As an example, if you have a 100 Watt panel, we estimate you should be able to support 12.5 Watts of continuous power generation in zone 2. This 100 Watt panel might produce anywhere from 200 Watts to 700 watts in a 24 hour period which is a big range. The excess power is stored in the battery for a literal "rainy day".

4. Deployable area and cost are 2 other factors in sizing your solar array. More panels take up more space and on many sites there is a limited area for deployment. Adding additional wattage can also increase the cost and if the system is not designed properly may not produce any additional benefit.

Summary: Solar system designers must use all of the above information to determine the proper size of solar array and battery storage bank. Most of our systems need to sustain between 90 and 140 watts of continuous loads. In southern states we can do this with 700 watts of solar and 800 AH of backup battery. In northern states we use systems with more than 1300 watts of solar and 1600 AH of backup battery.

VIDEO ANALYTICS AND PERIMETER PROTECTION

Fri, 19 May 2023 11:33:00 -0600

When it comes to using video analytics for outdoor perimeter protection there are 2 types of technologies.

Standard video analytics has been around for more than 15 years and is the most widely used. This technology looks for the change in pixels to determine if there is activity. It differs from standard VMD or video motion detection because it typically looks for the pattern of pixel changes to determine if the motion is caused by people, cars, or something else. If a high enough percentage of pixels change in a defined pattern the system triggers an alert. The advantage of this tech is the speed it can detect an intrusion. The disadvantage is that it creates a lot of false alarms.

The newer technology that has evolved and is currently evolving is Deep Learning video analytics. With Deep learning the system needs to have a clear view of the object (close up). Deep learning can identify the motion as male/female, approximate age, assess threats and many other advanced functionality. At GoView we call this Video AI. The best systems use both technologies to quickly identify activity and self verify the motion to reduce false alarms. All systems will produce false alarms but the rate of false positives can be dramatically reduced with the right technology. Contact GoView to learn about how our Video AI solutions can help you solve security problems