Alarm Innovations has designed and installed a Mobotix CCTV solution for Greenslopes Shopping Mall which employs Wi-Fi bridge point-to-point technology to reduce the expense of cabling in a large and complex brownfield site.
GREENSLOPES Shopping Mall sits on a 1.45Ha site at Greenslopes in Brisbane. Typical of many older suburban malls in Brisbane, Greenslopes serves a local community that is growing fast through an increase in high-density housing in the area. The increase is customer traffic has increased the demand for a video surveillance solution to allow management to provide enhanced safety and security and protect the mall against litigation.
Brisbane-based Alarm Innovations was called in to design and install the new security system for the centre, which was up and running in less than a week. By using Wi-Fi bridge point-to-point technology, the need for cabling through premises within the centre was virtually eliminated, keeping disruption to businesses to an absolute minimum and making installation easier for the technical team. A wireless bridge receives signals from wireless routers and propagates them out to wired devices, significantly extending a wireless network – Wi-Fi bridges are ideal for larger sites like shopping centres.
A combination of MOBOTIX i25, c25 and p25 cameras has been installed to cover the mall, their primary purpose being to protect against litigation risks as a result of accidents and other incidents which could occur. Footage is monitored in the centre’s control room using Mobotix MxControlCenter software and can easily be viewed remotely from head office in Melbourne as well.
The MOBOTIX indoor camera range offers the same levels of image quality and functionality as external cameras from Mobotix but at a considerable saving, as the devices do not need to be built to withstand harsh external conditions. Interior views generally cover shorter distances than exterior ones, meaning Mobotix hemispheric technology can be used to cover an entire room with no blind spots, reducing the number of cameras required.
The i25 is a hemispheric camera with 6MP Moonlight Technology and will be wall mounted with a tilt angle of 15 degrees to achieve a panoramic overview of a room. If mounted above the door the i25 looks even partially underneath or into the door. The i25 is available in both colour and monochrome models, which caters to the most challenging lighting conditions and a wide range of applications.
Mobotix i25 supports remote storage, MxActivitySensor offers heat map and people counting, and reduces false alarms. The cameras have onboard event recording to SD card, as well as direct to NAS. Alarm Notification is via email, FTP and VoIP (SIP) and the cameras have 2-way audio and low current draw of less than 4W.
Meanwhile, Mobotix c25 has a diameter of 12 centimetres and weighs approximately 200 grams, making it the smallest and lightest hemispheric camera Mobotix has produced. Easy to install, configure and integrate as required, the c25 indoor camera can cover an entire room with no blind spots and includes the newly released MxAnalytics software for object or people counting, with heat map reporting.
Offering more than just security, the cameras have also proved to be an invaluable business tool, thanks to Mobotix MxAnalytics people-counting and heat-mapping technology. The data provides insights into customer numbers and behaviours, which can be used for marketing purposes, as well as for setting rent levels.
MOBOTIX MxMC video management software has a simple and intuitive user experience and is free of charge, with no update or licensing costs, and can support an unlimited number of cameras, screens, and users. It has single and double click support for drag & drop and gestures, and multi-screen or direct viewing of events and alarm messages, represent just some of the advantages of this new software. Functions include the newly developed research and player tools, which provide a high-speed searching facility and fast results.
This is a movement-controlled, software-based image analysis function for detecting movement of people and objects in a monitored area – you can choose full image or a section of an image. Supporting this capability is that fact MxActivitySensor is easy to configure in ways that ensure minimal false alarms in applications with large amounts of external interference – moving rain on the camera lens, glare, trees or creeping shadows. During setup you configure settings via browser, like image area and sensor sensitivity for image analysis events and then plug in the corresponding ‘acceptors’ of events. This might be recording or alarm notification via email or FTP, or playing of a recorded message at the camera, an acoustic or visual alarm signal.
MxActivity Sensor is designed to handle people crossing an image or moving toward or away from the camera, even when there is a large amount of movement in a scene. From the point of view of setup, you simply highlight the area in which you want to detect movement, or the direction in which you want movement to be detected and you locate the camera in the best way to pick up movement representing a threat.
At Greenslopes Mall, Wi-Fi bridge technology and Mobotix indoor cameras supported by MxActivity Centre are keeping costs and labour requirements low, while achieving strong surveillance coverage.♦
