Strengthening Airport Perimeter Security whilst Cutting Costs

Driving forces of the 21st century have led to the strengthening of airport security. With sizable indoor and outdoor areas to be secured, often compromises are made on perimeter security.

This situation has come under considerable scrutiny due to terrorist threats.

Airport Security: Inside, outside, to the perimeter, and beyond

While re-evaluating perimeter security, consideration should be given for attacks beyond the perimeter; take for instance, the failed missile attack on a passenger plane in Kenya in November 2002.

Automatic tracking handoff outside and inside the perimeter

In addition to shoulder rocket launchers, other ground attacks can come from nearby positions, such as mortars, rocket-propelled grenades, and small-arms fire.

Add to this, the use of laser lights that can blind pilots and may lead to a plane crash.

Since December 2004, growing number of lasers incidents have occurred, such in Dallas-Fort Worth in Feb 2005 where a pilot was temporarily flash blinded during approach.

The ability to secure areas where attacks are easier to orchestrate provides a tactical advantage for airport security.

Planes tend to be more vulnerable and have less time for counter measures when they are moving at lower speeds and are closer to the ground. Clearly, security needs to be inside and outside the perimeter of the airport in order to provide optimal security.

The use of video surveillance provides many benefits for perimeter security because it can be effective for the field of view of the camera. Neighboring buildings and open land areas can be watched for threats, without the property needing to come under the airport authority.

The traditional style of video surveillance relies on video walls and less-than-vigilant security personnel to be fixated on the images every minute 24/7 looking for visible threats.

Hard to see scenarios do not play out well on video walls, as camouflaged intruders can move into striking distance without being seen.

Studies on human observation also raised serious issues regarding boredom, distractions, multitasking, and 'change blindness' (i.e. looking but not seeing or losing connection with reality).

These limitations, as well as poor performance can render surveillance video worthless, missing time critical opportunities to intercede and failing to collect information valuable for responder safety.

This leads to the question of how to use technology to augment human observation, increase response times, automate incident responses, and overcome human limitations.

Video Surveillance Technologies

ioimage intelligent video technology, by ioimage, has superceded VMD (video motion detection) for automated video-surveillance threat-detection because it goes beyond simple detection of movement.

With ioimage intelligent video powered system you can do many things including:

• Detect car/person/boat/plane
• Identify trespassers, unattended packages, stolen/removed objects and abandon vehicles
• Watch for scheduled off-hours intrusion, trespass in off limits areas, trespass in unsafe areas
• Enforce one or more prohibited direction, one-way approach/exit, directional traffic of cars, persons, etc.
• Use PTZ camera auto-tracking (camera-autonomous, handoff initiation and point-n-click). Automatically track a person.

By decreasing the time spent watching eventless video and increasing the capacity of control room monitoring, variable costs of operating wide-area security can be reduced while computer intelligence heightens awareness, strengthens security, increases response times, and provides scene safety information.

Two factors, Probability of Detection (POD) and False Alarm Rate show how likely an intelligent video surveillance system will catch intrusion as well as the rate of false alarms per day. Current VMD systems on the average have tens of false alarms per day.

ioimage intelligent video technology products were tested and proven to perform at greater than 99% POD with fewer than one per day false alarm rate. In Israeli Defense Forces tests and US Dept. of Energy commissioned Sandia National Lab tests, ioimage intelligent video performance maintained a near 100% POD and a false alarm rate of one false alarm in four days.

ioimage has leveraged video analytics technology and created a suit of products for security and safety applications.

ioimage systems

An ioimage system can be matched to site requirements and is comprised of a combination of the following components:

• ioicams
  The compact all-in-one wdc100dn ioicam combines high performance video analytics with a state-of-the-art ultra-wide-dynamic-range IP camera to achieve a unique high-grade surveillance automation solution that makes intelligent video easier to deploy and operate.
  
  For both indoor and outdoor surveillance, the built-in self-sustained video analytics can simultaneously detect intruders, suspicious baggage, stopped vehicles and removed items for automatic detection even in extreme lighting and harsh weather conditions.
  
• ioiboxes
  This intelligent-video-edge-device converts analog cameras into IP cameras and, powered by ioimage intelligent video, converts inanimate cameras into smart proficient cameras that identify threats, track intruders, and take action automatically. Each features recording capability and pre-alarm video capture. The powerful embedded DSP platform, (no PC based processing) provides intelligent-video analysis and tracking algorithms, as well as real-time MPEG-4 encoding and streaming.
  
  The analog to IP camera conversion of ioiboxes allows them to operate on a LAN/WAN and saves considerable cable deployment cost comparable to analog requirements. The TRK-Mini units can be attached or installed inside camera cases, which ideal for remote analog cameras.
  
• ioiware command center software
  An out-of-the-box command and control center software solution that provides a remarkable workspace and features ideal for serious security site management Provides instant intelligence and command capabilities for cameras and external devices.
  
  An intuitive easy-to-use admin. software that allows for quick configuration and security policy design for one or more ioiboxes as well as includes a full-feature Network Video Recorder software for ioimage ioiboxes or ioicams.
  
• ioiware API
  The ioiware API allows developers to interface custom software with the ioicams and ioiboxes features.

From the moment ioimage ioiboxes and ioicams are deployed, the always watching, always vigilant, unrelenting security is resolute in protecting airport perimeters and more.

Its core products feature several operational modules:

• intrusion detection
  automatically detects and alarms on forbidden directional movement in controlled areas and perimeters, including human and vehicle detection
  
• unattended baggage detection
  automatically detects and alarms on the abandonment of baggage or objects in controlled areas
  stopped vehicle detection automatically detects and alarms on the presence of a stopped vehicle in an area where parking/standing is a violation
  
• object-removal detection
  automatically detects and alarms on the sustained removal of objects or products from their given location
  autonomous PTZ tracking self-driven vision-guided tracking of a person or vehicle by commanding the pan tilt and zoom of a PTZ camera to keep a target in sight

Highlighted Airport ioimage intelligent video Surveillance Application

Directional/Unattended Baggage/ PTZ Tracking: Security checkpoints, baggage claim, APMs, support conveyors

Unattended Baggage/ PTZ Tracking: Ticket lobby, public/passenger circulation, concessions, hold rooms

Directional/Unattended Baggage/ PTZ Tracking/Stopped Vehicle: Curbside facilities, ground transportation, surface parking and structures

Intrusion/Directional/ PTZ Tracking/Object Removal/Stopped Vehicle: Access road, parking entrances and exits, neighboring roads, aircraft stalls, gates jet/commuter

Off Limits Intrusion/Timed Intrusion/ PTZ Tracking/Stopped Vehicle/Object Removal: Fuel farms, airfield, reserve buffer, RPZs, perimeter fences, approach protection areas, baggage makeup, air cargo area, traffic control tower, aviation facilities, basing area, remote offsite rooftops, vehicle maintenance facilities, storage