Insights

Is my camera suitable for DAI and SAT? Checklist

Published on by the Omnivias team at Omnicog Tecnologia.

On most highways, a good share of the existing CCTV is suitable for Automatic Incident Detection (DAI) and traffic analysis (SAT). What decides it is the image: stability, lane framing, angle, sharpness, night visibility and access to the video. Use the checklist below as a first screening; the pilot assessment measures camera by camera.

The checklist

  1. Stable image. The pole does not sway and the image does not shake with wind or passing trucks.
  2. Framing. The lanes, shoulder and right-of-way of interest are in the image, with no fixed obstacles in front.
  3. Angle and height. Vehicles appear separated from one another. A camera that is low and far away makes one vehicle hide another.
  4. Sharpness. Enough focus and resolution for the distance to the analyzed road section; clean lens.
  5. Night. Enough street lighting or infrared, with no direct headlight glare.
  6. Accessible video. A stable RTSP or ONVIF stream to the inference server, without frequent drops.
  7. PTZ. Presets defined for the working positions and an automatic return to them after the operator has used the camera.
  8. Clock. Synchronized time, so that each alert has the right timestamp.

DAI and SAT ask for different things

For DAI, what matters is seeing the area where the event happens: lane, shoulder and right-of-way. For SAT, what matters is separating vehicles cleanly in each lane, with a counting line where there is no occlusion. Many cameras serve both purposes; some serve one better than the other.

What if the camera does not pass?

Often the fix is simple: a new preset, cleaning, focus, a change of angle. The pilot assessment tells you what each camera can do and what to adjust, before any purchase.

See also: Camera-based SAT or inductive loops? and how the pilot works.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to replace my cameras to use DAI and SAT?

Normally not. Omnivias uses fixed and PTZ cameras whenever resolution, positioning, coverage, lighting and stability are adequate. The assessment reports camera by camera.

Do PTZ cameras work?

Yes. Analysis zones are drawn per PTZ position (preset), and the platform takes the camera’s current position into account.

Does it work at night?

Yes, when there is enough lighting or infrared. Night behavior at each site is measured and calibrated.

Start with a pilot on your own cameras

First we assess the cameras the highway already has; then a proof of concept using footage from the road section itself shows the measured result. Depending on the size of the project, the assessment and the proof of concept can be free of charge, and the proof of concept starts running within 10 days of signing the agreement.

  1. Assessment

    Resolution, position, coverage, lighting and network of the existing cameras, against what the operation wants to measure and detect.

  2. Proof of concept

    SAT and DAI running on footage from the road section itself, measured against the agreed success criteria.

  3. Production

    On-premises, cloud or hybrid architecture, control center integration, rules, alerts and reports.

  4. Continuous calibration

    Rules and models tuned camera by camera using the real alert history.

How the pilot worksTest it with my highway’s cameras
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