The Radars that is in use all around us, all thought it is invisible.  Air traffic control towers uses it track planes both on the ground and in the air.  NASA uses radars to map the earth and other planets.  Military uses it to detect enemy.  Traffic Police uses to track the speed of motorists.  Here I am going to give you insights on the speed camera radars.

The traffic radar, which consists of microwaves, travels in straight lines and is easily reflected by objects such as cars, trucks, even guardrails and overpasses.  The radar works by directing its microwave beam down the road.  As a vehicle travels into range, the microwave beam bounces off the car, and the radar antenna looks for the reflections.  Using the Doppler Principle, the radar equipment then calculates your speed by comparing the frequency of the reflection of your car to the original frequency of the beam sent out.

For those of you who sat out the science class The Doppler effect (or Doppler shift), named after Austrian physicist Christian Doppler who proposed it in 1842, is the change in frequency of a wave for an observer moving relative to the source of the wave. It is commonly heard when a vehicle sounding a siren or horn approaches, passes, and recedes from an observer. The received frequency is higher (compared to the emitted frequency) during the approach, it is identical at the instant of passing by, and it is lower during the recession.

For waves that propagate in a medium, such as sound waves, the velocities of the observer and of the source are relative to the medium in which the waves are transmitted. The total Doppler Effect may therefore result from motion of the source, motion of the observer, or motion of the medium. Each of these effects is analyzed separately. For waves which do not require a medium, such as light or gravity in general relativity, only the relative difference in velocity between the observer and the source needs to be considered

The concept of using radio waves to detect objects goes back as far as 1902.  But the practical system we know as radar began in the late 1930s.  Radar technology has improved considerably since the days of World War II.

Traffic radar has limitations, the most significant of these being that it typically can monitor only one target at a time.  If there is more than one vehicle within range; it is up to the radar operator to decide which target is producing the strongest reflection.  Since the strength of the reflection is affected by both the size of the vehicle and its proximity to the antenna, it is difficult for the radar operator to determine if the signal is from a sports car nearby or a pick up van in several meters away.

Radar range also depends on the power of the radar equipment itself.  The strength of the radar unit’s beam diminishes with distance.  The further the radar has to travel the less energy it has for speed detection.

The “POP” is a relatively new feature for radar gun manufactures.  It works by transmitting an extremely short burst, within the allocated band, to identify speeding vehicles in traffic.  Once the target is identified, or “POPPED”  the gun is then turned to its normal operating mode to provide a vehicle tracking history.

Laser speed detection is another new radar technology and is not a widespread as conventional radar system.  Light Detection and Ranging – LIDAR guns project a beam of invisible infrared light.  The signal is a series of very short infrared light energy pulses which move, in a  straight line, reflecting off your car and returning to the gun.  LIDAR uses these light pulses to measure the distance to a vehicle.  Speed is then calculated by measuring how quickloy these pulses are reflected given the known speed of light. LIDAR transmits a much narrower beam than the radar, it is so much more accurate in its ability to distinguish between targets and is also more difficult to detect.  But there are lot of limitations to LIDAR equipment.  LIDAR gu’s range will be decreased by anything affecting visibility such as rain, fog or smoke.  A LIDAR gun cannot operate through glass and it must be stationary in order to get an accurate reading.

There are many different brands of radar detectors available and in many countries; it is legal to use those devices.  Some countries banned using radar detectors.  One of the reasons for banning radar detector is not because it is detecting radars.  Apart from that those devices will detect intrusion alarms and motions sensors.  This is a big concern for Govt departments.

The truth is that most CCTV cameras are just not properly set up for their intended purpose, and that’s the main reason to understand the Operational Objectives, before planning the system.

In the context of Security, there are essentially four main steps of achieving an efficient approach when applying a design; but it is still worth remembering that in most situations, the general effectiveness of CCTV increases when it is used as part of an overall strategy, involving various other complimentary techniques in the likes of Lighting, Access Control, Intrusion detection and properly configured analytics

What are the four main stages?

1. The Crime Audit -  previous incidents helps to ascertain the Patten
2. The Risk Assessment – what are the vantage points/blind spots
3. Developing a CCTV System Profile – which camera and why, recording parameters
4. Developing a CCTV / IP Video System Design – Increase efficiency of your security system

New, user-friendly software interfaces make the systems easy to install, configure and operate with a simple Web browser. Now users can centrally and/or remotely monitor and record from cameras that reside in locations all over the world. Live video streams and stored video are accessible via desktop, PDA or mobile phone. This White paper describes the new opportunities available to organizations that look forward to deploy NVRs, the technology involved, and the features typical in modern NVR solutions and the key differences between the NVR and the DVR.

What is an NVR?

A Network Video Recorder (NVR) is a centralized, networked recorder solution that connects multiple IP cameras simultaneously. It’s essentially a networked server and storage solution that’s designed specifically for network video applications and IP cameras (although analog cameras can be included). The technology uses open IP standards, so connectivity, compatibility and flexibility are easy. These are IP-connected devices that aggregate IP cameras. NVR’s allow you to view, control, and record video from all your cameras via one centralized interface. The interface is Web connected, so you can view, manipulate and manage the video from any IP connected device, including desktops, wireless PDAs, cell phones and so forth.

The concept of city based vertical farms, with hydroponically-fed food being grown in multi-storey buildings. These offer the potential to dramatically increase farm yield and reduce environmental degradation.

For this I will be requiring expertise in a range of scientific disciplines, engineering and commerce.

Any of you have better suggestion for me?

Over the next 6 months, more than a dozen manufacturers are likely to announce production support for ONVIF (Open Network Video Interface Forum; http://www.onvif.org ) or PSIA (Physical Security Interoperability Alliance; http://www.psialliance.org ) IP camera specifications. While the practical impact will take longer, this is the first stage of interoperability specifications being used in practice.

This impending shift raises an important question: How will IP Camera Standards Impact Video Surveillance?

As interoperability increases, end users of video surveillance will definitely benefit from decreased lock-in, lower support problems and lower cost product options (though how much and how soon still needs to be seen).

There are also some more controversial changes that may occur:

• Expansion of low cost IP cameras
• Lowering of IP video software prices
• Weakening of manufacturers who sell packages of cameras and recorders
• Diminishing competitive advantage of IT integrators over security integrators decrease
• Weakening of Analog products

[Note: These points are not my conclusion or projections. These are potential developments that are offered for discussion.]

Lower Priced IP Cameras

Today, it is difficult for IP camera manufacturers to gain support from many IP video software providers. This provides pricing power for the largest IP camera manufacturers (e.g., Axis, Sony, Panasonic) who are broadly supported. Expansion of IP camera standards would reduce and potentially eliminate this advantage.

Lower Priced IP Video Software

The larger IP video software providers (e.g., Milestone, OnSSI, Genetec) benefit from significantly higher IP camera support than smaller providers. For the smaller software companies, adding in dozens of IP cameras can be cost prohibitive. Camera standards could allow smaller providers to catch up on IP camera support. Moreover, it could allow some software providers to offer very cheap or free support for IP cameras that use the IP camera ’standards’.

Manufacturers Selling Packages Weaken

Many manufacturers sell bundles of their own cameras and video management systems. Package manufacturers emphasize that their package work better than the proprietary integrations of third party IP cameras and software. IP camera standards would diminish that advantage as greater interoperability and higher assurance of compatibility would exist for non-packaged providers.

IT Integrators Lose Advantage over Security Integrators

The complexity of integrating and troubleshooting proprietary IP camera – IP video software interfaces requires higher IT skills. This has made many traditional security integrators reluctant or disadvantaged at deploying IP video systems. IP camera interoperability could help reduce the need for IT expertise as systems become more ‘plug n play’.

Analog Products Become Less Attractive

As prices decrease for IP products and become simpler to deploy, the resulting impact could reduce the motivation to stay with and use traditional analog systems.

Loveday Morris *

Last Updated: July 12. 2009 9:19PM UAE / July 12. 2009 5:19PM GMT

A new chaperone service, the first of its kind in the region, will enable women visiting the country to book a female “friend” to accompany them on a shopping trip or to dinner. May Russell, a former British police officer, and Shaik Hamdan, an Abu Dhabi-based businessman, plan to launch the company Exclusively Yours, run “by women for women”, at the end of September. Ms Russell, who runs a similar service in the UK, sees the Emirates as an ideal market for the chaperone service, with an increasing number of women travelling to the country either alone, or with their spouse on a business trip. “When you travel you often see single women in hotel lounges or by the pool buried in a book,” she said. “These may be confident women but they might not like the idea of going out to dinner or shopping alone.” The service will target businesswomen, those accompanying their husbands on business, tourists and newly arrived expatriates, providing them with a “companion” familiar with the city, Ms Russell said. “I want the woman to feel like she’s going out with a friend. “It’s such a shame if women visit the UAE and don’t see much past their hotel.” The company has signed-up about 30 women to work full- or part-time, as “chaperones”. The women speak several languages including Arabic, English, Hindi and Russian. “We will tailor the service to whatever the particular client requires,” said Mr Hamdan, the co-founder of the company. He said the service had already attracted interest from several clients. However, the service, which will initially be available in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, will not come cheap: prices are still being finalised, but are likely to be at least US$200 (Dh730) a day.

lmorris@thenational.ae

http://www.thenational.ae/article/20090713/NATIONAL/707129894/1010

IP-based system offers a lower total cost of ownership than a traditional analogue-based surveillance system. The IP-based video surveillance system will cost less in particular with a number of cameras in a network greater than 16. Factors such as system maintenance, video recording and playback, cameras, installation, configuration, training and cable infrastructure will save up to 30 to 40% in cost & time. The cost to acquire, install and operate an IP-based system is between 10 and 50 per cent lower than a legacy system (depending on the individual parameters) consisting of analogue cameras and DVR-based recording. Overall, an installation with 32 cameras is the break-even point for IP-based systems versus analogue systems.

An IP-based system will cost less than an analogue system if the installation includes at least 32 cameras. With any installation between 16 and 32 cameras, the cost of IP versus analogue is similar although slightly lower for analogue systems. Where an existing IT infrastructure, IP-based surveillance systems would always be lower cost, i.e. even for systems consisting of 1 to 32 cameras. There is an overwhelming lack of knowledge about the total cost of ownership when it comes to analogue versus IP-based systems. It is well known to us that the costs and the values of an IP system are still misconceived by most of the public.

Network cameras provide superior scalability, greater flexibility and image quality, also mega pixel functionality and offer video compression based on H.264 standard, which produces better image quality streams for a given bit rate when compared to MPEG4 based video compression. This allows you to save up to 50% of bandwidth for remote monitoring via Internet. In addition, IP systems typically include better maintenance and service agreements for the equipment, plus they can be remotely serviced over the network for easier maintenance. IP systems clearly make the most sense both from an economic and technological standpoint.

Last but not least, the IP technology represents the future and any existing legacy system will therefore phase out sooner or later into an IP-based system.

Future Proofing

By deploying an IP CCTV solution future proofing can be achieved by enabling integration and support for new technologies and applications such  HD,  proximity access control and identification indexing, Video Analytics, Facial Recognition and Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR).

Integration with the above technologies enables CCTV to be extended to provide an additional level of security for traffic monitoring, parking, and access control applications.

Linking CCTV with Access Control technology can deliver real benefits. For example in a school a single card could be used for students and staff for access to secure areas, library card, identification, time and attendance records and cashless vending. CCTV images can be linked to Access Control records so that in the event of crimes such as vandalism, pilfering or identity theft rather than simply having a database you have a visual image to quickly identify if the access records are correct and also avoid any rebuttal from potential suspects.

Remote Accessibility

Secure remote access enables an IP based solution to be monitored from anywhere not just in a central control room. Using the integrated intelligence of IP based solutions automated audio response and alarm escalation out of hours can also be achieved as well as incorporation of help points and streaming video to mobile phones.

Analytic

Below are the features that can be integrated in an IP CCTV environment at any time without disturbing or replacing any hardware.

• License Plate Recognition
• Container Plate Recognition
• Face Capture and Recognition
• Multi-Zone Motion Detection
• Body Tracking
• Object Tracking
• Left Baggage Detection
• People Counting
• Traffic Monitoring
• Video and transaction synchronization indexing

Although this can be difficult for some people, you also need to fire the negative people from your life. I once read that you can see your future just by looking at the six people with whom you spend the most time. If you don’t like what you see, then change those people. There’s no honor in remaining loyal to people who expect you to fail. One of the reasons people fail to start their own businesses, for instance, is that they spend most of their time associating with other employees. The way out of this trap is to start spending a lot more time associating with business owners, such as by joining a trade association, Networking groups etc. Mindsets are contagious. So spend your time with people whose mindsets are worth catching.

Infosys’ Chairman and Chief Mentor Officer (CMO) – Mr. Narayana Murthy’s Speech on Late Sitting in Office:

I know people who work 12hours a day, six days a week, or more. Some people do so because of a work emergency where the long hours are only temporary. Other people I know have put in these hours for years.

I don’t know if they are working all these hours, but I do know they are in the office this long. Others put in long office hours because they are addicted to the workplace. Whatever the reason for putting in overtime, working long hours over the long term is harmful to the person and to the organization.

There are things managers can do to change this for everyone’s benefit. Being in the office long hours, over long periods of time, makes way for potential errors. My colleagues who are in the office long hours frequently make mistakes caused by fatigue.

Correcting these mistakes requires their time as well as the time and energy of others. I have seen people work Tuesday through Friday to correct mistakes made after 5PM on Monday.

Another problem is that people who are in the office for long hours are not pleasant company. They often complain about other people (who aren’t! working as hard); they are irritable, or cranky, or even angry. Other people avoid them. Such behavior poses problems, where work goes much better when people work together instead of avoiding one another.

As Managers, there are things we can do to help people leave the office.

First and foremost is to set the example and go home ourselves. I work with a manager who chides people for working long hours. His words quickly lose their meaning when he sends these chiding group e-mails with a time-stamp of 2AM, Sunday.

Second is to encourage people to put some balance in their lives. For instance, here is a guideline I find helpful:

1) Wake up, eat a good breakfast, and go to work.
2) Work hard and smart for eight or nine hours.
3) Go home.
4) Read the comics, watch a funny movie, dig in the dirt, play with your kids, etc.
5) Eat well and sleep well.

This is called recreating. Doing steps 1, 3, 4, and 5 enable step 2. Working regular hours and recreating daily are simple concepts. They are hard for some of us because that requires personal change. They are possible since we all have the power to choose to do them.

In considering the issue of overtime, I am reminded of my eldest son. When he was a toddler, If people were visiting the apartment, he would not fall asleep no matter how long the visit, and no matter what time of day it was.! He would fight off sleep until the visitors left. It was as if he was afraid that he would miss something. Once our visitors’ left, he would go to sleep. By this time, however, he was over tired and would scream through half the night with nightmares.

He, my wife and I, all paid the price for his fear of missing out. Perhaps some people put in such long hours because they don’t want to miss anything when they leave the office. The trouble with this is that events will never stop happening. That is life! Things happen 24hours a day.

Allowing for little rest is not ultimately practical. So, take a nap. Things will happen while you’re asleep, but you will have the energy to catch up when you wake.

Hence ” LOVE YOUR JOB BUT NEVER FALL IN LOVE WITH YOUR COMPANY (Because you never know when it stops loving you)” – Narayana Murthy

I need not explain importance of the first C – Customers, but let’s look at the often misunderstood role of the second C- Competitor.

Expands the market for your products/services:
It may sound strange but competitors influence the customers and help grow the market for your products and services. Presence of a competitor can also influence customers in ways that help you win more sales, and do it more efficiently, over time. Competitors help (& force) you to identify new applications & industry sectors you may never have thought of.

Provide a basis for comparison:
Competitor forces you to be more efficient & creative in seeking differentiation. Availability of an alternative helps purchase decision, & company whose unique mix of product & (or) service features is competitive can win sales often enough to succeed in the market.

Help identify right market sector:
Let them lead while you learn. When you identify new offerings or markets where your assessment suggests caution, a competitor may do you the favor of entering into market first. The case for letting a competitor move first into a new market can be stronger, when you are up against a very strong competitor. If you are a dominant player, you too can gain from competitors.

So welcome competition in its truest sense.
Be extremely cautious if you have no competitors!