Theft from commercial transport means is running at $30 Billion a year in the USA and €8 Billion per year across Europe. Wireless video streaming is suitable for use in the protection of high value goods, offering live surveillance on demand or by triggered alarm from containers or trucks, says Vemotion.
Innovation = technical solution x imaginative application. But the environment and timing have to be right for the innovation to be effective and to prosper: giving Genghis Khan a microwave to heat his Indian takeaway might have seemed like a good idea, but it would probably earned you your head back on a plate when he looked for the non-existent socket to plug it in! As any successful businessman will tell you, it’s all about being in the right place at the right time with the vision to see what you might accomplish if you take advantage of the opportunities in front of you. The purpose of this paper is to act as a trigger for thought and discussion about live video transmission over low bandwidth networks, especially mobile phone networks, and how it might be used to help your business or make your operation more efficient and productive….. and allow you to take advantage of those opportunities. One example of this is in transportation security.
High value cargo
The Transported Asset Protection Agency (TAPA) have statistics that show the great increase recently in theft of high value cargo due to organized crime. In 2011, the cost to businesses in Europe was over €8.2 billion, and in the USA this has reached over $30 billion per annum. Police regularly issue warnings of increases in criminal activity and, in particular, attacks on trucks parked up in lay-bys or in unsecured lorry parks and motorway service stations. Crimes include both curtain slashing and fuel thefts. Most crimes of this type occur during the hours of darkness and involve the theft or attempted theft from curtain sided trailers.
BUT, if you can see out then you can also see in ! Using a system designed to operate from a mobile or highly portable platform in both overt and covert modes, offers hauliers and distribution networks the ability to protect their vehicles, trailers and cargo through live video coverage 24/7/365. Making use of units that can be linked to other alarm devices such as a Reed switch, contact breakers, passive infra-red or motion sensing cameras, to trigger the live camera stream. This allows an instant picture to be remotely sent to a central control centre allowing an immediate response to a theft in progress – whilst a video record of the perpetrators is also saved for evidential purposes. The video encoder needs to be housed in a stable, rugged platform suitable for vehicle mounting and for maximum flexibility needs to support both IP and analogue cameras. Support for multiple units is needed to provide an all-round situational awareness both inside and outside of the vehicle or trailer and so increase levels of driver safety and confidence.
Border
A fine of £2,000 can now be levied on a truck driver for EACH illegal immigrant found within his truck. The UK Border Agency and Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) firmly see it as a driver’s responsibility to ensure that his vehicle is locked and checked before crossing the UK Border. Failure to provide evidence of adequate checks can lead to drivers and haulage firms facing a penalty of £2,000 for each person found. With Vemotion’s system a remote video record can be kept centrally and used to support a driver’s claims that he checked his vehicle properly. But prevention is better than cure and the mobility of video camera and encoder products allow a live video picture to be acted upon as the entry to the vehicle is being made and before a border is even approached – the driver can be alerted and drive straight to an isolation area for removal / arrest before entering the country. Now, that’s what we call a result!
A mobile platform is not just a land based vehicle and a mobile video picture can be transmitted from a boat just as easily as a land-based vehicle. A specific transmission system such as a VHF radio or satellite system can be used, most coastal waters are also covered by an overflow of land-based mobile phone systems which will quite happily allow use of low bandwidth GSM based live video streams. This has great application for recreational sailors, as well as maritime security and life-saving operations such as the RNLI, and UK Coastguard. And if you are lucky enough to own a decent sized yacht, then you can watch your Premiership football team play Keepie Uppie on the quarterdeck whilst you negotiate their contracts over an iced vodka on the other side of the world.
For further information – visit http://www.vemotion.com/applications/transport/
About the firm
Vemotion is a software company that specialises in the transmission of live video over networks. This allows the firm to integrate with, and complement, fixed CCTV with a mobile and portable capability which can then be remotely controlled.
