In Prague the city council has 2,500-plus cameras which monitor many of the Czech capital’s streets, schools, underground and surface rail lines besides historic buildings and monuments are all recorded and managed using Geutebruck equipment. The extensive use of video analytics with automatic alarm scenarios enables system operators to intervene whenever required.
One example is the Charles Bridge over the Vltava River – pictured. Some tourists were ignoring the signs and mounting its balustrades to be photographed with King Wenceslas or one of the other stone saint statues. This could be risky for the people and damaging for the stonework. Video analysis on the bridge cameras automatically generates alarm alerts to police at a nearby station for them to deal promptly with the incident. Recordings are available for evidential purposes in case of legal proceedings. Geutebruck’s outdoor video analytics VMD shows it can differentiate between clambering humans and the birds which often alight on the statues. The German CCTV firm adds that the VMD operates in all weathers without generating weather-related alarms.
The city council has been using Geutebruck CCTV products since 2006 and has been upgrading and expanding.
The most recent significant expansion to the city’s video monitoring has been the CCTV in the new Blanka tunnel. This six kilometre extension to the City Circle road tunnel is being built to the north west of the city centre. Due for completion in May 2014, it is hoped that this tunnel network will alleviate traffic congestion in the centre of Prague, a World Heritage site. For more details of Geutebruck, visit: www.geutebrueck.com
