Finavia, the Finnish airport operating company, will be reducing passenger waiting times at Helsinki’s Vantaa Airport with the assistance of the new Vidient SmartCatch intelligent video surveillance software. It has purchased Vidient SmartCatch 2.5 licenses from NEC and Vidient Systems.
The system automatically reports queues exceeding a pre-defined length in the security check-in zone of the airport. This enables the management to open another counter and prevent the zone from becoming overcrowded to guarantee fast and flexible check-in.
The passenger volume at Helsinki-Vantaa airport has continually increased over recent years to over 11.1 million in 2005. At the same time, security requirements are growing more complex. Finavia was looking for a technical solution to reduce the security personnel’s workload and prevent long waiting times and delays for passengers without compromising its high security standards.
Numerous tests were performed in diverse application scenarios before Finavia decided to opt for SmartCatch. One scenario consisted of checks to establish compliance with runway safety regulations. In this application, SmartCatch automatically detects whether a service vehicle is parked in a prohibited zone on the airfield, such as the area near a gate. If the service vehicle has been parked at a gate where there is no plane, an alarm is automatically triggered and the security personnel are informed.
“We use over 500 cameras at the airport. That’s why we were very keen to find a solution that reduces the burden of work falling to our security personnel so that they have enough time to focus on genuinely serious security breaches,” said Jyri Vikstrom, head of corporate security at Finavia.
The airport operator chose SmartCatch because it enables the more precise and efficient use of CCTV camera networks. SmartCatch can differentiate between people, vehicles and other objects, as well as stationary and moving objects. It can identify people who are loitering and objects that are left behind in security zones, as well as people going the wrong way through exits (e.g. going back out through entry barriers). This enables SmartCatch to support security personnel in complex environments such as airports, stations, corporate, and public buildings.
Vidient SmartCatch 2.5 can easily be integrated in existing security infrastructures, and the program has numerous application interfaces for individual adaptation to existing systems and applications. Real-time warnings are sent automatically to security staff via mobile phone, PDA, or pager, and the software supports all current mobile communications devices which run on Palm OS, Windows CE, and Symbian.
