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Occupancy Analytics

Instructions for setting up an Occupancy Analytic to calculate occupancy totals from one or multiple supported cameras

Updated over 2 weeks ago

Requirements

You can calculate occupancy totals in Arcules as long as the following requirements are met:

For an Axis Camera

  • Current Axis AOA Enabled Cameras

    • Axis Object Analytics is enabled for the camera

    • Crossline Counting Scenarios are properly configured via the AOA interface

  • Legacy Axis Cameras

  • Camera Analytics is enabled in Arcules for this device

For a Bosch Camera

  • Cameras must a supported Bosch Flexidome model: 3000i, 4000i, 5000i, 7000MP, 8000i

  • Line crossing analytics are properly configured through the Bosch Configuration Manager and named appropriately

  • Camera Analytics is enabled in Arcules for this device

Configuring Axis Cameras

Axis AOA

To be able to use the Occupancy Analytics within Arcules, you must have Scenarios configured in Axis Object Analytics to gather the appropriate data.

We utilize the Crossline Counting Scenario type to achieve this. You will need to create two scenarios, one with a line directed to people entering, and one with a line directed for people leaving. Arcules will then compare these two counts, and give the count of People In - People Out.

To begin, log into your Axis camera. Navigate to Analytics, and click on AXIS Object Analytics.

Click on Open to enter the configuration for Axis Object Analytics where we can create our scenarios.

Scenario 1: Entering

Once in the Scenarios screen of Axis Object Analytics, click on the New scenario icon.

This will open the wizard for configuring a new scenario.

Here we will select Crossline Counting and hit Next.

Next we will select the objects we are interested in. For Occupancy Analytics.

NOTE: Select either Humans or the desired Vehicle types. Arcules looks at the total number of objects detected to count towards occupancy.

Example: If you set this up for all objects, if 3 Humans and 5 Cars cross the line, we would see that as a count of 8.

Once done, click Next.

On this screen, you will name your scenario at the top by clicking the pencil icon. The name of this scenario MUST contain the word "In" for the analytic to pull in this count.

You will also define your boundary line, such as an entrance, or threshold. In this example we are using the property boundary to determine how many people are entering the driveway.

When the line is drawn correctly, and you are satisfied, click the Finish button.

Scenario 2: Exiting

Once in the Scenarios screen of Axis Object Analytics, click on the New scenario icon.

This will open the wizard for configuring a new scenario.

Here we will select Crossline Counting and hit Next.

Next we will select the same objects as you did for the Entering scenario.

NOTE: If you do not match your objects to count on, your Occupancy will be incorrectly calculated.

Once done, click Next.

On this screen, you will name your scenario at the top by clicking the pencil icon. The name of this scenario MUST contain the word "Out" for the analytic to pull in this count.

To make this easy, you can click on the "Copy virtual line from an existing scenario" drop down, and pick the scenario you created for the Entering events. Next, you would click the Change trigger direction button, to reverse the line's counting.

Copying a virtual line

Reversing the direction

When the line is drawn correctly, and you are satisfied, click the Finish button.

This completes the configuration on the Axis camera for this feature.

Axis People Counter

For legacy cameras that cannot support Axis Object Analytics, you can use the Axis People Counter ACAP. Configuration for this application can be found in the following guide from Axis.

Configuring Bosch Cameras

Configuring the analytics for the supported Bosch cameras requires the use of a Windows application, Bosch Configuration Manager.

NOTE: The current firmware version for the Bosch cameras have caused an incompatibility with our analytics integration. We are currently working to determine the last-known-good version of Bosch firmware.

Configure the line crossing analytics directly in Bosch Configuration Manager

Analytics Configuration Steps (In, Out)

Note: Before you begin, please note that your task name must begin with the words "in" or "out" (e.g. "in lobby door" or "out lobby door") otherwise the line crossing analytics cannot be used to calculate occupancy total. Arcules will then compare these two counts, and give the count of People In - People Out.

  1. Navigate to the VCA tab in Configuration Manager

  2. Inside of sub tab Main Profile, validate that the Analysis Type is set to Intelligent Video Analytics (if your camera model is a 3000-5000 set it to Essential Video Analytics)

  3. Click + inside of sub tab Tasks to add a new task

  4. Select Counter, enter Task name of In and click Next >

  5. Add a new line and adjust the line positioning to your environment, then click Next >

  6. In the Debounce time box enter 0.1

  7. In the Direction list select Forward

  8. Click Next

  9. Check to make sure you see a counter visually on the video feed of In: # to validate this task operation was a success

  10. Repeat steps 3-8 with Task name of Out and Direction set to Backwards

  11. Check to make sure you see a counter visually on the video feed of Out: # to validate this task operation was a success

Here's an example of what it should look like once your analytics are set up in the Bosch Configuration Manager:

This completes the on-camera configuration for Bosch VCA.

Enabling the Analytics in the Arcules Portal

The next step is to enable the analytics integration within the Arcules Portal.

First go to your Devices page in the portal.

Click on the camera in the list you want to enable the analytics for and open the device drawer. From here you click on the Analytics tab.

At the bottom of the drawer, click on the + Add Analytic link next to Camera Analytics.

This will bring up a selection window to select your compatible analytics.

  • For Axis AOA configurations, select Axis Object Analytics

  • For Axis People Counter, select Axis People Counter

  • For Bosch cameras, select Bosch VCA

Once selected, click Add. The system will then reach out to the camera and pull in the configured analytics.

Configuring Occupancy Analytics

To get started, navigate to your location of choice, select the Occupancy Analytics tab and click the plus icon + in the top right-hand corner.

1. Review the instructions

Once you have reviewed the content, click Next.

2. Enter a Name

On the next screen, enter a name for the occupancy analytic, and click CONTINUE.

3. Select cameras

Select from the list of supported cameras configured to support Occupancy Analytics that you want to calculate total occupancy from and click CONTINUE.

4. Set occupancy thresholds

Enter a warning value and a max value as the occupancy thresholds, and click SAVE.

5. Validate your configuration

Find the list of the current values for occupancy total and individual counters on the STATUS tab to verify your configuration.

NOTE: the values reset every day at 02:00AM based on the time zone of the location.

6. Set up a Rule to track occupancy

Click on the THRESHOLD tab, and click the link button to set up a Rule.

Configure the Action for the Rule by selecting the action type and the appropriate individuals who should receive the alarms and/or notifications. Then click SAVE.

Monitor Real-Time Occupancy Levels

You can monitor real-time occupancy levels from the Views page by adding Occupancy Analytic graphs to any View.

Note: It's important that the users or groups who are monitoring occupancy have the Continuous Live Viewing role assigned. This role disables the auto-logout function, so that users with this role can stay logged in without getting timed-out.

Go to the Views page and click the plus icon +.

On the next screen, enter a name for the View and click NEXT.

Select the cameras related to the occupancy count for the View on the Video tab, then click the ANALYTICS tab to select the desired analytics you want to display in your view, and click DONE.

You can rearrange the widgets as you wish by clicking the more icon in the upper right hand corner and selecting Rearrange.

Have questions? We're here to help! 👋 Reach out to the Arcules team through the chat icon at the bottom right-hand corner of your screen.

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