AVIGILON AI NVRs Unity Video User Guide

: June 5, 2024
: aVIGILON

Table of Contents

AVIGILON AI NVRs Unity Video
How Does Visible Firearm Detection Function?
Firearm Detection Deployment Overview
Connecting a Server to Avigilon Cloud Services
Confirming Camera Selection in the Cloud AI Platform
Reviewing Firearm Detection Events
References
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AVIGILON AI NVRs Unity Video

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PDF-UNITY-VIDEO-VISIBLE-FIREARM-DETECTION-HRevision: 1 – EN20240411

Visual Firearm Detection
Avigilon Visual Firearm Detection (VFD) is designed to swiftly detect hand- held handguns and long guns. Built using video-based AI analytics, VFD is deployable as a hybrid cloud plus server solution when connected to any ONVIF- conformant camera.
VFD is available as an add-on, next generation analytic only on Avigilon AI NVRs and ENVR2 appliances as well as Avigilon Windows NVRs when deployed with the on-board analytics of Avigilon H6A cameras.

How Does Visible Firearm Detection Function?

Designed with a human-in-the-loop approach, VFD reduces false positives and alarm fatigue by using AI to detect and confirm hand-held firearms in Avigilon Unity Cloud Services (UCS or ACS). The system automatically alerts security operators or integrates Motorola Solutions’ incident management solutions to verify events. When a security response is escalated, using predefined workflows, other security team members receive notifications.

Avigilon’s VFD solution provides non-intrusive monitoring of threats using a site’s visible light cameras. Its hybrid edge AI detection with cloud-based AI verification is designed to maximize detections while minimizing false alerts. Camera streams are sourced from select existing cameras into the edge appliance via ONVIF connections or RTSP streaming. When deployed with an Avigilon H6A camera, any Avigilon Windows NVR can be used.

The AI NVR, ENVR2 plus, and camera-based VFD appliances use AI-based detection to identify suspected gun-like objects carried by people. These brandished firearm events are then sent as video clips to Avigilon’s cloud-based AI detector for deep validation as a brandished hand-gun or long gun. The cloud only returns verified true events back to the appliance to trigger Avigilon Unity/ACC rules.

Administrators can configure rules to take actions on events; for instance:

Pop up live video in the Client based on a Saved View, presenting one or more associated cameras for immediate situational awareness around the firearm event.
Display the firearm event in the Focus of Attention dashboard, Alarm Armed Panel or Alarm view. Security operators can review a clip of the event or proceed to a live view on the camera detecting the event.
Send an alarm to the Avigilon Unity Video/ACC mobile app to specific mobile users.

It is recommended that security operators review events before initiating further actions. Response flows are available by integrating to Avigilon Decision Management System (DMS) via Avigilon Cloud Services and the Orchestrator Service.
Incident response options include initiating a:

Site lockdown via Avigilon Unity Access or Avigilon Alta Access.
Mass notification to a facility user’s mobile device.

For planning purposes, see the high level steps to deploy the VFD solution summarized in Firearm Detection Deployment Overview on the next page.

Firearm Detection Deployment Overview

Deploying the Avigilon VFD solution requires setup on the Avigilon NVR, the Avigilon Cloud Services and Avigilon Cloud AI platforms. The checklist below provides an overview of VFD deployment with detailed steps covered in this document:

Deploy compatible software and firmware on the NVR server and cameras. See Appliance Firearm Detection Deployment Appliance Firmware Checklist below.
Cloud-connect the NVR to Avigilon Cloud Services. See Connecting Your Site to VFD in Avigilon Cloud Services on page 8.
Apply VFD licenses to the NVR server and select cameras.
Enable VFD, and set up rules and alarms on each device. See Enabling Visible Firearm Detection on page 11, Configuring a Firearm Detection Event Rule on page 12, and Configuring an Alarm for Firearm Detection Events on page 13.
Add a VFD service package to the Avigilon Cloud Services site, and wait for a service activation confirmation email. See Connecting Your Site to VFD in Avigilon Cloud Services on page 8.
Select VFD cameras on the Avigilon Cloud AI platform. See Confirming Camera Selection in the Cloud AI Platform on page 9.
Conduct a simulated firearm walk and confirm that the activity is logged on the platform. See Reviewing Candidate Events Sent to Cloud AI Platform on page 9.

Appliance Firearm Detection Deployment Appliance Firmware Checklist

The minimum hardware required: an AI NVR Value 6 TB – Avigilon Part # AINVR-VAL-6TB or an ENVR2 Plus – Avigilon Part # ENVR2-PLUS-8P4 OR an H6A camera with the latest firmware version with any Avigilon Windows NVR.
If this is a trial deployment, factory restore the appliance to clear recordings and reset the VFD Unity demo license key for another 90 days. For more information, see Restore the AI NVR to Factory Default Settings in the Avigilon AI Network Video Recorder User Guide.
WARNING Restoring factory defaults will delete all recordings.
Install the latest Avigilon Unity or ACC firmware on the appliance (minimum ACC 7.14.30 or Unity 8.2.0 or above is recommended).
Install the Client or standalone client via the appliance’s webUI. To allow you to configure the VFD features, it is important to use the latest client.
Identify suitable video fields of view for firearm detection; for example, identify approaches to building entrances, lobbies, and stairwells to exterior doors. To provide early detection and to allow for an effective response, choose camera fields of view that cover approaches to facilities where people are moving with purpose and not loitering.
Review the Avigilon Analytic Design guide for best person detection and camera guidelines related to backlight WDR compensation. For VFD, fifty (50) pixels per foot is recommended for handguns. VFD will detect long guns at 30 pixels per foot depending on lighting conditions.

Selecting an Appropriate Camera for VFD
The VFD solution requires a minimum of 50 pixels per foot on target to accurately detect handguns and long guns. Depending on the mounting location and overall lighting conditions long runs may be detected starting at 30 pixels per foot. The follow camera settings are recommended:

The system is looking for people with objects in their hand. Existing camera deployment guidance for analytic detection of people should be followed, for example, mounting heights and person time in scene.
Select a camera resolution setting to achieve the pixels on target for the desired detection distance
For certain Avigilon HDSM2 cameras, the default secondary resolution is very small. Ensure the secondary stream has a minimum of 2MP resolution (1920 x 1080). The secondary resolution setting can be verified and configured using Dual Mode + Flexible HDSM recording profile on the ACC Compression and Image Rate dialog.
A minimum camera image rate of 8 images per second (ips) for analytics detections. Depending on the lighting conditions, a camera’s exposure time may need to be reduced down to 1/250th second to reduce image blurring. A simple confirmation test is to export an image snapshot using the ACC/Unity Client.

Activating the Firearm Detection Service with Avigilon Cloud Service
VFD uses both on-premise AI edge detection and cloud-based AI analytics. Now that you have configured your appliance it must be connected to the Avigilon Cloud Service to enable sending events for verification. The steps are:

Connect your appliance to the Unity Cloud Service in the US data center region. See Connecting Your Site to VFD in Avigilon Cloud Services on the next page.
Connect your Unity or ACC site on Avigilon Cloud Service to the Visible Firearm Service in Avigilon Cloud Service. See Connecting Your Site to VFD in Avigilon Cloud Services on the next page.
Confirm your camera selection on the Avigilon Cloud AI platform. See Confirming Camera Selection in the Cloud AI Platform on page 9.

Connecting a Server to Avigilon Cloud Services

This two-step process involves creating a new customer organization and adding a server to the customer organization.
Creating a Cloud Customer Organization
Make sure you select the USA region and then follow the on-screen instructions to register the:

Organization name.
Customer administrator’s email address.

The customer administrator will receive an email to register their organization in Avigilon Cloud Services.

In your browser, go to cloud.avigilon.com.
Select a region* then click Create a new organization.
Enter the organization name and contact information. Click Submit.
If Google™ reCAPTCHA is not supported, you will be directed to contact support@avigilon.com
A registration email is sent.
Complete the registration.
See Registering Your User Account in the Cloud User Guide.

Adding a Unity Server to Your Unity Cloud Customer Organization
After the customer organization is provisioned, the administrator can add a site and complete the connection steps.

On the Organization Management page, in the Sites tab, click Add site.
Enter the site name, address, and select a Primary Contact who will receive email notifications about the site.
Click Add. A code is displayed.
NOTE Administrators can get a new code for sites with an expired activation code. Click the icon next to the Code Expired label to generate a new code.
Copy the code and enter it in the AvigilonUnityVideo Client software:
a. In the New Task menu , click Site Setup.
b. Click the site name, then click Avigilon Unity Cloud .
c. Click If you have an activation code, click here..
d. Enter the activation code and click Connect.
The server is now connected to Avigilon Cloud Services.

Connecting Your Site to VFD in Avigilon Cloud Services
To activate the VFD service on the cloud, you will need to add a Remote Monitoring service package to your organization. When prompted, use G6W-4QF- 80G as the invitation code. Avigilon Cloud Services displays the service name as Avigilon Firearm Detection Service.

On the Organization Management page, under the Sites tab, select a site.
Select the Service Packages tab.
In the top-right corner, click Add service package.
Enter the code given above and verify that the provider information is correct.
Click Save to submit the service request.

Avigilon Customer Support will receive your service request to activate the site via the service package. Within 24 hours, you will receive an email confirming service activation.

IMPORTANT Do not proceed to the next step until you receive a VFD service activation confirmation email.
After receiving a confirmation email, confirm cameras to be used for VFD on the Cloud AI platform. For more information, see Confirming Camera Selection in the Cloud AI Platform on the next page.

Confirming Camera Selection in the Cloud AI Platform

After receiving a confirmation about VFD service activation for your site from Avigilon Customer Support, confirm the cameras that will use VFD.

NOTE Do not proceed until you have received a confirmation email from Avigilon Customer Support,.

Navigate to the Avigilon Cloud AI Configuration portal.
Enter your administrator credentials (from your cloud customer organization) , and then click Next.
From the drop-down list, select your customer organization.
In the left camera list, select the required cameras, and use the right arrow to move the cameras to the list on the right. When searching for a camera, the search box supports partial string matches on camera names and is not case sensitive.
After moving all required cameras to the list on the right, click Submit to confirm the camera selection.

TIP To select all cameras, click on the check box next to Available Cameras.

IMPORTANT If you license and enable additional cameras for VFD from Avigilon Unity / ACC client, return to this page to select one or more cameras. In a future Avigilon Cloud Services update, the camera selection process will be made automatic.

Reviewing Candidate Events Sent to Cloud AI Platform
A runtime data dashboard is provided to monitor firearm detection activity. The dashboard summarizes every candidate firearm detection that has been sent to the Cloud AI platform in the past hour.

Navigate to Avigilon Cloud AI Configuration, and log in using your cloud services administrator account from your Avigilon Cloud Services customer organization.
After selecting the customer organization, select the Runtime Data tab to review the candidate firearm event being sent to the Cloud AI for validation.

Assessment
If the Cloud AI determines there is a firearm in the field of view, it will show a status of TRUE, FALSE, or SUPPRESSED.

Confirmation
If the Cloud AI platform has successfully reported the TRUE event back to the Avigilon Unity Video /ACC server. All reported firearm events can be reviewed using the ACC event search dialog as an object attribute event.

IMPORTANT
FIVE-MINUTE SUPPRESSION: To minimize the number of TRUE events, once a firearm is detected TRUE, the same person in the field of view will NOT trigger another TRUE event for five minutes. This is indicated by the SUPPRESSED assessment. Each time the person leaves the camera field of view and returns, they will trigger a new TRUE event.

Verifying the Connection to Cloud AI Platform
After the Cloud AI platform is configured, analytics detection events will flow from Unity or ACC to the Cloud AI server for analysis. After you have connected your site to Avigilon Cloud Services, you can use the Unity or ACC Site Health page to verify the Cloud AI connection. Cloud AI service will report three states:

Unreachable — Not connected due to communication issues or errors.
Ready — connected and healthy. No events have been processed in the last five minutes.
Active — candidate firearm chips (images) and metadata are actively being sent to the cloud.

IMPORTANT
FIREWALL RULE: If you are using strict firewall rules, ensure a rule permits outbound TCP traffic on 443 to to the Avigilon Cloud AI platform at the FQDN: avigilon-evhns-flux-prod-eastus-*.servicebus.windows.net

Configuring VFD on the Avigilon Network Video Recorder or Appliance

NOTE Visible Firearm Detection is supported on H6A cameras. Compatible camera firmware is required to configure this feature.

In Avigilon Unity / ACC Client, activate your VFD subscription license or trial license ACC7-VFD-TRIAL on the appliance. For more information, see Activating a License in the Client User Guide.
In Avigilon Unity / ACC client, connect cameras using Avigilon (ONVIF) or for third party cameras use ONVIF, or RTSP stream URL provided from their camera webUI. For more information, see Connecting a Device in the Client User Guide.

NOTE
To use Avigilon cameras with on-board analytics with VFD analytics on the Avigilon appliances, the camera’s on-board analytics must be disabled and they must use server based analytics from the appliance. The camera’s on-board analytics can be disabled from the camera webUI (requires the latest camera firmware) or from the ACC camera setup dialog Mode setting. Disabling onboard analytics is not required when using H6A cameras with the most recent firmware.

In the Avigilon Unity / ACC client, enable Firearm Detection from the Server Analytics dialog. For more information, see Enabling Visible Firearm Detection below.
In the Avigilon Unity / ACC client, configure a rule to trigger system alerts or actions. For more information, see Configuring a Firearm Detection Event Rule on the next page.
In the Avigilon Unity / ACC client, configure an alarm to trigger when a Firearm Detection event occurs. For more information, see Configuring an Alarm for Firearm Detection Events on page 13.

Enabling Visible Firearm Detection
To detect visible firearms to alert security personnel with live view of cameras near the detection point, server-side classified object detection must be enabled for Avigilon and third-party cameras.
To enable the Firearm Detection feature:

In the New Task menu , click Site Setup.
Select a server, then click Server Analytics .
IMPORTANT If your site is connected to an AI Appliance to provide analytics processing on the video streams from non-analytics cameras, expand the site and then click on Server Analytics .
Select the Classified Object Detection tab and then select the cameras to enable the VFD feature on.
Only cameras that you have access to that have the prerequisite analytics enabled are displayed in each tab. Appearance Search can be optionally enabled on these cameras.
NOTE Classified Object Detection is not required when using H6A cameras with the most recent firmware.
As you enable (or disable) analytics for cameras, the bars at the bottom update to display the server’s capacity. The percent usage of each analytics feature is displayed using the color of the analytics feature tab.
Select the Firearm Detection tab and then select the cameras to enable the feature on.
TIP If you do not see the Firearm Detection tab, check that you have the required license. Also, check that your site is connected to Unity Cloud.
To exit the Server Analytics panel, click Close.
Next, you need to configure a rule to get notified of a Firearm Detection event on the cameras with the feature enabled. For more information, see Configuring a Firearm Detection Event Rule below.

Configuring a Firearm Detection Event Rule
After enabling firearm detection events, you can set up rules that trigger system alerts or actions when one or more firearm events are detected. Here, setup is provided to generate an alert in Focus of Attention, an onscreen message, and a saved view of live camera streams when a firearm detection event is triggered a camera.

IMPORTANT Each camera must have its own rule to trigger a unique alarm, or call up a unique Saved View. To set up a rule for each camera to trigger a unique alarm, see Configuring a Unique Alarm for a Group of Cameras on page 14.

In the New Task menu , click Site Setup.
Select your site, and then click Rules.
Click Add.
In the Select Rule Event(s) area, under Object Attribute Events, click the Person with firearm detected check box.
Do the following:
a. Click the any camera blue link, and select Any of the following cameras:.
b. Click the check boxes of the cameras that will trigger firearm detection events.
c. Click OK.
Click Next.
In the Select Rule Action(s) area:
(Optional) Select the Display on-screen message check box > Click the message blue link and add a message. > Click OK.
Select the Focus of Attention check box > Click the devices that should be linked to the event blue link. > Choose how often to notify users, and then click OK. In Focus of Attention, firearm detection events display as yellow-colored hexagons.
Under Monitoring Actions:
Select the Open a saved view check box
Click the saved view linked to the event blue text.
Click All of the following saved view: blue text, and select one or more views.
Click OK.
TIP To save a view, in the toolbar, click > Save As New View > Select the site you’ll add the view to, assign a name, and then add a unique number as the Logical ID to mark the view in your site. > Click to choose where to display the View in the System Explorer. > Click OK to save your view.
Click Next.
On the Select Rule Properties dialog box:
a. Add the rule name and a description. The name should be unique throughout the site.
b. Create a schedule.
c. Select the Rule is enabled check box.
Click Finish to create the rule.
Now, you can set up an alarm to get notified of a Firearm Detection event on specified cameras. For more information, see Configuring an Alarm for Firearm Detection Events below.

Configuring an Alarm for Firearm Detection Events
Configure an alarm to trigger when a Firearm Detection event is detected. Alarms will appear on the Alarms page under the New Task > View section, appear as an alarm (in red) in Focus of Attention, and appear as an alert on the Avigilon Unity Video mobile app.

In the New Task menu , click Site Setup.
Click Alarms , and then click Add.
On the Select Alarm Trigger Source dialog box:
a. From the Alarm Trigger Source: drop-down list, choose Firearm Detected, and click Next.
On the Select Linked Devices dialog box:
a. Select the devices that will trigger the alarm.
b. (Optional) Adjust pre-alarm recording and duration settings.
c. (Optional) To show devices when an alarm is triggered, select the View linked devices when alarm is triggered check box.
d. Click Next.
On the Select Alarm Recipients dialog box:
a. To select users who will be notified when the alarm is triggered:
i. Click Add Recipients….
ii. Select the check boxes of users to receive alarm notifications, and click Add.
b. (Optional) To add a sound to the alarm when triggered, click Play sound when alarm is triggered:, and choose an audio file.
TIP To listen to an audio track, click .
c. Click Next.
On the Select Alarm Acknowledgment Action dialog box:
a. (Optional) Select the Require a comment when acknowledging alarm check box to require users to add a comment when they acknowledge the alarm.
b. (Optional) Select the Activate selected digital output(s) on alarm acknowledgment check box, and then select one or more devices. If you require the user to confirm before activating the digital output, select the Require user confirmation before activating digital output(s) check box.
On the Select Alarm Properties dialog box:
a. Enter a name for the alarm, assign a priority, and choose a schedule.
b. To enable the alarm, select the Enable alarm check box.
Click Finish to complete the alarm setup.

NOTE VFD carries no specific video data retention period. To change your privacy policy or regional regulations if your organization requires you to only retain data for a specific amount of time, see Identity Data Retention in the Unity Client guide.

Configuring a Unique Alarm for a Group of Cameras
Setting up a group of cameras with a unique alarm for firearm detection involves creating an alarm and then associating that alarm with a rule.

In the New Task menu , click Site Setup.
Click Alarms .
Click Add.
Do the following:
a. From the Alarm Trigger Source drop-down list, choose External Software Event, and click Next.
b. Select one or more devices, and click Next.
c. Add recipients, and click Next.
d. (Optional) Choose an alarm sound, and click Next.
e. (Optional) Select whether to require recipients to acknowledge the alarm, and click Next.
f. Name the alarm.
g. (Optional) set a priority and schedule.
h. Click Finish to create the alarm.
Add a rule based on the Person with firearm detected trigger. See Configuring a Firearm Detection Event Rule on page 12.
a. Select the firearm detection event you want to trigger the rule for.
b. On the Select Rule Action(s) pop-up, select Trigger an alarm action and select the alarm created above.

Reviewing Firearm Detection Events

You can monitor and review firearm detection events using Avigilon Unity Video monitoring or search tools:

From the Alarms dialog, choose a triggered alarm and click Open In View to review the event. You can acknowledge the alarm to dismiss it.
Create a saved view with the triggering camera and a set of related nearby cameras. Create an Avigilon
Unity Video rule triggered by a Firearm Detection alarm with the action Open a saved view.
To see the firearm detection events playback in Focus of Attention, or when configured alarms are displayed for review, in the New Task menu , click Focus of Attention > Settings > Click the Firearm Detection check box. Results will show a short 8-second video of the event where a firearm is suspected.
To search for firearm detection events in recorded video, click Events > Select the cameras to include in your search. > Enter a date range. > Select the Object Attributes check box. > Click Search. When clicking on a search result, the person with the firearm is highlighted.

More Information & Support
For additional product documentation and software and firmware upgrades, visit support.avigilon.com

Technical Support
Contact Avigilon Technical Support at support.avigilon.com/s/contactsupport
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