Boundless Security Systems, Inc. has concealed a complete, covert, cellular, battery-powered, Internet accessible, high definition, PTZ camera system in a common, 42-inch traffic channelizer cone. Its heart is a Boundless’ Cylindrical Smart uPTZ Camera that is made in America and has remotely controlled, mechanical pan, tilt, and optical zoom at full resolution, for placement up to 450 feet from a subject. The rapid deployment system is lightweight, easily transported and quickly set up. It uses very low power and runs up to 5 days continuously on internal lithium batteries. High definition video is continuously recorded within the camera at 1920x1080 at very high sharpness, and also at 960x540 at a much lower data rate and for viewing live. Boundless’ optional Rapid Review enables reviewing an hour’s recorded video over the air in only 30 seconds. Multipurpose, the Smart uPTZ Camera and batteries can be removed from the cone and used in other housings.
The concealed, Smart uPTZ Camera has 256 GB of internal video storage. It supports an external encrypted USB flash drive for easy removal and archival of stored video. The camera uses a very small viewing window thanks to Boundless’ forward-pivot pan-tilt mechanism. Unlike other PTZ cameras that pivot from behind the lens, requiring a large window to have a large viewing angle and a dark, light-losing window for concealment, Boundless’ Smart uPTZ Camera tilts at the front of the lens. This enables using a small clear window for better concealment and low light performance, while retaining a large viewing angle.
Boundless’ Rapid Review avoids the tedium of reviewing long periods of recorded video to determine subject activity, or when an item was dropped off, removed or damaged. It also provides a new paradigm for investigators, enabling quick scanning of long periods of recorded video rather than watching live video, while greatly reducing the amount of cellular data required for video. Every hour, completely and autonomously, within Boundless’ Smart uPTZ Camera, without any extra equipment, user effort or cellular bandwidth, Rapid Review creates a timelapse video of the previous hour. Every day, it also creates a timelapse video of the previous day. The timelapse video is integrated with Boundless’ normal, internally recorded video. The user views a timelapse video at 120X or faster, then, when s/he spots something of interest, pauses playback and easily switches over to viewing normal recorded video, with its much greater detail.
The Smart uPTZ Camera provides a WiFi hotspot for wireless system setup where there is no cellular service. The hotspot is active only when a magnet is placed at a particular location on the outside of the cone, so that once removed, no WiFi network comes from the cone. The Smart uPTZ Camera also has a 3D accelerometer to detect movement of the cone, and, if a cellular network is available, to send an alert. Smart Power Monitoring is also provided that closely measures not just the battery voltage, but the amount of energy consumed, closely estimates the amount of run time remaining on a battery charge, and reports it via the Internet, if available.
