Issue link: https://securitytechnologyexecutive.epubxp.com/i/431828
22 SECURITY TECHNOLOGY EXECUTIVE • November/December 2014 www.SecurityInfoWatch.com SECURITY INNOVATION AWARD TRANSIT PROJECT WINNER the video to the central archiver through a wire- less network and instantly email a notification to the requesting operator once the transfer is complete. Enabled by an Omnicast feature called Video Trickling, this automatic video offloading helps minimize bandwidth consumption and storage, enabling MBTA security teams to keep only the video they need. "We do a significant amount of forensic video analysis for other agencies, such as the Boston Police and State Police to pull events that happen at intersections, bus stations or anywhere else around the buses," says Jonathan Wing, Video Analyst, Criminal Investigation Unit. "It's not just about the safety of the bus drivers and passen- gers, but really a benefit to the whole metropoli- tan Boston area." To ensure the preferred connection mode is in use at all times, integration between Omni- cast and the GPS technology was developed. The video system is able to automatically deci- pher which mode of connection should be in effect, depending on the location of the bus. For example, when a bus is driving through the city, the cellular network is used to transfer video; but once a bus is within the terminal's vicinity, wireless communication takes precedence. The GPS integration is linked to the master OCC sys- tem and Google maps, letting operators know exactly where buses are within the city. Custom Applications Ensure Continuous Uptime and Enhance Bus Safety Implementing the full solution was a massive team effort from the start. The MBTA security department, Jacobs Engineering Group, Genetec, and Minuteman Security Technologies worked together to deliver the complete solution, com- bining engineering and development expertise to meet the very specific requirements. Everyone came together to push the techno- logical boundaries of the chosen solutions in the mass transit implementation. This was further enabled by the use of Genetec's open and mature software development kit (SDK), which allowed for more custom applications to be developed. From mobile data terminals (MDT) in police cruisers, officers can tap into a nearby bus's video surveillance system in the event of an emergency. "It's a great safety feature for the officers on the street because they know what they are walking into," Sprague says. "They are more prepared to address the situation and to protect themselves." A bus scanning tool enables law enforcement officers on the road to identify buses in the vicin- ity of their cruiser. To enable this feature and protect the access privileges to this functionality, each bus is correlated to hidden Session Initia- tion Protocol (SIP), which is stored in a database on MDT and automatically updated each time the cruiser returns to its station. Officers sim- ply need to press a 'scan' button to retrieve a list of buses within a certain range of their vehicle. Then, they can select the correct bus number and automatically connect to the system to see what is happening before responding to an emergency. Another application was specifically developed to help bus drivers alert OCC operators of dis- tress onboard the bus though integration of a panic button alarm. The bus driver has control of the panic button which prompts an alarm at the OCC. Operators can then click on the alarm to automatically connect to video surveillance sys- tem to see what is going on. Minuteman Security Technologies also devel- oped a customized health monitoring and man- agement tool called Transit Sentry. At a basic level, a health diagnostic report is automatically emailed to our team every day to ensure all bus systems are fully functional. This report helps MBTA plan for any required maintenance and ensures operators and analysts will always have access to needed video. Project Partners: End User: • Randy Clarke, Senior Director of Security and Emergency Management at MBTA • Adam Peters, Transit Security Projects Administrator at MBTA • Kenneth Sprague, Deputy Chief, MBTA Investigative Services Division • Jonathan Wing, Video Analyst at MBTA Systems Integrator: • Joe Lynch, CEO, Minuteman Security Technologies Consultant: • Christopher Costello, Manager, Systems and Technology, Jacobs Vendors: • Genetec • Moxa • Panasonic • Vidsys Each bus is outfitted with two 360-degree cameras, one interior fixed high-definition camera, and three external 720p high- definition cameras.