How to Reduce False Notifications from Your Avigilon Security System
Avigilon security systems are renowned for their powerful analytics and high-quality imaging. However, receiving a constant stream of false notifications can quickly become overwhelming, diminishing the system's effectiveness and causing "alarm fatigue." When every notification is a spider web or a swaying tree branch, it's easy to miss a real security event. This guide will help you fine-tune your Avigilon camera settings to significantly reduce false alarms and ensure the alerts you receive are meaningful.
Understanding the Source of False Alarms
False notifications are typically triggered by the system's motion detection or analytics misinterpreting environmental "noise" as a threat. Common culprits include:
- Environmental Factors: Rain, snow, moving shadows, and changes in lighting.
- Vegetation and Debris: Wind-blown trees, bushes, and litter.
- Animals: Birds, insects, cats, and other wildlife.
- Reflections: Headlights from passing cars or reflections in windows.
The goal is to teach your system to ignore these common distractions and focus only on objects of interest, such as people and vehicles.
Step 1: Switch from Motion Detection to Classified Object Detection
The most significant improvement you can make is to stop using simple pixel-based motion detection and start using Avigilon's self-learning video analytics. Instead of alerting on any motion, you can create rules that only trigger when the system identifies a specific class of object.
- In the Avigilon Control Center (ACC) client, select the camera you want to configure and open its Setup dialog.
- Navigate to the Analytics tab. Ensure analytics is enabled for this camera.
- Go to the Rules section. Instead of using a generic "motion detected" rule, create a new rule for "Object Enters Area" or "Object Crosses Beam".
- In the rule configuration, you will see checkboxes for "Person" and "Vehicle". Select the object types you want to be notified about. For example, for a driveway, you would select both. For a garden path, you might only select "Person".
- By setting this up, you've already instructed the system to ignore motion from anything it doesn't classify as a person or a vehicle.
Step 2: Fine-Tune the Region of Interest (ROI)
Don't analyse areas you don't care about. If a public street or a neighbour's busy garden is in your camera's field of view, you should exclude it from the detection area.
- When setting up your analytics rule (e.g., "Object Enters Area"), you will be prompted to draw a region of interest on the image.
- Draw this region carefully to only cover the specific area you want to monitor. For example, draw it tightly around your doorway or your garden, excluding the pavement beyond your property line.
Step 3: Adjust Sensitivity and Thresholds
Even with analytics, some tuning may be required.
- Object Size: In the analytics configuration, you can set a minimum and maximum object size for detection. If you're getting false alarms from small animals, slightly increasing the minimum object size can help filter them out.
- Confirmation Threshold: Adjust the time an object needs to be in the scene before it is confirmed as a target. A slightly longer time can help eliminate fleeting objects like birds flying past.
Step 4: Schedule Your Notifications
You may not need to receive notifications 24/7. For instance, you might only want to be alerted about activity in your office after business hours.
- Within the rule setup, you can define a schedule.
- Create a schedule that matches your needs, for example, only making the rule active on weekdays from 6 PM to 8 AM and all day on weekends. This ensures you are not bothered by alerts during normal activity hours.
Step 5: Maintain Your Cameras
Physical factors can impact analytics performance.
- Clean the Lens: A clean lens is crucial. Cobwebs, dust, and water spots can obstruct the view and sometimes trigger motion events. Regularly clean the camera's housing.
- Check for Obstructions: Ensure that new plant growth or other objects are not starting to block the camera's view or create new sources of motion within your detection zones.
By transitioning to classified object detection and carefully refining your rules and regions of interest, you can transform your Avigilon system from a source of constant, annoying alerts into a precise and reliable security tool.