How to Configure Comelit Activity Zones for Accurate Alerts
Comelit's activity zones are a powerful feature designed to reduce the number of unwanted motion alerts by focusing detection on specific areas within your camera's view. However, if they are not configured correctly, you may find they are ineffective, either bombarding you with false positives or failing to detect genuine events. This professional guide will help you optimise your activity zones for maximum accuracy.
## Understanding How Activity Zones Work
Activity zones work by telling your Comelit system to only analyse motion that occurs within the customised shapes you draw on the screen. Any movement detected outside these zones is ignored, which should, in theory, stop alerts from passing cars, pedestrians on a public footpath, or swaying trees. The key to success lies in the precise and thoughtful placement of these zones.
## Best Practices for Drawing Effective Activity Zones
To get the most out of this feature, you need to be strategic about how you define your monitored areas.
### Be Specific and Precise
- Tightly Define Areas: Draw your zones to cover only the areas of interest. For a driveway, for example, draw the zone to cover the parking area itself, but exclude the public road and any neighbouring properties. For a front door, trace the path and porch area.
- Avoid Overlapping Public Spaces: The most common mistake is creating a zone that slightly overlaps a busy road or footpath. Even a small overlap can trigger a constant stream of irrelevant notifications.
- Create Multiple, Smaller Zones: Instead of one large zone covering your entire garden, create several smaller, targeted zones. For instance, one for the patio doors, one for the garden gate, and another for the shed. This gives you more granular control.
### Account for Environmental Factors
Your camera detects motion based on changes in pixels. Many environmental factors can cause these changes and lead to false alerts.
- Foliage and Shadows: Avoid including trees, bushes, or large plants in your activity zones. The movement of leaves and branches in the wind is a primary cause of false positives. Similarly, be mindful of long shadows that move across your garden as the sun's position changes.
- Light Changes: Do not aim zones directly at sources of light that can change, such as streetlights or security lights from a neighbour's property. The sudden change when a light turns on or off can be misinterpreted as motion. Car headlights sweeping across a zone at night will also trigger an alert.
- Reflective Surfaces: Be cautious with zones that include windows, puddles, or shiny surfaces, as reflections can also be perceived as motion.
## Fine-Tuning Sensitivity and Settings
Once your zones are drawn, you may need to adjust the motion sensitivity.
- If you get too many false alerts: Your sensitivity is likely too high. Lower it one level at a time and test the results.
- If you are missing genuine events: The sensitivity may be too low, or your zone is not correctly placed. First, double-check that your zone covers the area completely, then try increasing the sensitivity.
By combining well-drawn, specific activity zones with the appropriate sensitivity level, you can transform your notification experience from noisy to highly accurate and reliable.