How-to Minimize Security Camera Motion Detection False Alarms
Watch this video to learn how-to drastically reduce security camera motion detection false alarms with a Viewtron DVR. The latest Viewtron CCTV / BNC camera DVRs have built-in AI software that can help identify people and cars when using motion detection recording and alarms. This is called Viewtron smart motion detection.
The smart motion detection AI software can be used with your existing legacy analog CCTV cameras, as well as newer 1080p, 4mp, and 8mp / 4K BNC cameras. Our Viewtron DVRs support all BNC cameras up to 4K resolution. The only exception is legacy HD-SDI cameras, which are rare. Please note that we highly recommend these Viewtron BNC cameras. Viewtron Smart Motion Detection works better with HD CCTV cameras.
Traditional Motion Detection: The Problem
Traditional video motion detection provided by CCTV DVRs and even most modern HD-over-Coax DVRs works by analyzing pixel changes in the video feed. This is known as security camera motion detection or video motion detection. Whenever a significant change is detected, the camera system assumes that a significant motion detection event has occurred. While effective in theory, this system is highly prone to false alarms. Environmental factors like moving trees, shadows, and even abrupt changes in lighting can trick the system into believing there’s an intruder.
Challenges with Outdoor Motion Detection Cameras
Outdoor surveillance is particularly challenging for security camera motion detection. Naturally occurring movements such as those of animals, foliage, or even heavy rain can cause repeated false alarms, which, over time, lead to complacency. Users may become desensitized to alerts, defeating the purpose of the security system altogether. In many cases, customers may switch off motion detection completely, rendering the system far less effective.
Introducing Viewtron Smart Motion Detection
What is Viewron Smart Motion Detection?
Viewtron Smart Motion Detection is a new feature available on Viewtron DVRs that offers a refined approach to motion detection. Unlike traditional video motion detection, Viewtron Smart Motion Detection uses AI software on the DVR that specifically targets human and vehicle objects. This significantly minimizes and in many cases completely eliminates false alarms. It is just as easy to setup as traditional video motion detection. There is one additional step where you seelct if you want to target human detection, vehicle detection, or both.
Users can configure the DVR to specifically detect only humans, only vehicles, or both. This means that any environmental noise that usually triggers false alerts will be ignored, leading to a more reliable and trustworthy security system.
How-to Setup Smart Motion Detection on Viewtron DVRs
Begin by navigating to the live view on your Viewtron DVR. In the lower left corner, access the Menu and select Settings.
Locate the ‘AI / Events’ area of this menu. Click ‘SMD’ (Smart Motion Detection).
On the Smart Motion Detection setup screen follow these steps.
- Select the security camera that you want to configure.
- Check the SMD checkbox.
- Draw a grid for the area that you want to enable motion detection in.
- Select Human Detection, Motor Vehicle Detection, or both. Press the Apply button in the lower right.
- Click on the Trigger Mode link.
On the Trigger Mode screen, you can setup all of the actions that you want taken when your security camera detects motion. This includes the following.
- Mobile App Push Notifications: you can receive push notification on the mobile app for iPhone and Android.
- Alarm Buzzer: Viewtron DVRs have an audio alarm buzzer that can be triggered.
- Pop-up-Video: Automatically switch the live video display of the DVR to the camera that detected motion.
- Email Alerts: CCTV Camera Pros does not recommend using these but Viewtron DVRs does support email alerts. We recommend mobile push notifications over this.
- Video Surveillance Recording: Trigger video surveillance recording on one or more cameras.
- Snapshot Images: Capture still snapshot images.
- Alarm Relay Output: Trigger external alarm devices such as alarm lights and audio sirens that are connected to the DVR’s alarm output ports.
Compatible with All BNC Security Cameras
Of course Viewtron smart motion detection is compatible with all Viewtron BNC security cameras. But it is also compatible with all third party BNC security cameras. All of our newest Viewtron hybrid BNC DVR models have smart motion detection built-in. These DVRs are compatible with the following BNC camera types.
- Analog CCTV cameras / CVBS cameras: CIF, D1, 960H Resolutions Supported
- HD-TVI Cameras: 1mp / 720p, 2mp / 1080p, 3mp, 4mp, 5mp, 6mp, 8mp / 4K Resolutions Supported
- AHD Cameras: 1mp / 720p, 2mp / 1080p, 3mp, 4mp, 5mp, 6mp, 8mp / 4K Resolutions Supported
- HD-CVI Cameras: 1mp / 720p, 2mp / 1080p, 3mp, 4mp, 5mp, 6mp, 8mp / 4K Resolutions Supported
The ONLY BNC camera format that is not supported by Viewtron DVRs is HD-SDI. This is an uncommon HD security video format that was used for a short period of time before HD-TVI and AHD formats were being used by CCTV camera manufacturers.
Outdoor Motion Camera Push Notification (Mobile App)
Man customers are want to receive a real time alert when their system detects movement. The push notification feature on the Viewtron mobile app for iPhone and Android is a great solution for this. Watch the above video to see a demonstration of a person walking and when the Viewtron DVR detects movement, a real time alert is sent to the mobile app. Please note that this video was made before the smart motion detection was available on Viewtron DVRs. This video demonstrates the push notification being sent from standard motion sensing. You can see additional video demonstrations with the Viewtron mobile app here.
Summary and Conclusion
Smart motion detection on Viewtron DVRs represents a significant advancement in coax video surveillance technology. By using AI software for human detection and vehicle detection, this feature resolves the longstanding issue of false alarms that plague the traditional video motion detection provided by most CCTV DVRs. Setup is straightforward, and Viewtron DVRs work seamlessly with most existing CCTV / BNC cameras. Viewtron DVRs also provide a simple upgrade path from analog CCTV cameras to HD-over-Coax, as they are compatible with all BNC cameras (Except HD-SDI). You can leave your existing CCTV cameras in place and upgrade one-by-one, over time, to the latest HD BNC cameras.
The shift from standard motion detection to smart motion detection can offer you a more reliable, responsive, and effective security system. If you are considering upgrading your security setup or are frustrated with the false alarms from your current system, exploring Viewtron’s smart motion detection could be the ideal solution.
Viewtron AI Security Cameras
I want to mention one thing before wrapping up this article. If you are installing a brand new security camera system (you do not have coax cable in place), CCTV Camera Pros highly recommends these Viewtron AI camera systems. Viewtron AI cameras are IP camera that use network cable. Viewtron AI cameras are another way to detect movement using AI software. Viewtron AI cameras have even more advanced AI software built into the camera’s operating system. In addition to person deteection and car detection, some models also support face recognition and automatic license plate recognition.
You can watch many demo videos using Viewtron AI cameras here.
Have Questions / Need Help?
Click here for more information or to purchase a Viewtron DVR or email me directly at mike@cctvcamerapros.net. I am always available to answer any question that you have about security camera systems.
Video Transcript
Here is a text transcript of the video at the top of this page.
How to eliminate false alarms from security camera motion detection. Hi everyone. Mike from CCTV camera Pros here. In this video, I want to tell you about an exciting new feature on our Viewtron DVRs. It’s called smart motion detection and what it allows you to do is eliminate all of those annoying false alarms when you’re using motion detection from your security camera, especially in an outdoor setting.
So to clarify, what I’m talking about here is video motion detection from CCTV cameras and HD-over-Coax BNC cameras. If you’ve ever had a security camera system where you want to detect motion, especially in an outdoor setting, you will know that they are very prone to false alarms from trees moving in the background, shadows from the camera going into IR night vision mode, and some of the noise that you get at night. It’s very annoying and a lot of our customers end up turning it off. Well, with this new feature on our Viewtron DVRs, it’s called smart motion detection, What you do is go into the individual settings for each security camera and enable smart motion detection. And you want to use this in the cases where you want to detect either human objects or vehicles (cars, trucks, semi trucks, any type of automobile).
I’m going to pause the video here so I can show you on the Viewtron DVR how easy it is to set up the smart motion detection. Here’s the live view on the Viewtron DVR and what I’m going to do is I’m going to access the menu here in the lower left and select settings. And then under the AI / events section, I’m going to select SMD. On the smart motion detection screen you can select which camera you want to enable smart motion detection for and then check this checkbox here. Just like traditional motion detection, you can select a grid where the motion detection is applicable to and then select whether you want human detection or vehicle detection applicable to this camera. Now, on this screen you can enable other things in addition to triggering video recording. You could do things like enabling mobile push notifications. You can enable a buzzer on the DVR.
You can enable the DVR to pop up live video of that particular camera that triggered the motion detection. Email Alerts. We don’t really recommend email alerts now that the mobile push notifications work so well. You can also trigger external alarm sensors via the alarm outputs on the DVR. And when you’re done, you just click apply here in the lower right and then you can exit out of the screen by clicking the “X” in the upper right. And then you’re back at the live security camera view.
Again, if you want to detect motion from objects other than people and vehicles, then you want to use the traditional motion detection. But what I wanted to tell you about in this video is this smart motion detection feature, because most customers are detecting humans on their property and sometimes vehicles. Humans, by far, is the most popular thing to detect. Security camera motion detection, just to clarify further, this is not passive infrared motion detection. It’s video detection that’s done actually on the DVR. This is in contrast to our viewtron AI security cameras that do object detection on the camera itself. Viewtron Smart Motion Detection to help people that have analog BNC systems. You can use your existing security cameras with our Viewtron DVRs.
The DVR is what handles this smart motion detection. The other thing is, our Viewtron DVRs provide a nice upgrade path because the smart motion detection really works better with the HD cameras. The analog CCTV cameras, they’re not really high definition enough for it to work well. It’s still better than regular motion detection. It’ll help you. But if you really want to get the benefit from this, you can upgrade your old CCTV cameras to HD-over-Coax BNC cameras. Put in place one of our new Viewtron DVRs with this smart motion detection feature, and you’re gonna see a huge difference. Here’s some additional information about our Viewtron DVR.
So, the Viewtron brand is owned by CCTV camera Pros. You deal direct with us for everything. Warranty service, customer service, technical support. Everything is done through us with our team here in West Palm Beach, Florida. You’re not interacting with anyone overseas. Our customer service is excellent. I highly encourage you to check out our a Better Business Bureau A+ rating online. I also highly encourage you to check out our online reviews.
Our customers love our Viewtron products, and they love our customer service. These Viewtron dvrs, as well as our entire Viewtron product line, is completely NDAA compliant. NDAA stands for the National Defense Authorization act, and it basically is a law in the US that governs how our defense department and our federal government can purchase equipment. It basically specifies that surveillance equipment cannot be manufactured by any bad actors or manufacturers overseas that we don’t trust. Our manufacturing partner is 100% NDA compliant, as is our entire Viewtron product line. Guys, if you have any question, questions about this smart motion detection feature on our Viewtron DVRs or anything related to security camera motion detection, IP cameras, BNC cameras, facial recognition, license plate recognition, you can email me about anything related to security camera systems anytime at mike@cctvcamerapros.net. If you want to learn more about this smart motion detection feature on our Viewtron DVRs, please visit www.cctvcamerapros.com/SMD. That stands for smart motion detection. Thank you for watching.
