Realising the short- and long-term benefits of real-time occupancy level management

Retailers and other outlets handling customers and visitors need to monitor the occupancy level to ensure the threshold of people allowed in is not exceeded.

In our May newsletter, we covered how several social distancing solutions have been developed using our real-time people counter, the Akribos VC-1020E and more details on these solutions can be found on our integration pages.

Counting people and sending the count data in real-time to the management software enables an immediate update on the occupancy level. When relying on technology and automated processes, it is important to understand how the system works and if more complex scenarios need to be taken into consideration to guarantee the right level of accuracy.

For instance, does the counting system ignore trolleys? Would it be affected by light and shadows? Would a person already in a shop walking near the entrance be counted twice? OPTEX’s people counter provides a multi-directional counting algorithm which analyses the scene and tracks the movement, delivering very accurate count data. The video below explains how it works.

Social distancing and real time occupancy level

Many businesses have suffered financially during the last few months and some may be reluctant to invest in new technology. However, an investment in a people-counting solution now to enforce social distancing will also have benefits beyond the pandemic.

People counting in a retail environment gives insights into the peak times and visitor trends. When combined with Point of Sales data it allows business owners to calculate the conversion rate. This helps them to analyse the impact of sales/promotional activities and plan their staff efficiently.

In an office environment, people counting and occupancy level management helps businesses to plan their working space efficiently – the number of hot desks needed, occupancy of shared spaces like meeting rooms etc. When connected to the building management system, it helps decrease the carbon footprint. The air conditioning, heating and appliances can be adjusted to the number of people present in the building.

The current circumstances are forcing businesses to rethink the way they operate and look at increasing efficiency and productivity in a difficult and still relatively unpredictable environment. An intelligent and highly accurate people counting and occupancy monitoring solution could help in this endeavour.

Recorded Webinar Insights on the outdoor QXI sensors

OPTEX offers a wide range of outdoor PIRs and dual technology intrusion detection sensors, and most of the short to mid-range sensors with a 5m to 24m detection range are low-mount sensors. For the high-mount portfolio, there was the opportunity to bring a compact and feature-rich sensor series that will suit both residential and commercial applications.
The QXI series does exactly this, giving installers a mid-range, ‘all-rounder’ outdoor sensor with a 12m and 120-degree detection range, available with or without the additional microwave technology and as hardwired or wireless models. The new high-mount sensor series features a double layer of detection with small animal tolerance and sensing analysis based on SMDA (Super Multi-dimensional Analysis) logic. They can be connected to trigger an alarm panel or CCTV system.
For security installers familiar with our range, the QXI complements the existing LX and HX series.
To understand more about the sensor, its detection logic, its features, and the various tips when installing it, you can watch a 20-minute webinar presentation. It was presented by our colleague, Barry, who has extensively tested the sensor. Watch it here

QXI Webinar: insights and installation tips

The QXI sensors are widely available throughout Europe Middle East and Africa through our channel partners, please visit the product section on our website to find out where to buy them from.

Sharing battery power for the beam and wireless transmitter

OPTEX’s wireless infrared beams are very easy to deploy and create a virtual perimeter quickly in places where it is difficult to provide cabling. In a standard configuration, the beam sensors will operate using one set of batteries and the wireless alarm transmitter will operate using a second set of batteries.

There is a way to simplify the installation and share the battery power by implementing the Battery Common Use Unit BCU-5. Our tech team explains the benefits of using the BCU-5 accessory

What is the BCU-5?

The Battery Common use Unit is an accessory which allows both the wireless beam sensors and the wireless alarm transmitter to be powered from a single set of batteries (Beam sensors)

Which OPTEX IR beams are compatible with the BCU-5?

- AX-100/200 TFR series – wireless twin infrared beams

- SL-100/200 TNR – wireless and hybrid (partly wired / wireless) twin infrared beams

- SL-QFR and SL-QNR - wireless Quad infrared beams

Benefits

In a standard configuration without using the BCU-5, the transmission of the tamper alarm and the low battery signal for the IR beam will require a two-channel wireless transmitter. When sharing the battery power using the BCU-5, the low battery signal for both the sensor and transmitter will be monitored by the wireless receiver. In this scenario, there is only the requirement for one channel transmitter to send the tamper signal.

Sharing the battery power between the sensor and the wireless transmitter avoids any ambiguity when analysing the “low battery” signal and whether it comes from the IR beam or the wireless transmitter. It simplifies the troubleshooting for installers.

How to install the BCU-5

An installation manual is provided with the BCU-5 unit and is available to download from our website.

The key step for the installer is to configure the low battery setting for the wireless transmitter on the board. This should be done by checking the voltage of the transmitter and then the low battery threshold specified by the wireless transmitter manufacturer.

BCU 5 low battery setting — Low battery setting for BCU-5

When it is done the installer should use the Test switch to simulate the low battery threshold and verify that the low battery signal is generated.

If you have any questions regarding the usage of our Battery Common use Unit and how to install it on OPTEX wireless infrared beams, please contact our tech team.

July 2020 EMEA newsletter

Realising the short- and long-term benefits of real-time occupancy level management

Retailers and other outlets handling customers and visitors need to monitor the occupancy level to ensure the threshold of people allowed in is not exceeded.

Many businesses have suffered financially during the last few months and some may be reluctant to invest in new technology. However, an investment in a people-counting solution now to enforce social distancing will also have benefits beyond the pandemic.

Recorded Webinar Insights on the outdoor QXI sensors