Convergint Technologies—together with ConnectEast, Broadspectrum, Barco, and ACAD Services—have delivered a complex video surveillance solution for the EastLink tollway in the southeastern part of Australia.
New System Covers 40.6 km (26 mi) of the Tollway
EastLink is the largest fully-electronic tollway in Victoria—Australia’s most densely populated state, which connects a large area linking Monash, Frankston, and Peninsula Link freeways.
The new integrated video surveillance solution was designed to cover all 39 km (24 mi) of EastLink’s tollway, 1.6 km (1 ml) of tunnels, and other associated buildings with 230 new IP, as well as existing analog cameras. The new system capabilities feature advanced video analytics, increased situational awareness, and reliable, failproof design.
Complex System Design
The successful project implementation was preceded by rigorous project planning of a complex system design, vendor, and technology selection, followed by system installation and multiple testing stages. All of these required the buy-in and coordinated effort of multiple internal and external interest groups. Some of the solution’s major integrated technologies and applications included a Genetec VMS, Axis IP cameras, Citilog video analytics, Barco OpSpace workstation, and UGL’s Operational Maintenance and Control System.
Chosen as the integrator of video surveillance solution’s headend, Convergint Technologies Australia performed all the related headend installations and testing.
Failproof Network Functionality
EastLink’s key requirement for the new solution was a reliable and failproof network functionality. The network had to be capable of supporting safe and uninterrupted tollway operations, ensuring public safety and continuously overview traffic flow. This created a need for a highly redundant solution with layered network topology.
“We are required as managers of EastLink to have gapless CCTV coverage of the 39km of open freeway and the two 1.6km road tunnels. The purpose of the system is to maintain traffic flow, maintain health and safety of staff and our customers, and to monitor the safety of maintenance works.
Our systems cannot fail or be at risk of failure, and this means we need a highly redundant solution located and managed in-house in close liaison with our IT department.”
Stuart Lindsay
Engineering/Project Delivery Manager
ConnectEast (EastLink)
Source: Security Electronics and Networks Magazine
New Video Surveillance System Capabilities
The new system backbone not only demonstrates an improved, resilient performance but is also capable of alerting the IT team of any issues related to network connectivity and switch usages, allowing for prompt response and maintenance.
“There’s redundancy for the tunnels within the network – if a master switch goes down the node in the cabinet at the other end will take over. As well as CCTV, there are radio repeaters, the OMCS infrastructure and multiple Barco OpSpace workstations incorporated into the overall network – this increases situational awareness by allowing sub system events to be displayed on the video wall.”
Neil Bernabe
IT Project Manager
Convergint Technologies Australia
Source: Security Electronics and Networks Magazine
The new command center provides more capabilities to operators. Unlike their older analogue predecessors, new Axis HD cameras deliver more detailed video, which allows for identification of both people and vehicle license plates.
Advanced system analytics capabilities, powered by Citilog, enable automatic detection of strange objects and unusual behavior, such as a slow or stopped vehicle, pedestrians, and debris on the road. Cameras are programmed to pick up such incidents and feed them to designated displays for operators, who will, if necessary, notify an incident response team, the fire department, or the police.
EastLink has additional system upgrades scheduled to take place in the near future. Within the next 2 years, more cameras will be changed to new Axis IP cameras across the freeway and tunnels. Also, with the current designed capability to support 300 cameras, EastLink video surveillance system has a potential for further system growth.
To learn more about the details of the EastLink project, you can read the article at the link below, written by John Adams for Australia’s Security Electronics and Network Magazine.