The impact of COVID-19 on technological development in the security industry
Without realizing it, more than two years have passed since the first appearance of the coronavirus, which changed everything in our way of life. What seemed to be a transitional situation that would pass in a few weeks has now become a reality that has profoundly changed the way business is done, but has also has had a huge impact on the security industry.
From the beginning of the pandemic there was great concern about the impact this would have on the economy, in all sectors, including the security industry. Now, after more than two years, it has become apparent that this sector has done better than expected during this period and, in some aspects, it has even been the best period in a long time.
One of the aspects in which this growth was observed is the technological development observed during this period and the ability of the security industry to respond to the challenges of a society that is fighting a pandemic. In this article we will briefly introduce some of the technological innovations in the field of security, which are being used successfully to prevent the spread of coronavirus. These innovations, which are offered in Albania by RATECH, focus in two directions; in automatic temperature measurement, as a means of identifying persons who may be infected, and the avoidance of contact with people or objects in important work processes, as one of the ways to curb the spread of coronavirus and other contagious diseases.
Access control and time& attendance without physical contact
One of the aspects of the security industry that has seen great development is access control. Even before the pandemic there was a great interest in adding innovative biometric elements in physical access control or in the control of access to networks, systems, etc. Fingerprints have long been used successfully, but finally, face, hand veins, etc. have been added to the biometric elements that allow employees to enter without contact their premises or related systems.
RATECH offers the ZKTeco ProFace X Series, with their [P], [TD], and [TI] versions, which not only enable contactless entry through face detection, but also provide automatic temperature reading. Furthermore, these devices can be connected to a cloud-based time & attendance system. This system allows employers to ensure the safe return of employees to the office, but also enables control of working hours for employees working remotely, enabling check-in via the internet and GPS devices.
Thermal cameras for temperature reading
Thermal cameras have been used in the security industry for years. They differ from traditional security cameras because they use medium or long wavelength infrared, where thermal images are passive and only sense temperature changes.
Camera manufacturers soon discovered that thermal cameras were a solution to the need to detect ill employees or visitors.
The basic and most economical model that RATECH offers for measuring body temperature is the DAHUA DH-TPC-BF5421 thermal camera. These cameras are installed in some official and commercial premises in Albania.
Dahua Technology has been at the forefront of the fight against Covid-19 since its appearance in China. On January 24, 2020, the first thermal cameras to measure temperature were installed in Wuhan, the area most affected by the pandemic. Since then, Dahua thermal temperature measurement systems have been installed at airports, hospitals, government buildings, bus and train stations, and other facilities around the world.
The accurate measurement of body temperature, with a margin of error of only ± 0.3 ° C, helps prevent the spread of the virus, while a rapid measurement of 3 people per second allows free movement of people, without creating queues. The camera measures the temperature at a distance of up to 3 meters and gives an audible alarm, which allows immediate detection of people with high temperature. Thanks to AI technology, temperature measurement is not affected by face or head coverings, or the presence of hot objects.
People counting cameras
One of the other camera models that differs from the traditional ones are people counting cameras. RATECH has brought for the first time in Albania the model IPC-HDW8341XN from Dahua. This dual lens camera counts people with maximum speed and accuracy.
The camera uses the most advanced AI technology to count people and vehicles, which ensures high flexibility and accuracy for users. The counting camera uses dual lens technology to capture 3D information and in-depth images. The camera uses this information to analyze and detect human bodies and to track target objects in real time, provides statistics on the entry and exit of particular individuals with calculation accuracy of up to 95%.
This camera is especially suitable for airports, shopping malls, factories, banks, schools, state institutions and other places where restrictions regarding the number of persons present must be observed.
QR code reader integrated into access readers
The development of Covid-19 vaccines is one of the ways to remove or lessen pandemic-related limitations. For this reason, the verification of vaccination documents, where required, has been an added challenge for the security industry. RATECH brings ZKTeco ZPAD PLUS QR, which integrates with access control devices, to include the reading of QR codes as an additional security element.
These readers can be used in different scenarios, such as visitor management, hotels, multi-employee companies, stadiums, public events, etc. They are placed in gates or turnstiles to allow contactless entry of persons holding a valid QR vaccination code.
Contactless parking systems
RATECH is the first company in Albania that designs and installs ticketless parking systems that allow payment in automatic cash machines. One way to guarantee a ticketless parking system is to use license plate recognition cameras. These cameras are especially useful in parking lots for residents, subscribers or parking lots that have a free parking time. RATECH collaborates with the leading brand TRITON SYSTEMS to bring parking systems that enable entry with tickets, cards, UHF tags placed in the car, car license plates, as well as multiple payment methods: cash to an operator, cash to an automatic cash machine or credit card. When the car enters the parking lot that has such a system, the TLPR camera reads the license plate, saves it in the database and opens the barrier. When the car leaves the parking lot the camera reads the license plate and, if the car does not have parking fees to pay, opens the barrier. This is especially useful in residential complexes, where it is necessary to maintain the security of open parking spaces. Also, at airports or shopping malls, which may have a free parking time, cars that have not exceeded this time are automatically allowed to leave. A bonus terminal can be added to these parking systems and installed in the various stores in a shopping mall to allow them to remove the parking fee for customers that have made qualifying purchases. In this way, queues at the exit of parking lots in shopping malls are avoided.
