Initially, surveillance trailers were manufactured by a select group of security integrators with robust fabrication capabilities. These integrators crafted their trailers and equipped them with sensors, hardware, and software from various manufacturers. While some adept integrators continue to produce surveillance trailers, a growing trend involves equipment and trailer manufacturers who provide base surveillance trailer structures to integrators. These integrators acquire these structures and then add cameras, sensors, communications, and industrialized servers—tailoring the trailers to meet the specific needs of their clients. This shift has significantly intensified competition in the surveillance trailer market over the last decade.
Pole Camera PODs
One of the fastest-growing mobile surveillance platforms in the last 10 years is the pole camera platform—originally known as police observation devices or PODs for short. A POD is simply a NEMA-rated enclosure with power for communications, cameras, and other sensors—all self-contained and mounted on a pole. Some industry organizations have built entire business units dedicated to this platform, experiencing remarkable success, high demand and profitability. Characterizing these as mobile platforms in the past may have been a stretch as most applications on the camera PODs are installed for the long term. However, they are not permanent and there is a growing demand for what’s often referred to as a “Rapid Deployment POD.” Rapid deployment PODs are intended for short durations and in some cases, they are easily deployable by the end user. In these instances, a security officer can remotely operate and aim cameras with PTR Pan/Tilt/Rotate capabilities via the POD.
The Transportation Industry
Another area of growth in mobile surveillance is the transportation vertical. Almost all areas of mass and public transit—school buses, trains, and subways—require surveillance onboard. With the advancement of several security industry technologies, transportation surveillance is becoming better and less cumbersome with edge storage SD cards replacing bulky hard drives. Additionally, in many cases, the interoperability with cloud VMS solutions no longer requires an NVR onboard whatsoever. Many of the largest industry leaders in security equipment are now offering camera platforms specifically for this market. Those moving into this market are finding it increasingly easy to overcome the integration hurdles specific to deploying in vehicles by adding fleet experienced technicians familiar with upfitting vehicles.
Public Safety Sector
For police departments, it’s now a necessity to equip police cars with mobile surveillance. This helps ensure public safety and officer protection, and it serves as a valuable tool for forensic investigations and solving crimes in the field. The main systems used in these platforms are in-car video and audio setups, along with LPR.
Let’s also consider body-worn cameras (BWC), which are mobile and accompany officers even when they are away from their patrol vehicles. BWCs play a crucial role in providing evidence. Recently, manufacturers have introduced more open-platform BWCs, allowing compatibility with various video management systems (VMS). There are also additional accessories available that serve to automatically trigger the camera based on actions like unholstering, cruiser speeds, lights and sirens activation, or when an officer is running.
The latest trend in public safety mobile surveillance involves deploying cameras on rescue and command vehicles. These cameras are often Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) equipped and they feature extreme low-light capabilities and thermal radiology cameras. Accordingly, they aid rescuers in dark and smoke-filled rescue operations. Real-time images from these cameras are transmitted to the emergency services command and control center. This approach enhances the command center’s understanding of the situation at the accident scene, enabling them to provide better advice and assistance to the incident command. This includes decisions on whether to send reinforcements, contact authorities, or seek external expertise, as necessary.
Unmanned Surveillance Platforms
Unmanned Surveillance Platforms (USP) encompass a variety of technologies, including Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs), and other innovative platforms. The remarkable growth in this market is evident by the inclusion of dedicated unmanned areas at major security industry conferences and expos as well as expos dedicated exclusively to unmanned platforms.
The very first surveillance robots were bomb disposal robots used by SWAT teams and have been around since 1972. While these technologies saw limited development in the past, there has been a surge in surveillance robots during the last decade, particularly in the UAV domain. Presently, the applications are diverse, extending beyond law enforcement to encompass retail, commercial, industrial, critical infrastructure, transportation, emergency management, event management, and various other industries.
Unmanned mobile surveillance platforms exhibit a broad spectrum of forms, including dog-like multiped robots, wheeled robots reminiscent of R2D2, and the emerging development of bipedal humanoid robots. Robot patrollers, available to end-users through hourly subscriptions at a cost less than minimum wage, serve as an economical force multiplier compared to traditional security or police officers. Despite skepticism from some quarters, this market is poised to capture attention and reshape our perspective as we advance into the future with this innovative mobile surveillance platform.
Mobile Weapons Detection
The development of touchless screening systems for detecting weapons and health threats represents a recent advancement in mobile surveillance technology. These systems are genuinely mobile since they can be transported on a cart to various locations like auditoriums, arenas, stadiums, outdoor events, and concerts. They can be deployed swiftly within minutes, offering rapid touchless weapons screening both indoors and outdoors. These systems seamlessly integrate with video surveillance camera systems and employ weapons detection video analytics, contributing to safer events with reduced screening times. Mobile weapons detection is in high demand and therefore one of the fastest-growing mobile surveillance solutions on the market and it deserves significant attention within the industry.
The Future of Mobile Surveillance Platforms
Determining the future of mobile surveillance platforms is truly an attempt at telling the future. What we can determine without question is that mobile surveillance technology is a rapidly developing and changing marketplace. So, what’s next? Forward-looking cameras in your new automobile integrated with an NVR? Instant connectivity to police departments by pressing a duress button? Who knows, maybe we’ll even go as far as neural implants that transmit what we see with our eyes complete with analytics! Yes, that is a stretch, but so was a mobile video phone call ten years ago.
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