Year
1994
Abstract
Perimeter Intruder Detection Systems (PIDS) often alarm for reasons other than an intruder breaking into a site. There is a need to verify that an alarm was caused by an intruder and not, for example, by animals or the weather. Verification of alarms is often provided by a guard examining one or more Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) monitors. Alarm Verification Aids (AVAs) are systems that enhance the guard's operational effectiveness in using CCTV to verify PIDS alarms. The AVAs, which are discussed in this paper, store pictures from the cameras viewing the relevant alarm zones and replay them to the guard. It is useful to be able to quantify the advantages of various systems to justify upgrading. However, quantifying the value of such systems can be difficult. Benefits vary depending on many subjective, threat-specific and site-specific aspects of the perimeter security system's operation. A complete solution to the problem of quantifying value is not presented. However, the benefits of such systems and the difficulties in measuring and comparing their performance are discussed, with particular reference to the Primary Image DIAMOND system.