Network-based surveillance system boosts safety at San Diego beach

Stretching several miles, Mission Beach is the most popular beach area in San Diego and draws large crowds in summer. Various shops, restaurants and beach rental outfits line its narrow boardwalk.

Despite its idyllic landscape, San Diego police last year recorded the largest number of violent crimes in beach history, including the sexual assault of two University of San Diego students in Mission Beach’s Belmont Park area. In response, residents collected more than $30,000 in private donations for a video surveillance system. An additional $80,000 was raised in a bond proposition.

Once funding was established, city officials requested video surveillance products from Dotworkz.

“The city’s chief concerns were to deter crime on Mission Beach, to create a visual record of any incidents that may occur and to improve police response times,” Dotworkz CEO William Ferris explained. “An analog CCTV system could not deliver what they needed. IP-based video, however, could achieve those objectives and more, plus add the capability for expansion without significant capital costs.”

To cover the relatively small perimeters of Belmont Park, Dotworkz specified five Sony SNC-RZ50 PTZ network cameras. In addition to their impressive pan/tilt capability, the cameras are equipped with a powerful 26x optical zoom, allowing officers to zoom in on small or distant objects with clarity. And because the cameras incorporate a day/night function, they can capture images of the beach and boardwalk in low light—when most crimes are committed.

Like all network cameras, the SNC-RZ50 contains sensitive electronics that can be damaged in the extreme heat and direct sunlight of a beach. For that reason, all five cameras are contained within Dotworkz D2 protective marine-ready enclosures equipped with heater-blower systems. Besides keeping the camera cool, the system helps eliminate fogging of the lower lenses in the early-morning mist. The D2 enclosures also protect against vandalism. Made of a thermoplastic alloy, the shock- and impact-resistant enclosures are being used by the U.S. military within Iraq’s Green Zone.

The enclosures are designed to be inconspicuous.

“The police were concerned that vandal-resistant enclosures would make the neighborhood look like it’s a prison on lockdown and take away from the public’s beach experience,” Ferris said. “We engineered the Dotworkz D2 to blend into any environment, even a beach, and to not draw attention to itself.”
  
Wireless connectivity offers flexibility

According to Ferris, wireless connectivity gives the Mission Beach system additional flexibility and scalability while saving the municipality the cost of wiring and installation labor.

“Right now the video is sent to the Northern Division Area’s command center, but in the future, roving police may add camera access on their laptops, PDAs and Smartphones,” Ferris added.

Concerned about Wi-Fi interference in the heavily residential area, Dotworkz configured its D2 “City Link” mesh option for four of the five cameras on a powerful 5.8-GHz wireless spectrum. The spectrum provided the means to wirelessly transmit high-resolution video at up to 20 frames per second with 108 MB throughput back to the police command center located 2 miles away. The fifth camera, stationed on a light pole across from the historic Belmont Giant Dipper Roller Coaster and Wavehouse water park, is equipped with the Dotworkz 2.4-GHz 802.11 b/g SideKick. 

Video archiving is handled using Dotworkz NVR Serverware to optimize the 24/7 video requirement. The NVR Serverware is engineered for maximum performance and reliability. It was specified with a Seagate security-based hard drive with RAID configuration to prevent lost data, and a host of other reliability features.

Tying together the system is enterprise-class NetDVMS software from On-Net Surveillance Systems Inc. (OnSSI). NetDVMS gives the light-duty police officer in the command center immediate and centralized access to all five cameras, along with schedulable PTZ patrol sequences when the system is not being actively manned.

Dotworkz Systems Inc. provided this case history.