Technical field

The present invention relates to a control unit for a security monitoring system, an integrated security and surveillance system, and corresponding methods.

Background

The financial wellbeing and viability of a business with a physical presence depends significantly upon the business’s ability to protect its assets - which explains why most owners of such businesses invest in some form of burglar alarm. Unfortunately, while burglar alarms (also referred to as intruder alarm systems or security monitoring systems) provide some protection against intruders who break into premises, they are generally unsuited to protecting against shoplifting - which is a key source of loss in retail outlets (“shops”) or against theft by employees. Security tagging (e.g. using RFID tags) high value portable items may provide some protection against shoplifting, but employees and other determined thieves can find ways to circumvent the protection provided by security tagging. It is therefore nowadays commonplace for retail businesses also to invest in some form of video surveillance or monitoring (generally referred to as CCTV) in an attempt to reduce losses due to theft (with the added benefit of helping to guard against vandalism and other potential sources of loss). Unfortunately, this requirement for multiple levels and types of security protection means that businesses need to spend considerable sums in an attempt to protect against financial losses due to theft. Such expenditure, which is an unwelcome cost of doing business, is particularly burdensome for new businesses that are just starting up - and there is a temptation to save money in the short term by cutting back on this expenditure - for example by investing in a burglar alarm (which is often a requirement of business premises’ insurance) but foregoing say the video monitoring and security tagging. Unfortunately, economising in this way can lead to increased financial losses due to theft.

There exists a need for a cost-effective security solution, particularly one which can be made affordable for new businesses and small businesses who cannot afford existing costly solutions.

Summary

According to a first aspect there is provided an integrated security and surveillance system comprising a control unit and at least one video camera having a motion or presence detection arrangement; the system having an armed mode and a disarmed mode; the control unit programmed to signal the at least one security camera in the event of the mode of the system changing to cause the at least one security camera to switch from a security state when the system is in the armed mode to a surveillance state when the system is in the disarmed mode, and vice versa; the at least one video camera being arranged: in the security state to signal the control unit in the event that the motion or presence detection arrangement is triggered; in the surveillance state to capture video and to stream the captured video to the control unit; the control unit further being programmed to onward transmit video received from the or each video camera.

With such a system small businesses, who may not be able to install and run both a conventional security monitoring system and a conventional CCTV system, can install a simplified system in which the mode of protection - security system or surveillance system, is prioritized based on the current (temporal) needs of the business. That is, there is a new appreciation of the fact that during working hours the primary need is for surveillance whereas out of hours the primary need is for a security monitoring system to detect intrusion.

In systems according to the first aspect, in the event that the motion or presence detection arrangement is triggered in the security state the at least one video camera may be arranged to stream captured video to the control unit.

In systems according to the first aspect, in the event that the motion or presence detection arrangement is triggered in the security state the at least one video camera may be arranged to stream captured video to the control unit only upon receiving an appropriate signal from the control unit.

The control unit may be programmed or configured to process video received from the one or more video cameras before onward transmitting it. For example, the control unit may form a multiplex of video streams received from multiple cameras. The control unit may also compress video, reduce the video frame rate, reduce the colour space (e.g. convert colour to monochrome) or otherwise process the image data to reduce the bandwidth required to onward transmit the processed video. For example, in surveillance mode there may be long periods of inactivity so that a camera’s video stream may in effect be a long series of identical frames which could be compressed without any loss of information.

Optionally, the at least one video camera is arranged to capture video in both the security state and the surveillance state, irrespective of the triggering of the motion or presence detection arrangement.

Optionally, the at least one video camera is arranged in the surveillance state to signal the control unit in the event that the motion or presence detection arrangement is triggered. In such a system the control unit may be programmed to flag or otherwise label the content of received surveillance video streams according to the presence of motion or presence detection arrangement trigger events.

Optionally, the control unit is programmed to handle the content of received video streams according to the arm state of the integrated security and surveillance system.

Optionally, the at least one video camera is arranged to capture video in the security state even before triggering of the motion or presence detection arrangement, and optionally wherein the at least one camera is arranged to transmit a pre-event capture following the triggering of the motion or presence detection arrangement.

Optionally, the control unit is operatively connected to a remote monitoring centre and is arranged, when the system is in the armed mode to onward transmit to the remote monitoring centre video received from the at least one video camera.

Optionally, the control unit is operatively connected to a remote video storage entity and is arranged, when the system is in the disarmed mode to onward transmit to the remote video storage entity video received from the at least one video camera.

Optionally, the control unit is configured to support a data connection to a mobile data network to support operative connection to the remote monitoring centre and/or the remote video storage entity. Optionally the control unit is configured to support a data connection to a broadband mobile data network and to an Ultra Narrow Band wireless data network.

Optionally, the control unit has a wired connection to a data network to support operative connection to the remote monitoring centre and/or the remote video storage entity.

Optionally, the control unit operates as a wireless access point of a wireless network to which the one or more video cameras are connected.

A system according to any variant of the first aspect may further comprise a user device operatively connected to the control unit, the control unit being arranged when the system is in the disarmed mode to onward transmit to the user device video received from the at least one video camera. In such a system, the user device may be connected to the wireless network of which the control unit operates as a wireless access point. In such a system, the user device may be operatively connected to the control unit via a second wireless network other than the wireless network of which the control unit operates as a wireless access point. Optionally, the second wireless network may be supported or hosted by a wireless access point, other than that provided by the control unit, serving premises protected by the integrated security and surveillance system.

In systems according to the first aspect that include a user device, the user device may host a software application to support display of video received from the control unit. Optionally the software application may be arranged to provide a user interface by means of which a user can control aspects of the control unit’s handling of video received from the one or more video cameras. Optionally, the software application may also arranged to provide a user interface by means of which the user can control aspects of behaviour of the one or more video cameras, optionally at least one of frame rate, resolution, and monitored area to be captured.

Optionally, the software application may also arranged to provide a user interface by means of which the user can access and/or view and/or display video stored on a remote video storage entity.

In systems according to any variant of the first aspect, the control unit may further be programmed to produce a multiplex of plural video streams received from plural of the video cameras, the multiplex being used in the onward transmission of the video received from the video cameras.

According to a second aspect there is provided a control unit for a security monitoring system, the system having an armed mode and a disarmed mode and including at least one security camera, the control unit programmed to signal the at least one security camera in the event of the mode of the system changing to cause the at least one security camera to switch from a security state used while the system is in the armed mode to a surveillance state used while the system is in the disarmed mode, and vice versa.

Optionally, the control unit is programmed for operative connection to a remote monitoring centre and be arranged, when the system is in the armed mode to onward transmit to the remote monitoring centre video received from the at least one video camera.

Optionally, the control unit is programmed for operative connection to a remote video storage entity and be arranged, when the system is in the disarmed mode to onward transmit to the remote video storage entity video received from the at least one video camera.

Optionally, the control unit is configured to support a data connection to a mobile data network (e.g. 4G or 5G) to support operative connection to the remote monitoring centre and/or the remote video storage entity. Optionally, the control unit may be configured to support a data connection to a broadband mobile data network and to support a data connection to an Ultra Narrow Band wireless data network - such as SigFox. By configuring the control unit to support a data connection to an Ultra Narrow Band wireless data network the system will be better able to withstand the effects of jamming - either deliberate or accidental, and thus be better able to provide timely incident reports to a remote monitoring station (or alarm receiving centre ARC).

Optionally, the control unit is configured for a wired connection (e.g. an Ethernet connection) to a data network (such as the Internet) to support operative connection to the remote monitoring centre and/or the remote video storage entity. Optionally, the control unit is configured to operate as a wireless access point of a wireless network, e.g. a Wi-Fi network.

Optionally, the control unit is configured to issue control instructions to the at least one security camera to cause the at least one security camera to change at least one of video resolution, frame rate and monitored area to be captured.

Optionally, the control unit is configured to transmit control instructions to the at least one security camera based on instructions received from a remote monitoring centre and/or a software application running on a user device.

Optionally, the control unit is further programmed to produce a multiplex of plural video streams received from plural of the video cameras, the multiplex being used in the onward transmission of the video received from the video cameras.

According to a third aspect, there is provided a method of operating a security monitoring system, the system having an armed mode and a disarmed mode and including a control unit and at least one security camera having a motion or presence sensor, the method comprising: signalling from the control unit to the at least one security camera in the event of the mode of the system changing to the disarmed mode to cause the at least one security camera to switch from a security state to a surveillance state used while the system is in the disarmed mode; and signalling from the control unit to the at least one security camera in the event of the mode of the system changing to the armed mode to cause the at least one security camera to switch from the surveillance state to a security state used while the system is in the armed mode.

It is also contemplated to provide systems in which the control unit may not signal the camera(s) upon a change of state of the security monitoring system. Rather, the security cameras may continuously (or quasi continuously) capture video which may be streamed or otherwise sent to the control unit (and may similarly transmit notifications as the result of triggering of the camera’s motion/presence sensor). The following aspects of the invention arise in the context of such an approach (whether or not the control unit signals the camera(s) upon a change of state of the security monitoring system):

According to a fourth aspect there is provided a control unit for a security monitoring system, the system having an armed mode and a disarmed mode and including at least one security camera having a motion or presence sensor, the at least one security camera being arranged to stream captured video to the control unit, wherein the control unit is programmed to handle the content of received video streams according to the arm state of the integrated security and surveillance system.

Such a control unit may be further programmed to onward transmit video received from the or each video camera. A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be programmed to: onward transmit to a first remote video storage facility video streams received from a security camera while the security monitoring system is in the disarmed state; and in the event of receiving, from a security camera while the security monitoring system is in the armed state, a notification of the triggering of a motion or presence detection arrangement, onward transmit to a remote monitoring facility an event notification and a video stream received from the security camera from which the triggering notification was received.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be further programmed to flag or otherwise label the content of video streams received from a security camera while the security monitoring system is in the disarmed state according to the presence of trigger events reported by the security camera.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be further programmed for operative connection to a remote monitoring centre and may be arranged, when the system is in the armed mode to onward transmit to the remote monitoring centre video received from the at least one video camera.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be further programmed for operative connection to a remote video storage entity and be arranged, when the system is in the disarmed mode to onward transmit to the remote video storage entity video received from the at least one video camera.

Such a control unit may be configured to support a data connection to a mobile data network to support operative connection to the remote monitoring centre and/or the remote video storage entity.

Such a control unit may be configured to support a data connection to a broadband mobile data network and to an Ultra Narrow Band wireless data network.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be configured for a wired connection to a data network to support operative connection to the remote monitoring centre and/or the remote video storage entity.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be configured to operate as a wireless access point of a wireless network.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be configured to issue control instructions to the at least one security camera to cause the at least one security camera to change at least one of video resolution, frame rate and monitored area to be captured.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be configured to transmit control instructions to the at least one security camera based on instructions received from a remote monitoring centre and/or a software application running on a user device. A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be further programmed to produce a multiplex of plural video streams received from plural of the video cameras, the multiplex being used in the onward transmission of the video received from the video cameras.

According to a fifth aspect there is provided an integrated security and surveillance system comprising a control unit according to any variant of the second or fourth aspects and at least one video camera having a motion or presence detection arrangement; the system having an armed mode and a disarmed mode; the at least one video camera being arranged: to signal the control unit in the event that the motion or presence detection arrangement is triggered; the control unit further being programmed to onward transmit video received from the or each video camera.

Optionally the control unit of an integrated security and surveillance system according to any variant of the fifth aspect may be programmed or otherwise configured to notify a remote monitoring station in response to receiving, while the system is in the armed mode, from the at least one video camera notification of the triggering of the motion or presence detection arrangement.

Optionally the control unit of an integrated security and surveillance system according to any variant of the fifth aspect may be programmed or otherwise configured to onward transmit, to an offsite (remote) media storage facility, video received from the or each video camera.

Optionally the control unit of an integrated security and surveillance system according to any variant of the fifth aspect may be programmed or otherwise configured to flag or otherwise label onward transmitted video in respect of notifications of the triggering of the motion or presence detection arrangement.

Optionally, the at least one video camera has a single operational mode that is used irrespective of the arm state of the integrated security and surveillance system.

Yet further aspects of the invention relate to implementations of a security system for a premises for detecting unauthorised intrusion into the premises when the security system is in an armed state. This means a system at least configured (e.g. with a controller including a suitably programmed processor) for this purpose, whether or not the system provides additional functionalities.

According to a sixth aspect, there is thus provided a security system for a premises for detecting unauthorised intrusion into the premises when the security system is in an armed state, the system comprising: at least one security camera for the premises, the security camera comprising a camera housing, an image sensor supported via the camera housing, a motion or presence detector supported via the housing, and a wireless communications device supported via the housing, and a premises central unit for the premises, the central unit comprising a wireless communications device for wireless communication with the at least one camera unit; the security system is configured to operate selectively in an armed state and a disarmed state, such that:

- in the armed state the central unit is operable to process one or more signals from the at least one camera and to (i) generate an alarm signal for signalling unauthorised intrusion directly or indirectly in response to triggering of the detector, and (ii) to provide first active video functionality; and in the disarmed state, the central unit does not generate an alarm signal for signalling intrusion, the central unit configured to process one or more signals from the one or more cameras to provide second active video functionality different (at least partly) from the first active video functionality.

The system has active video functionalities in both the armed and disarmed states with respect to detecting intrusion.

The first active video functionality may comprise generating an output of one or more image signals including at least an image signal associated with triggering of the detector. The first active video functionality may be responsive directly or indirectly to triggering of the detector.

Additionally or alternatively, the second active video functionality may be generating a video output feed for providing a premises video surveillance function. The feed may optionally comprise a multiplex image including multiple image signals from multiple cameras presented together alongside one another.

As mentioned above, such a system can enable a security system for detecting unauthorised intrusion also to provide a video surveillance function, by re-tasking the security system hardware and/or software resources when the system is in a disarmed state. This may enable a premises owner to benefit from a video surveillance function with little or no additional hardware costs.

Additionally or alternatively to any of the above, the central unit may comprise a communications interface configured to communicate with a remote (e.g. off-premises) alarm monitoring centre. The remote alarm monitoring centre may optionally be considered as comprised in the system. The system and/or central unit may be configured to use such communications in a variety of ways, including any one or more of: a) when in the armed state, the central unit may be configured to transmit via the communications interface a report indicating triggering of a detector, and/or to transmit at least an image signal associated with triggering of the detector. b) when in the armed state, the central unit may be responsive to a signal received via the communications interface for generating the alarm signal; c) the central unit may be configured to transmit via the communications interface a request to switch to the armed and/or disarmed state, and/or to receive via the communications interface a remote command to switch to the armed and/or disarmed state.

Additionally or alternatively to any of the above, the central unit may be configured to send one or more message signals to the at least one camera to configure operation of the camera for the armed state of the system, and/or for the disarmed state of the system.

In one form, the camera may itself have a first operating state corresponding to the armed state of the system, and a second operating state corresponding to the disarmed state of the system. The central unit may transmit a message signal to the camera unit to select the appropriate camera state.

In another form, the camera may have a plurality of controllable configuration parameters associated with, for example, the image sensor and/or the detector. The central unit may transmit one or more message signals for setting or adjusting the parameters, optionally collectively or individually, each time that the system changes between the armed state and the disarmed state.

According to a seventh aspect of the invention, a central unit is provided for, or as part of, a security system, optionally according to the sixth aspect, the system including at least one security camera for the premises, the security camera comprising a camera housing, an image sensor supported via the camera housing, a motion or presence detector supported via the housing, and a wireless communications device supported via the housing.

The central unit comprises a wireless communications device for wireless communication with the (or a said) at least one camera unit. The central unit is configured to operate in an armed state and a disarmed state, such that

(i) in the armed state the central unit is operable to process one or more signals from the at least one camera and to (i) generate an alarm signal for signalling unauthorised intrusion directly or indirectly in response to triggering of the detector, and (ii) to provide first active video functionality; and

(ii) in the disarmed state, the central unit does not generate an alarm signal for signalling intrusion, the central unit configured to process one or more signals from the one or more cameras to provide second active video functionality different (at least partly) from the first active video functionality. The central unit may include any of the central unit features described above for the sixth aspect.

According to an eighth aspect, a method of operation is provided (i) for a system optionally according to the sixth aspect above, and/or (ii) for a central unit optionally according to the seventh aspect above. The method comprises operating a central unit selectively in an armed state and a disarmed state, such that;

(iii) in the armed state the central unit is operable to process one or more signals from at least one camera and to (i) generate an alarm signal for signalling unauthorised intrusion directly or indirectly in response to triggering of detected motion and/or presence by a motion or presence detector of the camera, and (ii) to provide first active video functionality; and

(iv) in the disarmed state, the central unit does not generate an alarm signal for signalling intrusion, the central unit configured to process one or more signals from at least one camera to provide second active video functionality different (at least partly) from the first active video functionality.

The method(s) of operation may include any of the method of operation features described above for the sixth and/or seventh aspects.

Brief description of Figures

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying Figures, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic plan view of business premises provided with an integrated security and surveillance system;

Figure 2 is a schematic showing the main features of a control unit according to an aspect of the invention;

Figure 3 is a schematic showing the main features of a video camera according to an aspect of the invention;

Figure 4 is a timeline illustrating schematically operation of an integrated security and surveillance system according to an aspect of the invention;

Figure 5 is a schematic representing video stream routing according to an aspect of the invention; and

Figure 6 is a schematic representing another video stream routing according to another aspect of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, certain embodiments will be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. The invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of example so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention, such as it is defined in the appended claims, to those skilled in the art.

Specific description

Figure 1 is a schematic plan view of business premises 100 provided with an integrated security and surveillance system. The premises in this case are a retail outlet, such as a boutique, having a plurality of interconnected rooms 102a, 102b, 102c, and 102d, as retail space, with a private office and storage space 104 at the rear of the premises. Together, these make up the protected interior space of the premises. A front door 106 leads into the protected interior space of the premises. The premises also includes several windows 108, and a rear door 110, and these are each fitted with a sensor 112 to detect when they are opened. One or more of the doors and windows may also be fitted with a shock sensor 114 to detect attempts at forced entry. Each of the sensors 112, 114 includes a radio transceiver to report events to a controller , or central unit, 120 of the security monitoring system. If one of the sensors 112, 114 is triggered when the system is armed, a signal is sent to the central unit 120 which in turn may signal an alarm event to a remote central monitoring station 125. The central unit 120 is connected to the remote central monitoring station 125 via the Internet 126, either via a wired or a wireless connection. Also wirelessly coupled to the central unit 120 are video cameras 130a, 130b, 130c, and 130d, each camera being arranged to view a corresponding one of the rooms 102. Each camera includes (or is associated with) a presence and/or movement detector (e.g. a PIR detector) and an audio interface (e.g. including a microphone and preferably also a sound output device such as a loudspeaker). These items, and the sensors 112 and 114, are preferably coupled to the central unit 120 using transceivers operating in the industrial scientific and medical (ISM) bandwidths, for example a sub-gigahertz bandwidth such as 868 MHz, and the communications are encrypted preferably using shared secret keys. Preferably the control unit 120 and each image source (e.g. video camera, other camera, or video doorbell) also includes a transceiver to provide Wi-Fi connectivity (or equivalent wide bandwidth protocol), e.g. for the sharing of images and video, as timely transmission of image and video files requires a relatively large bandwidth, at least for the kinds of high resolution images which are typically wanted in security monitoring installations. Preferably the Wi-Fi or other large bandwidth transceiver is provided in addition to the low-bandwidth transceiver (e.g. ISM transceiver) used for the transmission and reception of control signals and event notifications and the like. As noted above, the video cameras each include or are associated with a movement or presence detector so that the cameras can act as alarm event sensors for the security monitoring system.

The security monitoring system may also include other sensors within the protected interior space, such as an additional movement detector 132, and the interior door 134 may also be provided with a sensor 112 to detect the opening/closing of the door. Also shown in Figure 1 are a pair of user devices 136 and 138, each preferably loaded with an appropriate app - as will be described later. The first of these devices, shown here as a computer workstation or laptop 136 located in the office 104, is for example wirelessly coupled to a broadband router 140 (which is also a Wi-Fi Access Point) by means of which the device 136 can access the Internet 126. The second user device 138 is here shown as a smart phone which supports both Wi-Fi and mobile data connections with a public land mobile network (PLMN) 139, by means of which the remote monitoring station 125, and the central unit 120, may communicate with the user device 138.

A user interface (access device) or control panel 141 may be provided within the premises for the arming and disarming of the system, the device 141 communicating with the central unit 120 to effect the arming and disarming.

The security monitoring installation may also include a siren 142 or other alarm sounding device that preferably includes a transceiver for communication with the control unit 120.

Operation of the security monitoring system may be controlled by one or more of: the controller 120, the remote monitoring station 125, and a security monitoring app installed on the user device 138. In addition, an access device 110 (stand alone or embodied within a video doorbell) may be provided outside the protected premises, e.g. on an exterior wall of the premises, optionally adjacent a main entrance, such as the front door 106, to enable the business owner or other authorised person to arm and disarm the security monitoring system and optionally also to lock and unlock a lock in the relevant door, e.g. to gain admittance to the premises.

Figure 1 also shows the presence of a media back end system 144 for the storage of images and video captured by the video cameras 130. This back end system may be cloud-based, but in any event is preferably accessible over the Internet. The operation of this system will be described later with reference to Figure 4. Also shown in Figure 1 is the business owner, or an employee, 150 who may use the local viewing device 136 to monitor activity in each of the rooms 102 of the premises. Under certain circumstances, as will be explained later, the control unit 120 acts as a hub to receive video streamed from the 4 cameras 130, the 4 video streams then being onward streamed to the local viewing device 136, e.g. over Wi-Fi (the central unit 120 may act as an Access Point of a Wi-Fi network that serves each of the cameras 130 and the device 136). The control unit 120 may process the individual video streams to provide a composite video stream, e.g. a multiplex, that enables a viewer at the viewing device 136 to watch all 4 individual video streams simultaneously. A software application (“app”) on the viewing device 136 may enable a viewer to issue commands back to the control unit 120, for example to select a subset of the available video streams for viewing in greater detail - for example by causing the central unit 120 to stream just one or two of the 4 video streams available, so that the videos forming the subset of streams occupy a greater proportion of the available screen area. The app may also enable the user to adjust the resolution, frame rate, colour space (e.g. switch between full colour and monochrome or something in between), and viewed area for each of the cameras by sending commands to the control unit 120. Such commands may be sent directly over Wi-Fi from the viewing device 136 to the control unit 120, or they may be sent from a viewing device , e.g. 136 or 138, to the back end 144 and then from the back end 144 to the control unit 120.

The media back end 144 and the alarm-back-end 125 may be different, and may be located remote from each other, as shown, but it is also possible for them to be co-located and it is also possible for them to be separate parts of an integrated system possibly operating together on one or more common sites.

Before describing the operation of the integrated security and surveillance system we will briefly describe the principal functional modules of each of the control unit 120 and a video camera 130. Figure 2 is a schematic drawing showing in more detail features of the central unit 120 of Figure 1. The central unit 120 includes a first transceiver 200 coupled to a first antenna 202, and a second transceiver 205 coupled to the second antenna 207. The transceivers 200 and 205 can both transmit and receive, but a transceiver can only perform one of these operations at a time. The transceivers 200 and 205 each operate in half duplex mode, and preferably each transceiver uses the same frequency for transmission as for reception. Generally, the two transceivers will operate on different frequencies, but they can both transmit, or both receive, on the same frequency to provide diversity. The transceivers 200 and 205 are coupled to a controller 250 by a bus. The controller 250 is also connected to a network interface 255 by means of which the controller 250 may be provided with a wired connection to the Internet and hence to the monitoring centre 125. The controller 250 is also coupled to a memory 260 which may store data received from the various nodes of the installation - for example event data, sounds, images and video data.

The control unit hardware and software may cooperate to also provide web server functionality that can generate a mini-portal for use with the user application on devices 136 and 138. For example: acting as a video server to stream one or more signals, either on demand, or in parallel live channels; and/or acting as a video server to generate an image stream combining multiple streams into a single multiplex stream; and/or generating an html or other browser based page for direct display in a browser window

The control unit 120 includes a power supply 262 which is preferably coupled (either directly or indirectly via an external DC supply) to a domestic mains supply, from which the control unit 120 generally derives power, and a backup battery pack 264 which provides power to the control unit in the event of failure of the mains power supply. The control unit 120 also includes a Wi-Fi transceiver 210 (using some variant of IEEE 802.11), and associated antenna arrangement 212, which may be used for communication with any of the nodes that is Wi-Fi enabled, such as the video cameras 130. Similarly, an interface enabling bidirectional communication over a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), such as GSM or LTE, may optionally be provided, and one is shown in the Figure as transceiver 215 and antenna arrangement 217. Optionally, a third ISM transceiver 220, and associated antenna 222, may be provided for communication with the monitoring centre 125 over, for example, the European 863 to 870MHz frequency band using a highly reliable protocol such as an Ultra Narrow Band wireless data network e.g. Sigfox.

Throughout this specification, references to Wi-Fi relate to systems and elements operating according to some variant of the 802.11 standard. Conversely, systems, devices and elements referred to as ISM should not be taken to embrace Wi-Fi.

The first and second transceivers may both be tuneable ISM devices, operating for example in the European 863 to 870MHz frequency band or in the 915MHz band (which may span 902-928MHz or 915-928MHZ depending upon the country). In particular, both of these devices may be tuned, i.e. may be tuneable, to the frequencies within the regulatorily agreed subbands within this defined frequency band. Alternatively, the first transceiver and the second transceiver may have different tuning ranges provided that there is some overlap. The first and second transceivers need not be technically different, and they may share the same inherent technical capabilities. The second transceiver also may be used as a diversity transceiver operating in the same channels as operated over by the first transceiver but at any instant the first and second transceivers will operate on frequencies that are sufficiently different not to interfere with each other.

Figure 3 is a schematic drawing showing features of a node of the security monitoring system, here in the form of a video camera - which may be one of the video cameras 130 of Figure 1, according to an embodiment of the invention. The camera includes an image sensor 310 together with a lens arrangement 315 for forming an image on the image sensor 310. In this example, the camera includes an integral motion sensor 320, which may be a PIR sensor, and an infrared light source 325 suitable for illuminating images detectable by the image sensor. Coupled to these camera components is a controller 330 (which may for example be a microprocessor or an MCU, and may comprise more than one processor or MCU device) and associated memory 335 which stores software to control the controller 330. The controller 330 is also coupled to a node transceiver 340, with associated antenna 345. The node transceiver supports both Wi-Fi and ISM communication either through the use of two separate transceivers (340 for ISM, for the exchange of control signals with the central unit 120, and 350 for Wi-Fi, with associated antenna 355, for transmission of image files and video) or through use of a single multi-function transceiver. The camera node 130 may also include an audio interface including a microphone 356 and a sound output device such as a loudspeaker 358.

The camera node is preferably provided with an externally-fed power supply 360 which may be fed with mains or with low voltage DC. The power supply 360 is supplemented by a battery 365 that serves as a backup power source. The node transceiver 340 is tuneable. In particular, the node transceiver 340 can be tuned to frequencies to match those transmitted by or receivable by the first 200 and second 205 transceivers of the control unit 120, and the Wi-Fi transceiver functionality is likewise tuneable for communication with the corresponding transceiver of the control unit 120 (and if necessary with other Wi-Fi access points of the premises, e.g. with router 140).

The camera node also includes tamper detection functionality, for example to detect attempts to remove the camera from the surface or structure to which it is mounted and to detect attempts to open the camera and/or access the power supply, remove the battery/batteries, etc. The camera nodes are preferably configured to respond any triggering of tamper detection by signalling an alarm event to the control unit 120 which may then signal an alarm event to the remote monitoring station 125. In Europe, the camera nodes are preferably EN certified for use with monitored alarm systems. In other countries or territories the camera nodes are similarly preferably compliant with the relevant local standards/rules relevant to cameras for alarm systems.

The cameras of the camera nodes preferably support high resolution imaging, e.g. at least 1080p, preferably at a frame rate of at least 15fps (optionally up to 20 or 22fps), in full colour. Preferably the cameras can also be controlled to adjust their image resolution, e.g. to reduce resolution to 720p, 480 or even 360, and their frame rates, their colour space - e.g. to switch between full colour and monochrome, preferably with options between these two extremes. The cameras may also be configured to implement image compression to reduce the bandwidth needed for timely transmission of captured video. The cameras may also be controllable to provide still images. The cameras may also support adjustment and control of the image capture area - being that part of the space before the camera that will be captured by the camera in images.

The operation of an integrated security and surveillance system according to an aspect of the invention will now be described with reference to Figure 4. This shows a schematic time line illustrating a method 400 according to an aspect of the invention. At 402 a user enters a code or presents a token such as an RFID or NFC token to disarm the system using the user interface (access device) 141. The user interface device 141 transmits 404 a control signal to the system control unit 120 indicating the request to disarm the system either indicating successful entry of an authorised code or the use of an authorised token, or more preferably sending an encrypted message representing the relevant code or token ID for approval by the control unit 120 if the user interface device is not configured to determine the correctness of a disarm attempt. If the control unit 120 is able to approve the disarm request it sends 406 a control signal to the user interface confirming successful disarm so that the user interface can provide 408 a visual and/or audible confirmation of successful disarm. Although not shown explicitly in Fig. 4, in some embodiments, the control unit 120 may itself communicate with a back end system to verify authentication of the relevant code or token ID, and/or to verify that the associated user has been allocated appropriate permission within the system to disarm the system. For example, not all users recognised by a code or token ID may be allocated such sensitive permission. The back end system with which the control unit 120 communicates may optionally be the same as the back end 144 described above, or a back end associated with the monitoring station 125, or a supplementary back end (not shown).

At steps 410 and 412 the control unit 120 transmits one or more messages to each of the video cameras 130 (here we show only 2 such cameras, but this is only for ease of illustration, there may be 2, 3, or 4 cameras or more) either instructing them to switch to a continuous video capture state or sending them for example a mode codeword that each camera understands as an instruction to switch from security camera state to continuous video capture and streaming state. Preferably each of the cameras, or at least those cameras whose operating state is to be changed, is instructed individually rather than by using a single instruction (e.g. an “all cameras” instruction), although the latter approach may be adopted if considered appropriate. Also, in some embodiments, different sub-functionalities of a state may be instructed separately from one another, by sending separate messages, instead of instructing the state in a single message. For example, the operating state of the motion or presence detector may be instructed in one message, and the operating state of the camera image sensor may be instructed in a separate message. In this way, the desired operating state is implemented by controlling sub- functionalities individually by respective instruction messages from the control unit. Such an approach has the advantage that it avoids the possibility of a malicious person from being able to deduce the arm state by intercepting single “state” or “mode” messages. Instead, the state of a camera is broken into sub-functionalities that are instructed independently in separate messages from the central unit. This would for example also enable a central unit to be able to use any camera provided that individual sub-functionality in the camera is controllable by messages of appropriate command level. It also means that the camera might not have an identifiable state of operation, rather it being controlled by (e.g. acting as a puppet of) the control unit to implement either security or surveillance behaviour.

These instructions whether sent collectively or independently are transmitted from the central unit 120 using one of the low bandwidth transceivers 200, 205 or 220, rather than by using the Wi-Fi transceiver 210 since the instructions are small messages that do not require significant bandwidth for timely transmission.

Upon receiving the messages from the control unit 120, the affected camera nodes switch to continuous video capture and streaming state at 414 and 416 and start to transmit the captured video to the control unit 120 using Wi-Fi at 418 and 420. Depending upon the precise nature of the message received from the control unit 120 the cameras 130 may either change state automatically upon receiving a change of status notification (or flagged message, etc.) or upon receiving an instruction to change state - in other words responding to an instruction to adopt a particular functionality.

At step 422 the control unit 120 may then process the video streams received from the video cameras to produce a video channel that includes the received video content. For example, supposing that the 4 video cameras 130 of Figure 1 have started to stream their captured video, the control unit 120 may produce a composite signal (e.g. a multiplex) that when displayed on a user device shows each of the 4 component video streams as one tile of an array of 4 neighbouring tiles (e.g., as a quadrant of a square or rectangular composite image). If fewer than 4 video streams are to be accommodated, the control unit may process these similarly but with a layout that best utilises the format of the display upon which the composite video is to be displayed (which may have been signalled to the control unit upon registration of the app on the device), taking account of the format of the component video streams. The resulting composite image stream is then streamed 424 from the control unit 120, over Wi-Fi (for example, using the network of which the control unit is the access point) to one or more user devices e.g. to the laptop or desktop computer 136 and/or to the smart phone or tablet device 138.

At step 426 the control unit 120 streams video from the video cameras 130 to the back end system 144, preferably using a broadband connection, wired or wireless, or a mobile data connection. The video streams from each of the cameras 130 may be streamed substantially unprocessed or they may be streamed as a composite video stream that combines each of the component video streams. If network failure, possibly brought on by sabotage, affects these communication channels, the control unit may fall back to a secure backup system like SigFox but in that case it will typically be beneficial to process the video streams to reduce their bandwidth (e.g. by compression, reducing resolution, reducing frame rate, converting to monochrome, etc.) very significantly so that useful video signals can be expected to be received by the back end 144 in a relatively short time frame. The aim is to provide continuous or substantially continuous video recording at the back end 144 whenever the premises security monitoring system is in a disarmed state.

The back end system 144 may also be arranged to perform analytics on the video streams received from the control unit 120. Analytics may optionally include any one or more of: detection of human presence and/or motion within the video stream; object recognition; biometric recognition of humans; suspicious activity recognition; fire or smoke detection. For example, a business owner may be able to designate particular parts of the view from any given camera as of high interest - e.g. because high value portable goods (of the type that may be particularly attractive to shop lifters) are displayed in the corresponding part of the shop or business, and the back end may flag video frames/sequences in which there is human activity or movement within the relevant parts of the video frames. Video stored in the back end 144 can be accessed by means of an app on a user device, such as computer 136 or smart phone 138, for viewing and/or downloading. In addition, the alarm receiving centre or remote monitoring station 125 may also be provided with access to the videos from an installation in the event that an alarm event is triggered - although such access may be to only a subset (typically only a recent subset) of video captured at the installation.

During the business’s opening hours, while the security monitoring system is disarmed, the business owner or employee 150 is thus able to see what is happening in each of the retail rooms 102 of the premises by viewing video on viewing device 136 or on a smartphone or tablet such as 138, and is also able to go back and replay earlier events - for example by calling up flagged video frames or sequences from the back end to view activity in those areas of the shop most likely to be struck by shoplifters. The user device 136 may also store a copy of the video received each day, duplicating the remote storage. The local video store may be so sized that it is necessary to purge the earliest recordings in favour of the most recent video (in a kind of extended FIFO) - for example with overall storage perhaps covering no more than two working days. At the end of the business day, or whenever else the system is armed (e.g. for a lunch break) the business owner or an employee arms the system at step 430, for example using the user interface (access) device 141 and entering an activation code or presenting a token (e.g. RFID or NFC token) or device to the interface device 141. The interface device 141 then sends at 432 an encrypted message to the control unit 120 containing the relevant data to the central unit for the central unit to check and confirm/deny. At step 434, if the supplied data were correct, the control unit 120 returns a “success” message to the user interface device which may then provide audible and/or visual confirmation of the successful arming of the system. The central unit may be programmed or otherwise configured to forward the received token/code data to an alarm system back end - such as remote monitoring station 125, which may act as master. The control unit may be programmed or otherwise configured to perform the relevant checks itself in the event that the alarm back end cannot be reached in a timely fashion - for example because of network congestion or network failure. Thus, the central unit may be able to perform the authentication and control if communication to the back-end is interrupted, and central unit is programmed with the permissions list, although not in all cases. It is also possible to configure or program access devices, such as access device 140, to perform authentication rather than relying on the central unit or alarm-back-end.

The alarm-back-end may (and generally will) be distinct from the media-back-end, and if they are distinct they may be hosted by different systems and the different systems may be at geographically separated physical sites.

At steps 436 and 438 the control unit 120 may transmit a message to each of the video cameras 130 either instructing them to switch to security camera state or sending them a for example a mode codeword that each camera understands as an instruction to switch to security camera state from continuous video capture and storage state. Preferably each of the cameras, or at least those cameras whose operating state is to be changed, is instructed individually rather than by using a single instruction (e.g. an “all cameras” instruction), although the latter approach may be adopted if considered appropriate. These instructions whether sent collectively or independently are transmitted from the central unit 120 using one of the low bandwidth transceivers 200, 205 or 220, rather than by using the Wi-Fi transceiver 210. Upon receiving the messages from the control unit 120, the affected camera nodes switch to security camera state at 440 and 442. As previously explained in the context of describing messages sent when switching to the surveillance mode, instead of a single “state” instruction, the control unit may send multiple messages to command different sub-functionalities of the camera unit individually. For example, camera streaming off; PIR wake-up; etc. Collectively, these individual subfunctionalities make up the appropriate operating state of the camera device. If subsequently, while the security monitoring system is in an armed mode, the motion sensor of one of the cameras 130 is activated - for example by the movement of someone who concealed themselves within the premises before the end of the business day, the relevant camera will transmit 450 an alarm event message to the control unit 120. The control unit 120 will then signal 452 to the remote monitoring station or ARC 125 to report the incident. The control unit 120 may also signal 453 a siren 142 to produce a local audible warning of the security event, although this may also happen only under the control of the remote monitoring centre 125, depending upon the settings of the system. Meanwhile, the video camera whose motion sensor was triggered will have begun capturing video and streaming 454 the video to the control unit 120. The control unit 120 will in turn stream 456 the received video to the remote monitoring station 125 and optionally also 458 to the back end 144. In addition, the control unit 120 may also send an incident alert 460 to a user nominated device, e.g. smart phone 138 (or possible a SIP address and/or an email address) and also start to stream 462 video to a designated device/address.

The remote monitoring station, usually in the form of a human operator at the remote monitoring station, may then send instructions 464 to the control unit 120 for the control unit to instruct 466 other of the video cameras to turn on and to start to capture and stream 468 video. The control unit may respond to such instructions by signalling the relevant cameras accordingly. The control unit 120 then sends 470 the extra received video streams to the remote monitoring centre 125, if necessary pre-processing the video that is to be sent to the remote monitoring station to suit the available transmission channel. Likewise, the central unit may transmit 472 the captured video streams to the back end 144 if there is sufficient bandwidth on the transmission channels available.

If necessary, personnel in the remote monitoring station 125 may liaise with the police or other security personnel, optionally sharing 474 with them captured video.

Because the video cameras 130 are preferably mains powered, directly or indirectly, it is feasible to configure them to perform pre-event capture when in security camera state: each camera may be set to capture video continuously and provided with a FIFO buffer with a capacity of say 3 to 5 seconds. When a camera’s motion sensor is triggered, the contents of the FIFO buffer is transmitted to the control unit 120 as the first part of the streamed video. Otherwise, although video is possibly captured continuously, most captured video simply passes through the FIFO buffer without ever being sent to the control unit or otherwise stored.

It will be appreciated that we have described integrated security and surveillance systems in which a control unit is programmed (or otherwise configured or arranged) to handle video received from a security camera differently according to the arm state (mode) of the security system. It is not necessary for the camera(s) to have different operating modes. It would be possible for the camera(s) to capture video identically (or substantially identically) in both the surveillance and security states. It would also be possible for the presence motion sensing arrangement to also be active while the camera is in the surveillance state. Motion/presence detection events could then be flagged to the control unit even while the security system is in the disarmed sate. The control unit could then use reported events in marking up potentially interesting sections of video - which could be useful in subsequent review of captured video. Thus, video onward transmitted to the back end could be flagged for further processing by the back end - e.g. to enable the back end 144 to provide a compilation or grouping of potentially the most interesting or relevant portions of a long video capture. The control unit and or the back end 144 may further link or group video passages captured from different cameras around the time of an event reported by a camera (it may be that nefarious activities may be visible in video captured by one or more cameras whose motion sensors were not triggered but which come to light upon looking at video captures temporally adjacent a capture where a motion sensor was triggered.

When the security system is armed, video from cameras may be continuously (or substantially continuously) be streamed to the control unit 120 , and the control unit 120 may store or arrange to store the video (possibly in a very compressed form) even without a motion sensor being triggered - but the control unit may be programmed to respond to a report of a motion sensor being triggered by sending received video to the remote monitoring centre 125. This continuous streaming from the camera to the control unit may be considered to be a waste of bandwidth, and it may be considered that there is seldom anything to be learned from video captured in the absence of motion/presence detection - and for these reasons it may well be preferred to operate the system as described earlier with reference, for example, to Figure 4.

Figure 5 illustrates schematically video stream routing according to an aspect of the invention. In the figure we see a subset of the elements of Figure 1 in a continuous video recording state: a pair of video cameras 130a and 130b, a control unit 120, a local viewing device 136 (which may be a fixed local terminal or a portable device such as a tablet or smartphone), a customer router 140, and a video system back end 144. The control unit 120 runs a camera service software application that processes the video streams received from the two video cameras and that supplies the video, either as a composite stream or as two individual streams, to a client app on a local viewing device 136. In this figure we see that the transmission of video to and from the control unit 120, here shown as dashed lines, is performed using the Wi-Fi network hosted by the control unit itself. We can also see the two video signals represented as being displayed one above the other on the display screen of the device 136 - although of course they could be displayed side by side instead. The control unit 120 also supplies the captured video to the back end storage entity 144 that exists in the cloud. The figure shows the video feed from the central unit to the back end 144 passing through the customer router 140, for example via an Ethernet wired connection, but it may equally pass via the network interface 260 in the control unit 120 to a local broadband connection and thence to the back end. The back end 144 provides secure storage for the captured video, safe from any burglar who enters the premises - even if the burglar should attempt to destroy the premises with fire, the captured video will remain safe. The local viewing device 136 may conveniently store the captured video locally, although such storage may be lost in the event that the premises are destroyed or the device 136 taken by the burglar.

The central unit 120 is also show as connected to the cameras by a control channel provided by one or more of the low bandwidth transceivers 200, 205, or 220.

Figure 6 is similar to Figure 5 but here shows the transport of video from the central unit to the local viewing device being accomplished using the Wi-Fi network hosted by the customer router 140, rather than using the Wi-Fi network hosted by the control unit 120. It will be noted however that video is still sent from the cameras 130 to the control unit 120 using the Wi-Fi network hosted by the control unit 120.

The app on the user devices 136 and 138 can generate commands for the control unit 120 of the security monitoring system, the commands either being passed directly over Wi-Fi between the user device 136/138 to the control unit, or if the user device is out of range of the Wi-Fi network these commands can be sent to the control unit via the system back end 144. By using such commands a user may be able to control the behaviour of the video cameras, as previously described, and/or the behaviour of the control unit 120.

Referring back to Figure 1, it may have been noticed that this figure does not show the presence of a camera in the office 104, but under certain circumstances it may be interesting also to include a camera in the office - not least because intruders may be expected to enter the office to look items of value, so that security captures may be particularly useful for insurance claims and/or in legal proceedings. However, it may be desirable, if one or more security cameras are located in the office or other private space, for any such camera’s video feed in the surveillance state to be kept separate from any regular surveillance viewing - so that, for example, the control unit should avoid including any such video feed in any multiplex of feeds provided to a viewing device such as 136 or 138. To this end the control unit is preferably arranged to be able to discriminate between video feeds received from any such “private” cameras and video feeds received from cameras observing “public” (e.g. retail) spaces. If such “private” feeds are sent to the back end 144 that are therefore preferably flagged or otherwise designated in such a way that the back end 144 distinguishes in its storage/handling/retrieving of such video so that privacy is maintained. For example, such “private” video may be subject to a further level of security so that , for example, only a designated subset of personnel of the monitored business have access to these videos. It will also be appreciated that any security camera installed in the office 104 should be so sited that it cannot, for example capture images of the screens or keyboards of computers, security access points, nor enable a viewer to monitor the inputting of a combination to a safe.

As previously mentioned it is also contemplated to provide systems in which the control unit may not signal the camera(s) upon a change of state of the security monitoring system. Rather, the security cameras may continuously (or quasi continuously) capture video which may be streamed or otherwise sent to the control unit. Such systems, and their components and methods may generally correspond to the systems and methods illustrated in, and described with reference to Figures 1-3, 5 and 6 unless otherwise required. Consequently, the skilled person will readily understand from the foregoing description how to implement such systems.

The following aspects of the invention arise in the context of such an approach: According to a fourth aspect there is provided a control unit for a security monitoring system, the system having an armed mode and a disarmed mode and including at least one security camera that is arranged to operate in a security state active while the system is in the armed mode and in a surveillance state active while the system is in the disarmed mode, the at least one security camera being arranged to stream captured video to the control unit, wherein the control unit is programmed to handle the content of received video streams according to the arm state of the integrated security and surveillance system.

Such a control unit may be further programmed to onward transmit video received from the or each video camera.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be programmed to: onward transmit to a first remote video storage facility video streams received from a security camera operating in the surveillance state; and in the event of receiving, from a security camera operating in the security state, a notification of the triggering of a motion or presence detection arrangement, onward transmit to a remote monitoring facility an event notification and a video stream received from the security camera from which the triggering notification was received.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be further programmed to flag or otherwise label the content of video streams received from a security camera operating in the surveillance state according to the presence of trigger events reported by the security camera. A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be further programmed for operative connection to a remote monitoring centre and is arranged, when the system is in the armed mode to onward transmit to the remote monitoring centre video received from the at least one video camera.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be further programmed for operative connection to a remote video storage entity and be arranged, when the system is in the disarmed mode to onward transmit to the remote video storage entity video received from the at least one video camera.

Such a control unit may be configured to support a data connection to a mobile data network to support operative connection to the remote monitoring centre and/or the remote video storage entity.

Such a control unit may be configured to support a data connection to a broadband mobile data network and to an Ultra Narrow Band wireless data network.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be configured for a wired connection to a data network to support operative connection to the remote monitoring centre and/or the remote video storage entity.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be configured to operate as a wireless access point of a wireless network.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be configured to issue control instructions to the at least one security camera to cause the at least one security camera to change at least one of video resolution, frame rate and monitored area to be captured.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be configured to transmit control instructions to the at least one security camera based on instructions received from a remote monitoring centre and/or a software application running on a user device.

A control unit according to any variant of the fourth aspect may be further programmed to produce a multiplex of plural video streams received from plural of the video cameras, the multiplex being used in the onward transmission of the video received from the video cameras.

According to a fifth aspect there is provided an integrated security and surveillance system comprising a control unit as claimed in any one of the preceding claims and at least one video camera having a motion or presence detection arrangement; the system having an armed mode and a disarmed mode; the at least one video camera being arranged: in the security state to signal the control unit in the event that the motion or presence detection arrangement is triggered; the control unit further being programmed to onward transmit video received from the or each video camera.