Create rules for Counts

Last modified: Tuesday September 19, 2023.

Alta Video features AI-powered object detection that counts the number of people and vehicles within the view of a camera or group of cameras. You can also configure Alta Video to count the number of objects that cross lines drawn on camera views.

Create rules to notify your operators of different scenarios based on these object counts.

Prerequisites

• You must set up the Counts areas to use in the rule before attempting to create a Counts rule.
  See Create live counts of objects in view and Create counts of objects that cross a line.
• To use Preset Camera or Date & Time settings, make sure you have configured them before creating the rule.

Task — Create Counts rule

1. From the toolbar, open > Rules.
2. Click add button.
3. Type a name for the rule.
4. Click the Counts.
5. Set the Level of importance.
   

   High importance rules prioritize the cameras displayed in the Video view when a rule is triggered.

6. Click Next.
7. Configure the What information:
   1. Select the type of objects for the Counts rule, either People or Vehicles.
   2. Configure the required amount, select either More than or Less than, and enter the number of objects.
   3. Set your Time requirements, so that the Amount field applies either at any time or for more than your defined time period.

   4. For vehicle counts, select the type of vehicles to be counted: Any type, 2 wheeled, Small/Medium vehicle, or Large vehicle.

   5. For line crossing counts, enter the number of objects counted crossing the line before triggering the rule (Occurrences every). Objects can be counted going In (entering the area) or Out (exiting the area).
8. Click Next.
9. Select the previously configured Counts areas to use for the Counts rule.
   
10. Click Next.
11. Specify your required Date & Time and RULE ACTIVATION settings.
    If you have predefined them, use Templates to simplify adding the same date and time parameters to multiple rules.
12. Click Next.

13. Select automated actions taken by the system when the rule triggers:

    • Pop-up: Show a notification in Alta Video that includes a thumbnail of the rule-triggering video. If required, select Also send a push notification on the mobile app.
    • Email: Send an email message to a system user or user group. You can define an email template and include data from the trigger.
    • External link: Creates a link to the triggering recording that can be shared with non-system users or embedded in an Email or Webhook notification.
    • Webhook: Dispatch a configured webhook including trigger data as the payload.
    • PTZ Cameras: Move pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras to pre-configured positions. This option is only available if PTZ cameras are added to the deployment.
      

    Alarms are only shown to operators that have access to the cameras that trigger the rule.

To configure Advanced settings:
1. Click Advanced settings.
2. To record more video at the end of the alarm, specify the Additional recording time.
3. To merge similar alarms, specify the Merge similar alarms within time.
4. Select how the triggered rule should behave. To trigger an alarm that shows in the Alarms tool, select Security Alarm (default). To trigger as an event that shows in the Events tool, select Security Event.
5. Click Done.
14. Choose to require your operators to acknowledge the triggered rule.
15. Click Done.