Heatmaps
The Heatmaps page provides a visual overlay of detection activity on a per-camera basis. By aggregating detection event coordinates over a selected time period, the heat map reveals which areas of a camera’s field of view experience the most activity.
How It Works
Section titled “How It Works”The heatmap is generated from the bounding box data of detection events recorded by the AI detection engine. Each detection’s position is mapped onto the camera’s field of view, and overlapping detections accumulate to form intensity regions.
The result is a colour-gradient overlay on top of the camera’s snapshot image:
| Colour | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Green | Low detection activity |
| Yellow | Moderate detection activity |
| Red | High detection activity |
Areas with no detection activity remain transparent, showing only the underlying camera image.
Using the Heatmap
Section titled “Using the Heatmap”Camera Selection
Section titled “Camera Selection”Select a camera from the location tree in the left sidebar. The heatmap loads for the selected camera, overlaying detection density data on the most recent camera snapshot.
Time Range Selection
Section titled “Time Range Selection”Choose the time period over which detection data is aggregated:
| Range | Period | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| 4h | Last 4 hours | Recent activity check |
| 6h | Last 6 hours | Half-shift review |
| 12h | Last 12 hours | Full shift review |
| 24h | Last 24 hours | Daily activity pattern |
| 7d | Last 7 days | Weekly trend analysis |
Longer time ranges aggregate more data points, producing smoother and more representative heat maps. Shorter ranges are useful for investigating specific time windows.
Per-Class Heatmaps
Section titled “Per-Class Heatmaps”Heatmap data is available per object class, allowing operators to isolate activity patterns for specific detection types. For example:
- View only person detections to analyse pedestrian traffic flow
- View only vehicle detections to understand traffic patterns at an entrance
- Compare class-specific heatmaps to identify areas where different object types concentrate
Select the desired object class from the class filter to update the heatmap overlay for that class only.
Practical Applications
Section titled “Practical Applications”Camera placement optimisation : Identify cameras where detection activity is concentrated in a small region of the frame. This may indicate that the camera angle or position could be adjusted for better coverage.
Zone configuration validation : Compare the heatmap with configured detection zones to verify that zones align with actual activity areas. If significant activity falls outside defined zones, the zone boundaries may need adjustment.
Security assessment : Use the 7-day heatmap to identify consistent high-traffic areas and dead zones. This information supports security planning and patrol route design.
Shift handover : A 12-hour or 24-hour heatmap provides incoming operators with an immediate visual summary of where activity occurred during the previous shift.
RBAC and Visibility
Section titled “RBAC and Visibility”Heatmaps are only available for cameras within the operator’s permitted locations, consistent with the role-based access control applied across all operations pages.