arlo smart - how does it detect people

[rturner34345]

Hi. In the Arlo Smart Settings, I can turn on to just detect "People".

1) How does the camera / system detect people? Does it do this IN THE CAMERA SOFTWARE (locally) or does it upload the video to the cloud and work out what a person or face is? I would have thought it would just use the PIR and heat signature of a person but I want to confirm this.

Also... 2) Does selecting "All Other Motion" use the PIR and heat? Or movement from the pixels ie. a tree would set it off.

They should make the interface and answers in the support clearer about how a function works so advanced users can decide.

[rturner34345]

I couldn't see where to edit my original question... while I'm here:

3) How does it detect a car? On the:

1. CAMERA SOFTWARE built-in or
2. by UPLOADING THE RECORDING to the cloud and after analysing the video and then sending a push alert?

[TomMac]

All decisions ( to my knowledge ) are done are the far end at the servers... the computers then decide what the object that triggered the recording is and label it as so... then the info is sent back.

The only camera that uses real pixel detection is the Q cameras ( that's why they work thru glass while the others don't )

[rturner34345]

Thanks.... so if upload data speed is slow, then I assume it would take extra time (when using arlo smart) to send me the push alerts?

The text at the top reads: "Arlo Smart is active on this camera and you will receive Smart Alerts based on your notification settings. For the best experience we recommend turning ON smart notifications."

Which implies that a delay would exist (not sure how long) to get a push alert particularly if your internet connection is unstable or uploads are slow.

I might just turn off this arlo smart feature and just rely on the Arlo Ultra's PIR.

I'm not sure... perhaps Arlo Smart is mainly just a smart tagging feature to make checking / searching on past video data easier / more accurate?

[rturner34345]

I reckon "people" detection is done on the device using similar face techology to camera phones plus PIR heat detection.

Arlo Smart includes an image with the push alert; instead of just text that the camera has detected motion.

It would be good for Arlo to confirm this.

[st_shaw · Accepted solution]

"People" detection (and all the Smart video analysis and classification) is done on the Arlo server.

[rturner34345]

So what's the point of having in camera PIR?

[st_shaw]

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@rturner34345 wrote:

So what's the point of having in camera PIR?

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A PIR sensor uses almost no power compared to recording and transmitting video 24/7.  So, the PIR is always on looking for motion.  When motion is detected, the camera wakes up and sends the video clip to the cloud for recording. That's how the cameras achieve a long battery life.  Without the PIR they'd only operate a few hours on battery.

[rturner34345]

It’s complete rubbish that the cloud is needed to just detect a person when it has a PIR that can detect a heat signature.

What happens when the internet is down? Or uploads are slow. The video needs to get uploaded just to detect a person.

The app should allow me to get alerts for everything without it having to process it in the cloud.

Apple HomeKit Secure Video looks awesome using the CPU power I have in my Apple TV without uploading to the cloud.

[jguerdat]

It depends on the specific camera but plug it in. There's no way for a battery-operated camera to be able to stay awake and stream constantly. That way Smart isn't needed - Smart is just a way to provide the same feature without running the batteries out quickly.

[st_shaw]

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@rturner34345 wrote:
It’s complete rubbish that the cloud is needed to just detect a person when it has a PIR that can detect a heat signature.

What happens when the internet is down? Or uploads are slow. The video needs to get uploaded just to detect a person.

The app should allow me to get alerts for everything without it having to process it in the cloud.

Apple HomeKit Secure Video looks awesome using the CPU power I have in my Apple TV without uploading to the cloud.

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That's not how motion detection works.  The PIR will detect any motion, including people, animals, etc.  The cloud analysis is used only to "classify" the motion as person, animal, package, etc.  This cloud analysis is optional.

However, Arlo is a cloud-based system, so using the cloud is not optional. All your videos are stored in the cloud.  As a temporary failsafe if the Internet is down, videos will be stored to an SD card in the hub, but other than that you need the cloud for normal operation.

If you don't want to rely on the cloud, then you should buy a conventional IP camera and setup a local network video recorder.

[rturner34345]

I removed the cameras from the smart things subscription so now they detect all movement without the cloud analyzing.

I want the cloud for storage but not for everything / unnecessary tasks.

Clearly apple has seen an issue / opportunity in the market by releasing HomeKit secure video.