As opposed to traffic monitoring the retail scene has been undergoing an even greater transformation where until recently cameras have only been applied for security purposes. The Intellio system in Zagreb’s Hugo Boss salon is considered a hybrid as it provides both security video surveillance and intelligent features as well. The intelligent functions currently in use include only “people counting”, which differentiates between incoming and outgoing flow, however it is anticipated that the abundance of other intelligent features will encourage the company to upgrade the system.

Speaking of intelligent features it is worth taking a look at the range of solutions provided by Intellio. For instance, one feature can record, and later display as a “heat map”, the most frequented paths travelled by customers in any given store. Being aware of these paths managers can better organize the distribution of goods on the shelves while also get help with pricing. The result is a competitive advantage during talks with suppliers. Systems capable of identifying forming crowds or when lines are becoming too long are usually installed near cashiers, thus, preventing lengthy waiting times and enhancing customer satisfaction.

Statistical information can be extracted from the system and is readily available for analysis. This way managers can decide on the most optimal placement of a given product within the store, the required store space, optimization of working and opening hours. Better profit is almost a direct consequence. Now it is possible to analyze and compare information of customer visits broken down to specific intervals (days, weeks, months). For better understanding this information can automatically be generated using visual aids such as graphs and diagrams, and the data can be exported. Not only individual cameras, but also groups of cameras can contribute with information to the analysis making it possible to create intricate statistics.

Artificial intelligence has long been a coveted technology. Intellio’s newest development, called VisiScan™, is an engine whose roots are based on an AI, which, by analyzing a video feed provided by a camera, is capable of identifying faces, the age of the person it belongs to, and whether the person is a male or a female. Using this information the engine can count people even when they form a crowd. VisiScan can also measure the time elapsed while the person was looking directly into the camera (or at the product, advertisement etc.) as opposed to looking only in the direction of the camera – making it possible for us to know what the customer was looking at exactly.

This could be a dream come true for advertisers and store owners as finally they would know who and for how long was looking at their products or advertisements. Sampling is anonymous and carried out without recording actual video data ensuring compliance with privacy policy directives.