In recent years, the video conferencing industry has evolved rapidly. Video bars, video systems, and intelligent cameras with built-in AI have emerged. Perhaps you've been in a meeting room with video conferencing where the camera automatically zooms in on the people in the room. The systems have simply become smarter.
It's possible to use the latest video systems as sensors to gather data on meeting room usage. Some manufacturers have opened their APIs, allowing companies like Neowit to access this data. This changes the entire way of thinking about AV equipment, video conferencing, and sensor technology.
A world of silos
We've previously discussed how there are many technology silos in a building or office space that don't share relevant information across systems. Even in a meeting room, there are several silos. You'll find motion sensors controlling lights, air quality sensors managing ventilation and heating systems, in addition to video conferencing equipment and screens, among others. In just one meeting room, there can be four to six different "silo systems" with data that dont speak to each other.
Think differently when purchasing AV and video conferencing equipment
Price is, of course, a factor, as is image quality, sound, microphone, and user-friendliness. But the difference between manufacturers is smaller than ever. Still, many make the wrong investment!
Do you know the cost of a people counting sensor or air quality sensor?
A people counting sensor that is GDPR compliant, accurate, and can cover a meeting room often costs between $1000-2500 (including a 3-year license). Additionally, installation, configuration, and setup come into play. If you also want data on air quality, this costs an additional $300-400!
So the question is: Is it perhaps worth investing a few extra dollars in video conferencing equipment?
Here are some tips on what to consider when purchasing video conferencing equipment:
Ensure that the video conferencing equipment supports People Counting. Here are some factors to consider as well, such as it's acceptable to have People Counting during a video meeting, but the camera must also be able to count when there isn't a video meeting. It also must not obstruct the camera lens when the system is not in use.
The system should support "fencing".
Fencing means you have the option to set which zone the camera should count in. If you have a meeting room with glass walls, you don't want to count people on the outside of the room. Fencing ensures that the camera only counts people within the defined zone.
Open API. (very important)
it does not help with people counting and airquality sensors in the UC equipment, if the systems don`t have open API`s. It's easy to get lost in the marketing from manufacturers. Ask to see the API documentation.
If you invest in video conferencing equipment that has an open API, built-in people counting, and air quality sensors, you're making a future proof investment that's also more sustainable because the system can be used in multiple areas. Suddenly you can use UC equipment to measure occupancy from the meetingrooms, insights on actuall use, removing ghostmeetings and even connecting these devices to other technologies in the building!
Wanna know more about how to solve "ghostmeetings" check out https://www.avinteractive.com/news/collaboration/how-to-tackle-the-global-problem-of-ghost-meetings-27-04-2023/