Honeywell has entered into a collaboration with Cisco on an AI-powered solution that automatically adapts building systems based on fluctuating usage levels, reducing energy consumption and optimising the environment for worker productivity and comfort.

By combining Honeywell Forge Sustainability+ for Buildings and Cisco Spaces, the joint effort uses AI and machine learning to help monitor assets to adjust heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems based on real-time occupancy for a single building or an entire campus.

Cisco Spaces collects occupancy and environmental data from Cisco network infrastructure, environmental sensors, collaboration devices and third-party IoT devices without the need to add additional hardware. Honeywell Forge Sustainability+ for Buildings then uses this information to help improve energy efficiency and provide insights on building utilisation. Together with Honeywell’s latest Optimizer Advanced Controller for Buildings, this real-time occupancy data can help further improve energy efficiency for greater resiliency.

Room temperatures, lighting and ventilation are autonomously adjusted based on where people are in the building and customer selected controls. This ultimately helps automate daily building operations, optimise energy use and drive employee comfort while monitoring GHG emissions.

Fine-tuning by harnessing the power of AI

“Buildings have historically been a substantial contributor to overall carbon emissions, but with the rise of hybrid work, operators now have the opportunity to take a fresh look at addressing their environmental impact by moving their HVAC systems away from consistent 9-to-5 schedules,” said Greg Turner, Chief Technology Officer of Honeywell’s Building Automation segment. “By tapping into a building’s existing technology infrastructure and harnessing the power of AI to fine-tune heating and cooling according to zone occupancy levels, our collaboration with Cisco empowers building owners to gain control of their environment and significantly curb emissions.”

The collaboration is part of Honeywell’s broader effort to help companies reduce their buildings’ environmental footprint and supports Honeywell’s alignment of its portfolio to three compelling megatrends, including automation and energy transition. It is also enabled by Cisco’s Country Digital Acceleration programme, a global initiative that collaborates with government and private sector leaders to build sustainable, secure and inclusive communities powered by ethical and innovative technology solutions.

An era of real-time data insights

“The convergence of IT and OT infrastructures, seamlessly interoperable with leading building management system (BMS) platforms, ushers in an era of real-time data insights that can optimise energy usage, regardless of building age or retrofit status,” said Wes Sylvester, Vice President of Cisco’s Industry Solutions Group. “By working closely with Honeywell, we’re enabling building operators with enhanced visibility and control over operational data, setting a new standard for energy efficiency and reduced environmental impact.”

With more than 30 years of experience working across business development, sales, product and marketing for leading distribution and manufacturing companies, John Lutz Boorman, the recently appointed Head of Product and Marketing at Hanwha Vision Europe, has vast knowledge and expertise in the security industry. Here he talks about his view on innovations in video surveillance over the next few years.

The video surveillance market has rapidly evolved over the past few decades. Video cameras are no longer deployed solely to record images for security, but have become essential tools for organisations to refine operations, increase productivity, provide business intelligence and enhance safety. AI offers accurate detection of faces, people and vehicles (as well as their attributes) to reduce false alarms and deliver deeper operational insights.

In the opinion of John Lutz Boorman, over the next five years, AI will be increasingly deployed not only for “after the event” – but also to allow forensic search and analysis of hours of video in mere seconds. “Using AI, video systems trained on real-world scenarios defined by users will be able to predict behaviour and alert operators to the potential for incidents even before they happen. Predictive AI-enabled video technology will, therefore, be called on to support business forecasting efforts, deploy corporate resources more effectively, and help users make better-informed decisions.”

Compelling argument for AI at the edge

When asked about why the industry is so interested in AI ‘at the edge’, Lutz Boorman puts forward a compelling argument. “Putting AI to work used to involve vast amounts of computing power and infrastructure, which required a significant investment in energy and IT resources. By including AI in the camera itself – or “at the edge” – significant efficiencies are now possible. Analysis of images using AI at the edge removes the need to stream raw data back to a server for analysis, freeing up bandwidth and reducing processing demands on centralised systems, as well as lowering data costs.”

He continues, “Cameras using AI at the edge can make a video installation more flexible and easy to scale. This is particularly helpful for organisations that wish to scale a project in phases, as cameras can be added as and when required without the need to invest in additional server capacity. Furthermore, edge devices can be utilised for more bespoke end-user applications to meet the needs of varying customer requirements.”

Cyber security benefits

Lutz Boorman further adds, “There are cyber security benefits, too, with AI at the edge. As video analytics occurs on the device, only metadata is sent across the network – no sensitive data is transmitted for hackers to intercept. Additionally, running AI on a device can vastly improve the accuracy of event triggers and reduce false alarms. People counting, occupancy monitoring, queue management, and more can all be carried out with a high degree of accuracy thanks to edge AI utilising deep-learning technology.”

“Because AI offers such significant benefits, Hanwha Vision has led the adoption of AI at the edge for a number of years, having developed chipsets with improved processing power to allow data to be recorded and stored via SD card slots on its cameras. Edge-based AI also helps to ensure the widest possible adoption of this transformative technology, and for that reason, it should also be welcomed,” he concludes.

With the common goal of improving security and emergency response in the event of a critical incident, community members in Livingston County have deployed technology that turns their standard security cameras into a powerful resource for 911 Emergency Communications Center telecommunicators (911 professionals).

“It’s all about response time: The key to saving lives, curtailing damage and rapidly resolving an emergency of any kind–whether it’s a natural disaster, fire, mass shooting or other criminal activity–is getting accurate information to first responders so they can take quick, decisive action,” said Mike Murphy, Livingston County Sheriff.

While security cameras are ubiquitous at schools and businesses, 911 telecommunicators typically cannot access them in an emergency. Eagle Eye 911 Camera Sharing changes that by giving telecommunicators instant access to live video from one or multiple security cameras when a 911-triggered emergency occurs, empowering them to quickly deliver critical incident information to first responders through a partnership with Rapid SOS.

Telecommunicators generally rely on verbal information from 911 callers. Now, with Camera Sharing, the telecommunicator can also have “eyes on the scene” and, within seconds, gather an immense amount of information.

“Camera Sharing gives us a real-time view of the situation at hand as it’s unfolding,” said Kecia Williams, 911 Director, Livingston County 911 Central Dispatch. “Lots of times it takes a while to attain pertinent information from a 911 caller because they’re distraught or not clear. With Camera Sharing, we can instantly see for ourselves what’s going on, and we can get this information to the fire department, EMS or law enforcement much quicker.”

Livingston County is the first county in Michigan to demo the new technology at the Livingston Educational Service Agency in Howell, an organisation that works with local school districts to provide educational services and support to 26,000 students throughout the county.

“I am impressed with the Camera Sharing technology and can see the potential for improving response times by first responders to critical events in our community,” said Michael Hubert, Superintendent of Livingston Educational Service Agency.

Dean Drako, CEO of Eagle Eye Networks said, “Livingston County is a prime example of a growing trend we’re seeing in the U.S. where entire communities — schools, businesses, public safety officials and community leaders — are working together to ensure they are prepared as possible for emergency situations.”

Motorola has signed a framework agreement with the Thuringian Ministry of the Interior to supply more than 1,200 VB400 body cameras to the police forces in Thuringia. The new devices will be used by police forces across the state to help front-line teams de-escalate potentially dangerous situations, support accountability and increase officer and public safety.

Thuringia’s Minister of the Interior, Georg Maier, handed over the first cameras to police officers from the Erfurt State Police Inspectorate at the start of the formal roll out this week.

“These body cameras won’t make the work of our police force any easier, but they will make it safer,” said Maier. “Not only do body cameras deter dangerous behavior, but video evidence helps to provide officials and communities with a more complete understanding of events.”

The cameras will be rolled out alongside Videomanager evidence management software, enabling officers to easily upload and securely store and manage video footage, organised by time, date and location as part of the force’s existing daily workflows.

The ministry of Thuringia awarded the contract to Motorola Solutions following a rigorous testing and competitive process to comply with high quality and regulatory requirements. The decision for the VB400 was based on performance, voice quality and the ability to customise pre- and post-recording functionality to help ensure incidents are captured from the start.

Johnson Controls International has reached a definitive agreement to sell its Residential and Light Commercial HVAC business in an all-cash transaction to the Bosch Group.

The transaction includes the North America Ducted business and global Residential joint venture with Hitachi, Ltd., of which Johnson Controls owns 60% and Hitachi owns 40%. The total transaction is valued at $8.1 billion, and the company’s portion of the consideration is approximately $6.7 billion. As part of the transaction, Hitachi will retain certain ductless HVAC assets located in Shimizu, Japan.

Following the close of the transaction, the Johnson Controls portfolio will be substantially simplified with enhanced strategic focus, aligned with the Company’s objective to be a pure-play provider of comprehensive solutions for commercial buildings. Johnson Controls delivers a unique value proposition to customers, with its unmatched service and digital offerings that improve commercial building efficiency and reduce operational costs through its Openblue digital platform. The transaction represents a significant portion of the Company’s previously announced strategic evaluation of non-core product lines.

“We are pleased to have reached this pivotal milestone, which accelerates our transformation and positions Johnson Controls as a simpler, higher-growth company,” said Johnson Controls Chairman and CEO George Oliver. “Johnson Controls is already benefiting from our transformation, which enables the unparalleled value proposition we provide to customers, and exposure to rapidly accelerating demand in the data centre market and other key macro-economic tailwinds. We believe Johnson Controls is well-positioned for its next phase of growth to deliver enhanced, long-term value to shareholders.”

Christian Fischer, the deputy chairman of the board of management of Robert Bosch GmbH, said: “The acquired entities will strengthen Bosch’s Home Comfort Group in an extremely attractive segment and will become part of the Bosch core business.”

The transaction is expected to close in approximately 12 months, subject to required regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.