AI can help security teams and remote systems technicians react to incidents with speed, intelligence and fewer errors, said Greg Parker, vice president of innovation and portfolio management at Johnson Controls. But legacy technologies like 10-year-old building management systems may limit the technology’s benefits, he said..
“If I … want to take advantage of some of these newer technologies that are out there that give me holistic, proactive protection, they’re not going to work that well on old systems,” Parker said in an interview.
Parker explained that AI can be used to determine if a camera isn’t pointing the way that it was originally intended, for example, or if it’s blurry or if it’s at a different resolution than is needed. It can also be used for heat mapping, or determining where people are congregating in a building. That can help not only with safety and security, but also with merchandising in the retail space and in other contexts in which traffic flows are important.
“If you think about sports venues,” he said, “maybe a crowd is forming because I only have three doors open… . That crowd can be managed more effectively to disperse if I have the information that I can readily act upon to open up more egress.”
AI also can detect threats faster, he said. “AI can tell you in a millisecond if something is out of the ordinary,” he said. “If you look at that same video … with the human eye, it may take anywhere between five seconds and maybe longer. It’s more like a Where’s Waldo situation.”
That capability saves time, saves money and can save lives, Parker said. “That’s another way that AI is already being used and will continue to develop further as our systems and our processes [do]. Ultimately, it’s about speed and effectiveness,” he said.
The AI in Johnson Control’s Connected Security platform enables remote technicians to receive not just a series of alarms but insight into what the alarms mean and how to respond, he said.
“There’s [now] intelligence behind those [alarms] that tells you, ‘This is, with X percent probability, going to cause this reaction,’” he said. “There is a sequence of operations that now has been intelligently woven together through agents.”
He cautions, however, that not all existing building infrastructure works with the AI-assisted security systems Johnson Controls offers.
With some customers, “we’re going to have to consider a building block scenario to get you there,” he said. “We need to upgrade your security system…. But guess what? You’re probably needing to do that anyway because you have these other risks that are out there that are really hard to debate… . If you have a [building management system] that hasn’t been upgraded … that’s a big red flag,” Parker said.
