The University of Aalborg, in collaboration with Milestone Systems, has been recognised for its significant advancements in harbour safety technology. Their innovative project, which utilises video technology and synthetic datasets in a Danish harbour, was recently awarded the esteemed Danish Spar Nord Foundation Research Award.
This research focuses on detecting fatal accidents in harbours using AI-trained models for thermal cameras.
Milestone Systems, a leading provider of video technology, announced that this award-winning research enhances the AI capabilities of thermal cameras and Milestone’s video technology software to monitor and assess unusual behaviour, thereby improving safety in harbours globally.
Drowning is a major global concern, with 236,000 fatalities annually. In Denmark, 1,647 people drowned between 2001 and 2015, a quarter of these incidents occurring in harbours.
Recognising the need for accident prevention, a research team at The University of Aalborg harnessed AI and video technology to boost safety in Aalborg Harbour. They created the largest outdoor thermal dataset for video analytics over nine months.
Simulating people falling into harbours presents ethical and safety challenges. To overcome this, the team used a warm-water-filled test dummy detectable by thermal cameras and an extensive collection of annotated thermal images. AI models were trained to detect and alert rescue teams if a person fell into the harbour.
The researchers also developed an advanced synthetic dataset to train AI models on the sudden, involuntary movements involved in falling. This dataset included scenarios with wheelchair users, skaters, and cyclists to provide comprehensive training data for the AI model.
“By understanding normal behaviour on the waterfront, the model can detect abnormal events such as a person falling off the dock and immediately trigger an alarm. This ensures quick deployment of rescue personnel, even in unwitnessed accidents,” explained lead researcher and Ph.D. student Neelu Madan of The University of Aalborg.
Beyond saving lives, Neelu Madan’s research highlights the power of synthetic data in training AI models for scenarios that are difficult or unsafe to replicate in real life.
According to Neelu, this model has broader applications, such as improving manufacturing processes by detecting deviations in automated procedures.
“During manufacturing, for instance, ensuring automated processes run smoothly is crucial. Any errors can result in costly undetected flaws in the final product,” she said.
Combining AI and video technology is redefining safety standards across the transportation sector, ultimately saving countless lives as it is adopted globally.
The partnership between The University of Aalborg and Milestone Systems has demonstrated the societal benefits of integrating video technology software and AI.
“We are incredibly proud of Neelu and excited about the potential applications of her work. The development of the thermal dataset by The University of Aalborg and Milestone Systems at Aalborg Harbour represents a groundbreaking advancement in video technology, offering the community the largest annotated thermal dataset,” said Rahul Yadav, Chief Technology Officer, Milestone Systems.
