How Do Sensors That Count People Work?

People counting should be a part of every modern business because of the information it can provide that can improve your situation in the industry. Besides being mostly used nowadays for social distancing, there are other important factors like customer behavior when it comes to stores. Office buildings usually use it to check how many people they need in a certain area and which place is mostly used during work hours.

You can find many types of these devices on the market and besides the price, the technology used can differ. You probably won’t only calculate the number of visitors but also you would want to collect as much data as possible. This can be used for many purposes but safety is one of the biggest reasons why it is implemented now. With this information, companies are trying to improve customer and employee experience and cut down costs.

People Counter in Stores

If you don’t have a professional to manage it, you should know that they are placed in strategic places, for example, in a retail store. It will calculate every visitor that comes into the building and leaves which is recorded by the software that gives feedback. That’s the basic definition but there is much more to it depending on the software. You can learn more here.

Positioning is very important because the data collected will depend on it.  For example, if you set it on the entrance, you will have an accurate number of how many people left or entered the store. But, many people will use it all around the store so they can have information about each individual section and how many people are visiting it, when, and for how long. It’s also used outside to count street traffic around the building but this is only the beginning because you will need to know how to use the data.

Another benefit of traffic data is that you can check how many people that went in actually made a purchase and this is very valuable information that can represent many issues. You can also use it to determine off-peak and peak periods, bounce rate, and customer to staff ratio. This will give you a better insight into how customers behave once they enter. For example, the bounce rate represents the number of people that walk past instead of entering.

Measuring Behavior

Software that these sensors use can be very helpful for any business and one of the best features is to use it for behavior analytics. This is connected with how customers behave but it also can be applied to your employees and how they spend time in the office. You will be able to understand why a certain section of your company is slow and where changes need to be made.Click here to read more.

People that run the software will run the analytics with the information collected like counting people, looking at heatmaps, and checking the overall movement in the office. How deep you want to go into behavior analytics depends on you. For some people, this insight they get is pointless because they don’t use it the right way. Having someone that can analyze it and use the right strategies to improve what’s going on is the most important part. On the other hand, you can use these products only for surveillance.

Types of People Counting Systems

The first type is very accurate because there is a lot of improvement made to smoke alarms which are connected to the thermal counter. It uses thermal imaging tech that notices the temperature variations of people compared to the office area. They use cameras that have built-in sensors that provide real-time data. They are great for shopping malls but can be seen in offices also.

Stereo counters are the second type that has a small advantage compared to thermal devices because they are more precise even when it is difficult to do the measurement. They work on the same principle as your eyes to understand the depth of view which enables it to exclude height into calculations. Most of them have an option to track the whole route of the customer or employee.

Much smaller than stereo devices are mono counters that use a single lens and are usually circular. The problem with it is that it doesn’t have a depth of view which can also affect the accuracy. It’s not recommended for more regulated offices because the accuracy can be as low as 50% but it can go up to 90%. But, when you compare it with other options, the price is much higher for top-notch mono devices.

Time of flight sensors is similar in size to thermal devices. They send signals to the objects and read the reflection of infrared that gets back to the sensor. This is one of the best ways to detect objects and their movement. Another big advantage is that they can operate in darkness and you will have the ability to link cameras in order to have a wider view. The accuracy usually goes from 90% to 95%.

The last type on the list is Wi-Fi counters that come in all shapes and sizes. The accuracy can vary a lot and on how you place them and you might experience difficulties when it too far away from the area. You can use it as a secondary option or for small offices.

Pros and Cons

Pros and cons will depend on which type you choose and how you implement it. Even if you buy the best product on the market it doesn’t mean you will have what you need because the software is as important and how you manage the data collected. The best tip is to check with a professional before making a purchase. Get more information here: https://www.ledsmagazine.com/smart-lighting-iot/article/14184719/research-moves-toward-better-occupancy-sensors-magazine

The company that sells these products will have more knowledge when it comes to your company needs. With a few pieces of information, they will know which option is the best. Try to find the best manufacturers because you would want to have high-quality sponsors during the epidemic.