Subscriber Discussion

Prohawk Image Enhancement

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Marco Sanchez
Feb 28, 2017

Hi all,

Just wondering if anyone has ever tested or heard of this product? Prohawk Seems pretty cool if it is legitimate.

UI
Undisclosed Integrator #1
Mar 01, 2017

To me it looks like it is just playing with the image settings (contrast, saturation, etc).  If that's the case it's not making things which are not there magically visible, it is just using the captured footage and adjusting the settings to make it usable.  There are VMS and NVRs that will allow for this.  Geovision for example has had something similar to this for quite a while without the need for a separate appliance.

This may be a far superior solution to those low cost options, I am not familiar with this company at all.

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Ethan Ace
Mar 01, 2017

It is in many ways "just" adjusting image settings, but enhancement packages like this typically do it automatically (with some manual control). By contrast, most of the VMS/NVR implementations, like Avigilon, Network Optix, and others, are not as automated. They let you adjust gamma, which can make a significant difference but also likely needs to be adjusted when light in the scene changes to avoid under/overexposure or contrast issues.

However, in a lot of cases we've seen limited benefit to enhancement like this, and nothing like what they show in their marketing video(s). It's more the ability to eke out some details which you couldn't see before, not a difference between identification or not. These improvements also typically add latency, as well, as the stream has to be processed before it's finally sent to the client.

We have a test related to this: Video Enhancement Startup (Lentix) Partners With Milestone

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Ethan Ace
Mar 01, 2017

For reference, here's one of their marketing videos. There are other scenes on their site.

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Michael Gonzalez
Mar 28, 2017
Confidential

I have a couple of these units, one for testing in our lab, and the other was deployed out to an electric substation with analog cameras and very little lighting. I was really surprised to see what a difference it made out at the substation. I think this is a great product, but for very specific use cases. Cost per channel is a bit high though, since it only has 4 channels. There is an IP version out now, but I haven't had a chance to test it yet.

(3)
JH
John Honovich
Mar 29, 2017
IPVM

Michael, thanks for the feedback!

the other was deployed out to an electric substation with analog cameras and very little lighting. I was really surprised to see what a difference it made out at the substation

How good / new are those analog cameras? Mainly I wonder because current cameras have gotten really good at low light so I wonder how much that has to do with older / power low light cameras?

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Michael Gonzalez
Mar 29, 2017
Confidential

Hi John, great question. The cameras at that site were newer, analog cameras. They are SPECO Intensifier bullet cameras out there, so they had decent low light capabilities before adding the Prohawk to them. They look MUCH better at night now.  

The biggest difference can be seen during the day though. We weren't able to read license plates of vehicles parked in the driveway before, but now that are clearly identifiable.

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