Databases Reference
In-Depth Information
The need
A U.S. Department of Energy National Lab needed a solution to detect, classify, locate, and track
potential threats to secure its perimeters and border areas.
The solution
The solution is for IBM business partner, TerraEchos, to implement an advanced security and covert
surveillance system based on the TerraEchos Adelos
®
S4 System with IBM InfoSphere
®
Streams and
an IBM System x
®
3650 server.
The benefit
The benefit is the system reduces time to process 275 Mb of data from hours to just one-fourteenth
of a second, and captures and analyzes huge volumes of data in real time, providing unprecedented
insight to detect, classify, locate, track, and deter potential threats.
A leading provider of covert intelligence and surveillance sensor systems, TerraEchos, Inc. pro-
vides organizations with advanced security solutions for critical infrastructures and extended bor-
ders. One TerraEchos client is a science-based, applied engineering national laboratory dedicated
to supporting the mission of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in nuclear and energy research,
science, and national defense. Securing the scientific intelligence, technology, and resources related
to these initiatives is vital. To this end, this national lab recognized the need for a technology solution
that would detect, classify, locate, and track potential threats—above and below ground—to secure its
perimeters and border areas. This solution would provide lab personnel and security staff with more
situational awareness and enable a faster and more intelligent response to any threat, detecting and
analyzing a wide range of sounds—even from miles away.
The requirements of the ideal solution were considerable. The solution would have to continu-
ously consume and analyze massive amounts of digital acoustic data from biological, mechani-
cal, and environmental objects in motion. In addition, because lab personnel lacked time to
record the data and listen to it later, the solution had to gather and analyze information simul-
taneously. The analysis could extract meaningful intelligence, as well as verify and validate the
data, such as distinguishing between the sounds of a trespasser versus a grazing animal. To put
the sophistication of the needed technology into perspective, the data consumption and analytical
requirements would be akin to listening to 1,000 MP3 songs simultaneously and successfully dis-
cerning the word “zero” from every song—within a fraction of a second. The solution would also
serve as the lab's central nervous system and would have to meet strict technical requirements,
including:
●
Interoperability, enabling lab personnel to collect and analyze an array of data from video,
acoustic, and other types of sensors to create a holistic view of a situation.
●
Scalability to support new requirements as the lab's fiber-optic arrays, surveillance areas, and
security perimeters change.
●
Extensibility, serving as a framework to it into the lab's existing IT architecture and integrating
with signal processors and mobile and mapping applications.
