A capacity limit is easy to put on a sign and hard to keep to. With one door and a clicker it works until the person on the door takes a break. With a front door, a side door and a fire exit, nobody really knows how many are inside.
Agent DVR counts every entrance and exit with ordinary cameras and keeps one running total: each person in adds one, each person out takes one away, and it goes back to zero at a time you choose. Put the count on a screen at the door, be told as you near the limit, and ask an AI assistant such as Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini how full you were and when.
Part of the Standard plan
Analytics, with its occupancy counters, door screen and alerts, comes with the Standard and Professional plans, from $14.95 a month: one flat price however many entrances you count, and remote access, the iOS and Android apps, AI assistants from anywhere and business use are included. The counting itself, and your video, stay on your own computer.
Plans from $14.95/month How Analytics worksOne count for every door
An occupancy counter adds together the counting lines on every entrance and exit, on any number of cameras. Choose which way is in for each line, which kinds of object to count, and when the count goes back to zero. It suits:
A screen at the door
Open the occupancy report full screen on a tablet or a TV at the entrance. It shows the count against the capacity on a gauge, with your own message in green while there is room and in red when you are full. Use it as:
Told before you are full
An alert can go off at any number you choose, once it has held for a few seconds so one person lingering in the doorway does not set it off: by notification, by email or as a call to your own system. A counter can also call a web address itself, to switch a light or a barrier. For example:
How full you were
Occupancy history charts the count through the day - the most inside at once and the average - against the capacity. Have the figures emailed each morning, or ask an assistant. Look back at:
What it looks like
The most in the main hall at once was 49 of your 50, at 21:40. You were at 45 or more from about 21:05 to 22:45, and the evening built up steadily:
- 08:00 - 17:00 - quiet, 20 at most.
- 17:00 - 21:00 - filling up, 40 by 20:30.
- 21:00 - 22:45 - the busy spell, close to the limit.
- 22:45 - 24:00 - easing off, 30 by midnight.
Want me to warn you at 45 next time?
Things to ask
- How many people are inside right now?
- How full did we get on Saturday night?
- When were we over 40 this week?
- How many came in through the side door today?
- There are 12 people inside - set the count to 12.
Rules to set up by asking
- Tell me when the hall has had 45 or more inside for half a minute.
- Keep a count of how many are in the gym across both doors. The limit is 60 and it should reset at 5am.
- Tell me if anyone is still in the hall after 11pm.
- Tell me when the car park is full.
Rules run on your own server with no assistant connected. They need Agent DVR 8.0.7 or later, and questions about what is in the picture need an AI provider set up in Server Settings - AI Settings. More rule examples
Why build it this way
Every door, one number
Front doors, side doors and fire exits on different cameras all feed the same count, so it stays right however people come and go.
No clicker, no sensors
Ordinary cameras do the counting, and keep at it through the busiest hour when nobody on the door has a hand free.
The door looks after itself
The screen at the entrance turns red by itself when you are full, and green again when someone leaves.
Kept on your own computer
The counts and the video stay on your own computer, and counting carries on if the internet connection drops.
What you need
A camera
Almost any IP, ONVIF, RTSP or USB camera works, including a spare webcam. You do not need a special bird, pet or doorbell camera. Look yours up in the camera database.
Agent DVR on a computer
Install it on Windows, macOS, Linux, Docker or a Raspberry Pi. It records to your own disk and is free for private use on your own network. Download.
A Standard plan
Analytics is part of the Standard and Professional plans, from $14.95 a month, with remote access, the mobile apps and AI assistants from anywhere. It is not in the Basic plan or the free version. See plans.
Set it up
Put a camera over each door
Cover every way in and out, each camera looking down on its doorway, and switch on Analytics for them. See Setting Up a Camera for Counting.
Make a counter
Draw a counting line across each door, then add an occupancy counter with all the lines, the capacity and a reset time. See Occupancy Counting and Capacity Limits.
Put it on the door
Open its Occupancy report full screen on a screen at the entrance, and add an alert for when you are nearly full. See Go / Wait Occupancy Display.
Frequently asked questions
Can it add several entrances and exits into one total?
Yes. An occupancy counter takes any number of counting lines from any number of cameras. Each line has its own direction for coming in, and crossings the other way count as going out, so the total stays right whichever doors people use. See Occupancy Counters in the user guide.
Can I show the count on a screen at the door?
Yes. Add an Occupancy report to a dashboard, open it on a tablet, a TV or a spare monitor and press its full screen button. It shows the count, the capacity and your own message, filling the screen in green while there is room and in red when you are full. See Go / Wait Occupancy Display.
What if the count goes wrong?
Set a reset time when the place is empty, such as 05:00 for a venue that closes at 3am, and the count starts from zero each day. In between you can set the count by hand, or ask an assistant to.
Does it work for car parks?
Yes. Count vehicles on the entry and exit lanes into one counter, with the number of spaces as its capacity, and the screen shows the spaces left. To see which bays are taken, paint a zone on each. See Parking Bay Occupancy.
What does it cost?
Analytics, with occupancy counters, the door screen and alerts, is part of the Standard and Professional plans, from $14.95 a month: one flat price however many cameras and entrances you count. It is not in the Basic plan or the free version. Compare plans.
More things your cameras can do
Security analytics
Loitering, left bags, covered cameras and line crossing on any camera, with PTZ tracking, speed and sound alerts, and tools to pull the evidence together afterwards.
See how it works
Home automation
Use your cameras as smart home sensors: a known face, a number plate or a sound triggers Home Assistant, with Alexa voice control, MQTT and a full API.
See how it works
Package delivery alerts
Find out when a package is delivered, who came to the door while you were out, and whether the package is still on the step.
See how it works
AI pet camera
Ask what the dog did while you were out, look in live from your phone, and get told when the cat is on the kitchen counter.
See how it works
AI bird feeder camera
Point any camera at the feeder and ask which birds visited, when the feeder is busiest and whether the squirrel is back.
See how it works
Checking in on a relative
See that Mum or Dad is up and about, find out whether the carer came, and get told when something needs a look, without phoning every hour.
See how it works
Barn and foaling camera
Watch the foaling box, calving pen or chicken coop from your phone, ask what happened overnight, and get an alert when something needs a look.
See how it works
Machine monitoring
Get told when an alarm sounds, a warning light comes on, or a machine that should be running goes quiet or still, and ask what happened on the night shift.
See how it works
Ghost hunting cameras
Record every camera and microphone on an investigation, get flagged when it hears whispering, footsteps or a knock, and let an AI assistant find the moments worth a second look.
See how it works
Retail footfall
Count shoppers in and out, see where they stop and how long they queue, and set your takings against the footfall for a conversion rate.
See how it works