Creating a worldwide community security structure using individually maintained home computers
The basic idea of the project is that every individual watches in and around his/her house with the use of cheap cameras as thier eyes, PC and Internet as their communication means by their own expense. It is meant to be affordable and keep people as safe as possible.
Basics:
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user. These computers typically cost much less than business, scientific or engineering-oriented computers of the time, and were generally less powerful in terms of memory and expandability. However, a home computer often had better graphics and sound than contemporary business computers and, by far, their most common use was playing video games. [1]
This article describes a project for creating a community security structure spread worldwide that uses individually maintained home computers connected to the Internet. The basic concept of the project is that every individual person watches in and around his or her house using cheap cameras as his or her eyes, personal computer as his or her brain, and Internet as his or her communication means by his or her own expense. The purpose of the project is to re-create, in the present day, a mutual watch system, which widely existed in old Japanese communities, as well as in other countries in the world, but in a much more powerful and flexible form with the aid of the information technology. In the first stage of the project, a preliminary system with the minimum necessary functions for realizing the concept has been developed, which consisted of free software and operation manuals. [2]
Image source: www.aquavistaglass.com.au
PC-based monitoring system for efficient use of small-scale day care centers for elderly people, whose feature is that the users live in the walking distance to it, has been developed. The developed System is composed of PCs with viewer software, network cameras, and a FTP server. In the system, images taken at the users’ house are transported to FTP server periodically, the software installed in PCs at day care centers are taken the related images from FTP servers periodically. The images are checked continuously by the staffs of the canter. Once something wrong occurs, then the staff goes to the user’s house immediately and conducts the appropriate operations. The pre-registered persons, such as relatives of the users, can view the images through the Internet. If they find something wrong, then they can immediately notice that to the staff of the day care center. In this paper, the features of the developed monitoring system and an experiment conducted in a day care center, Koguma-kan, are described. [3]
A novel method of security camera operation is proposed. In the method, security cameras, which encrypt the taken images and store them into the memory card inside, are used. Only when crimes occur, the memory cards are taken out from the cameras and the images are decrypted with the key and viewed by the city government and/or the police. When no crimes occur, images are overwritten by the new ones after a week automatically without being viewed by anyone. By using the stand-alone cameras without wiring to the control center, the installation cost and the operation cost are much lower than CCTV cameras. By using image encryption, the privacy of the tourists is protected. Using this system, high density installation of the security cameras with very low cost can be realized in encryption with image encryption privacy protection function. [4]
Social experiment is explained about introduction of the security camera system with privacy protection into residential area in this paper. In July 2008, this experiment by using the security camera system with privacy protection had been started into a residential area: Tsunatori-cho, Isesaki. In this experiment, the security camera system doesn’t monitor only a premise of house but also watches the road which is public space in front of the house. This system is introduced into one of several houses of residential area, there is to keep the life in the whole region. However, monitoring of public space has the risk of privacy violation. So the privacy protection function was added to prevent this risk. Because images are encrypted and saved by this function, nobody watch them without a password for decoding. Consequently, the privacy is protected because only a person owning a password can watch. Detail of social experiment using this system in residential area is explained. [5]
Conclusion:
A community which wants to inhibit crime should have some residents keeping watch around their houses. Unfortunately, in our times, when selfishness, individualism, and busy-life become common, there is a small number of communities like this. This results in not enough eyewitnesses of crimes. That is whu it is important to create a worldwide community security structure using individually maintained home computers.
References:
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_computer
[2] ”Creating a Worldwide Community Security Structure Using Individually Maintained Home Computers: The e-JIKEI Network Project” by: Yusaku Fujii, Noriaki Yoshiura, Naoya Ohta
[3] ”PC-based monitoring system for efficient use of day care centers for elderly people” by: Norihiro Nagaia, Yusaku Fujiia, Hiroshi Uedab, Koichi Marua, Shigeru Kumakurac
[4] ”The Use of Security Cameras with Privacy Protecting Ability” by: Vacharee Prashyanusorna, Paiboon Prashyanusorna, Somkuan Kaviyaa, Yusaku Fujiib, Preecha P. Yupapinc
[5] ”Introduction of security camera system with privacy protection into a residential area” by: Takashi Yokotea, Yusaku Fujiia, Koichi Marua, Noriaki Yoshiurab, Naoya Ohtac, Hiroshi Ueda
