Bristol ‘intelligent video’ pioneer One Big Circle is helping to develop a safety system to help prevent anti-social behaviour or emergencies on railway station platforms.
Working in partnership with the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC), fast-growing One Big Circle (OBC) has been awarded funding for the initiative – named Project DETER – through the Network Rail Small Business Research Initiative competition. 
The competition was launched to improve safety and reduce costly delays created by station incidents such as unusual, unsafe or dangerous behaviour.
The OBC-MTC consortium secured a place in phase one of the competition to build and test a system on pre-recorded video data from Network Rail stations.
It has now reached the final round as one of two winners after competing against seven other organisations from across the UK.
The OBC-MTC system uses advanced machine learning to identify unusual behaviour and suspicious objects. Once detected, the system will automatically raise alerts for station staff and enable timely and appropriate responses to ensure passenger and staff safety.
Project DETER (crowD bEhaviour and object dEtection for Railway station security) will now be tested at stations using OBC’s data capture and video analysis technology – AIVR – in the development of a ‘behaviour engine’ alongside the MTC’s research and development capability and cutting-edge IT infrastructure.
The MTC’s members include global manufacturing companies from multiple sectors while research partners include the University of Birmingham, University of Nottingham and Loughborough University. 
The project team will be given access to stations, live CCTV data feeds and Network Rail’s telecoms resource, enable it to create real-time, data-driven safety alerts for unusual movements, dangerous incidents and crowd flow and density.
The OBC and MTC team brings a blend of research and practical applications in a rail and real world environment. The team combines a breadth of knowledge in video analysis and applied research expertise on AI methods with a deep understanding of web-based architecture.
OBC co-founder Emily Kent, pictured, said: “We are excited to work closely with the MTC on this project to improve safety and security for passengers and staff on railway platforms, and we are making significant advances despite the challenges of Covid-19.
“As a UK SME, combining our advanced technology with the industry reach and research capacity of the MTC has huge benefits.
“This will ensure we help meet the challenges faced by the rail industry, advance our growth and ultimately create more jobs and opportunities in the Bristol area.”
MTC technical liaison Paulino Rocher added: “We’re looking forward to working on the next phase of this project with One Big Circle to drive safety at train stations of all sizes.
“The MTC has a skilled team of data scientists that, in combination with OBC’s architecture and infrastructure design and software implementation capability, can really deliver this project.”
Specialising in intelligent video and integration, OBC was founded in 2017 and is based in Bristol’s Engine Shed innovation hub.
It is at the forefront of video capture and accessibility while also working collaboratively to enhance legacy systems. OBC has developed the AIVR system – Automated Intelligent Video Review – to enable industrial organisations to capture video of the environments they need to intelligently monitor, increasing safety and improving performance.
The MTC, based near Coventry, aims to provide a competitive environment to bridge the gap between university-based research and the development of innovative manufacturing solutions, in line with the government’s manufacturing strategy. The MTC is part of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, supported by Innovate UK.
