Glossary
Video surveillance and AI video analytics glossary
About this glossary
This glossary defines the terms buyers meet when evaluating CCTV, video management and AI video analytics: VMS, VSaaS, NVR and DVR, ONVIF, RTSP, edge AI, ANPR, camera tampering, PPE detection, camera health monitoring and AMC. Each entry starts with a neutral definition, then explains how OrionAlerts approaches it.
12 terms
Terms A–Z
Each entry opens with a neutral definition, followed by how OrionAlerts handles it and short answers to common questions.
AMC (annual maintenance contract)
A yearly service agreement under which a vendor maintains and repairs equipment, such as CCTV cameras and recorders, to agreed terms.
Read moreANPR (automatic number plate recognition)
Video analytics that read vehicle number plates from camera images and turn them into searchable text for access control and logging.
Read moreCamera health monitoring
Continuous checks that cameras, recorders, storage and network links are online, streaming and recording, with alerts when they are not.
Read moreCamera tampering detection
Analytics that detect when a camera is blocked, covered, moved, defocused or otherwise stops showing its intended scene.
Read moreEdge AI video analytics
AI video analytics that run close to the cameras, in the camera or on an on-site server, instead of in a remote cloud.
Read moreNVR vs DVR vs VMS
A DVR records analog cameras, an NVR records IP cameras, and a VMS is software that manages cameras and recorders across sites.
Read moreONVIF
An open industry standard that lets IP cameras, recorders and video software from different manufacturers discover and work with each other.
Read morePPE detection
AI video analytics that check whether people in a zone are wearing required protective equipment such as helmets or safety vests.
Read moreRTSP (Real Time Streaming Protocol)
A network protocol used to set up and control live video streams from IP cameras and recorders.
Read moreVideo analytics
Software that analyzes video automatically to detect people, vehicles, objects and events, and raises alerts without constant human watching.
Read moreVideo management system (VMS)
Software that connects cameras and recorders so operators can view live video, record, play back and export footage from one place.
Read moreVideo surveillance as a service (VSaaS)
A cloud delivery model where recording, viewing and management of surveillance video are provided as a hosted subscription service.
Read more
Keep exploring
See these terms applied in practice: the AI detections OrionAlerts runs, side-by-side comparisons of deployment approaches, and the platform they run on.
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