ONVIF chairman Jonas Andersson said that following the introduction of ONVIF profiles for access control equipment, “the natural next step will be to include intruder detection systems”. This is likely to happen within the next four years, he suggested.
Andersson made the comments at what is now established as an annual event, the ONVIF panel discussion and networking breakfast at IFSEC International.
He was joined on the panel by Ross Dormer of consultancy Chordell Solutions, and Gary Wong, senior analyst at IMS Research. The panel was chaired by Mark Rowe, editor of Professional Security magazine.
Andersson updated attendees on ONVIF’s current position, with more than 380 members and in excess of 1800 conformant products. The organisation has also formed a Physical Access Control Systems work group, and has recently welcomed access giant Assa Abloy into its membership ranks.
The other major point of update was the introduction of ‘Profiles’ – essentially simple indicators to show which products are interoperable with each other, based on their functionality.
He also mentioned the Global Standardization Index, where ONVIF is collaborating with established standards bodies to develop formal standards, required in some countries and circumstances.
The panel discussion touched on the perception of standards. Dorman suggested that end users are really driving demand for open standards, while Wong said there had been a ‘myth that ONVIF would be a panacea’ – but that manufacturers are not solely reliant on ONVIF for product functionality, which they can expand upon themselves.
Andersson said there was a possibility that ONVIF would be working with formal testing houses for the third party certification of ONVIF-conformant products.
Dormer said: “The end user is becoming much more savvy and aware of the proprietary systems which have been inflicted on them over the years and have prevented them from getting value for money – and this is forcing installers to become more educated with regard to ONVIF.”
