SUNNYVALE, Calif., June 7, 2006 Takeo Kanade, a world-renowned researcher and professor of computer science and robotics at Carnegie Mellon University, has joined the Board of Advisors of Vidient Systems, Inc., the intelligent video surveillance software company announced today.
With a convergence of IT and physical security occurring in the security industry today, Dr. Kanade's advanced research into areas including computer vision, visual and multi-media technology, and robotics provides critical insights as Vidient explores this new area.
"With its innovative approaches to proactive response management and such technologies as pattern recognition, Vidient has been on the leading edge of security surveillance, said Dr. Kanade. "My research interests parallel many of the directions that the Vidient team is taking, and I am pleased to contribute to the company's efforts as it works to marry IT and physical security technologies."
As the U.A. and Helen Whitaker university professor of computer science and robotics at Carnegie Mellon, Dr. Kanade works in multiple areas of robotics: computer vision, virtual reality, medical robotics, unmanned air vehicles and sensors. He has written more than 250 technical papers and reports in these areas, and holds more than 15 patents. He has been the principal investigator of more than a dozen major vision and robotics projects at Carnegie Mellon, including DARPA VSAM (Video Surveillance and Monitoring) Project which is generally considered as the origin of intelligent video-based surveillance.
Dr. Kanade is a member of National Academy of Engineering, and a Fellow of the IEEE, the ACM, and the American Association of Artificial Intelligence.
"IT is playing an increasingly important role in the traditional physical security and video surveillance industry," said Brooks McChesney, president and CEO of Vidient Systems, Inc. "As this convergence accelerates, IT and security professionals are combining efforts to provide a new level of actionable intelligence.
Takeo Kanade's acclaimed research in areas including visual media technology and human-computer interaction is precisely the type of innovative thinking that lead to groundbreaking solutions to security challenges. I am very proud to welcome Takeo as an advisor to our company."
Dr. Kanade joins a distinguished group of advisors at Vidient that includes Admiral Steve Abbot, President & CEO, Navy Marine Corps Relief Society and former Acting Homeland Security Advisor to the President; Richard A Clarke, Chairman of Good Harbor and a recognized international authority on security, having served under three different Presidents in senior White House security positions; and Admiral David Stone, former Assistant Security of Homeland Security, Transportation Safety Administration (TSA).
Vidient Systems, Inc. designs, develops and deploys behavior recognition software systems that enable video surveillance cameras to monitor for and detect behaviors that threaten safety and security, alerting guards in real-time and intelligently managing event response. It is used today to monitor secure locations at major transportation facilities, corporations and public institutions. The Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company was founded in 2003 and is funded by leading global venture investors Blueprint Ventures, Trident Capital and Hotung Venture Capital. For more information visit www.vidient.com.
