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How Many Security Cameras Do I Need? Site Estimator

Customers ask "how many cameras for 5 hectares?" and the honest answer is: it depends on what you are protecting. This tool splits a site into three parts — entrances, fence line, open yard — sizes each with the useful range you choose, and suggests where fixed and where PTZ models belong.

Defaults are reference assumptions, not the specification of a particular model. Drag the sliders or type values to match your situation.

Gates / vehicle entrances2Asset spots needing their own view (store, barn, machinery)1Fence length200 mShare of fence to watch50 %usually only the road / neighbour sideOpen yard to cover2,000 m²Useful range per camera15 massumption: 15 m to identify a person at nightOverlap between cameras20 %Open-yard fill factor60 %trees, vehicles, sheds block the view

Suggested total

Fixed dual-lens (D series)

Triple-lens PTZ (S series)

Entrances: 2 · assets: 1 · fence: 9 (≈ 12 m per camera)

Open yard: each PTZ covers ≈ 424 m² after obstructions.

A starting point for the site survey; terrain and sun direction decide final positions.

How it works

1
Entrances: one fixed dual-lens camera per gate or vehicle access — where you need faces and plates, not panning.
2
Fence line: fixed cameras along the fence, each covering one useful-range segment (default 15 m — the distance a person is still identifiable at night on IR) minus overlap.
3
Open yard: triple-lens PTZ cameras cover a circle of the useful range; area ÷ (circle area × 60% for obstructions) = PTZ count.
4
The result is a starting point for a site survey, not a replacement for one: terrain, trees and sun direction decide the final positions.

Frequently asked questions

Where does the 15 m useful range come from?

A camera can "see" much further, but for a figure to be recognisable as a person (not a shadow) at night on IR, with AI human detection working reliably, 10–15 m is realistic for a wide-angle lens. A floodlight or a PTZ zoom extends it — adjust the number to the series you pick.

What about farms of tens of hectares?

Nobody blankets 30 hectares with cameras, and nobody needs to. Protect the access points, where machinery and livestock are kept, and the supply store — enter only those parts. Solar 4G cameras let you place a unit at each remote spot without running cable.

Fixed or PTZ?

Fixed wherever you already know an intruder has to pass (gates, paths, store doors) — cheaper, more durable, lighter on the battery. PTZ for open areas where one unit has to cover and follow. Most projects use both.

Matching camera lines

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Dual-lens vs triple-lens vs single-lens

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