A question and answer session with Per Björkdahl.
by ONVIF
Weeks ago, ONVIF unveiled the implementation of open source development to create its network interface specifications for physical security technology. The move will streamline administrative and collaborative processes while leveraging the collective ingenuity of the global developer community.
In an interview with Per Björkdahl, Chairman of the ONVIF Steering Committee, we will know all the details of this novelty.
1. What is open source and what exactly does this mean for ONVIF?
Per Björkdahl: In its basic definition, open source refers to something that is publicly accessible and can be shared and modified to suit specific applications or use cases. The ONVIF network interface specifications, which are the main documents that define the language and methods by which devices and clients can communicate with each other, are open standards that have always been publicly available.
Historically, these specifications were developed and maintained within the ONVIF membership environment. By adopting an open source methodology, companies outside of ONVIF and potential developers from a variety of industries we haven't reached before, will have the ability to provide information about our specifications as part of the open source development process.
This also means the opportunity to significantly optimize administrative and collaboration processes to create our network interface specifications. Moving the work of network specifications to GitHub, an online open source development platform, will automate much of the process-oriented work needed to produce technical specifications. Both the open source and automation offered by GitHub will undoubtedly spur greater interoperability and feature innovation and allow us to provide new specifications more quickly to meet the demands of today's and tomorrow's market.
2. Will this have any impact on ONVIF's compliance process or ONVIF's membership?
Per Björkdahl: It is important to note that the addition of open source development will have no impact on the ONVIF product compliance process, ONVIF membership, or anything to do with the development of the testing tools used to determine the product's compliance with ONVIF profiles. The addition of open source development affects only part of the work we do at ONVIF: the development of network interface specifications for IP-based physical security products.
While anyone will be able to contribute to the development of the ONVIF network interface specification using GitHub, only full onvif members and contributors will continue to have early access and the ability to provide guidance on the new future profiles introduced by ONVIF. A company still needs to maintain ONVIF membership at the Full, Contributor or User level to declare ONVIF compliant products, use ONVIF compliance tools, and use the ONVIF logo and ONVIF profile logos.
3. How will this new initiative affect the way system integrators and end users use ONVIF?
Per Björkdahl: From a logistics standpoint, nothing will change in the way system integrators and end users use ONVIF-compliant products to assemble the best solutions for their customers or organizations. We anticipate that the streamlined specification engineering process through GitHub will allow us to bring new developments to market more quickly and be able to more easily incorporate external contributions from software engineers and developers from industries, including IoT, Artificial Intelligence, cloud services. The end result will be greater flexibility in the types of solutions that are interoperable for a wider range of solutions from which both system integrators and end users can benefit.
4. ONVIF is known for its specific profiles for video streaming, access control and more. How does this impact the development of future profiles?
Per Björkdahl: This step to open source development is limited to engineering the specifications of the ONVIF network interface, so profiles are not included in this strategy, profile development will remain under the scope of ONVIF member companies. Our six existing profiles that address video streaming, storage, and retrieval, quick installation, and access control settings will not be affected, as will our new version candidates for Profile D for access control peripherals and Profile M for metadata. However, since profiles are groupings of functionality that originate from ONVIF's core network interface specifications, we hope that specification contributions made through open source will help support the development of future profiles.
5. What else can the industry expect to see as a result of this initiative?
Per Björkdahl: Open source development has proven to be successful and makes contributions to specifications easier and more efficient. The benefits have been reaped by countless organizations that have achieved greater collaboration, additional transparency, and new perspectives that have allowed their organizations to thrive and expand. With a strong foundation in the security industry, ONVIF's interoperability specifications have the ability to provide and capitalize on opportunities in other technology sectors, providing a bridge between safety technology and building automation systems or other ancillary systems that rely on data standardization for interoperability.
