Located about 35 kilometres south of Milan, Pavia's picturesque location on the banks of the Ticino River, its historic centre with its many narrow streets and its important churches and buildings attract many travellers from all over the world every year. The heart of the city beats in Piazza della Vittoria, not far from the cathedral: locals and tourists alike meet for a coffee in the beautiful long square, and in the evenings it is a vibrant place for nightlife and events.

But like so many other cities, Pavia also struggles with the darker side of such a lively square. There have been incidents of vandalism and crime. “Unfortunately, there have been more and more problems with people behaving badly and not following the rules,” explains Pietro Trivi, councillor for security.

Less is more

In the past, the city tried to get a handle on the situation with a large number of conventional single-sensor cameras. But the security managers decided that this method no longer met their requirements and looked for a new solution – they selected Dallmeier's multifocal sensor technology.

Dallmeier Italia, together with its partner Enet Solutions, carried out an on-site demonstration that was immediately convincing. “The image quality over the entire area was simply impressive,” said Luca Ceriani, Sales Manager at Enet Solutions. Meanwhile, the many single-sensor cameras have been replaced by just two Panomera multifocal cameras.

They differ from other cameras by their patented technology: several sensors with different focal lengths are combined in a single system. Whereas with conventional cameras, the image resolution decreases towards the background of the image, the Panomera series, by combining sensors and lenses with different focal lengths, always captures a very large area with the minimum resolution precisely defined in the planning.

High resolution images all day and night

The two Panomera cameras have been installed on two opposite sides of Piazza della Vittoria. In this way, the police in their headquarters, where the video system is in operation, can keep an eye on the situation in the busy square at all times.

Flaviano Crocco, commander of the local police, is pleased: “The two cameras provide high-resolution images at any time of the day or night. In the event of an investigation or the presentation of evidence in court, this guarantees the clear identification of possible perpetrators. In addition, the system is much easier and less complicated to operate than before.”

In practice, the multifocal sensor technology offers many advantages. For the user, for citizens and tourists and for the city as a whole, as Daniele Sisinio, Director Dallmeier Italia, explains: “The police always have an overall view of the entire square and at the same time any number of detailed views can be displayed in high resolution. The detail zooms can be easily opened with a mouse click in the overall image like ‘virtual’ PTZ cameras – both live and in recording. This means that any number of operators can view the footage at the same time. And everything is always recorded at the highest resolution. This means that incidents can be traced and reconstructed for use in court, and perpetrators can be identified.”

Improved economy and aesthetics

In addition to more user-friendly operation and a better overview, the new solution is also more economical: With only two cameras instead of ten, the operating and infrastructure costs are significantly lower.

And there was another aspect that was important to the city of Pavia's security managers: the two Panomera cameras blend in discreetly and disturb the aesthetics of the square much less than the many scattered single-sensor cameras before.

Proven in practice

Meanwhile, according to the company, the Dallmeier video system has proven itself in practice. So well, in fact, that the next expansions are already being planned. The Piazza del Duomo, the square in front of the city's impressive landmark, will also be secured with Panomera cameras in the future.

“It was not only the technology that convinced us, but also the cooperation with Dallmeier and Enet Solutions,” says Pietro Trivi. “We are very happy with our decision, which is why we also decided to expand the video system. With Dallmeier we have found a high quality and future-proof solution.”