Audience Analytics & Face Detection

This article details the two methods available for collecting audience measurement data on a Revel Digital player: the integrated face detection built into the Revel Digital player for Android, and the OpenVINO Audience Analytics Service — a Dockerized measurement service that runs on any modern Linux device and streams data into the Revel Digital platform.

Both methods use a camera to detect viewer age, gender, and dwell time, count impressions, and feed the same downstream tools (Smart Scheduling, AdHawk reporting, custom template scripts). All data is anonymous and cannot be used to identify or track individuals. No face images are stored or transmitted; only aggregate demographic metadata leaves the device.

Audience data can be used in several ways, including:

• Real-time tuning of your playlists based on current audience makeup using Smart Scheduling
• Analyzing your audience using our integrated AdHawk reporting tools
• Custom template actions via script based on real-time audience data

Choosing a collection method

Both methods produce equivalent data and feed the same reporting pipeline. Pick based on your hardware and accuracy requirements.

Method 1: Built-in Player Face Detection (Android)

The Revel Digital player app for Android contains all the necessary functionality to enable audience measurement. A camera is required and may already be integrated into your hardware. Most any USB camera should work fine but must be compatible with the Android OS.

Enable Audience Analytics in your player settings

Audience Analytics must be enabled on your player hardware. With the app running, open settings by holding the Shift key then press F12. Select the Camera Mode option, then select Audience Analytics.

Select which camera to use if more than one camera is attached to the device

Restart the player app and you will now be collecting audience data.

Method 2: OpenVINO Audience Analytics Service

The OpenVINO Audience Analytics Service is a self-contained Docker container that reads from a USB or RTSP camera, runs face detection, age, gender, emotion, and re-identification models locally, and streams visitor events in real time into the Revel Digital Audience Analytics Hub — the same hub the AdHawk dashboard reads from.

Because it runs as a sidecar service, it works alongside any Revel Digital player (Android, Windows, BrightSign, Linux). The signage player itself does not need to do any vision work; the service publishes events tagged with a device ID and the AdHawk dashboard picks them up automatically.

Real-time data, distributed to any number of players

Visitor enter and exit events are pushed out the moment they are detected — typically within a fraction of a second — making the data immediately actionable for content-tuning and triggering. Use cases include:

• Smart Scheduling — switch playlists or media sources based on the current audience makeup (age range, gender, dwell time)
• Template scripts — react to live demographic and engagement data, such as swapping creative when a viewer is detected, adjusting calls-to-action based on dwell time, or triggering interactive elements when someone smiles
• Custom gadgets — consume the live event stream for any bespoke real-time behavior

A single OpenVINO service can feed any number of players simultaneously. Each OpenVINO service has its own device ID; configure any player with that ID and it instantly joins the live feed. This makes it easy to deploy one camera in a venue and have a video wall, an endcap kiosk, and a menu board all reacting to the same audience data — or to share a single measurement source across an entire store, lobby, or showroom.

Requirements

• A dedicated compatible Linux host — Revel Digital can help you select hardware
• A USB or IP/RTSP camera
• An AdHawk-enabled (Pro+ or Enterprise+) device in your Revel Digital account if you plan to view the data in AdHawk reporting

Getting started

To deploy the OpenVINO Audience Analytics Service on your hardware, contact Revel Digital. Our team will help you select compatible hardware, walk you through installation, and connect the service to your Revel Digital account so the data flows into AdHawk reporting and your player’s Smart Scheduling and template scripts.

Using your audience data

Regardless of which collection method you chose, the data flows into the same set of Revel Digital tools.

(Optional) — Use Smart Scheduling to trigger content

The easiest method of dynamically tuning your playlist content is using Smart Scheduling to add conditions to your playlist sources. To add a Smart Schedule condition, edit your playlist then add or select any media source. Then click the Schedule tab and select from any of the When conditions. You will see a number of conditions specifically targeting the audience measurement data.

(Optional) — Analyze your audience with AdHawk reporting tools

AdHawk is our collection of real-world sensor technologies integrated into the Revel Digital platform, including beacons, motion detectors, WiFi probes, and cameras. The data collected by these sensors is available on the AdHawk tab in your Revel Digital account.

Devices in your account will need to be switched to an AdHawk-enabled service level in order to see live data. Edit the device you wish to collect data with, then click the Service Level button on the right-hand side of the page. Choose one of the Plus service levels to activate AdHawk.

Once enabled, your device will be available on the AdHawk tab for reporting. Audience measurement will provide data on age, gender, dwell time, and the number of impressions.

For more information or help with configuration please contact us or live chat with our support team.