AcuPick is Dahua's AI video search engine. Instead of scrubbing through hours of recordings, you pick a person or vehicle once and the recorder finds every other clip of them across your cameras. Dahua's slogan for it is "Just One Pick". AcuPick 2.0, launched by Dahua in June 2024, adds more ways to start a search, more types of target and better ways to handle the results.
This guide explains what AcuPick does, how it works, what changed in version 2.0 and which Dahua recorders and cameras we stock that support it.
The full AcuPick 2.0 webinar from Dahua Technology's own YouTube channel, for a detailed walk-through.
What is Dahua AcuPick?
AcuPick is a search feature built into selected Dahua NVRs (network video recorders) and AI cameras. When a supported camera sees a person or vehicle, it records the target's appearance details, such as clothing colour and style, body shape and vehicle type, and sends that data to the NVR. When you search, the NVR compares your chosen target against everything it has stored and shows you the matching clips.
The result: you can answer "where else did this person go?" or "when did this van arrive?" in a few clicks, without knowing the exact time or camera.
How AcuPick works, step by step
Spot the target. Watch live view or playback on the NVR, or start from a pre-search (see below).
Pick it. Click the person or vehicle's thumbnail. AcuPick locks on to that target.
Let the NVR search. The recorder matches the target's appearance against footage from all your supported cameras.
Review the results. Matching clips appear as thumbnails. Sort them by time or by how closely they match, hide the ones that aren't relevant, bookmark the ones that are, and export the clips you need.
Follow the route. On systems set up with a map, AcuPick 2.0 can show the target's path across your site.
What's new in AcuPick 2.0
Pre-search by intrusion or tripwire
Draw an intrusion zone of any shape, or a tripwire line, on the preview or playback screen. AcuPick lists every target that entered the zone or crossed the line as thumbnails, and you click one to start the full search. This is useful when you know where something happened but not who was involved, such as finding who took a parcel from a doorstep.
IVS self-learning to cut false alarms
False alarms can be added to an IVS false-alarm database, so the system learns to ignore the same false trigger in that scene in future.
Pre-search by attributes
If you don't know when or where to look, start from what the person looked like instead, for example a red top and dark trousers, and AcuPick finds matching people. Dahua says this pre-search is supported by WizMind S Series and WizMind X Series cameras.
Image search
AcuPick 2.0 adds image search as another way to start a search before picking your target.
More search targets: faces and animals
As well as people and vehicles, AcuPick 2.0 can search for human faces and, new in this version, animals. Dahua suggests pet owners can use it to see where a pet has been during the day.
Works alongside face recognition
On supported WizMind NVRs, AcuPick can run at the same time as face recognition, so a person flagged for suspicious behaviour can raise an alert if they come back.
"AI by NVR" for more cameras
Dahua says AcuPick 2.0 supports AI by NVR, meaning a supported recorder can run AcuPick on footage from Dahua general cameras and third-party cameras, not only Dahua AI cameras. How many channels the NVR can do this for depends on the model, so check the NVR's datasheet. Dahua also lets AcuPick be linked to third-party platforms through its open CGI/SDK.
Where AcuPick helps
Lost or taken property: draw a zone around where the item was and see everyone who came near it.
A person of interest on a large site: start from what they were wearing, then follow them from camera to camera.
Vehicles: find every clip of a particular car or van arriving and leaving.
Homes and pets: check deliveries at the door, or see where the dog went while you were out.
Which Dahua NVRs support AcuPick?
AcuPick runs on the NVR, so the recorder is the most important choice. Dahua lists the NVR5-EI, NVR5-EI2, NVR5-XI and NVR6-XI families. Entry-level NVR2 and NVR4 recorders do not offer AcuPick. These AcuPick recorders are on our website:
For the full feature set, both the camera and the NVR need to support AcuPick. Dahua lists WizMind S and X Series cameras, SD4E, SD5A and SD6C PTZ cameras, and the WizSense TiOC PRO range. These AcuPick TiOC PRO cameras are on our website:
Yes. AcuPick is built into supported Dahua NVRs and cameras. There is no separate licence or subscription to pay.
Does AcuPick work with non-Dahua cameras?
On recorders that support Dahua's "AI by NVR", AcuPick can work with footage from Dahua general cameras and third-party cameras. The number of channels this works on depends on the NVR model, and some features, such as attribute pre-search, need a supported Dahua AI camera.
Does my NVR4 recorder support AcuPick?
No. AcuPick is offered on Dahua's NVR5 and NVR6 recorders (EI, EI2 and XI models), not on NVR2 or NVR4 models.
What's the difference between AcuPick and Quick Pick?
Quick Pick is the simpler people-and-vehicle search on WizSense recorders. AcuPick goes further: it matches a chosen target by appearance across all your supported cameras, and version 2.0 adds pre-search by zone, tripwire, attributes and image, plus face and animal search.
Can I use AcuPick on my phone?
AcuPick searches are run on the NVR's own screen. The DMSS app and SmartPSS Lite let you watch live and recorded video remotely: see our guides to setting up DMSS and SmartPSS Lite.
Need help choosing an AcuPick system? Zenith Security Co has supplied trade and the public since 2012, from our Wolverhampton showroom, trade counter and warehouse, delivering to England, Scotland and Wales. Call us on 01902 902251.
Feature details are taken from Dahua's published AcuPick 2.0 information. Availability can depend on model and firmware version.
