Description: Modern deep learning technologies enable ITS systems toa recognize the kind, weight, or license plate as well as the make, model, and color of passing cars
The ability to photographically record video or still photos of license plates and instantly convert the optical data into digital information is known as license plate recognition (LPR).
License Plate Recognition Software is a technology that is frequently used in Europe and is starting to catch on in the Americas for vehicle management operations like ticketless parking (off-street and on-street), tolling, ITS, stolen vehicle detection, smart billing, and many other applications.
License Plate Recognition enables operators to instantly capture and correlate more details around every vehicle passing a control point by adding the license plate’s digital information (along with other data like the vehicle’s speed and direction with the help of a Video Analytics Solution;
- The actual event: the time, location, vehicle’s direction, and speed.
- The car: origin, limitations, or security warnings.
- The driver: Name, license number, and any contact information they may have.
Operators have created some fairly “futuristic” solutions as a result of license plate recognition:
Imagine being automatically invoiced at a toll booth without having to stop or slow down, or parking in a mall without having to stop at entry/exit barriers or cashiers to pay; isn’t that amazing? Imagine a city where every reported or stolen vehicle is “known” to be located at all times.
What Is An LPR Software?
The term LPR (License Plate Recognition); otherwise referred to as ALPR (Automatic License Plate Recognition), and ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition), is related to image processing programs that can identify license plates and convert them into digital data.
How Does LPR Software Work?
Once the license plate image has been acquired by the LPR camera, its firmware employs specialized OCR procedures for license plates to convert them into digital (machine-readable) characters.
However, License Plates are (extremely) dissimilar from one another; the characters aren’t even remotely similar!
Any LPR system’s operation is made up of three key components.
- Image and vehicle detection
Any LPR system’s front end has a camera that takes pictures of the license plates. The camera is crucial since it must take pictures that are ideal for LPR applications. This is essential to the system’s overall effectiveness. The use of cameras made specifically for LPR yields the greatest results.
A large selection of these specialized LPR cameras is available from Adaptive Recognition.
- LPR and Preselection of Image
A pre-selected collection of collected photos is used by LPR systems to interpret the plate text and determine the kind of plate.
Automated recognition entails a number of phases, including image standardization and augmentation, vehicle detection, and plate detection. The OCR (Optical Character Recognition) algorithm completes the last step by identifying the individual characters and converting them into digital text data.
- End-User Application and LPR Data Recording
A good LPR software also returns a wealth of other information, such as an image of the recognized plate(s), the level of certainty assigned to each character, and a confidence level for the entire platen as well as the individual symbols and the type of vehicle plate. Along with the time stamp, optional geographic coordinates, and plate color (in some regions/counties), the output also includes the country and color of the plate.
The database record that contains all of the license plate data is used as the input for the end user’s business logic after the data has been stored. The enforcement of traffic and toll laws, vehicle access management, and many other sectors may all benefit from automatic number plate recognition.
Prerequisites for Accurate LPR Software Results
Two main variables affect LPR accuracy:
- the LPR software’s own performance;
- and the caliber of data that the LPR software collects.
Better input results in a greater likelihood of achieving 100% accuracy. In general, an LPR system will have a difficult time identifying a picture if it is difficult to identify for people. The license plate shouldn’t be overly deformed, blurry, or overexposed in the photographs that were recorded. In our 24/7 LPR image guide, we provide a comprehensive instruction manual for this.
The Best LPR Software to Use
The following elements should be taken into account while examining LPR software options:
- What number of lanes and cameras the system will control
- How many car number plates should be recognized in an hour or a minute, or the frequency of vehicles
- What nationality of automobiles are most likely to be seen in the setting specified depends on the type of license plates (For example, the different expected nationalities are always different in the city center and on the border control system).
- The ideal site for LPR processing is available both on-premise and in the cloud. In the realm of LPR, cloud architecture is quite young. Visit our LPR Cloud service for further details.
Applications That LPR Can Help With
There are several advantages to using LPR in all types of vehicle traffic environments, from parking garages to motorways.
It is utilized by access control systems for license plate-based entrance and exit controls. LPR is used for automatic toll collection on modern motorways. For the purpose of locating wanted vehicles and identifying speeders and infractions, traffic management systems use license plate recognition. In smart cities, LPR is utilized for many purposes, including travel time measurement (JTMS) and congestion charges.
Final Thoughts!
Modern deep learning technologies enable ITS systems to recognize the kind, weight, or license plate as well as the make, model, and color of passing cars. When using LPR to find a replacement or stolen license plates, linking make, model and color information is crucial.
To sum it up, license plate recognition technology is very sophisticated and requires a significant amount of processing. However, license plate identification is incredibly useful and simply essential in the modern world, particularly in big cities. We are available if you want to implement license plate recognition in your business. We will be happy to demonstrate this technology’s features and how they can be applied to automate tasks in your business. Connect with the Folio3 team right now!
