Camera

In order to achieve the maximum recognition rate in a ANPR system the ability to  take sharp and clear images day and night is essential.

Without proper design, external environmental issues such as headlight glare, low sunlight, partial plate shading, extreme sunlight glare and poor weather conditions can make it difficult to effectively capture the licence plate image.

To provide the optimal conditions for taking an image the camera of the IDS ANPR system is combined with a Infra Red illuminator unit to provide an ‘all in one’ unit .

There is no distraction to drivers as the IR illuminator works at  an frequency undetectable to the human eye.

Although the emitted light is equivalent to 2000 W, due to the sychronising unit the power consumption is only 20W.

This combination provides:

• The ability to capture clear and sharp images in extreme weather conditions and a variety of lighting settings including darkness, oncoming headlights, bright sunlight, low sun, deep shadows and glare.

• Single package design offering ease of installation and maintenance.

• Eye-safe invisible IR illumination.

• Low power consumption.

The B/W camera of the  IDS ANPR system is preset  and optimised for one of three typical reading ranges:    

                                   4 – 6 metres

                                   5 – 7 metres

                                   7 – 10 metres.

Processor

The video capture card from Euresys is the heart of IDS ANPR system. Typical ANPR processor functions include:

Convert the analogue video signals from up to 4 cameras to a series of digital images.

Analyse each image to detect the presence of a number plate image.

Read the letters and numbers on the located plate and convert the information to a text file (optical character recognition).

Output the data to the application software or system.

The co –processor provides integrated hardware protection for the Carmen ANPR software.

A  watchdog function is included to enable the processor to reboot the computer  in the event of a system crash, this considerably improves the stability and reliability of stand alone systems.

The video card is installed in a dedicated industrial microbox PC having a heavy duty cold rolled steel enclosure and heavy duty power supply.

Software

The basic ANPR software ‘engine’ that carries out the optical character recognition is provided by the Appian software engine that is used in  the majoruty of police forces in the UK.

The application software is developed by ID Systems Ltd engineers to provide a standard system that covers the access control functions required for most applications.