CCRAD
 

An Automatic License Plate Reader (LPR) is an image-processing technology used to identify vehicles by their license plates.

There are many applications for License Plate Readers such as traffic and parking management, tollbooth operations and area-access control.

Cameras, mounted to stationary structures /installed on the officer’s vehicle, automatically take photos of license plates at the rate of hundreds per minute. The characters in the photo of the plate are then translated into letters and numbers and compared to databases of registered vehicles. If a license plate that was read matches an entry on a database, the license plate reader system will alert the officer or command center (if data is transferred to a remote management facility) that a suspect vehicle is in the immediate area of that LPR system.

License plate recognition systems utilize algorithms in order to identify a license plate, take a clear image, translate its characters and identify the state that issued the plate, etc.

License Plate Readers (LPRs) can record plates at about one per second at speeds of up to 100 MPH and they often utilize infrared cameras for clarity and to facilitate reading at any time of day or night. The data collected can either be processed in real-time, at the site of the read, or it can be transmitted to remote center and processed at a later time.