LPR Car Access Solution (for entry/exit gate)

[Nathanmf 0]

Hi Guys,

 

I have a situation where I need to set up license plate recognition for a front entry/exit gate as well as a rear entry/exit gate.

 

Questions:

- Can I have it set up so that I can search a plate and it will show me each time and date it entered/exits?

- Can I use existing dahua products?

- Am I missing anything?

[buellwinkle 0]

To do true LPR where plates are captured as text which you can search will take some work and either good C coding skills or software. Software that does this runs about $800-5,000. I use Milestone LPR, costs about $1,500 for the first camera + the NVR software and it works well.

 

Camera that can see a plate at night is a science experiment but I can share what worked for me. It's best to use a box camera with very good low light capability, I chose the Axis Q1604. Then you need a good telephoto lens, one that can capture no more than about 6-8' with at the point the plate crosses the camera. I tested software that would not even do that much width. We ended up using just about 45mm to get that, but the plates are very readable. You really only need VGA resolution, anymore is overkill.

 

Lastly, you need an IR illuminator that can overcome headlights/taillights. We used a Raytec RM100.

 

What I tested besides Milestone LPR is IPConfigure and last but not least, OpenALPR, free but you have to write code. I can help you there from a camera perspective, but I'm not a C coder.

[Nathanmf 0]

I am downloading the free version right now.

 

Do I need to purchase their NVR? or can I run it on my NVR?

[ssmith10pn 0]

I prefer a proven camera and design that has been doing it for years.

http://us.boschsecurity.com/us_product/02_products_3/st_bu_f_277305_tams_catalog_prod_us/st_section_f_277382_tams_catalog_prod_us/st_chapter_p_277382_tams_catalog_prod_us_279277

 

Then you can put that camera on an encoder and use software of your choice.

[buellwinkle 0]

Analog or IP, the principals remain the same, the software remains the same. If I was going with Bosch, and certainly not a bad choice to go with, I would get their NBN-733v camera with a nice 5-50 or 15-50mm lens. Would be a little less expensive than the Axis Q1604.

[buellwinkle 0]

I am downloading the free version right now.

 

Do I need to purchase their NVR? or can I run it on my NVR?

 

Do you mean OpenALPR? It's totally independent of NVR software, you would have to develop the code to pass their routines an image from the camera say 4-5 times per second and it returns the plate number as text, then you would have to write this say to a database or file, along with the image the plate match was based on. Then you would have to develop the code to search and display the results. This is a cool project for someone to take on. I would if I had the C skills.

 

I bet we can find a few people that want to work on this, we can setup an open source company using crowdfunding site like KickStarter.com using donation based funding.

[carrot 0]

I am downloading the free version right now.

 

Do I need to purchase their NVR? or can I run it on my NVR?

 

Do you mean OpenALPR? It's totally independent of NVR software, you would have to develop the code to pass their routines an image from the camera say 4-5 times per second and it returns the plate number as text, then you would have to write this say to a database or file, along with the image the plate match was based on. Then you would have to develop the code to search and display the results. This is a cool project for someone to take on. I would if I had the C skills.

 

I bet we can find a few people that want to work on this, we can setup an open source company using crowdfunding site like KickStarter.com using donation based funding.

 

I like your thinking.

 

Many people will want to buy in on this.

[ssnapier 0]

I am pretty sure 3VR has this built in to their equipment.

[carrot 0]

What I want to know is.

 

How does the end user actually use the LPR data?

 

Is the module configured to deposit data & timestamp in database or?

[buellwinkle 0]

LPR software stores the plate number and image or video and allows you a way to search by plate number. For example, if you knew someone had 123 in their plate, you search for 123 and it returns a list of plate numbers, dates/times and photos of the car.

 

If you want a proactive approach, you can trigger events on a plate match similarly like you set events on your camera, say on motion detection.

[thewireguys 3]

Avigilon's bullet cameras are very good at getting plates day and night with the build in adaptive IR. I have seen them work up to about 150 feet with additional IR with moving traffic.

[buellwinkle 0]

That's theoretically possible with their 22mm lens and 3-5MP, but to capture a plate at night, I believe you would have to set the exposure dark enough to overcome the headlights and plate reflection, like a max shutter of 100-200/sec. I've done it with other cameras and the plate is dark but somewhat readable. Do you have any pictures at night capturing a plate at 150'?

[thewireguys 3]

That's theoretically possible with their 22mm lens and 3-5MP, but to capture a plate at night, I believe you would have to set the exposure dark enough to overcome the headlights and plate reflection, like a max shutter of 100-200/sec. I've done it with other cameras and the plate is dark but somewhat readable. Do you have any pictures at night capturing a plate at 150'?

 

 

Yes I have clips but I am unable to share them because of the customer. Shutter was 1/250 with a Raytec i2

[buellwinkle 0]

Yes, that makes sense with that shutter speed. Do they use it with the Avigilon LPR software or just needed the ability to see a plate in a video?

[VST_Man 1]

fyi.....IR does NOT "overcome" head light & tail light. IR is in a different wavelength and lense, shutter, cut filter all play a part in ignoring the tail & head lights. IR reflects off objects and when you get the "ignor" settings right the IR shines thru..........revealing a nice license plate number.

 

other than that.............nice LPR post. IMHO the next generation LPR cams is going to evolve from IP megapixel analytic cams/software providing real time information collection BEYOND basic LPR.

[thewireguys 3]

fyi.....IR does NOT "overcome" head light & tail light. IR is in a different wavelength and lense, shutter, cut filter all play a part in ignoring the tail & head lights. IR reflects off objects and when you get the "ignor" settings right the IR shines thru..........revealing a nice license plate number.

 

other than that.............nice LPR post. IMHO the next generation LPR cams is going to evolve from IP megapixel analytic cams/software providing real time information collection BEYOND basic LPR.

 

Agreed but you can over power head light/tail lights with IR and up the shutter to get plate reads

[dexterash 0]

What would you guys say to a web-based solution, rather than a standard, standalone application?

[buellwinkle 0]

What do you mean? Sending video to a cloud based app that does the number recognition and storage?

[dexterash 0]

No, a web server/app + analytic app running on your PC.

 

The web part will allow anyone to easyly remote connect from (almost) any device and configure/search etc.