PlateSmart, a leader in software-only automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) and ALPR-based video analytics, announced the introduction of high-definition (HD) capability to its entire line of software solutions.
PlateSmart, a leader in software-only automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) and ALPR-based video analytics, announced the introduction of high-definition (HD) capability to its entire line of software solutions. The announcement comes as the company has successfully completed rigorous testing of its new HD ALPR engine for accuracy and robustness.
HD capability will be a standard feature in all future versions of PlateSmart products, including its award-winning ARES fixed ALPR-based video analytics solution.
HD capability will be a standard feature in all future versions of PlateSmart products, including its award-winning ARES fixed ALPR-based video analytics solution. In much the same way that the smartphone defied preconceived notions of what could be achieved with cellular telecommunication, HD is poised to revolutionize the fields of ALPR and video data analytics. It will enable the capture of plates from a far wider field of view than previously possible, as well as the capture of multiple plates from a single image. For end users, this translates to greater flexibility in camera positioning, as well as lower cost, as fewer cameras are needed to achieve complete coverage. As with all of PlateSmart’s products, software based on the HD engine processes all images in full color instead of black and white. With the increased resolution of HD along with color processing, more data can be captured from video than ever before, enabling the software to identify such characteristics as vehicle color and make in addition to reading license plate numbers and state jurisdictions. Extraction of ALPR data from full-color images is unique in the industry and, as of this writing, exclusive to PlateSmart. All of these features enable the company’s solutions to pull more data from video than any other industry player’s systems can.
The addition of HD to its solutions marks the beginning of a new and exciting phase of evolution for PlateSmart, whose introduction into the ALPR industry approximately two years ago clearly established the company as the industry’s thought and product innovation leader. Its unprecedented and paradigm-shifting combination of optical character recognition and object recognition with an open platform enabled the company to offer a complete line of ALPR products that are able to work with existing cameras without having to re-purpose them. For example, a camera that had already been installed for city surveillance could continue to be used in that capacity while also delivering ALPR reads along with much richer content. PlateSmart technology is being used with great success in a wide range of vertical markets, including federal government, maritime ports, university campuses, private businesses, and many more.
Fixed-location solutions are the primary focus of PlateSmart’s efforts, although the company does offer products for mobile use as well. As company CEO John Chigos notes, “Our experience has shown us that ALPR works best as a fundamental part of a network of fixed surveillance cameras. Mobile solutions, which are primarily used by law enforcement, can be useful, but police vehicles are not in service 24/7 and can’t be everywhere at once when they are. A fixed solution provides much more comprehensive and consistent coverage that truly maximizes the effectiveness of ALPR technology. It also helps keep the public at large from getting the overwhelming feeling that they are being actively spied on, which is the impression that vehicle-mounted systems tend to give when they drive around with all of those bulky cameras sticking out. As ALPR manufacturers we have a responsibility to make sure the job gets done but also to help see that there isn’t a massive public outcry about it.”
For Chigos, this is a natural extension of the company’s mission, which was originally to produce a software-based technology that is independent of hardware and therefore much more flexible and affordable. “We achieved that a long time ago,” he says. “The goal was to create a technology that would be easy to mass deploy, and we did that. What we would like people to know is that fixed solutions such as citywide surveillance systems make this kind of mass deployment even more cost effective and efficient. As more municipalities adopt this technology, you’ll see secure data-sharing networks spring up that will make it virtually impossible for criminal or terrorist suspects to move from town to town or state to state without being detected. We are confident that ARES is the solution that will make all of this possible. In addition to being the most affordable product of its kind on the market, ARES provides far richer data through its HD and full-color processing capabilities than any competing technology. It also has the most state-of-the-art data integrity features built in to ensure that no unauthorized access to ALPR data occurs. ARES is the most robust and secure solution for ALPR, video analytics, and data security available. Bottom line, the future of ALPR is here now.”