Smart Cameras Blog

Automated License Plate Recognition (ALPR) is used throughout Chicago. It’s installed in over 40 vehicles. There are also 36 fixed locations. In 17 of those, license plate recognition occurs through real-time video. This is a major development. Using video from a pod camera, it is possible to automatically scan and process a license plate. Here is a summary from an article at officer.com:

Chicago-based EyeNet Enforcement Systems offers technology that can read license plates from video captured by the POD cameras. The camera and license plate reader system is approximately $10,000, and can be used with an existing camera. Some PODs are programmed to point in the direction provided by gunshot sensors and link with EyeNet’s license plate reader system.

Tom Tarach, CEO of EyeNet, says there were challenges with the implementation. “This had never been done before, but the Chicago Police Department was determined to make it work,” Tarach says. “With a few tweaks and adjustments we found we had a working system that could scan license plates from a video stream.” Tarach adds the Chicago police now have two EyeNet readers which can easily process real-time video streams from any of the city’s wireless POD cameras.

ALPR is also installed on the street sweepers. The system photographs license plates of illegally parked vehicles that block the path of the street sweeper, and a violation notice gets sent to the vehicle’s owner. The entire operation is fully automatic, requiring no training or action from the operator. I am not sure how extensive the street sweeper program is at this time.

rshah ALPR, Chicago