In Case You Missed It:
Beyond the Plate: The Future of AI LPR in Smart Parking and Enforcement
4 min read
We recently hosted an insightful discussion on AI-based License Plate Recognition (LPR), exploring the endless opportunities it presents for parking facility owners, managers, and operators, while delivering seamless customer experiences. The session was led by Precise ParkLink's own Cynthia Bruce, Associate Director of Proposal Development, and Jai Bansal, Systems Engineer.
In case you missed our Beyond the Plate: The Future of AI LPR in Smart Parking and Enforcement webinar, we've summarized the key discussion points below.
Watch the full webinar!
LPR in the Canadian Market Today
LPR technology is reshaping the parking and mobility industry by creating smarter, safer, and more efficient parking operations. Today, the power of LPR technology is being leveraged and integrated into many aspects of our everyday life.
The Unlimited Possibilities with LPR
LPR is a comprehensive solution that unlocks endless opportunities and gives us control over the systems we manage. From access control, enhanced customer identification, greater enforcement accuracy, and increased revenue opportunities, LPR offers an abundance of efficiencies for all markets and sectors. Fuelled by AI, advanced business insights and data collection provides a deeper understanding of activity and trends in your parking facility to enable more informed business decisions.
The Basics of AI-based LPR and Parking
AI-based LPR is a smart system that uses vehicle license plates as the access credential, making it suitable for all types of parking operations, including gated, metered, or equipment-free facilities. AI-based LPR utilizes deep learning and computer vision technology to read, understand, and approve license plates. Unlike traditional LPR technology, AI-based LPR is more adaptable, accurate, and cost-efficient.
The AI-based LPR architecture contains three main components: LPR module, used to identify and track vehicles from a live camera feed); centralized database, for storing events used in auditing and analysis; and sync module, enabling seamless external communication for further integrations.
AI-based LPR typically follows the below six-step process:
Capture
Vehicle Tracking & Filtering
Cropping & Perspective Correction
Optical Character Recognition
Post-processing
Final Results
Dynamic Pricing, Enforcement Accuracy & Customer Identification
Dynamic pricing is a pricing strategy that enables parking operators to adjust rates based on demand, events, or increased traffic. When integrated with a business intelligence platform and AI-based LPR technology, real-time data visualization and reporting can be leveraged to deploy strategic pricing models based on various parameters. Understanding real-time activity, including who enters and exits, and when and how long they park, can enhance customer identification through access lists, block lists, and notification lists. AI-based LPR enables License Plate Enforcement (LPE) through camera-equipped vehicles or foot patrols, improving patrolling accuracy and efficiency while reducing violation disputes.
Hardware and Software Considerations
There are various key hardware and software considerations to take into account when integrating AI-based LPR into your parking system.
Hardware considerations:
Environment, including lighting, speed, mounting points, exposure to weather elements, and regional considerations
Infrastructure, including existing network and power, lane delineators, and speed bumps
Equipment, including the type of cameras and servers needed
Edge cases, including access lists, system monitoring, and enforcement rules
Software considerations:
AI models, including AI model training to perform optimally
Integrations, including available APIs to integrate with third-party systems
Data analytics, including business intelligence tools and dashboards
Known plates, including lists to reference for slight differences
Enforcement rules, including defining and enforcing
Future Improvements
The future of AI-based LPR in the parking and mobility industry is promising, with further advancements in technology leading to improved performance, seamless integrations, and more efficient equipment.
With better technology, we can expect a significant increase in the speed and accuracy of LPR systems, while costs continue to decrease. One of the key benefits of AI-based LPR is the potential for seamless integrations and communication to elevate customer and facility operator experiences. With additional integrations, dashboards will offer more comprehensive insights into activity and trends, enabling data-driven decision making. Equipment improvements, including computing technology and camera hardware, will improve the dependability and longevity of LPR systems.
As the parking and mobility industry evolves, adopting AI-based LPR is crucial for driving efficiency and optimizing parking operations.
If you missed our Beyond the Plate: The Future of AI LPR in Smart Parking and Enforcement webinar live, you can watch the full event below!
Interested in discovering how AI-based LPR can help you revolutionize your parking operations? Learn more about Precise ParkLink's LPR technology!