Performed by AutoSDK recognition engine, LPR is the main feature of every principal VIT product, whether it's a plug-in for VMS or a hardware device for on-site traffic surveillance. As a core component, AutoSDK determines three fundamental licensing parameters:
number of LPs issuer-states;
number of recognition channels;
video processing speed.
Now, let's consider them in more detail.
Number of LPs issuer-states
When preparing a license for you, we will have to specify for AutoSDK what kind of LPs are to be searched on your video. Those LP templates are grouped by the country where they were issued. So what are those countries and their number make the first licensing parameter.
Number of recognition channels
We call one traffic lane under video surveillance a recognition channel. Also, we sometimes call it a recognition thread, because it usually takes one OS thread to recognize LPs within one traffic lane. Depending on resolution, your cameras may capture one or multiple lanes in a frame, thus, your license will provide the corresponding number of available recognition channels (see the Example).
Video processing speed
Video processing speed is a number of frames to be processed by AutoSDK every second. In other words, AutoSDK selects a specific number of frames from a frameset provided every second and performs search and recognition operations on those frames. The rest frames are overpassed, which allows for AutoSDK load balancing. This feature helps to utilize one's resources optimally, as, in some installation zones, analysis of every single frame from a camera is not necessary for high LPR quality (for example, when each vehicle stops in front of a camera for a while before leaving the frame). So, AutoSDK has the following operation modes:
"Parking" mode
"Freeflow" mode
Speed of vehicles in surveillance zone
up to 20 km/h
up to 220 km/h
Video processing speed
up to 6 fps
determined by video framerate and CPU capacity
Typical use cases
border control;
access control and traffic monitoring at restricted areas (airports, parking lots, business centers, gas stations, factories, logistics centers, residential areas etc.);
static & dynamic vehicle weighing (LPR as a source of additional data).
road safety & law enforcement (intersection control, detection of traffic violations, search of stolen cars);
electronic toll collection;
statistics gathering (e.g. traffic count, journey time management).
Besides the main licensing parameters listed above, there are functionalities of additional VIT software that are also protected. For example, the VMS plug-in which performs communication with vehicle scales (Libra for Intellect Enterprise) is licensed by the number of connected scales and their models. For more information on additional product-specific licensing parameters, see the corresponding product documentation or contact your sales representative.
Example
Let's assume you have a public access point with two lanes — one for vehicles entering the parking and another lane for those who are leaving. For monitoring, a high-resolution camera is used. For vehicles registration, LPR software is installed on a dedicated server and receives one video stream which represents two traffic channels (i.e. lanes).
The second access point that you maintain is private, used by employees and suppliers. Similarly, it has two lanes for vehicles entrance and exit.
This way, you will need a license for four recognition channels.