Automatic Number Plate REcognition

What is ANPR?

ANPR – Automatic Number Plate Recognition is a technology that has been around for law enforcement for a long time, but recently has become cost effective for business and even domestics users.

The basics are that a specific type of camera is able to read licence plates of cars that drive towards or away from it, the technology is advanced enough to read in all weathers and light conditions and will read UK as well as Worldwide number plate styles including historic Silver on Black plates.

Common uses within business for ANPR cameras 

Security - to just log all movements on and off site by licence plate, each recorded licence plate is then stored in a searchable database along with a short clip of the vehicle to allow full identification.

Access control - onto a site with preloaded “White lists” and “black lists” to either create an alarm that specific vehicles have left or entered site or to control a barrier or gate access by licence plate number.

Integrated access control - to a site or area, where the licence plate number can be sent to an external access control device such as Paxton Net2. This can then operate a barrier or gate, the advantage is accurate log keeping and real time updating of who has access by time and date.

Booking in of vehicles - to a service system or drive through service system, for example on a car main dealer forecourt the ANPR cameras can relay information to the dealers service system to pre book a car into the workshop or to tag a drive through order to a specific vehicle for payment and collection.