Car thieves, fugitivesand Amber Alert suspects are just some of the
targets of innovative license plate reader technology that Motorola,
Inc. (NYSE: MOT) and PIPS Technology are releasing to public safety
organizations nationwide.
The Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR) technology installed in
police cars "reads" vehicle plates as they enter the view of a vehicle-mounted
or roadside infrared camera, and checks them against a database for nearly
instantaneous identification. The system runs continuously, automatically
capturing images of license plates with a camera that works in nearly every
lighting condition.
"This technology is completely automated and built into the car's
operation, so it requires no action on the part of the police officer to
capture the plate numbers and have them verified. It is not something the
officer has to initiate," said Steve Most, Multimedia Business Director,
Motorola radio systems division. Previous technologies required officers to
manually type in a plate number and request a database search for each number,
which can be time consuming and prone to errors.
"The ALPR system gives public safety officers quick access to information
about the vehicles around them. This helps increase their security and safety
as well as that of the general driving population. It also makes the police
officer more effective," Most added.
Before bringing the ALPR system into Motorola's product portfolio,
Motorola worked with PIPS to further ruggedize its license plate technology to
meet Motorola specifications for Mission Critical public safety communications
in the United States. PIPS, which was founded in the United Kingdom and has
its U.S. headquarters in Tennessee, has thousands of cameras in place
worldwide.
ALPR Technology Trial Nabs Wanted Suspects
The Pennsylvania State Police recently tested the ALPR system, which was
pivotal in an October arrest on the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
During the first week of the test, a car was observed speeding on the
Pennsylvania Turnpike in Chester County. While the trooper was pulling up
behind the vehicle, its license plate was automatically "read" by the camera
mounted on the cruiser and processed through a database installed in the
trooper's onboard computer. The ALPR system showed the vehicle as stolen,
which alerted the trooper to call for backup before he even approached its
occupants.
The trooper then conducted a further check on the state database, which
showed that the three occupants of the vehicle in question were wanted in
connection with an earlier kidnapping and attempted murder case.
In addition to the public safety applications for ALPR, parking garage
operators can use the system to control access to their properties and help
prevent fraud. Each customer designs its own database to ensure the plates
are checked for the type of violators being sought. In addition to improving
security for any type of user, the ALPR system also can help generate revenue
by identifying plates with outstanding traffic tickets and overdue parking lot
fees.
"We are pleased that Motorola has selected our company to work with them
in bringing ALPR to a wider customer base," said Craig Cantrell, chief
operating officer of PIPS Technology, Inc., in Knoxville, Tenn. "This
strategic relationship further cements our position as a market leader in
license plate recognition system design and manufacture."
About Motorola
Motorola is a Fortune 100 global communications leader that provides
seamless mobility products and solutions across broadband, embedded systems
and wireless networks. In your home, auto, workplace and all spaces in
between, seamless mobility means you can reach the people, things and
information you need, anywhere, anytime. Seamless mobility harnesses the
power of technology convergence and enables smarter, faster, cost-effective
and flexible communication. Motorola had sales of US $31.3 billion in 2004.
For more information: http://www.motorola.com/ .
About PIPS Technology
PIPS Technology, Inc. is a pioneer and international market leader in the
design and manufacture of license plate image capture technology and optical
character recognition software. With PIPS Automatic License Plate Recognition
Systems installed in over 7000 lanes of traffic worldwide, PIPS continues to
set the standard for both mobile and fixed system deployments across a wide
range of applications. For more information: http://www.pipstechnology.com .
MOTOROLA and the Stylized M Logo are registered in the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office. All other product or service names are the property of
their respective owners.
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