Open Road Tolling ANPR / LPR application example

Flexible mounting options and the ability to retain tight control over beam angles and therefore areas of illumination results in greater flexibility in terms of where light sources - whether one or several - are located in relation to cameras. It also means that both single- and multi-lane applications are catered for, with illumination over a wide range of distances.

Such performance characteristics lend themselves to applications such as open road tolling. In an increasing number of countries, windscreen-mounted sticker tags are used to permit travel on tolled roads which feature automated payment – whether in stop-and-go or free-flow environments. For example, Gardasoft’s VTR Series LED strobe light traffic monitoring systems have been deployed in Slovenia, where sticker tags which allow access to tolled facilities on a timed (weekly, monthly or annual) basis are used.

A fully automated solution was required to replace manual checking by police officers. Key performance criteria included the ability to read both the vehicle licence plate and the windscreen-mounted tag 24 hours a day, seven days a week, in all weather conditions and with no restrictions in traffic flow. These presented something of a performance challenge as the exposure requirements for plate and sticker capture are different. However LED systems’ multi-pulse™ capability – the ability to flash two different levels of light intensity in very quick succession – allows a single camera to capture the same vehicle event. This has many clear advantages over alternative systems which would require two cameras and associated control sensors.