11-09-2017

Problematic of number plate area detection

1. Rectangular area of number plate in an original image

Heuristic analysis
Input snapshot defined by a function f (x,y)
X and y are spatial coordinates, and f is an intensity of light at that point
2. Number plate in a natural language as a Small plastic or metal plate attached to the vehicle
Detection of skew
Hough transformfor specific shape
Used to detect the skew of captured plate and also to compute the angle of skew
Is used to compute an approximate angle of image in a two-dimensional domain
Y=a. x+b
Where (a) is a slope
(b) is a y-axis to define lines
Then the line is set to all points (x,y)

Equation can be defined also as

b = -x. a+y

Where x and y are parameters

Set of lines as (a,b)
Phases

1. Image acquisition

Image acquisition is the process of obtaining or capturing image before image will be process to another
stage.

Many ways to acquire image of car but I select

Using a video camera and frame grabber

There are some important things that need to put in consideration while obtaining image in this stage such
as behavior of light and the illumination characteristics. And it is suitable for the real time processing.

2. Plate extraction

a. Edge detection
b. Histogram equalization
c. Image threshold

a. Edge detection
Is an image processing technique that used to detect the edges of the picture

In edge detection four steps are involved

1. Smoothing
The edge detection process of eliminating as much noise as possible
 2. Enhancement
The edge detection process of applying a filter to enhance the quality of the edges in the image
(sharpening)
3. Detection
The detection process of determining which edge pixels should be discarded as noise and which
should be retained.
4. Localization
Determining the exact location of an edge.

Edge detection commonly used operators are

a. Sobel

b. Kirsch

c. Stochastic

d. Laplacian

e. Marr(zero crossing)

f. Roberts,

g. Prewitt

h. Canny operators

Here in our region plate consist of row of black character on a white or yellow background

b. Histogram equalization

In order to increase the contrast of the gray scale image from the pc

c. Image thresholding

Image threshold is binarization image will convert to black and white pixels

3. Character segmentation

Is the image processing technique that used to separate or isolate each character on the car plate,

Scaling, Vertical and horizontal projection, and fine tuning

4. Character recognition

Methods in character recognition

a. OCR

b. Neural network based method

 c. Template matching

13-9-2017

There are seven primary algorithms that the software requires for identifying a license plate:
1. Plate localization responsible for finding and isolating the plate on the picture.
2. Plate orientation and sizing compensates for the skew of the plate and adjusts the dimensions
to the required size.
3. Normalization adjusts the brightness and contrast of the image.
4. Character segmentation finds the individual characters on the plates.
5. Optical character recognition.
6. Syntactical/Geometrical analysis check characters and positions against country- specific
rules.
7. The averaging of the recognized value over multiple fields/images to produce a more reliable
or confident result. Especially since any single image may contain a reflected light flare, be
partially obscured or other temporary effect.

Difficulties
There are a number of possible difficulties that the software must be able to cope with. These
include:

Poor file resolution, usually because the plate is too far away but sometimes resulting
from the use of a low- quality camera.
Blurry images, particularly motion blur.
Poor lighting and low contrast due to overexposure, reflection or shadows.
An object obscuring (part of) the plate, quite often a tow bar, or dirt on the plate.
A different font, popular for vanity plates (some countries do not allow such plates,
eliminating the problem).
Circumvention techniques.
Lack of coordination between countries or states. Two cars from different countries or
states can have the same number but different design of the plate.
Circumvention techniques (to find a way of avoiding restrictions imposed by a rule
or law without actually breaking it)
Vehicle owners have used a variety of techniques in an attempt to evade ANPR systems and
road- rule enforcement cameras in general. One method increases the reflective properties of the
lettering and makes it more likely that the system will be unable to locate the plate or produce a
high enough level of contrast to be able to read it. This is typically done by using a plate cover or
a spray, though claims regarding the effectiveness of the latter are disputed. In most jurisdictions,
the covers are illegal and covered under existing laws, while in most countries there is no law to
disallow the use of the sprays. Other users have attempted to smear their license plate with dirt or
utilize covers to mask the plate.
Other possible options include IR emitting LEDs around the license plate which would serve to
"blind" cameras.

Data files compiled in ALPR systems typically contain the following information:
o Black and white plate image;
o Contextual color image;
o Electronically readable format of plate alphanumeric characters (optical character
Recognition (OCR)) of license plate numbers;
o Location and GPS coordinates;
o Time and date of image capture;
o Camera identification (mobile cameras may capture officer and vehicle/unit
number).
ALPR Performance
A number of factors impact the performance of ALPR systems

1. Capture Efficacy a measure of the effectiveness of ALPR units to capture the license
plate information of vehicles that pass through the field of view of ALPR cameras.
For example, if 100 cars pass the ALPR unit, what proportion/percentage of vehicles
containing license plates are actually captured (i.e., read) by the ALPR units?
2. Read Accuracy a measure of the accuracy of ALPR system interpretation of captured
plates with the actual alphanumeric characters of the plate.
3. Matching Effectiveness a measure of the effectiveness of ALPR units (really of their
underlying software matching algorithms) to accurately match license plates reads to
records contained in the agencys hot list(s).
 For example, if the ALPR unit accurately captures or reads only a portion of a vehicles
plate, or misreads one or more characters on a vehicle plate, is the unit (and its software)
nevertheless able to match the plate with hotlist records stored or accessed through the
device (perhaps with a scoring factor related to the probability of an actual match)? This
is more a function of the software supporting the ALPR unit, the calibration of matching
algorithms, and a measure of the performance and elasticity of search parameters.
4. Capture/Read Factors there are a host of factors that may influence the ability of ALPR
units to capture and accurately read and match license plates. Capture/Read factors
include the following:
a. Character and/or plate color
b. Plate design factors (logos, stacked characters, etc.)
c. State of origin (i.e., the state which issued the plate)
d. Plate covers or other obstructions (e.g., bent, dirty, trailer hitch obstruction, etc.)
e. Plate location on the vehicle
f. Interval between vehicles
g. Vehicle speed
h. Lighting conditions (e.g., day vs. night)
i. Weather conditions (e.g., snow, rain, fog)
j. ALPR equipment (e.g., age and/or ability of the ALPR camera)
k. ALPR implementation (e.g., camera angle)

Plate design. Each state has multiple license plate designs and plates vary substantially from
state to state. The shape of the characters, amount of contrast between a particular states
background and the color of the license plate characters, and whether the characters are raised or
flat can all impact the accuracy of the OCR read. Some colors, especially reddish tones, may be
difficult for ALPR system OCR software to read.

Poor image resolution. Poor image resolution can result from several factors. License plates can
be too far away for the capabilities of the ALPR camera to capture and motion blur can also
occur. Poor lighting and low contrast due to overexposure, reflection, adverse weather
conditions, or shadows can also result in a poor image quality.
Bent, dirty, damaged, or modified plates. Because many ALPR systems use reflectivity and the
contrast created by the alphanumeric characters, plates that are bent, dirty, damaged, or modified
may cause the ALPR software to misidentify a character.

Plate location. Occasionally, an object might obscure all or a portion of the license plate and
interfere with accurate OCR. Oftentimes the object is a tow bar, dirt on the license plate, or a
loaded bike rack; other times the object may be an ALPR circumvention device.