Camera suggestion

[gnaag]

Hello,

I'm using Reolink RLC-810A-8MP and although I am quite satisfied, I regret not having sufficient quality to allow license plate reading.

Here is an example of the result I get when trying to read a license plate:




The images are blurry and, unless the car is moving very slowly or temporarily standing still, the result will be unreadable.

The cameras are at a distance of about 12-15 meters from the street, and I've seen a few posts about the focal lengths, but I don't know which models to choose.

Also, I would like "bullet" cameras which I think will be better for positioning given the current camera setup.

Finally, the camera must be able to clearly identify nearby individuals, a few meters from the camera.

Which models do you recommend?

 

[actran]

Search for LPR on this site, there are many threads on this topic. They will provide alot of good details. Bottom line, for LPR, you need a dedicated camera with zoom. Set your camera shutter speed properly to reduce the blur.

 

[wittaj]

Wrong camera manufacturer and wrong focal length camera.

You would have to set the camera up specifically to read plates. You need the proper camera with OPTICAL zoom for the distance you are covering and the angle to get plates.

Keep in mind that this is a camera dedicated to plates and not an overview camera also. It is as much an art as it is a science. You will need two cameras. For LPR we need to OPTICALLY zoom in tight to make the plate as large as possible. For most of us, all you see is the not much more than a vehicle in the entire frame. Now maybe in the right location during the day it might be able to see some other things, but not at night.

At night, we have to run a very fast shutter speed (1/2,000) and in B/W with IR and the image will be black. All you will see are head/tail lights and the plate. Some people can get away with color if they have enough street lights, but most of us cannot. Here is a representative sample of plates I get at night of vehicles traveling about 45MPH at 175 feet from my 2MP 5241-Z12E camera (that is all that is needed for plates):

See the LPR subforum for more details.

 

[mat200]

Hello,

I'm using Reolink RLC-810A-8MP and although I am quite satisfied, I regret not having sufficient quality to allow license plate reading.

Here is an example of the result I get when trying to read a license plate:

View attachment 183828
View attachment 183829

The images are blurry and, unless the car is moving very slowly or temporarily standing still, the result will be unreadable.

The cameras are at a distance of about 12-15 meters from the street, and I've seen a few posts about the focal lengths, but I don't know which models to choose.

Also, I would like "bullet" cameras which I think will be better for positioning given the current camera setup.

Finally, the camera must be able to clearly identify nearby individuals, a few meters from the camera.

Which models do you recommend?

hi @gnaag

"I'm using Reolink RLC-810A-8MP and although I am quite satisfied, I regret not having sufficient quality to allow license plate reading. "

How far away is the camera from the target?

Please see the DORI section of the cliff notes and use the data for the Reolink camera model you have.

From a pure pixel point of view, you will need enough pixels on target .. and then you will need to tune the camera to get the appropriate shutter speeds., or position the camera to get the best angle on the plates.

As others note, night time vs day time image captures often require different tuning on the cameras ..

 

[looney2ns]

Reolink is without a doubt the wrong camera for the job.
New to LPR? Considerations Before You Begin | IP Cam Talk

 

[gnaag]

Thanks for your advices.

Each camera is approximately 12-15 meters from the target. There is indeed public lighting which may be sufficient to illuminate vehicles. It is also a housing estate that does not allow high speed driving (on average vehicles travel at 20-30km/h).

I don't need to take number plates with the carport camera if the garden camera can. In fact, the street you see in the garden is the only one from which it is possible to enter and leave the housing estate.

I would like to avoid having a dedicated camera for plate reading whenever possible.

The garden camera does not need such a field of view, so can we imagine a model with a smaller field of view but with zoom and better image quality?

 

[wittaj]

Again it is all about optical zoom and shutter speed.

You need faster shutters to read plates. The faster the shutter, the more light that is needed. You would be surprised how much light is needed at night.

When people estimate a distance it is usually more than what they say. That impacts the camera choice.

If you don't dedicate a camera to plates, then you will miss plates, especially at night. This isn't our first rodeo LOL. Trying to do too much with one camera results in overall poor performance.

You need the 5242-Z12E or maybe the 5442-Z4E if your distances are really that short and you have enough light.