Automatic vehicle identification (AVI) system employing planar laser illumination and imaging (PLIIM) based subsystems - Patent US6959869(B2)
Filed:
May 31, 2002
Published:
Nov 01, 2005
Abstract
An automatic vehicle identification (AVI) system for installation along a roadway, comprising one or more a planar laser illumination and imaging (PLIIM) based linear imaging subsystems mounted above the roadway in a spaced apart manner. The PLIIM based subsystems are arranged for capturing digital linear images of both the front and rear license plates mounted on each moving vehicle travelling under the PLIIM based linear imaging subsystem, and generating digital image data representative of each captured digital linear image. An image processing subsystem is provided for receiving and processing the digital image data generated by the PLIIM-based imaging systems, so as to automatically read the alphanumeric strings on the front and/or rear license plates of each the vehicle. These recognized strings are then compared against vehicle registration information stored in a database in order to identify each vehicle travelling under along the roadway. By virtual of the present invention, it is now possible to capture and buffer high-resolution linear images of the license plates on moving vehicles using planar laser illumination beams and coplanar fields of view, so that these linear images can be sequentially assembled to construct 2-D images for OCR processing so that such vehicles can be automatically identified, while avoiding the need for large and expensive high-intensity lighting equipment required by conventional digital cameras employing 2-D electronic image detectors.Applicants
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METROLOGIC INSTR INC
Inventors
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ZHU XIAOXUN
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TSIKOS CONSTANTINE J
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KNOWLES C HARRY
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SCHNEE MICHAEL D
Application Number
10161091Priority Claims
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