PIPS Technology, a UK-based division of Neology and a leading provider of automatic number/license plate recognition (ANPR/ALPR) systems, has signed and closed an agreement to acquire the artificial intelligence-based Mantis Software platform.
Developed by Intrinsics Inc., Mantis is used by a range of mobility system providers and end users to provide AI-based vehicle classification, using a range of camera systems, including PIPS Technology’s own IRIS Fixed Camera and Golden Eagle mobile platforms.
Mantis is a versatile, all-in-one and high-performance vehicle recognition solution for law enforcement, open-road tolling, parking management, low emission zone enforcement, access control, and other traffic monitoring activities.
The Mantis software assists in the detection and classification of vehicle characteristics to solve a variety of customer needs and is successfully deployed in a wide range of law enforcement and vehicle recognition scenarios, including for agencies such as Los Angeles Police Department.
Founded in 1983, PIPS Technology became a subsidiary of the USA-based RFID (radio frequency identification) and electronic vehicle registration (EVR) pioneer Neology Inc. in 2017. PIPS is a leading supplier of vehicle detection systems, with deployments in more than 100 countries and the Mantis acquisition represents a significant investment and commitment as the company positions itself as the leader in the vehicle identification and recognition market.
The PIPS Mantis platform is the latest member of the company’s portfolio and is already coupled with its own software systems, including Deep Learning Recognition technology for license plate recognition, providing a turn-key solution for modern mobility and security challenges.
“Mantis has proven itself in the evolving machine vision market with many customers, new and existing, using the technology for several years. It powers more than 90% of the law enforcement agencies in the USA who are taking advantage of this emerging technology in the detection and solving of crimes,” explained Luke Normington, the global general manager of PIPS Technology.
“With some of the largest police agencies in the world using the Mantis software to help their investigations already reaping rewards, it is a technology which we are very excited about the reach and use this technology brings to the market. Our clients are able to rapidly reduce the effort, and cost, to identify vehicles where eye-witness evidence and ANPR/ALPR data is insufficient to determine with sufficient precision the vehicles targeted for investigation.”
Normington continued, “Our acquisition of Mantis fits perfectly in our vision to ‘Drive Detection Innovation’ and ensures that not only we enrich our expertise in our traditional markets, but also acquire complementary technology to enable us to fulfil even the most stretching customer requirements.
“Following a period of close technical integration of Mantis into our existing solutions, we are already looking forward to how our portfolio is evolving beyond the traditional ANPR/ALPR marketplace which is seeing tremendous global shift. The use of the technology is wide-reaching beyond the original law enforcement marketplace as customers become aware of the capabilities of the technology. We are already in detailed discussions with customers across the mobility spectrum, ranging from tolling to parking enforcement, with many applications in between.”
