PIPS Technology, a business division of the Neology group, has unveiled its new IRIS ALPR camera platform at the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida.
Founded in 1983 and acquired by Neology last year, UK-based PIPS Technology is a pioneer of optical character recognition (OCR) and vehicle detection technologies and has deployed more than 50,000 ALPR systems in more than 100 countries worldwide.
Built on the company’s 30-plus years of experience in license plate recognition, the new IRIS camera unit is a versatile, all-in-one and high-performance ALPR system for law enforcement, open road tolling, average speed monitoring, low-emission, access control, and other traffic control activities.
The IRIS provides up to three adjacent lane width coverage within a single camera platform. The camera captures distance from 13-130ft (4-40m) and is available as fixed lens or adjustable with motorized zoom lensing options. The IRIS camera is versatile, enabling most eventualities as deployed, while allowing users to easily redeploy the same unit to different locations and even applications.
The IRIS multi-lane camera has dual OCR (Infrared and color) which enables the unit to detect and read license plates of variable retro-reflective quality, or that have been deliberately altered. The camera provides high quality color overview in low light, and with sufficient ambient lighting, it can detect and read entirely non-retro reflective license plates. The IRIS camera incorporates a quad core OCR processor providing extra computing power for faster detection with highly accurate license plate recognition.
Incorporating a remotely adjustable zoom lens with a wide field of view and long focal range, the IRIS camera is a versatile ALPR system covering a variety of end user applications, delivering best-in-class imaging results.
Other features of IRIS include enhanced ‘on the road’ performance using integral GPS, optional wi-fi, Bluetooth and internal modem. These features allow configuration of the camera from the street, reducing the cost and complexity of the unit’s installation and commissioning.
The IRIS uses the H.264 video format that significantly improves compression and helps minimize bandwidth usage for data transmission. The IRIS is available now from Neology directly, as well as from certified channel partners and integrators. The camera has full backward compatibility of firmware options offered on legacy PIPS stationary cameras.
“We believe IRIS is a game-changer,” said Luke Normington, the global general manager of PIPS Technology. “It features a 5MP sensor, a powerful quad-core processor, the well-known PIPS signature OCR engine, and many leading hardware and software technologies integrated in one intelligent unit. During the development of IRIS, we considered the real-life application and the challenges our customers face in deploying this technology. This camera is designed to be versatile, accurate and reliable while being cost effective. IRIS provides the platform which many clients have been asking for and with our continued investment in R&D, shall evolve and provide the flexibility and modularity which so many of our customers see as crucial to their own success.”
