Design of an automatic license plate reader

The increase in the number of vehicles and the alarming rate of theft and defaulters daily prompts the need for sophisticated matching technology to curb car theft, reduce traffic offenders, and any other anomalies/irregularities affecting vehicles’ smooth operation. This study deals with the design of an automatic license plate reader which automatically captures an image of the vehicle’s license plate, transforms that image into alphanumeric characters using optical character recognition or similar high-tech software, and compares the plate number acquired to one or more databases of vehicles of interest to law enforcement and other agencies against those of stolen cars or people suspected of being involved in criminal activities. The automated capture, analysis, and comparison of vehicle license plates typically occur within seconds enabling the officer in charge to take appropriate actions.