Real Time Vehicle Speed Estimation Based on License Plate Tracking in Monocular Video Sequences
A method of estimating the vehicle speed from images obtained by a fixed over the road monocular camera is presented. The method is based on detecting and tracking vehicle license plates. The contrast between the license plate and its surroundings is enhanced using infrared light emitting diodes and infrared camera filters. A range of the license plate height values is assumed a priori. The camera vertical angle of view is measured prior to installation. The camera tilt is continuously measured by a micro electromechanical sensor. The distance of the license plate from the camera is theoretically derived in terms of its pixel coordinates. Inaccuracies due to the frame rate drift, to the tilt and the angle of view measurement errors, to edge pixel detection and to a coarse assumption of the vehicle license plate height are analyzed and theoretically formulated. The resulting system is computationally efficient, inexpensive and easy to install and maintain along with the existing ALPR cameras. Copyright (c) 2016 IFSA Publishing, S. L.