B5442E-ZE as LPR cam @ ~80 feet?

[Mike A.]

Had a neighbor's cat convertor stolen the other night, a hit and run, and some other things happen in the neighborhood lately where a LPR cam might have been helpful. I did capture both events on several cams but none really are intended to watch those areas and the settings are such that they blew out the plates with IR where I might have been able to get them with better settings for that purpose. So I'm thinking of maybe finally going down the LPR rabbit hole.

I have a somewhat extra B5442E-ZE that I could move to a location that would give me a shot at plates from one direction at about a 30 degree angle. Near close to being level with the height of plates. Probably 80 feet to the point where I'd have the best shot. Maybe 50 feet with a greater angle.

Is the B5442E-ZE worth taking down to move and try or don't bother at that distance?

 

[wittaj]

I wouldn't try if you were purchasing. Folks here tried at 60-80 feet and "downgraded" to the Z12E

But if it is somewhat extra, go for it LOL.

 

[Mike A.]

Yeah, It's kind of redundant and not doing much of value for me now. Have an extra splitter that I could use to hook it up and a long patch to test without having to run cable. Maybe I'll give it a shot. Will tell me more what I'd need to do well if nothing else.

Generally which is better? A more straight-on shot at ~80 feet or a closer shot at say 50-ish feet with more angle (within reason obviously)? Residential street so speed of passing traffic is ~25-35 MPH. Wish that I could get out to the street more but the house and potential cam locations just aren't set up well for that. Which is the main reason why I've not done it to date.

 

[wittaj]

I would try the 50ish with more angle first. At 60 with a fairly good angle I wouldn't trust it at night when I tested it - too much guessing.

 

[Mike A.]

Thanks. Probably give it a try and see how it goes so I'll likely be back to bother you more about settings. ; )

 

[looney2ns]

Thanks. Probably give it a try and see how it goes so I'll likely be back to bother you more about settings. ; )

New to LPR? Considerations Before You Begin | IP Cam Talk

 

[jrbeddow]

Yeah without even having any dedicated LPR cams myself, I can tell you that the B5442E-ZE (even at maximum zoom) isn't going to provide the resolution you need at that ~60' to 80' distance.

Even in daylight conditions my similar setup is borderline for making out plates (hit or miss for manual recognition, even on parked cars).

 

[MikeLud1]

Had a neighbor's cat convertor stolen the other night, a hit and run, and some other things happen in the neighborhood lately where a LPR cam might have been helpful. I did capture both events on several cams but none really are intended to watch those areas and the settings are such that they blew out the plates with IR where I might have been able to get them with better settings for that purpose. So I'm thinking of maybe finally going down the LPR rabbit hole.

I have a somewhat extra B5442E-ZE that I could move to a location that would give me a shot at plates from one direction at about a 30 degree angle. Near close to being level with the height of plates. Probably 80 feet to the point where I'd have the best shot. Maybe 50 feet with a greater angle.

Is the B5442E-ZE worth taking down to move and try or don't bother at that distance?

You can use the below link to test how the camera will perform. For ALPR you want a minimum of 75 ppf (pixels per foot) preferably 100 PPF

IPVM Designer / Calculator

Using Google Maps, layout and design cameras, choosing from 10,000+ models, delivering FoV and image quality previews plus export to PDF, Powerpoint and more

calculator.ipvm.com

Also some good reading

https://www.axis.com/dam/public/f4/76/27/license-plate-capture-en-US-335780.pdf

80 ft
41 PPF



44 ft
75 PPF



33 ft
100 PPF

 

[bigredfish]

The more severe the angle the less readable frames you’re gonna get. Anything over 30 degrees and things become very hit and miss imho.

And agree, 80 ft with a 12mm lens you won’t likely be happy.

Spring for a 5241 Z12 and be done

 

[Mike A.]

Yeah, pulled it down to try quickly. Not quite good enough at 50-80 feet. Closer than that I have a little too much angle. I can make out some numbers on some plates in some frames but it would be a guessing game for the full plate for most. Might get focus a little better but I stuck an old plate on a fire hydrant that's at about the optimal point and even with good focus on a static target and knowing the number it's still kinda fuzzy and not easy to make out.

I do have one other location where it would be about half that distance which probably would work pretty well but no good way to get cable there. Have to decide whether it's worth digging up the yard to do. Or maybe just springing for the Z12 would be the easier way to go.

 

[Mike A.]

Best I can get it even after moving it about 15 feet closer. That's probably at about 45 feet. Can zoom and get most numbers but not good detail of the whole plate.

Nope, not quite good enough. 5241-Z12 it is.

 

[wittaj]

Oh I misread and thought that you had the Z4E trying at 80 feet.

Yeah the ZE won't get much past 35 feet. Is that zoomed all the way in though? It seems kinda wide.

 

[MikeLud1]

Best I can get it even after moving it about 15 feet closer. That's probably at about 45 feet. Can zoom and get most numbers but not good detail of the whole plate.

Nope, not quite good enough. 5241-Z12 it is.


View attachment 139698

You are getting about 44 PPF

 

[Mike A.]

Oh I misread and thought that you had the Z4E trying at 80 feet.

Yeah the ZE won't get much past 35 feet. Is that zoomed all the way in though? It seems kinda wide.

Yeah, that's all the way in. You'd think that you could get it tighter but not. I think your 35 feet estimate is about right for the limit. Unfortunately, I can't get that close.

Not sure what the basis is for what it's X'ing but I can easily see the plates with my eyes better than the thing at 12X zoom. And my eyes aren't all that great. ; )

 

[VideoDad]

I can easily see the plates with my eyes better than the thing at 12X zoom.

The camera is a varifocal from 2.8mm to 12mm. I think you are confusing the 12 number as if it means it is a 12x zoom which it is not.

 

[Mike A.]

Yes, you're right. I knew that it wasn't 12X. Not sure what I was thinking when I wrote that. More like 4X. Not enough X in any case.

 

[samplenhold]

I do have one other location where it would be about half that distance which probably would work pretty well but no good way to get cable there.

Don't give up on getting a good location. See this thread:

LPR Case Study: Scoping, Planning, Proof of Concept, Installation, & Results

Introduction This thread is about my journey into LPR (License Plate Recognition) after having about 18 months of experience with IP cams and having quite a bit of my system finished. I am not an expert on LPR, or IP cameras either. But I have spent a lot of time working with my system and...

ipcamtalk.com

 

[Mike A.]

That's pretty much my best location closest to the street. Wish there was a better alternative but really not. Even that one is stretching things. It's basically stuck inside a little bush around a light post. lol

More zoom is the better alternative in my case. I can get back to a place where I can do the cam much better then and get a better angle on things too.

 

[Mike A.]

Hmmm... maybe?

Kind of a bad time of day with bright sun right behind in that direction but it did still work.

Cam is sitting in a hollow of a tree bordering the street. A little higher than I'd like at about 9 feet I'd guess. Could get there without too much trouble. Can be seen but tucked back up in there a little more I doubt even 5% of people walking by would ever notice it. Haven't seen anyone look up yet even with a ladder still sitting against the tree.

 

[MikeLud1]

Hmmm... maybe?

Kind of a bad time of day with bright sun right behind in that direction but it did still work.

Cam is sitting in a hollow of a tree bordering the street. A little higher than I'd like at about 9 feet I'd guess. Could get there without too much trouble. Can be seen but tucked back up in there a little more I doubt even 5% of people walking by would ever notice it. Haven't seen anyone look up yet even with a ladder still sitting against the tree.


View attachment 139779View attachment 139780
View attachment 139782

Can you zoom in more? Right now you are about 72 PPF