Axis P1346 User manual

ipConfigure ESM 5.1
LPR Setup and Field Installation Guide
1
ipConfigure ESM 5.1
LPR SETUP AND FIELD INSTALLATION GUIDE
Updated : February 1, 2010
This document was created to display and explain the settings and tools needed to
successfully deploy LPR for the United States Postal Service with the ipConfigure ESM
5.1 Interface. It will act as a benchmark for setup, assistance, and support. This
document is specific in camera technology (Axis P1346), Lens technology (Fujinon
8/80mm), ipConfigure ESM 5.1 build, and tools used to obtain optimal settings
(ipConfigure Thick Client LPR Console tool). The requirements of the project are run
with the following conditions expected: daylight hours, no extra light included (white or
infrared), and dawn to dusk timeframe for normal operations.

ipConfigure ESM 5.1
LPR Setup and Field Installation Guide
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Testing Scenarios _______________________________________________ 3
Axis Recommended Settings for P1346 Camera _________________ 4 – 10
Adjusting Camera LPR FOV _____________________________ 7 – 10
Explanation of Camera Settings & examples of image quality ___ 11 – 14
Sharpness Setting on P1346 _____________________________ 11
Brightness Setting on P1346 _____________________________ 11 – 12
Exposure Setting on P1346 _____________________________ 12
Ideal Settings on P1346 _____________________________ 12 – 14
LPR Console – thick client ESM configuration tool _______________ 12 – 18
ipConfigure ESM LPR Setup Tab _______________________________ 19 – 20
Server Updates _____________________________________________ 20
Lens Data _________________________________________________ 20
Environmental Considerations _______________________________ 20

ipConfigure ESM 5.1
LPR Setup and Field Installation Guide
3
TESTING SCENARIOS
This describes the various speeds at which the vehicles were traveling and the angle of
the read relative to the camera field of view (FOV) from center as the vehicle passes
through the image. Distance testing was done from 50 feet to 150 feet. The ideal FOV
width, based on distance out from the camera, is 1 to 1.5 cars wide. This will give you
the required pixel count (200 pixels wide) of the plate data to run the application
correctly. The camera was mounted at a maximum of 10 feet above ground.
IDEAL FRAME RATE FOR TRAFFIC SCENARIOS
Based on the different scenarios relative to the FOV and the motion through that FOV,
this part defines the best Frames Per Second setting to use.
STOP SIGN – completely stopped
Dead on shot (Straight, no + or - from Camera FOV center):
5 frames per second, setup in Configuration Tool or ESM
Angle of read + or - 5°to 20°of Camera FOV center:
5 frames per second, setup in Configuration Tool or ESM
NOT COMING TO STOP – but motion through the frame
5 - 15 mph, dead on shot:
5 frames per second, setup in Configuration Tool or ESM
16 - 20 mph, dead on shot:
5 frames per second, setup in Configuration Tool or ESM
5 – 15 mph, angle of read + or - 5°to 20°of Camera FOV center:
5 frames per second, setup in Configuration Tool or ESM
16 – 20 mph, angle of read + or - 5°to 20°of Camera FOV center:
5 frames per second, setup in Configuration Tool or ESM
5 – 15 mph, angle of read + or - 21°to 30°of Camera FOV center:
5 frames per second, setup in Configuration Tool or ESM

ipConfigure ESM 5.1
LPR Setup and Field Installation Guide
4
AXIS RECOMMENDED SETTINGS FOR P1346 CAMERA
INITIAL CAMERA SETUP
The first time you login to the camera you will be asked to apply a CAPTURE MODE -
we require this to be 2 MP 1600x1200 (4:3). If you have to do a default or a restore of
the camera, you will need to change this as well.
Ensure that the camera is running LPR firmware version (P1346_5_05_beta39_lpr2.bin)
and that the Fujinon 8/80mm lens is attached.
After firmware is successfully uploaded perform the following setup steps…
At initial login to camera or under Basic Setup Video Stream set to the following:
1 Set the capture and display resolution to 2 MP 1600x1200 (4:3) resolution
2 Set Compression level to 1
3 Save these settings

ipConfigure ESM 5.1
LPR Setup and Field Installation Guide
5
Under System Options Advanced Plain Config
1 Select ImageSource
2 Click on Select Group
3 Choose imaging Mode1.
(Click on Save to save your changes on the above, scroll back up to the top of
the page and click on Setup.)
Under Video & Audio Camera Settings set the following:
1 Set color level to 50
2 Set brightness to 65
3 Set sharpness to 15
4 Set contrast to 65
(The above settings should be used as a starting point for sunny operation.)

ipConfigure ESM 5.1
LPR Setup and Field Installation Guide
6
5 Set exposure priority to Low Noise
6 Set the Exposure Value to 70 (ideal range is 60-70)
7 Set min shutter speed to 1/17000 or 1/35000
8 Set max shutter speed to 1/120
9 Set Gain Min to 0dB
10 Set Gain Max to 9dB
11 Ensure that backlight compensation is disabled
12 Ensure that Wide Dynamic Range/Dynamic contrast is disabled
13 Set IR Cut filter mode to ON
14 Ensure that automatic iris adjustment is enabled
15 Click on Save to save these settings.

ipConfigure ESM 5.1
LPR Setup and Field Installation Guide
7
ADJUSTING CAMERA LPR FOV
Before continuing, it is important to understand that FOV and how this relates to the
camera and the optimal settings related to distance, height, FOV, depth of field, and
width of view. The following PDF file will help understand Camera Placement, width and
height of FOV and the LPR capture range.

ipConfigure ESM 5.1
LPR Setup and Field Installation Guide
8

ipConfigure ESM 5.1
LPR Setup and Field Installation Guide
9
Under Video & Audio Focus, we set the focus on the camera:
1 Draw a focus window around the area of interest, which will produce the best depth
of field and coverage for plate detection zones.
2 Put a check in the “Show pixel counter” box on the above and drag and it across the
FOV, which you want to act as the focus area for plate detection within the window.
3 Proceed through the auto focus adjustment steps. (This should be done with as little
motion in the scene as possible). You may need to focus this a few times if the
scene changes (experiences motion) throughout this process. You need to focus at
the point where the ideal plate size of 200 pixels exists on the screen. After
determining where the optimal FOV is you will need to stop a vehicle in the image
and perform this focus process.
a. Click on the button.
b. Click on the button.
c. Click on the button.

ipConfigure ESM 5.1
LPR Setup and Field Installation Guide
10
d. NOTE: You can click on the tab at this point to fine tune the
auto focus manually after it resets. This should be done if the image does
not automatically refocus to an ideal picture.
e. Click on the button to close this session of Focusing the
FOV on the camera.
NOTE: Perform advanced image settings if necessary with the following as a
reference. Below will be examples of the different scenarios for ideal image
settings. Due to the need to open these images in their native format, we
will not be embedding them into the document. We will be including a
zipped file attached to this document with all the jpgs, so you can blow them
up in InfranView, Windows Photo Gallery, or Windows Picture and Fax
Viewer and see the detail.