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LPR Scanning

The LPR Scanning interface provides real-time data and visual cues when using the handheld's License Plate Recognition (LPR) capabilities. Its primary purpose is to help field officers quickly identify vehicles in violation, track chalked vehicles, and effectively monitor their active scanning status during patrols. This article is intended for OPS-COM administrators and field enforcement personnel using the application.

Setup and Configuration

The LPR scanning interface relies on core system settings established in the backend, but the interface itself is ready to use natively within the app.

Admin Side: Administrators should ensure that lot grace periods, permit rules, and any vehicles of interest (hotlists) are accurately configured within the core OPS-COM administrative portal, as the handheld relies on this data to display the correct flags.

User Side (Enforcement Staff): No specific device setup is required. Enforcement officers simply need to log in to the OPS-COM Enforce app and navigate to the LPR scanning section with their device's camera or external LPR hardware active.

Using this Feature

The LPR screen is designed to present crucial enforcement data rapidly as the officer moves through a lot.

Key Information Displayed

  • Running Scan Total: Located on the right side of the screen, just above the recent read list. This number indicates the total amount of plate reads successfully captured during your current patrol session.

  • Camera Directional Arrow: An orange arrow displayed beside the plate image indicates exactly which camera (e.g., the right-side camera) captured the recent plate read.

Visual Cues and Status Indicators

The system uses colored flags to instantly communicate the status of a scanned license plate:

  • Red Flag: Indicates the scanned plate is currently in violation.

  • Green Flag: Indicates the scanned plate holds a valid permit or authorization.

  • Orange Flag: Indicates the vehicle has been chalked and is currently still within its allowed grace period.

If no cameras are configured to the account and area the Key Info, Visual Cues and Status Indicators like mentioned above will not show up when you open the LPR Scanning tab. In the top right corner there will be a small message letting you know there are no connected cameras and head to settings to add them. 

Available Actions and Buttons

  • Parking Lot Group/Zone drop-down menu: Tap these menus to select the group and the parking zone to scan through.

  • Plates-of-Interest Toggle: Tap this toggle located at the top of the panel to initiate alert-only scanning. Once selected, no standard permit validation will be performed, vehicles will continue to be chalked normally, and loud alert notifications will be presented on the device only if a specific vehicle of interest is seen.

  • Plate Entry: You have two options - Manual Entry and Voice Entry. Either type in the plate or read the plate out loud to be transcribed in order to find all details linked to it in the system.

Best Practices and Considerations

  • Always resume scanning after edits: Remember to tap the ON button after manually editing a plate read. Failing to toggle the scanner back to green means the system remains in offline mode, and subsequent plates will not be scanned as you continue your patrol.

  • Utilize alert-only mode for targeted patrols: Use the Plates-of-Interest toggle when specifically hunting for scofflaws, stolen vehicles, or banned users, rather than performing general parking enforcement. This streamlines the patrol process and prevents the officer from being distracted by standard permit validation alerts.