A Custom Processor for an FPGA-based Platform for Automatic License Plate Recognition

Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR) systems are used to identify a vehicle from an image that contains its plate. These systems have applications in a wide range of areas, such as toll payment, border control, and traffic surveillance. ALPR systems demand high computational power, especially for real-time applications. In this context, this paper describes the development of a custom processor designed to accelerate part of the processing of an FPGA-based ALPR system. This processor reduces the latency for computing the most expensive function of the ALPR system in almost 23 times, thus reducing the time necessary for detection of a vehicle plate.