AUTOMATIC NUMBER PLATE RECOGNITION MARKET ANALYSIS

An automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) system is a technology that utilizes optical character recognition on images to read vehicle registration plates to create vehicle location data. Data collected through the ANPR system can be compared to the vehicle and people database available with the law enforcement agencies including vehicle and driver licensing agency and Police National Road Agency. The law enforcement applications of ANPR systems in traffic management, toll collection, parking time management, and speeding control are key contributors to the double-digit growth of the global ANPR market.

The global automatic number plate recognition market is estimated to be valued at US$ 1,149.0 million in 2021 and is expected to exhibit a CAGR of 12.4% over the forecast period (2021-2028).

Recent Developments:

• In May 2020, Q-Free ASA, a global leader in mobility solutions for smart city infrastructure, introduced vehicle analysis for Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ALPR) portfolio.
• In March 2020, Genetec Inc. announced the immediate availability of its next-generation mobile license plate recognition system. The new AutoVu SharpZ3 goes beyond traditional license plate identification and brings new levels of insight in vehicle analytics, situational awareness, and accuracy.

Europe held dominant position in the global automatic number plate recognition market in 2020, accounting for 34.0% share in terms of volume, followed by North America and Asia Pacific, respectively.

Figure 1. Global Automatic Number Plate Recognition Market Value (US$ Mn), by Region, 2020

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Market Dynamics- Drivers

Increasing demand for ANPR systems for traffic enforcement and management is expected to drive growth of the global automatic number plate recognition market during the forecast period. Increasing number of road accidents due to the breach in traffic law has become a common phenomenon across the globe. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 1.35 million people die each year due to road traffic crashes. According to the same source, road traffic crashes cost most countries around 3% of their gross domestic product. Traffic police departments across the globe are incorporating new technologies, in order to improve road safety. Automatic number plate recognition is an important tool in traffic management, as it ensures mobility and traffic safety. Improvement in the traffic system can enable free-flowing traffic, resulting in faster mobility and low financial loss. Moreover, this system does not require stopping the traffic or installation of hardware inside the vehicle, making it cost-effective.

Growing demand for superior security in the public sector is expected to propel the global automatic number plate recognition market growth over the forecast period. The automatic number plate recognition system is being used by security agencies and police departments so as to ensure public safety. ANPR is typically being used by police departments for three major purposes namely gathering intelligence, identification of vehicles used by criminals, and crime investigation. For instance, in the U.S., the police department has installed ANPR cameras across all 51 states for tracking vehicles used in a crime. This is due to the capability of ANPR systems to create databases in real-time.

Market Opportunities

Growing potential in parking management and tolling applications is likely to present lucrative growth opportunities in the global automatic number plate recognition market. Parking management tolling applications offer numerous opportunities for market players. ANPR is typically used for traffic enforcement applications, security, and surveillance at toll booths. The application of ANPR is expected to increase in both government commercial sectors for vehicle parking over the forecast period.   

Increasing use of cloud-based storage devices can provide major business opportunities in the global automatic number plate recognition market. The cloud-based ANPR is a novel solution present in the market, which is more efficient and effective than the existing system. Cloud-based ANPR offers access to a vast amount of databases from remote locations and is safer than current ANPR solutions. Moreover, cloud-based ANRP can process a vast amount of data, which is challenging with existing solutions.

Market Trends

Key companies are focused on various inorganic strategies mergers & acquisitions, partnerships, and collaborations, in order to enhance the market presence. For instance, in May 2015, Q-Free acquired Maltese parking management solutions company Traffiko, Ltd. Through this transaction Q-free is now able to deliver a complete range of solutions within the fast-growing parking management solutions sector. In February 2015, Cintel International Ltd partnered with Digital Recognition.  Under this relationship, Cintel will leverage its expertise in surveillance technologies for the public safety market with Digital Recognition’s innovative iSharp line of license plate recognition (LPR) Cameras.

ANPR technology is being increasingly used in various commercial spaces such as recreational parks, in order to collect visitor information. Moreover, ANR is also used by governments for law and traffic rule enforcements to ensure security and other surveillance applications. The use of ANPR in commercial spaces is expected to increase significantly in the near future due to rising investment in security and surveillance protocols.

Figure 2. Global Automatic Number Plate Recognition Market Share, By Application, 2020

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Key Takeaways of the Graph:

• On the basis of Application, the Security and Surveillance held dominant position in the market and accounted for 36.2% share in the global automatic number plate recognition market in 2020. The segment is expected to reach US$ 895.7 million in 2028, owing to the increasing adoption rate of ANPR system in the Security and Surveillance has increased in recent past to monitor terrorist activities, frauds and criminal cases.
• In 2020, the Vehicle Parking application type segment is expected to grow at highest CAGR in the global automatic number plate recognition market and is expected to be valued US$ 575.5 million by 2028 owing to the increasing demand for ANPR system in Vehicle Parking application in developed nations such as the UK and US.

Market Dynamics- Restraints

Non-uniformity in license in plate design and language constraints is expected to restrain growth of the global automatic number plate recognition market growth over the forecast period. Although ANPR offers numerous benefits, it also faces various challenges in implementation. Non-uniformity in terms of size, design, font size, and text pattern on a license plate is a key challenge faced by the industry. The ANPR cameras are required the differences in the number plates and must process the capability to identify the differences in number plates and should have the ability to identify the non-uniform character. The language barrier is another primary challenge for growth of the ANPR systems market in different countries, as commuters use local languages on their number plates.

Rising intrusion on the privacy of the population is expected to hamper the global automatic number plate recognition market growth over the forecast period. Increased utilization of ANPR systems has led to the disclosure of personal data to government agencies. ANPR systems record data including movement of vehicles at a particular time and location and also capture images in the front seat of a vehicle and store them for a significant amount of time. This increases privacy concerns among people, restraining growth for ANPR systems. Information collected is pooled to the regional sharing systems and thus an enormous database of motorists is being maintained and retained for a long time.

Competitive Section

Major companies operating in the global automatic number plate recognition market are ARH, Inc., Vigilant Solutions, Bosch Security Systems, Inc., Tattile S.r.l., Digital Recognition Systems, Ltd., Siemens AG, ELSAG North America LLC, Q-Free ASA, Genetec, Inc., PIPS Technology Ltd., and NDI Recognition Systems LLC.