ANPR car park barrier system with live space counting

How the ANPR car park barrier system works

1. 1

   Plate read at the entry barrier

   An ANPR camera just behind the entry barrier reads the plate as the vehicle arrives and sends it to the access control unit to be checked.

2. 2

   The barrier opens and the count goes up

   If the plate is valid, the access control unit opens the barrier, and the same open signal goes to the NCT100 counter, which adds one to the count.

3. 3

   Each exit takes the count down

   The exit barrier works the same way, and each vehicle leaving takes one off the count, so the counter always knows how many spaces are left.

4. 4

   Full means full

   When the car park is full, the NCT100 shows FULL on the sign and sends an inhibit signal to the access control unit, so no more vehicles are let in until one leaves.

Because the count comes from the barrier-open signals, no extra road loops are needed for counting. How the plates themselves are read and managed is covered on the ANPR access control system page.

Stop entry when the car park is full

• The NCT100 counter keeps up to four counts, so one module can cover separate car parks or zones. It is programmed from its own keypad, with no PC needed.
• Full and nearly full: alarm outputs switch when a count reaches a set value, for FULL signs, traffic lights or the barrier inhibit, and pre-alarm outputs can warn before the car park fills.
• Space-available signs: the NCT100 drives up to four signs over RS485, such as the full-colour message sign at the entrance or multi-level signs for car parks on more than one level.
• A count you can trust: counts are kept through power cuts, and the counters can reset to set values each day or from a reset input.

For several car parks or levels managed together, see car park counting and guidance.

Barrier-controlled or barrierless ANPR parking?

Many ANPR car parks have no barrier at all. Which kind a site needs depends on whether unauthorised vehicles have to be kept out or can be dealt with afterwards.

This page covers the barrier-controlled kind.

Shared car parks with separate allocations

Where several companies share one car park, a CPC202 or CPC204 shared occupancy controller checks each credential at the barrier and stops each group going over its allocation of spaces: up to four groups on the CPC204 and two on the CPC202, with a sign for each group's spaces. It takes Wiegand readers, the output format the ANPR Lumo uses; talk to our technical team about setting it up for number plates.

What goes into an ANPR barrier installation

• An ANPR camera on each lane: the Nedap ANPR Lumo, which we distribute and support, just behind each entry and exit barrier. It reads plates at 2 to 10 metres across a lane up to 3.5 metres wide.
• Stainless steel posts, designed and manufactured in South Wales: the SSP-ANPR, or the SSDP-ANPR with red and green traffic lights.
• Barriers from the barrier manufacturer; the car parks in our case studies use CAME and FAAC.
• The access control unit: Norpass3 with CRC22x controllers, a CPC202 or CPC204 for shared car parks, or the site's existing system.
• The NCT100 counter, taking the barrier-open signals from the entry and exit lanes.
• A space-available sign at the entrance, and level signs for multi-storey car parks.

What affects the cost of an ANPR car park system

• The number of entry and exit lanes, each with its own camera and barrier
• New barriers or reusing the ones on site
• The number and type of space signs
• Whether the car park is shared and needs separate allocations
• Connecting to an existing access control system or installing Norpass3, which is licence-free
• Groundworks and cabling between the lanes, the controllers and the signs

Our blog has a fuller breakdown in how much an ANPR system costs. We supply through installers and distributors, so the price for your car park comes from the installer after a survey. Our sales team can help put the equipment list together: sales@nortechcontrol.com.