Overview
When a camera stops reading license plates, Corvid tracks how long it has been quiet and moves it through two warning states: Inactive and Offline. These are LPR-specific signals — they reflect plate-reading activity, not the camera's video stream.
Understanding the difference helps you decide whether something needs immediate attention or can wait.
🟡 Inactive
The camera was reading plates normally, but the system hasn't seen any new plate reads in a while.
• Think of it as: "the camera's gone quiet" — it may still be connected, just not picking anything up.
• This kicks in after 2 hours of no plate reads.
• Not necessarily broken — could be low traffic, a temporary positioning issue, or a brief hiccup.
🔴 Offline
The camera has been silent for so long that the system considers it fully down for LPR purposes.
• Think of it as: "we've given up waiting — something is likely wrong."
• This kicks in 12 hours after going Inactive (~14 hours total from the last plate read).
• At this point, the camera almost certainly needs attention — check connectivity, positioning, or hardware.
How it progresses
The transition always follows the same sequence:
Last plate read → Online │ ├─ 2h no reads ──► Inactive │ └─ 12h more ─────► Offline
A camera moves back to Online as soon as it reads a new plate.
When to take action
• Inactive — Monitor it. Low traffic or a brief disruption can cause this. No immediate action required unless it persists.
• Offline — Act on it. Check the camera's physical connection, field of view, and LPR configuration. The camera has been unresponsive for over 14 hours.