Background

Keihan Bus, established in 1922, is a long-standing public transportation provider with over 100 years of service in Japan. Its network spans Osaka, Kyoto, and Shiga prefectures, offering a wide range of safe and reliable transportation services and carrying over 10,000 passengers daily. The company also operates routes that serve major tourist destinations such as Kiyomizu-dera in Kyoto and Dotonbori in Osaka, as well as direct access to the venue of Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan—a major international event expected to attract millions of visitors from around the world. Through these services, Keihan Bus contributes to both regional mobility and Japan’s broader efforts to welcome global travelers.

Among all its depots, the Hirakata Depot manages the largest fleet and is regarded as one of the company’s key operational hubs. To enhance manpower dispatch efficiency in its bus depot, Keihan Bus implemented VIVOTEK’s intelligent traffic solution to improve operational workflows.

Challenge

As part of its relocation on March 23, 2025, the Hirakata Depot expanded its parking space and increased its fleet to around 120 vehicles, underscoring the need for a more efficient vehicle management system. Even before the move, manually verifying each bus’s parking location was labor-intensive and inefficient. Staff had to physically check where each bus was parked and update a whiteboard using numbered magnets to represent each bus.

Compounding the issue, new regulations introduced in April 2024 limiting driver work hours further exacerbated the shortage of bus drivers. This heightened the urgency of reducing operational workloads through digital transformation. To meet these challenges, Keihan Bus aimed to modernize its analog parking management process and streamline daily operations, especially at its busiest depot.

Solutions

To achieve operational efficiency, Keihan Bus, in close collaboration with IBS Japan and Mobile Create, implemented a Bus Depot Monitoring System powered by VIVOTEK’s license plate recognition (LPR) technology, using VIVOTEK’s IP9165-LPR-v2 JPN 12–40mm cameras. LPR cameras were installed throughout the depot to capture and recognize license plates of buses in real time during entry, exit, and parking.

The captured data is processed to identify the latest detected location of each vehicle, and the parking information is displayed on digital signage. This allows drivers to quickly find their assigned bus before beginning their shift, reducing unnecessary delays and confusion.

By replacing this analog system with digital monitoring, the company has significantly improved its efficiency and reduced the workload for both drivers and depot staff.

Benefit

According to Keihan Bus, choosing VIVOTEK’s solution has brought multiple advantages:

• Reliable Performance: The camera evaluation results were highly positive, with excellent recognition accuracy that inspired confidence in the system’s reliability. VIVOTEK’s WDR Pro technology effectively reduces the impact of harsh backlighting, such as strong afternoon sunlight, while its SNV (Supreme Night Visibility) ensures that license plates remain clearly visible even in low-light conditions.
• User-Friendly Setup: Compared to other options, VIVOTEK's system offered a more intuitive setup process.
• Strong Local Support: The local support provided by IBS Japan, including on-site assistance, was more responsive and comprehensive than that of other vendors.
• System Compatibility: The data transfer format was compatible with the depot’s existing infrastructure, allowing for a smoother integration process.

Customer Feedback

“After implementing the system, we monitored its performance and fine-tuned the settings to fit our operational environment. As a result, the accuracy has remained consistently high and stable over time.” “Knowing that long-term maintenance support is available makes us feel secure.” – Keihan Bus Hirakata Depot

“This was our first experience working on a solution-based project, and we started from scratch, feeling our way through. Thanks to the strong support from IBS Japan, we were able to successfully take off.” “Gaining hands-on experience with a camera-based solution has become a major source of confidence for us. Although this was our first time implementing an LPR solution, having this successful case now gives us the confidence to apply and propose it for future projects as well.” – Mobile Create Co., Ltd.