Chinese Traffic Police Use AI Glasses to Spot Problematic Vehicles in 30 Seconds

On April 1st, on Jinlong Road in Haikou, Hainan Province, several traffic police

officers wearing AI smart glasses conducted “non-intrusive” screening of passing

vehicles. The device, which closely resembles a standard pair of black-rimmed

glasses, features buttons and a battery compartment on the temples. By simply sliding

a button and scanning the flow of traffic, the officers could see green recognition

frames and vehicle information pop up on the lenses.

If a vehicle is found to have an abnormal license plate, overdue annual inspection, or

unresolved violations, the glasses immediately issue a voice alert and vibrate slightly.

For vehicles without issues, the display shows “Not Scheduled,” ensuring that the

process does not disrupt normal traffic flow.

“In the past, checking vehicles required stopping each one and verifying the

registration documents, which often caused traffic jams during peak hours,” said

Huang He, an officer from the Mobile Brigade of the Haikou Public Security Traffic

Management Detachment. He explained that the AI glasses integrate a high-definition

camera and intelligent vehicle comparison capabilities, allowing for real-time capture,

recognition, and law enforcement recording from a first-person perspective, with

backend comparisons taking just 30 seconds. Auxiliary police officer Lin Youxian

added that before using the device, they input data on vehicles overdue for inspection

or scrapping, enabling the glasses to quickly identify “problematic vehicles” for

precise interception. The device also supports external batteries and charging cases to

meet the needs of long shifts.

Haikou traffic police have stated that they will continue to expand the use of AI

glasses in scenarios such as checkpoint control and vehicle management, leveraging

smart policing to ensure the safety of citizens on the road.