JP2001084335A - Paper sheets dividing device and paper sheets dividing method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the recognition rate of the dividing destination of paper sheets and to improve the processing efficiency of the paper sheets by dropping the allocating priority of a picture with respect to a recognition part where the recognition rate of the dividing destination is lower than an average by not more than a prescribed rate among plural recognition parts. SOLUTION: A discrimination part 20 has 24 recognition units 22 and has three control units 24a to 24c allocating picture data which are sequentially sent from a reading part 6 to the recognition units 22. When the number of processing times on picture data in the recognition unit 22 making a response is not less than 100 times, the control unit 24a compares the recognition rate of the recognition unit with the average of the recognition rates of all the recognition units. When the recognition rate of the recognition unit 22 is lower than the average by not less than 30%, the recognition unit 22 is registered in a second table. When the other recognition unit 22 is recognized, the unit of the lower recognition rate is registered in a lower order. Only when the recognition unit registered in a first table is busy, the second table is used.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a paper sheet sorting apparatus for reading an image of a paper sheet such as a postal matter such as a sealed letter or a postcard, discriminating a sorting destination, and sorting and accumulating the sorted sorting destination. The present invention relates to a paper sheet sorting method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a sheet sorting apparatus, a supply unit for supplying a plurality of sheets, an extraction unit for extracting the supplied sheets one by one, and a reading unit for reading an image of the extracted sheets. Department,
2. Description of the Related Art There has been known an image forming apparatus having a discriminating unit for discriminating a sorting destination of a paper sheet from a read image and a sorting and stacking unit for sorting and stacking the paper sheets according to a result of the determination by the discriminating unit.

[0003] A discriminating unit processes the image data sent from the reading unit to selectively recognize the sort destination of the sheet, and selectively sends the image data sent from the reading unit to the plurality of recognizing units. It has a control unit for sorting.

When the image data is sent to the control section, an assignment table for determining the order of assigning the image data to the plurality of recognition sections is referred to, and the image data is sent to a predetermined recognition section. The recognition unit that receives the image data refers to the database on the sorting destination of the paper sheet, recognizes the sorting destination of the paper sheet, and transmits the recognition result to the control unit. The control unit determines the sorting destination of the paper sheet based on the transmitted recognition result.

At this time, the control unit registers the recognition unit that has transmitted the recognition result again at the end of the assignment table.

[0006]

However, in the above-described conventional apparatus, since the recognizing unit that has transmitted the recognition result is re-registered at the end of the allocation table in order, the recognizing unit whose recognition rate has been reduced due to a failure of the board or the like. Is assigned in the same manner as a normal recognition unit. For this reason, if there is a recognition unit having a reduced recognition rate, there is a problem that the reduction in the recognition rate affects the entire apparatus, and the recognition rate is reduced as a whole of the sorting apparatus.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to increase the recognition rate of a sorting destination of a paper sheet and improve the processing efficiency of the paper sheet. , And a paper sheet sorting method.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, a sheet sorting apparatus according to the present invention comprises a reading means for reading an image of a plurality of sheets, and a processing means for processing the image read by the reading means. A plurality of recognition units for recognizing the sorting destination of each sheet, a control unit for assigning the image read by the reading unit to the plurality of recognizing units, and a paper sheet to the sorting destination recognized by the plurality of recognizing units. Classification accumulating means for classifying and accumulating classes, wherein the control means is configured to, among the plurality of recognition units, the recognition rate of the classification destination is lower than the average of the recognition rates of all the recognition units by a predetermined ratio or more. When the assignment priority is lowered and an image cannot be assigned to another recognition unit, the image is assigned to the recognition unit whose assignment priority has been lowered.

Further, the sheet sorting apparatus of the present invention has a reading means for reading an image of a plurality of sheets and a discriminating means for processing the image read by the reading means to determine a sorting destination of each sheet. Means, and sorting and stacking means for sorting and stacking each sheet at the sorting destination determined by the determining means, wherein the determining means processes the image read by the reading means and sorts each sheet by the sorting means. A first table in which a plurality of recognizing units for recognizing a plurality of recognition units, among the plurality of recognizing units, a recognizing unit in which a recognition rate of a sorting destination of a paper sheet exceeds a predetermined level is registered; A second table in which recognition units whose leaf classification destinations are at or below the predetermined level are registered, and an image read by the reading unit is given priority over a recognition unit registered in the second table; And assign it to the recognition unit registered in the first table At the same time, based on the recognition result about the sorting destination of the sheet from each recognition unit, the recognition rate of the recognition unit that returns the recognition result is determined, and the recognition rate of the recognition unit is changed to another recognition unit. And a control unit that registers the recognition unit in the second table when the recognition ratio is lower than the average of the recognition rate by a predetermined ratio or more.

Further, according to the invention, when the control unit registers a recognition unit whose recognition rate is lower than the average of the recognition rates of the other recognition units by a predetermined ratio or more in the second table, the control unit stores the recognition unit in the second table. When another recognition unit is already registered, the recognition rates of these recognition units are compared, and the recognition units are registered in descending order of the recognition rate.

Further, the paper sheet sorting apparatus of the present invention is a reading means for reading images of a plurality of paper sheets, and processes the image read by the reading means to determine a sorting destination of the paper sheets. A discriminating means, and a sorting / stacking means for sorting and accumulating the sheets at the sorting destination determined by the discriminating means, wherein the discriminating means processes the image read by the reading means and A first table in which a plurality of recognizing units for recognizing the sorting destinations and a recognizing unit in which the recognition rate of the sorting destination of the paper sheet exceeds a predetermined level among the plurality of recognizing units are registered. A second table in which recognition units whose recognition rates of the sorting destinations of the paper sheets are equal to or lower than the predetermined level are registered; and a third table in which the number of times of processing of the image of each recognition unit is stored. Recognition unit registered in the second table with the image read by The recognition unit is preferentially assigned to the recognition unit registered in the first table, and based on the recognition result regarding the sorting destination of the paper sheet received from each recognition unit, the image of the recognition unit that transmitted the recognition result is transmitted. The number of processes is obtained from the third table, and the recognition rate of the recognition unit is determined on the condition that the number of processes exceeds a predetermined number.
A control unit that registers the recognition unit in the second table when the recognition rate of the recognition unit is lower than the average of the recognition rates of the other recognition units by a predetermined ratio or more.

[0012] According to the above-mentioned invention, when the control unit registers, in the second table, a recognition unit whose recognition rate is lower than the average of the recognition rates of the other recognition units by a predetermined ratio or more, the control unit stores the recognition unit in the second table. When another recognition unit is already registered, the recognition rates of these recognition units are compared, and the recognition units are registered in descending order of the recognition rate.

Further, according to the paper sheet sorting method of the present invention,
The image of a plurality of sheets is read, the read image is assigned to a plurality of recognizing units, the image assigned by each recognizing unit is processed, and the sorting destination of the corresponding sheet is recognized, and the recognized sorting destination is recognized. In which the recognition rate of the sorting destination among the plurality of recognition units is lower than the average of the recognition rates of all the recognition units by a predetermined ratio or more, and the image assignment priority is reduced. When an image cannot be assigned to another recognition unit, the image is assigned to a recognition unit whose assignment priority is lowered.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a paper sheet sorting apparatus 1 (hereinafter, simply referred to as a sorting apparatus 1) according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The sorting apparatus 1 accommodates a plurality of paper sheets on each of which information on a sorting destination is described in a standing position with one end thereof aligned, and sequentially supplies these paper sheets to a predetermined take-out position. A supply unit 2 is provided.

A take-out unit 4 that takes out the sheets supplied by the supply unit 2 one by one onto the main transport path 3 is provided at a take-out position of the sheets located at the right end in the drawing of the supply unit 2. Is provided.

On the main transport path 3 on the downstream side of the take-out section 4, there is provided a positioning section 5 for positioning the transport posture of the paper sheets.
On a transport path branched from the main transport path 3 on the downstream side in the transport direction of the alignment unit 5, there is provided an elimination stacking unit (not shown) that eliminates paper sheets that have been detected by the sensor (not shown) as having a defective transport attitude. Is provided.

On the main transport path 3 downstream of the alignment unit 5 in the transport direction, there is provided a reading unit 6 for reading an image on a surface on which information on the sorting destination of the paper sheets is described.

On the main transport path 3 further downstream of the reading section 6 in the transport direction, there is provided a printing section 8 for printing a bar code relating to the sorting destination of the sheets on the sheets as required.

The main transport path 3 on the downstream side in the transport direction of the printing unit 8
Is stretched for a relatively long time to dry the ink on which the barcode is printed, and at the end of the main transport path 3, a sorting / stacking unit 14 for sorting and stacking the paper sheets into a predetermined sorting pocket 15 is provided. It is connected.

The section stacking section 14 has a plurality of section pockets 15 divided into a plurality of steps and a plurality of rows.
The section stacking section 14 of the present embodiment has, for example, 52 section pockets 15 in four rows and 13 rows. Above each section pocket 15, section gates (not shown) are provided, respectively, and paper sheets are sorted and accumulated in predetermined section pockets 15 by selectively switching these section gates. .

Near the end of the main transport path 3 toward the sorting / stacking section 14, there are provided a plurality of switching gates (not shown) corresponding to each stage path section 16 of the sorting / stacking section 14, and selectively switch each switching gate. Thus, the main transport path 3 is selectively connected to any one of a plurality of stages through each stage path unit 16.

An operation panel 18 for receiving various input operations by an operator is provided on the right front side of the sorting apparatus 1 in the drawing.

Thus, a plurality of sheets supplied through the supply section 2 are sequentially taken out one by one via the take-out section 4 and conveyed through the main conveyance path 3. When the paper sheet conveyed via the main conveyance path 3 is conveyed and passed through the reading section 6, the image thereof is read. The read image is processed by a later-described determination unit connected to the reading unit 6, and the determination unit determines the sorting destination of the sheet. The sheets that have passed through the reading unit 6 are sorted and accumulated in a predetermined sorting pocket 15 in accordance with the result of the determination by the determining unit.

Next, the above-mentioned discriminating section will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 2, the discriminating section 20 has a plurality of database units 21 storing data relating to the sorting destination of paper sheets, and refers to the data registered in these database units 21. And a plurality of recognition units 22 that process the image data sent from the reading unit 6 and recognize the sorting destination of the paper sheet.
In the present embodiment, the determination unit 20 has 24 recognition units 22.

The discrimination unit 20 has three control units 24a to 24c for assigning image data sequentially sent from the reading unit 6 to a plurality of recognition units 22. Among these three control units, the control unit 24a that receives image data from the reading unit 6 functions as a master unit and controls the other sub units 24b and 24c.

Further, the discrimination unit 20 is provided for each recognition unit 2.
2, a plurality of image display units 26 for displaying an image being processed and transmitting / receiving various data to / from a video coding system (VCS) not shown here. The VCS receives the image data that could not be recognized by the recognition unit 22 together with the processing number of the paper sheet, and returns data coded by the operator together with the processing number.

The control unit 24a functioning as a master unit stores, for example, a first table as shown in FIG. 3 in which the allocation order of the recognition units 22 having a normal level recognition rate is stored. For example, a second table storing the allocation order of the units 22 as shown in FIG. 4 and the number of image data supplied to each recognition unit 22, the number of recognitions that can recognize the sorting destination, the recognition rate, and the like are stored for each unit. For example, it has a recognition rate table as shown in FIG.

Next, the discriminating operation of the discriminating section 20 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

When the control unit 24a of the discrimination unit 20 receives the image data sent from the reading unit 6 together with the processing number of the paper sheet (step 1; YES), the control unit 24a returns to the state shown in FIG. Referring to the first table, it is determined whether image data can be assigned to any of the recognition units 22 registered in the first table (step 2). If the result of this determination is that image data can be assigned to the recognition units 22 registered in the first table (step 2; YES), the control unit 24a will select one of the recognition units 22 registered in the first table. Recognition unit 2 with the highest assignment rank
2, image data is allocated together with the processing number of the paper sheet (step 3).

On the other hand, as a result of the determination in step 2, all the recognition units 22 registered in the first table are in a busy state, and it is impossible to assign image data to these recognition units 22 (step 2; NO), the control unit 24a allocates the image data to the recognition unit 22 having the highest allocation order among the recognition units 22 registered in the second table (step 4).

In any case, the recognition unit 22 to which the image data has been assigned by the control unit 24a,
With reference to the database 21, the sorting destination of the paper sheet is recognized (step 5). Recognition unit 22 of step 5
, The data on the sorting destination of the paper sheet, together with the processing number of the paper sheet, are stored in the control unit 24.
(Step 6).

At this time, the control unit 24a sends the data about the sorting destination returned in step 6 to the control unit (not shown) of the sorting apparatus 1 together with the processing number of the paper sheet, and the recognition rate table shown in FIG. And the number of processing of the image data by the recognition unit 22 that has returned the answer, that is, the number of supply of the image data to the recognition unit 22 is checked, and it is determined whether the number of supply is 100 times or more, for example. A judgment is made (step 7). As a result of this decision,
When it is determined that the number of times of processing of the image data is 100 or more (step 7; YES), the recognition rate of the recognition unit is compared with the average of the recognition rates of all the recognition units,
It is determined whether or not the recognition rate of the recognition unit is lower than the average by, for example, 30% or more (step 8). If it is determined that the recognition rate of the recognition unit 22 is lower than the average by 30% or more (YES in step 8), the recognition unit 22 is registered in the second table illustrated in FIG. 4 (step 9). . At this time, if another recognition unit 22 is already registered in the second table, a recognition unit with a lower recognition rate is registered in a lower rank.

Image data is allocated to the recognition units 22 registered in the second table only when all the recognition units 22 registered in the first table are in a busy state. , Image data is sequentially allocated to the recognition units 22 stored in the first table.

On the other hand, in step 7, the recognition unit 22
It is determined that the number of times the image data is processed is less than 100,
If it is determined that the difference between the recognition rate and the average recognition rate is, for example, less than 30% (step 7; NO, or step 8; NO), the recognition unit 22 is registered at the bottom of the first table. (Step 10).

As described above, according to the present embodiment, of the plurality of recognition units 22 of the discrimination unit 20 for discriminating the sort destination of a sheet, a recognition unit having a relatively high recognition rate is registered. One table and a second table in which units with a relatively low recognition rate are registered are prepared, and in normal processing, image data is assigned to the recognition units registered in the first table, and registered in the first table. The image data is assigned to the recognition units registered in the second table only when all the recognition units are busy. For this reason, when the recognition rate of a specific recognition unit among the plurality of recognition units is reduced, the recognition unit whose recognition rate has been reduced is assigned to the second unit having the lower priority.
The information can be registered in the table, and the influence of the reduction of the recognition rate by the recognition unit can be minimized. As a result, a reduction in the recognition rate of the sorting apparatus 1 as a whole can be suppressed, the recognition rate of the entire apparatus can be increased, and the processing efficiency of paper sheets can be increased.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but can be variously modified within the scope of the present invention.

[0040]

As described above, the paper sheet sorting apparatus of the present invention has the above-described configuration and operation, so that the recognition rate of the paper sheet sorting destination can be increased. The processing efficiency of paper sheets can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing a paper sheet sorting apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining a configuration of a discriminating unit incorporated in the sheet sorting apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a first table of a control unit in a determination unit in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a second table of a control unit provided in a determination unit of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a recognition rate table of a control unit in the determination unit of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining a discriminating operation in a discriminating unit of FIG. 2;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Sheet sorting apparatus, 2 ... Supply part, 3 ... Main conveyance path, 4 ... Unloading part, 5 ... Alignment part, 6 ... Reading part, 8 ... Printing part, 14 ... Section collecting part, 15 ... Section pocket Reference numeral 16: Step path unit, 18: operation panel, 20: discrimination unit, 21: database unit, 22: recognition unit, 24a to 24c: control unit, 26: image display unit.

Claims (6)

[Claims] A reading unit that reads an image of a plurality of paper sheets; a plurality of recognition units that process the image read by the reading unit to recognize a sorting destination of each paper sheet; Control means for allocating the read image to the plurality of recognition units, and sorting and stacking means for sorting and stacking the paper sheets at sorting destinations recognized by the plurality of recognition units; Among the recognition units, the recognition rates of the classification destinations are lower than the average of the recognition rates of all the recognition units by a predetermined ratio or more, and the image allocation priority is reduced. If the image cannot be allocated to another recognition unit, the allocation priority is reduced. A paper sheet sorting apparatus, wherein an image is assigned to a lowered recognition unit. 2. A reading means for reading an image of a plurality of paper sheets, a determining means for processing an image read by the reading means to determine a sorting destination of each paper sheet, and a sorting means determined by the determining means. A sorting and stacking unit for sorting and stacking each of the paper sheets; a plurality of recognition units for processing the image read by the reading unit to recognize a sorting destination of each of the paper sheets; A first table in which recognition units whose paper sheet sorting destinations have a recognition rate exceeding a predetermined level among a plurality of recognition units are registered; A second table in which recognition units that are lower than a predetermined level are registered, and the image read by the reading unit is stored in the second table.
While assigning to the recognition unit registered in the first table in preference to the recognition unit registered in the table,
Based on the recognition result regarding the sorting destination of the sheet from each recognition unit, the recognition rate of the recognition unit that transmitted the recognition result is determined, and the recognition rate of the recognition unit is recognized by another recognition unit. And a control unit for registering the recognition unit in the second table when the recognition unit is lower than the average of the ratio by a predetermined ratio or more. 3. The control unit, when registering, in the second table, a recognition unit whose recognition rate is lower than the average of the recognition rates of the other recognition units by a predetermined ratio or more, another registration unit that has already been registered in the second table. 3. The paper sheet sorting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein when there are recognition units, the recognition rates of these recognition units are compared and registered in descending order of the recognition ratio. 4. A reading means for reading an image of a plurality of paper sheets, a determining means for processing an image read by the reading means and determining a sorting destination of the paper sheet, A sorting / stacking unit for sorting and stacking the paper sheets at a sorting destination; and a plurality of recognition units for processing the image read by the reading unit and recognizing the sorting destination of each paper sheet. And a first table in which recognition units whose paper sheet sorting destinations among the plurality of recognition units exceed a predetermined level are registered, and a recognition rate of paper sheet sorting destinations among the plurality of recognition units. Has a second table in which the recognition units that are equal to or lower than the predetermined level are registered, and a third table in which the number of times of processing of the image of each of the recognition units is stored, and the image read by the reading unit is stored in the second table. Priority over the recognition unit registered in the first
In addition to allocating to the recognition units registered in the table, based on receiving the recognition result regarding the sorting destination of the sheet from each recognition unit, the number of times of processing of the image of the recognition unit that has transmitted the recognition result is set to the third number. Acquired from the table, the recognition rate of the relevant recognition unit is determined on the condition that the number of processes exceeds a predetermined number, and the recognition rate of the relevant recognition unit is lower than the average of the recognition rates of the other recognition units by a predetermined rate or more. And a control unit for registering the recognition unit in the second table in a case. 5. The control unit, when registering, in the second table, a recognition unit whose recognition rate is lower than the average of the recognition rates of the other recognition units by a predetermined ratio or more, is different from the recognition unit already registered in the second table. 5. The paper sheet sorting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein when there are recognition units, the recognition rates of these recognition units are compared and registered in descending order of the recognition ratio. 6. A method for reading images of a plurality of paper sheets, allocating the read images to a plurality of recognition units, processing the allocated images by each recognition unit, and recognizing a corresponding sorting destination of the paper sheets. In the paper sheet sorting method of sorting and accumulating the paper sheets at the recognized sorting destination, the recognition rate of the sorting destination among the plurality of recognition units is lower than the average of the recognition rates of all the recognition units by a predetermined ratio or more. A paper sheet sorting method characterized by lowering an image assignment priority and assigning an image to a recognition unit having a lower assignment priority when an image cannot be assigned to another recognition unit.