JP2007222747A - Mail processing apparatus and mail processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mail processing apparatus capable of improving the accuracy of recognizing addresses without imposing a heavy work load on an operator. <P>SOLUTION: The mail processing apparatus is comprised of a reading means for reading an image of a mail piece, a detection means for detecting an address entry area out of the image read by the reading means, a display means for displaying the address entry area detected by the detection means on the image of the mail piece, and a receiving means for receiving a correction input and a confirmed input of the address entry area displayed on the display means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention reads a postal image, recognizes character information included in the read image, determines a postal address based on the recognized character information, and classifies the postal item based on the determination result The present invention relates to a processing apparatus and a mail processing method.

  A sorting machine that automatically sorts mails is known (see Patent Document 1). This sorter has, for example, a destination recognition device that recognizes destination information described on a paper sheet such as a mail using a pattern recognition technique. The sorting machine having the destination recognition device sorts the paper sheets into predetermined sorting pockets based on the recognition result by the destination recognition device. A destination recognition device used in such a sorter detects an area in which destination information is described from a paper sheet image read from a paper sheet by a scanner or the like, and recognizes the destination information. ing.

Some paper sheets processed by the sorter as described above are provided with windows. In such paper sheets, destination information is often written inside the window. For this reason, the destination recognition apparatus detects a window area from a paper sheet image, and recognizes the destination information from the detected window area.
JP 2003-203202 A

  In the sorting machine described above, the mail cannot be correctly sorted unless the address of the mail is correctly recognized. In order to correctly recognize a mail address, correct detection of the address description area is important. There is a method to improve the destination recognition accuracy by inputting the destination description area by the operator, but it is a burden on the operator to completely entrust the input of the destination description area to the operator, resulting in a decrease in sorting processing efficiency. End up.

  An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems, and provides a postal matter processing apparatus and a postal matter processing method capable of improving destination recognition accuracy without imposing a heavy burden on an operator. There is to do.

  The mail processing apparatus and mail processing method of the present invention are configured as follows.

  (1) A mail processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a reading unit that reads an image of a mail piece, a detection unit that detects a destination description area from the image read by the reading unit, and a destination description detected by the detection unit. Display means for displaying the area on the mail image, and receiving means for receiving correction input and confirmation input of the destination description area displayed on the display means.

  (2) In the mail processing method according to the present invention, an image of a mail is read, a destination description area is detected from the read image, the detected destination description area is displayed on a postal image, and the display The corrected input and finalized input of the destination address description area received are accepted.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the mail processing apparatus and mail processing method which can aim at the improvement of a destination recognition precision without imposing big burden on an operator can be provided.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  Mails to be processed by the mail processing apparatus described below include bulk letters (direct letters, bills of the same format such as bills). In order to improve the recognition rate of the destination described in such a bulk letter, there is a method of notifying the destination description area to an OCR (optical character recognition device) in advance by specifying a cursor by an operator operation. As shown in FIG. 3, the cursor designation method by the operator operation is to display the entire image of the mail piece on the operation panel of the mail piece processing apparatus, and to display the destination description area visually confirmed by the operator using the pointing device. There is a way to specify. In other words, as shown in FIG. 3, a method is used in which a starting point is determined by a pointing device and an area is designated by drawing a rectangle by moving the cursor (designation of the entire area by the operator).

  In this method, the operation is complicated and the burden on the operator is large. Moreover, since it is the operator who determines the starting point and size of the rectangle, it is likely to be uncertain due to individual differences. Therefore, in this mail processing apparatus, in addition to the above, it is possible to employ a destination description area setting method that suppresses the burden on the operator as described below.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a mail processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the mail processing apparatus includes a reading unit 1, a barcode printing / reading unit 2, a sorting unit 3, and a control unit 4.

  The reading unit 1 includes a supply unit 11, a foreign matter / hardness / metal detection unit 12, a foreign matter-excluded postal matter exclusion unit 13, a positioning unit 14, a two-sheet detection unit 15, a poorly-conveyed postal matter exclusion unit 16, A reading unit 17 and a display / input unit 18 are provided. The supply unit 11 supplies a plurality of postal items to be processed into the airframe. The foreign object / hardness / metal detecting unit 12 detects whether the supplied mail contains no foreign object or metal. The foreign matter presence mail rejection unit 13 excludes a foreign matter presence postal matter based on the detection result of the foreign matter by the foreign matter / hardness / metal detection unit 12. The positioning unit 14 positions postal matter that has not been excluded by the postal matter exclusion unit 13 in the presence of a foreign object. The two-sheet picking-up detection unit 15 detects that two pieces of mail positioned by the positioning unit 14 do not overlap. The postal matter defective mail removal unit 16 excludes postal items having a poor transport posture.

  The reading unit 17 functions as a reading unit, a detection unit, and a recognition unit, and detects a destination description area from a photoelectric conversion unit that optically reads a postal image and a postal image read by the photoelectric conversion unit. And an OCR unit for recognizing characters. The display / input unit 18 includes an operation panel as a display unit and a pointing device (for example, a mouse) as an input unit. The operation panel displays the detected destination description area on the mail image as shown in FIG. 4, and a rectangle indicating the displayed destination description area via the pointing device as shown in FIG. Coordinate correction input and confirmation input are accepted.

  Here, the destination description area setting process (area correction designation by the operator) by the reading unit 17 and the display / input unit 18 will be described in detail. Image data of postal items (representative postal items (first postal items in a plurality of postal items having the same format)) collected by the photoelectric conversion unit constituting the reading unit 17 is sent to the OCR unit, and the OCR unit is a postal unit. While the object is in the delay unit provided in the reading unit 17, the correction input and the confirmation input of the rectangular coordinates indicating the destination description area are accepted, and the zip code and the destination of each postal matter based on the determined destination description area Recognize

  When the OCR unit can detect the destination description area candidate, the detected destination description area candidate is displayed on the operation panel. The operator visually confirms the destination description area candidate displayed on the operation panel, and corrects and inputs rectangular coordinates indicating the destination description area candidate using a pointing device as necessary. That is, the operator can change the position and size of the destination description area candidate using the pointing device. When the destination description area candidate is correctly detected by the OCR unit, the operator does not need to correct the destination description area candidate, and only the confirmation input is required. When a part of the destination description area candidate is not correctly detected by the OCR unit, the operator may correct only a part of the destination description area candidate and input it. As a result, the trouble of the operator can be saved, the specification accuracy of the destination description area is improved, and the problem that the destination description area becomes unstable due to the individual difference of the operator can be solved.

  By determining the destination description area for the representative mail piece in the plurality of mail pieces of the same format, the postal code and the destination of each mail piece (including the representative mail piece) are recognized from the determined destination description area.

  The barcode printing / reading unit 2 includes a barcode printing unit 21 and a barcode reading unit (for confirmation) 22. The barcode printing unit 21 prints a barcode indicating the recognized zip code and destination on the mail. The barcode reader 22 reads the printed barcode and confirms that the barcode has been printed correctly.

  The sorting unit 3 includes a plurality of sorting boxes 31 and a paper card issuer 32. The sorting unit 3 sorts mail items into a plurality of sorting boxes 31 based on the recognized zip code and destination. The paper card issuer 32 issues a paper card corresponding to the processing result.

  The control unit 4 controls the entire mail processing by the mail processing apparatus. For example, the result of recognition by the reading unit 1 is notified to the sorting unit 3, and the sorting of the mail is controlled.

  Here, with reference to FIG. 2, a flow of mail processing by the mail processing apparatus, for example, a case of processing a plurality of mails having the same format will be described. A plurality of mail images are sequentially read (ST1). At this time, a destination description area candidate is detected from an image read from the first mail piece, that is, a representative mail piece (ST2), and the detected destination description area candidate is displayed (ST3). At this time, if the destination description area candidate is correctly detected, the operator does not need to correct the destination description area candidate and only needs to confirm the input (for example, click the confirmation input item on the screen with the mouse). (ST4). If a part of the destination description area candidate is not correctly detected by the OCR unit, the operator may correct only a part of the destination description area candidate (for example, drag the area with the mouse) and enter it. (ST4). Based on the determined address description area, the destination of each mail piece is recognized (ST5), and the mail piece is classified based on the destination recognition result (ST6).

  As described above, according to the mail processing apparatus, even when the destination description area cannot be detected correctly, the detection result of the destination description area can be effectively used, and the operation for specifying the destination description area by the operator can be simplified. In addition, individual differences due to the operator can be reduced.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. In addition, the embodiments may be appropriately combined as much as possible, and in that case, the combined effect can be obtained. Further, the above embodiments include inventions at various stages, and various inventions can be extracted by appropriately combining a plurality of disclosed constituent elements. For example, even if some constituent requirements are deleted from all the constituent requirements shown in the embodiment, the problem described in the column of the problem to be solved by the invention can be solved, and the effect described in the column of the effect of the invention Can be obtained as an invention.

It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of the mail processing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the mail processing of the several same format by a mail processing apparatus. It is a figure which shows the 1st example (all area | region specification by an operator) of the destination description area designation screen of the bulk letter in a mail processing apparatus. It is a figure which shows the 2nd example (area correction designation | designated by an operator) of the destination description area designation screen of the bulk letter in a mail processing apparatus. It is a figure which shows a mode that the correction input and fixed input of the rectangular coordinate which show a destination description area are received via a pointing device.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Reading part, 2 ... Barcode printing / reading part, 3 ... Sorting part, 4 ... Control part, 11 ... Supply part, 12 ... Foreign object, hardness, metal detection part, 13 ... Exclusion part etc. in foreign material presence , 14 ... Positioning unit, 15 ... Two-sheet picking detection unit, 16 ... Conveyance posture defective mail rejection unit, 17 ... Reading unit, 18 ... Display / input unit, 21 ... Bar code printing unit, 22 ... Bar code reading unit (For confirmation), 31 ... sorting box, 32 ... paper bill issuing machine

Claims (8)

Reading means for reading the image of the mail,
Detecting means for detecting a destination description area from the image read by the reading means;
Display means for displaying a destination description area detected by the detection means on a mail image;
Receiving means for receiving correction input and confirmation input of the destination description area displayed on the display means;
A mail processing apparatus comprising: Reading means for reading the image of the mail,
Detecting means for detecting a destination description area from the image read by the reading means;
Display means for displaying a destination description area detected by the detection means on a mail image;
Receiving means for receiving correction input and confirmation input of the destination description area displayed on the display means;
Recognizing means for recognizing addresses of a plurality of mail items based on a destination description area determined by the receiving means;
A mail processing apparatus comprising: Reading means for reading the image of the mail,
Detecting means for detecting a destination description area from the image read by the reading means;
Display means for displaying a destination description area detected by the detection means on a mail image;
Receiving means for receiving correction input and confirmation input of the destination description area displayed on the display means;
Recognizing means for recognizing addresses of a plurality of mail items based on a destination description area determined by the receiving means;
Sorting means for sorting the plurality of mail items based on destinations recognized by the recognition means;
A mail processing apparatus comprising: A mail processing apparatus suitable for processing a plurality of mails of the same format,
Reading means for reading an image of each mail piece;
Detecting means for detecting a destination description area from an image of the representative mail read by the reading means;
Display means for displaying the destination description area detected by the detection means on the representative mail image;
Receiving means for receiving correction input and confirmation input of rectangular coordinates indicating a destination description area displayed on the display means;
Recognizing means for recognizing the address of each mail based on the address description area determined by the receiving means;
Sorting means for sorting each mail based on the destination recognized by the recognition means;
A mail processing apparatus comprising: Read the image of the mail,
A destination description area is detected from the read image;
Displaying the detected address description area on a mail image;
Receiving correction input and confirmation input of the displayed destination description area;
The mail processing method characterized by the above-mentioned. Read the image of the mail,
A destination description area is detected from the read image;
Displaying the detected address description area on a mail image;
Accepting correction input and confirmation input of the displayed destination description area;
Recognizing a plurality of mail addresses based on the determined address description area;
The mail processing method characterized by the above-mentioned. Read the image of the mail,
A destination description area is detected from the read image;
Displaying the detected address description area on a mail image;
Receiving correction input and confirmation input of the displayed destination description area;
Recognizing a plurality of mail addresses based on the determined address description area;
Sorting the plurality of mail pieces based on the recognized destinations;
The mail processing method characterized by the above-mentioned. A mail processing method suitable for processing a plurality of mails of the same format,
Read the image of the mail,
A destination description area is detected from the read image;
Displaying the detected address description area on a mail image;
Accepting correction input and confirmation input of rectangular coordinates indicating the displayed destination description area,
Recognizing the address of each mail item based on the determined address description area,
Sort each postal item based on the recognized destination,
The mail processing method characterized by the above-mentioned.

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