JP2008186399A - Character recognition device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce a processing time required from reading a form until specifying an area for reading characters. <P>SOLUTION: The kind of the form common to the size and position of a barcode in the form is sorted into the same form group. The information indicating the size of the barcode and the position of the barcode in the form and the form sorting information consisting of the form kind indicating the kind of the form (layout group table 60) are prestored in a storage unit 3 for every form group. The form sorting information is retrieved on the basis of the size of the barcode calculated from the image information of the form read by a form reading unit 2 and the position in the form, and the form kind is extracted. The kind of the form is specified from among the form kind, thereby detecting an area where the characters are present. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a character recognition apparatus for recognizing characters of a form in which a plurality of formats such as utility fees and various tax payment forms are mixed.

In the case of processing a form in which a plurality of formats are mixed, the conventional character recognition device reads the form with an image input means in order to reduce the time and labor for manually classifying the form for each type in advance, and horizontally from the read image. A frame structure reference table in which the features of the frame structure are extracted from the extracted ruled lines and the intersections of the ruled lines, and the frame structure features of each form are registered in advance. The form is identified with reference to detect the character reading area (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP-A-9-138837 (paragraph “0012” to paragraph “0013”, FIG. 1)

  In recent years, however, there have been many forms of forms such as electricity bills, gas bills, telephone bills and other public charges and payment forms for paying various taxes. In the conventional technique, a process for identifying a form is performed by comparing the extracted frame structure characteristics of the form with a frame structure reference table in which the frame structure characteristics of each form are registered in advance, so that the character reading area is detected. Therefore, the frame structure characteristics of a lot of forms must be registered in the frame structure reference table, and it must be checked against the characteristics of many registered frame structures. There is a problem that the processing time required to detect the region becomes long.

  An object of the present invention is to solve such a problem.

  Therefore, the present invention provides a character recognition apparatus that identifies a type of a form based on features extracted from image information of a form read by a form reading unit and recognizes characters in an area determined according to the type of form. Classify forms that share the same barcode size and barcode position in the form into the same form group. For each form group, the barcode size and barcode position in the form A storage unit that preliminarily stores form classification information that includes information indicating the form and a form type indicating the form type, a barcode detection unit that calculates the size of the barcode and the position in the form from the image information of the read form, Based on the barcode size calculated by the barcode detection means and the position in the form, the form classification information stored in the storage unit is searched for the form. A form identification means for extracting another, and a feature extracted from the image information of the read form is compared with a feature for each form type extracted by the form identification means, and the area where the character exists is detected by specifying the type of the form A recognition area extracting means for detecting the area where the character exists by identifying the form type from the form types extracted based on the size of the form barcode and the position in the form. Features.

  The present invention thus configured can reduce the types of forms to be searched based on the characteristics of the form frame structure, and the processing time required from when the form is read until the character reading area is specified. Can be shortened.

  Embodiments of a character recognition apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

First, the first embodiment will be described.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the character recognition apparatus in the embodiment.
In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a character recognition device, which reads an image of a form on which a barcode such as a utility bill or various tax payment forms is printed, and recognizes the character printed on the form, OCR (Optical Character Reader). Device.

  Reference numeral 2 denotes a form reading unit, which is an image sensor that is configured by a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) camera or the like and is arranged one-dimensionally. The form reading unit 2 scans in a direction (horizontal direction of the form) orthogonal to each barcode printed on the form with a predetermined linear density, and displays the barcode and characters printed on the form as “1”, background The image information binarized to “0” is output.

Therefore, the output image information is composed of a predetermined number of pixels in the vertical and horizontal directions of the form.
Reference numeral 3 denotes a storage unit which is composed of a memory element, a magnetic disk, or the like, and stores information and can read the stored information.
A form image memory 31 stores image information of the form read by the form reading unit 2.

  A form dictionary 32 stores information for identifying the type of form. This form dictionary 32 classifies the types of forms having the same barcode size and the same barcode position in the form so as to be in the same group (form group), and sets a bar for each group (form group). A layout group table (form) for extracting the group to which the form belongs from the position and size of the bar code of the form, consisting of information indicating the size of the code and the position of the barcode in the form and the form type indicating the type of form. Classification information), a frame structure reference table for identifying the type of form from the form frame structure, and the like are stored in advance.

Here, the layout group table will be described based on the explanatory diagram of the layout group table in the embodiment of FIG.
FIG. 6A is an explanatory diagram of a form example, in which 51 represents a form A, 52 represents a form B, 53 represents a form C, and a barcode 501 is printed on each form. The bar code is a concept including a two-dimensional code.

  In FIG. 6A, the width xw_1 and height yw_1 of the barcode 501 of the form A51 and the form C53, the distance xl_1 from the left end of the form A51 and the form C53 to the left end of the barcode 501, and the right end of the form A51 and the form C53. A distance xr_1 to the right end of the barcode 501; a distance yb_1 from the lower ends of the forms A51 and C53 to the lower end of the barcode 501; and a distance yt_1 from the upper ends of the forms A51 and C53 to the upper end of the barcode 501. Show.

  Also, the width xw_2 and height yw_2 of the barcode 501 of the form B52, the distance xl_2 from the left end of the form B52 to the left end of the barcode 501, the distance xr_2 from the right end of the form B52 to the right end of the barcode 501, and the lower end of the form B52 The distance yb_2 from the lower end of the barcode 501 to the lower end of the barcode 501 and the distance yt_2 from the upper end of the form B52 to the upper end of the barcode 501 are shown.

Here, it is assumed that the forms having the same size and position of the barcode 501 are classified into the same group, and in this embodiment, the form A51 and the form C53 are the layout group 1 and the form B52 is the layout group 2. .
FIG. 6B is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of the layout group table. The layout group table 60 includes a layout group 61, a width XW62 of the barcode 501, a height YW63 of the barcode 501, and a barcode 501 from the left end of the form 50. The distance XL64 from the left end of the form 50, the distance XR65 from the right end of the form 50 to the right end of the barcode 501, the distance YT66 from the upper end of the form 50 to the upper end of the barcode 501, and the distance from the lower end of the form 50 to the lower end of the barcode 501 It consists of YB67 and form type 68.

  In this embodiment, the width XW62 of the barcode 501 is xw_1, the height YW63 is yw_1, the distance XL64 from the left end of the form 50 to the left end of the barcode 501 is xl_1, and the right end of the form 50 is “1” in the layout group 61. XR65 from the top edge of the barcode 501 to xr_1, the distance YT66 from the top edge of the form 50 to the top edge of the barcode 501 is yt_1, the distance YB67 from the bottom edge of the form 50 to the bottom edge of the barcode 501 is yb_1, the form type 68 Are associated with “form A” and “form C”, and the width XW62 of the barcode 501 is xw_2, the height YW63 is yw_2, and the barcode from the left end of the form 50 is associated with “2” of the layout group 61. The distance XL64 to the left end of 501 is xl_2, from the right end of the form 50 to the right end of the barcode 501 The distance XR65 is xr_2, the distance YT66 from the upper end of the form 50 to the upper end of the barcode 501 is yt_2, the distance YB67 from the lower end of the form 50 to the lower end of the barcode 501 is yb_2, and the form type 68 is “form B”. Assume that they are associated with each other.

As described above, the layout group table 60 classifies and stores a large number of form types so that forms having the same size and position of the barcode 501 are grouped together, and the layout group table 60 is referred to. The group to which the form belongs can be extracted from the position and size of the barcode of the form.
In addition, the frame structure reference table is a table in which frame structure feature information (for example, coordinate information of the start point, end point, and intersection point of the ruled lines constituting the table) indicating the characteristics of the frame structure of each form is registered. The horizontal and vertical ruled lines and intersections of the ruled lines are extracted from the image information of the form read in step 2, and the frame structure feature information is extracted from the extracted ruled lines and the intersections of the ruled lines. The type of form can be identified by comparing the feature information of the frame and the frame structure feature information of the frame structure reference table.

Returning to FIG. 1, reference numeral 33 denotes a recognition area data memory for storing image information of a form area that requires character recognition processing.
As described above, the storage unit 3 includes the form image memory 31, the form dictionary 32, the recognition area data memory 33, and the like.
The storage unit 3 stores a control program (software) and various information necessary for controlling the character recognition device 1 in addition to the form image memory 31, the form dictionary 32, and the recognition area data memory 33.

Reference numeral 4 denotes a control unit, which is configured by calculation and control means such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and the operation of the entire character recognition device 1 including the form reading unit 2 and the storage unit 3 is stored in the storage unit 3. Control based on a control program (software).
In addition, the control unit 4 detects a barcode from the image information of the form stored in the form image memory 31, and further detects the size of the barcode and the position in the form, and the size of the detected barcode. Based on the information on the sheath position, the form identification means 42 for searching the layout group table 60 of the form dictionary 32 and extracting the form type, the feature of the frame structure is extracted from the image information of the form, and the feature of the frame structure and the form identification Recognizing region extraction that collates with the characteristics of the frame structure for each form type extracted by the means 42 (characteristics of the frame structure stored in the frame structure reference table), identifies the form type, and detects the area where the character exists Means 43, character recognition means 44 for recognizing characters in the area where the extracted characters exist, and the like.

The character recognition device 1 configured as described above reads a form by the form reading unit 2, extracts an area that requires character recognition from the image information of the form, and performs character recognition based on the image information of the area.

The operation of the above configuration will be described.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing of the character recognition apparatus in the embodiment, which will be described in accordance with steps represented by S in the figure.
The operation of each unit described below is controlled by a control unit such as a central processing unit (not shown) based on a program (software) stored in a storage unit such as a memory or a magnetic disk (not shown).

S1: In response to an instruction from the control unit 4 of the character recognition device 1, the form reading unit 2 reads the form, and stores the image information of the read form in the form image memory 31.
S2: When the image information of the read form is stored in the form image memory 31, the barcode detecting means 41 performs a process of detecting the barcode printed on the form.
Here, a process for detecting a barcode will be described.

  First, as shown in FIG. 3, the bar code detecting means 41 scans the form 50 in the direction indicated by the arrow in the figure, that is, in the direction orthogonal to the individual barcode printed on the form 50 (the horizontal direction of the form). The image information of the form 50 read in this way is read from the form image memory 31, and a bar where a black bar represented by a numerical value “1” and a white bar represented by a numerical value “0” appear alternately from the image information is barcoded. Detected as 501.

By scanning and reading in the direction orthogonal to the individual barcodes printed on the form 50 (the horizontal direction of the form) in this way, the processing period for detecting the barcode 501 can be shortened.
Note that a portion on which characters other than the barcode 501 are printed is also an object of analysis, but it is determined that the portion is not a barcode by a known analysis process.

Further, as a method for detecting the barcode 501 other than the above, when the image information of the read form is stored in the form image memory 31, a low resolution image (primary image) is acquired, and the barcode detecting means 41 Barcode candidates are detected for the primary image.
The detected barcode candidate area may be converted into a high-resolution image (secondary image) in the form image memory 31, and the barcode detection means 41 may detect the barcode from the barcode candidate area.

As described above, since a barcode candidate area is roughly specified with a low resolution (primary image) and then a barcode is detected with a normal resolution (secondary image), the processing time can be shortened.
When detected as a barcode 501, the barcode detection means 41 calculates the width XW and height YW of the barcode 501 from the number of pixels of the image information of the form as shown in FIG. That is, the size of the barcode 501 is calculated.

  Next, the barcode detection unit 41 determines the distance XL from the left end of the form 50 to the left end of the barcode 501 from the number of pixels of the image information of the form, from the right end of the form 50 to the right end of the barcode 501 as shown in FIG. Distance XR, a distance YB from the lower end of the form 50 to the lower end of the barcode 501, and a distance YT from the upper end of the form 50 to the upper end of the barcode 501 are calculated. That is, the position of the barcode 501 in the form 50 is calculated.

  S3: When the size and position of the bar code 501 are calculated, the form identifying means 42 calculates the width XW and height YW of the bar code 501, the distance XL from the left end of the form 50 to the left end of the bar code 501, the right end of the form 50 To the right end of the barcode 501, the distance YB from the lower end of the form 50 to the lower end of the barcode 501, and the distance YT from the upper end of the form 50 to the upper end of the barcode 501 are stored in the form dictionary 32. The width XW62 and height YW63 of the bar code 501 of the layout group table 60, the distance XL64 from the left end of the form 50 to the left end of the bar code 501, the distance XR65 from the right end of the form 50 to the right end of the bar code 501, and the The distance YT66 from the upper end to the upper end of the barcode 501 and the barcode 501 from the lower end of the form 50 Searching for distance YB67 to bottom to extract the form type 68.

That is, the form type 68 is extracted from the size and position of the read barcode 501.
It should be noted that the numerical values indicating the size and position of the calculated barcode 501 do not have to completely match the numerical values stored in the layout group table 60, and may be within a predetermined range.
For example, the width XW62 of the read barcode 501 is xw_1, the height YW63 is yw_1, the distance XL64 from the left end of the form 50 to the left end of the barcode 501 is xl_1, and the distance XR65 from the right end of the form 50 to the right end of the barcode 501 Is xr_1, the distance YT66 from the upper end of the form 50 to the upper end of the barcode 501 is yt_1, and the distance YB67 from the lower end of the form 50 to the lower end of the barcode 501 is yb_1, the form type 68 is “form A” and “Form C” is extracted.

S4: The recognition area extracting unit 43 extracts horizontal and vertical ruled lines and intersections of the ruled lines from the image information of the form, and further extracts features of the frame structure from the extracted ruled lines and the intersections of the ruled lines. The type of form is identified by referring to the frame structure reference table stored in the storage unit 3 for the characteristics of the frame structure of each form.
In this embodiment, the feature of the extracted frame structure is collated with the feature of the frame structure of “form A” or “form C” in the frame structure reference table, and it is either “form A” or “form C”. Identify that.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6A, when the ruled line frame has one stage, it is determined as “form A”, and when it has two stages, it is determined as “form C”.
When the type of form is identified, the recognition area extracting unit 43 extracts a character reading area stored in advance in the storage unit 3, reads the image information of the area from the form image memory 31, and stores it in the recognition area data memory 33. .

S5: The character recognition means 44 performs processing for recognizing characters from the image information stored in the recognition area data memory 33.
In this way, the character recognition device 1 stores in advance in the storage unit 3 the layout group table 60 in which the forms having the same size and position of the barcode 501 are classified into the same group, and the form reading unit 2 The bar code detection unit 41 calculates the size and position of the bar code 501 of the form 50 from the image information of the form read in step S4, and the form identification unit 42 determines the layout group table 60 based on the size and position of the bar code 501. The grouped form type 68 is extracted and the form type is identified from the form type based on the characteristics of the form frame structure to recognize the characters of the form.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the layout group table in which forms having the same barcode size and position are classified into the same group is stored in the storage unit, and calculated from the image information of the read form. By searching the layout group table based on the size and position of the barcode and extracting the grouped form type, the form type to be searched based on the characteristics of the form frame structure It is possible to reduce the processing time, and the effect of shortening the processing time required from the time when the form is read until the character reading area is specified can be obtained.

The block diagram which shows the structure of the character recognition apparatus in an Example. The flowchart which shows the flow of a process of the character recognition apparatus in an Example. Explanatory drawing of the barcode detection method in an Example Explanatory drawing of the method of calculating the size of the barcode in the embodiment Explanatory drawing of the method of calculating the position of the barcode in the embodiment Explanatory drawing of the layout group table in an Example

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Character recognition apparatus 2 Form reading part 3 Memory | storage part 31 Form image memory 32 Form dictionary 33 Recognition area data memory 4 Control part 41 Barcode detection means 42 Form identification means 43 Recognition area extraction means 44 Character recognition means 50, 51, 52, 53 Form 501 Barcode

Claims (2)

In the character recognition device that identifies the type of form based on the features extracted from the image information of the form read by the form reading unit, and recognizes the characters in the area determined according to the type of the form,
The types of forms that have the same barcode size and the same barcode position in the form are classified into the same form group, and the barcode size and barcode position in the form are determined for each form group. A storage unit for preliminarily storing form classification information including information to be displayed and a form type indicating the type of form;
Barcode detecting means for calculating the size of the barcode and the position in the form from the image information of the read form;
A form identifying means for retrieving form classification information stored in the storage unit based on the barcode size calculated by the barcode detecting means and the position in the form, and extracting the form type;
Recognizing the feature extracted from the image information of the read form with the feature for each form type extracted by the form identifying means, providing a recognition area extracting means for identifying the form type and detecting the area where the character exists,
A character recognition apparatus characterized by detecting a region in which a character exists by specifying a form type from among the form types extracted based on the size of a form barcode and the position in the form. The character recognition device according to claim 1.
The size of the barcode is the width and height of the barcode,
The position of the barcode in the form is the distance from the left edge of the form to the left edge of the barcode, the distance from the right edge of the form to the right edge of the barcode, the distance from the bottom edge of the form to the bottom edge of the barcode, and the top edge of the form A character recognition device characterized in that the distance to the upper end of a bar code is used.