JPH01310495A - Optical character recognizing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To shorten an image fetching time by having both route to fetch a slip image inputted from an image scanner part as it is into a page buffer, and route to fetch the slip image into the page buffer with counter-clockwise rotating by 90 deg.. CONSTITUTION:An image signal 101 is directly sent to a serial/parallel converting part 24, and by accumulating an image signal 104 for an eight-mesh portion in order to increase a processing speed, the signal 104 is sent to a page buffer 26 as a signal 105. Next, when the slip image 101 from a scanner part 1 is outputted by counter-clockwise rotating by 90 deg., the image signal 101 is sent to an A line buffer 22, and it is accumulated for an eight-line portion. A switching means SW2 is connected to a contact point C. Thereafter, by an address signal 107 controlled by a line buffer address control part 21, an image signal 102 is read from the A line buffer 22. The signal 105, whose eight-mesh portion is accumulated by the serial/parallel converting part 24, is successively accumulated into the page buffer 26 according to an address signal 109 controlled by a page buffer address control part 25.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an optical character recognition device, and in particular,
The present invention relates to an optical character recognition device that can recognize even a form input with 0 degree rotation without requiring dedicated firmware.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, this type of optical character recognition apparatus inputs an image of a form after rotating it by 90 degrees with respect to its conveying direction, and then performs recognition processing. As an alternative image input method, two methods have been implemented as shown in FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b).

The first method is to import the form image 61 as it is into the page buffer as shown in FIG. Rotate 90 degrees,
The obtained image is stored in a line buffer, and character recognition processing is performed for each line or multiple lines.

In the second method, as shown in FIG. 4(b), the document image 80A in the page buffer is scanned by a mesh of images 81, 82, 83 ---, !, obtained by a scanner. : Sequentially rotate 90 degrees counterclockwise every 1 meshes and capture the position of the page buffer rotated 90 degrees. These images are stored in a line buffer and character recognition processing is performed for each line or multiple lines.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

In the above-mentioned conventional optical character recognition device, among the necessary methods for inputting a form image rotated 90 degrees clockwise, the first method involves inputting the entire form image into a page buffer. The image data cannot be transferred to the line buffer until the end of the image data is transferred to the line buffer, and the recognition unit remains in a wait state during that time, which takes time and reduces efficiency.In the second method, the sample time of image data from the scanner unit is used for the page buffer. However, if the access time of the memory is limited, it takes a long time to read the image into the page buffer.

[Failure to solve the problem]

The optical character recognition device of the present invention has two paths in the optical character recognition device, including a path for capturing a form image input from an image scanner unit into a page buffer as it is, and a path for rotating the form image by 90 degrees counterclockwise. The scan control section also includes a scan control section that also has a path for fetching data into the page buffer.

〔Example〕 Next, the present invention will be explained with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

This is a diagram.

Referring to FIG. 1, the embodiment of the present invention includes a scanner section 1,
It is composed of a scan control section 2, a preprocessing section 3, and a character recognition section 4.

When the form image signal 101 from the scanner section l is not rotating clockwise, the switching means SWx in the scan control section 2 is connected to the contact C, and the switching means SW2 is connected to the contact E.
The image signal 101 is directly sent to the serial/parallel converter 24. Serial parallel converter 24
In order to improve processing speed, the image signal 104 is
The page buffer 2 stores the mesh amount and sends the signal 105 to the page buffer 2.
Send to 6. In the page buffer 26, the page buffer address control unit 25 sequentially stores the signal 105 from the top address of the page buffer 26.

Thereafter, the character pattern 106 is called from the page buffer 26, and the character pattern 107 subjected to the I-processing is sent to the character recognition unit 4 for recognition by a general preprocessing unit 3 that cuts out the characters and performs normalization, line thinning, etc. .

Next, when the form image 101 from the scanner unit l is rotated 90 degrees clockwise and output, the scan control unit 2
The switching output stage 8W1 in the middle is first connected to the contact person, and the image signal 101 is sent to the A line buffer 22 and stored for eight lines. When 8 lines have been stored in the A line buffer 22, the switching means 8W1 is connected to the contact B,
The switching means SW2 is connected to the contact C. The address signal 1 is then controlled by the line buffer address control section 21.
07 image signal 10 from line buffer 22
2 is read out. The serial-to-parallel converter 24 sequentially stores the signals 105 for eight meshes in the page buffer 26 in accordance with the address signal 109 controlled by the page buffer address controller 25 .

During the above processing, the image signal 101 is sent to the B line buffer 23 and stored for eight lines. A
Reading of line buffer 22 and B line buffer 23
When the writing of the image signal 101 is completed, the switching means SWI is connected again to the contact, and the switching means SW2 is connected to the contact, and while the image signal 101 for 8 lines is stored in the A line buffer 22, the The line buffer 23 reads out the image signal 103 according to the address signal 108 controlled by the page buffer address control section 21 and sends it to the serial/parallel conversion section 24 (1) Here, the signal 105 stored for 8 meshes is sent to the page buffer address. The data are sequentially stored in the page buffer 26 according to the address signal 109 controlled by the control unit 25.

The above-mentioned combination in which the switching means SW1 and SW2 are connected to the contacts A-D, respectively, and the combination in which the switching means SWI and 8W2 are respectively connected to the contacts B-C are used until all the form images are stored in the page buffer 26. , continues while switching alternately.

Next, referring to FIGS. 2(a) and (b) and FIGS. 3(a) and (b), the specific operation of the scan control unit 2 in FIG. A case will be explained in which the page buffer stores 1 address = 8 meshes for 1 minute, and the line buffer stores 8 lines.

The image signal 101 from the scanner section l is transferred to the switching means SW.
When the contact point A is, as shown by reference numeral 10 in FIG. to the right (oooo
~oFFF), and when you get to the rightmost (oFFF), go down one line and use the leftmost mesh as the origin and go down sequentially from left to right (1000 to IFFF) until you reach the bottom right mesh (7FFF). Up to 8 lines can be stored. Note that the above-mentioned mesh numbers in parentheses are expressed in hexadecimal notation, and will be expressed in hexadecimal notation hereinafter unless otherwise specified.

Next, when the contact of the switching means SW2 is switched, the upper right corner (0000) of the A line buffer 22 is reached according to the address signal 107 of the line buffer address control unit 21, as shown by reference numeral 20 in FIG. 2(a). From top to bottom <oooo~0007,---. 7FF8~7
FFF) while going from right to left (oooo~00
08 to -1 to 7FF8), and the image signal 102 is read out.

Simultaneously with the above reading, reference numeral 10 in FIG. 2(a)
The image signal 101 is read into the B line buffer 23 through the contact B of the switching means 8Wl according to the scheme shown in FIG.

The read image signal 102 is converted into 8 meshes (ooo) by the serial-parallel converter 24.

~0007.0008~0OOF,---,7FF8
~7FFF) Save. Then, as shown at 30 in FIG.
09, top to bottom (0000 to 0FFF, 1000
~IFFF, -1-, nQ00=n FF F, -
--) while going from left to right (0000~1000~-)
--~no00~-=), the image data 1105 for 8 pages and seas are sequentially transferred to the page buffer 26.
is stored in

To illustrate the above-mentioned operation more specifically, first, reference numeral 40 in FIG. 3(a) shows a form image that can be rotated 90 degrees clockwise in the scanner section 1. Further, reference numeral 50 in FIG. 3(b) shows a form image on the page buffer 26 obtained by rotating the form image 40 in FIG. 3(a) counterclockwise by 90 degrees.

8 lines with reference numeral 40 in FIG. 3(a) ■・■・■---
- is indicated by the reference numeral 50 in FIG. 3(b).
correspond to each.

In the above manner, the input form image can be rotated 90 degrees clockwise without compromising processing speed.
It can be rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise to capture a normal form image into the page buffer.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, the present invention is capable of rotating 90 degrees clockwise by placing a line buffer between the form image and the page buffer that stores the image signal for n messages and stores it in the page buffer, and stores it for n247 minutes. This has the effect that normal character recognition processing can be performed without developing dedicated firmware by rotating the form image sent by the user by 90 degrees counterclockwise and storing it in a page buffer without impairing the processing speed.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, FIGS. 2(a) and (b) are explanatory diagrams showing the line buffer address control section and page buffer address control section of FIG. 1, FIGS. 3(a) and (b) are explanatory diagrams showing a form image sent from the scanner unit and the result of storage in the page buffer, and FIGS. 4(a) and (b) are form images and pages according to the conventional technology. - An explanatory diagram showing an example of a buffer storage result. 1...Scanner section, 2...Scan control section, 3...Preprocessing section, 4...Character recognition section. Agent Patent Attorney Shinkyo Uchihara / Figure

Claims (1)

[Claims] In an optical character recognition device, scanning has both a path in which a form image input from an image scanner section is taken into a page buffer as it is, and a path in which the form image is rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise and taken into the page buffer. An optical character recognition device comprising a control section.