JPH06282683A - Character recognizing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To detect the tilt of the image of a recording medium before the image is read. CONSTITUTION:When an original ST is inserted through a slit and the tip of the original reaches a tilt detection point P1, a tilt sensor 20 reacts to the original and outputs a detection signal in accordance with the tilt of the original. Thus the tilt of the original ST is detected by the detection signal, and the main scanning direction set by a light source 18 and a photoelectric conversion sensor 19 is tilted by a tilting angle of the original ST. Furthermore, the original ST is moved in the secondary scanning direction. When the original ST reaches an image input point P2, the light source 18 irradiates the light in the main scanning direction of the original ST. Then the sensor 19 receives the light reflected on the original surface and transduces the received light into an electric signal. Thus the image of the character information on the original ST is read for each line.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a character recognition device for recognizing characters by reading an image of character information such as characters, numbers and symbols printed or entered on a recording medium such as an original.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a character recognition device for reading and recognizing character information such as characters, numbers and symbols handwritten or printed on a recording medium such as a manuscript, an image reading unit is arranged on the recording medium in the main scanning direction. The image is read while moving in the sub-scanning direction, the dot pattern of the character information portion is extracted from the image data of the read image, and the character information is recognized from the extracted dot pattern.

However, when the recording medium is set in an inclined state with respect to the image reading section, or when the image reading section tilts between the image reading section and the recording medium due to the reading operation in the sub-scanning direction. In some cases, the image data of the image read from the recording medium also becomes inclined, and the character recognition by the image data cannot be performed accurately. That is, the inclination of the read image data adversely affects the subsequent character recognition rate, resulting in a decrease in the character information recognition rate.

Therefore, conventionally, after an image of character information is read from a recording medium such as a document, the inclination of the image of character information is detected based on the image data of the image, and the detected inclination is corrected. There was a recognizer.

[0005]

However, in the conventional character recognition device, the inclination of the image is corrected after the image of the character information is read from the recording medium. Therefore, the inclination detection and the inclination correction after the image reading are performed. However, there is a problem in that character recognition cannot be performed quickly and accurately.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and it is possible to detect an inclination before reading an image on a recording medium, and to correct the inclination when the recording medium is inclined to form an image. The purpose is to make it readable and to inform the operator that the recording medium is tilted.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, a character recognition device of the present invention reads an image of character information such as characters, numbers and symbols printed or entered on a recording medium such as a manuscript. Image input means for inputting as optical image data, dot pattern extracting means for extracting a dot pattern of a character information portion from image data input by the means, and character information recognized by the dot pattern extracted by the means It is provided with a character information recognizing means.

Further, in the image input means, a tilt sensor having a plurality of sensors arranged in an arc shape in a direction orthogonal to the insertion direction of the recording medium, and a plurality of tilt sensors when the recording medium is inserted Inclination detecting means for detecting the inclination angle of the recording medium by the recording medium detection signal from the sensor is provided.

Further, when the tilt angle of the recording medium inserted by the tilt detecting means is detected, it is preferable to provide means for tilting the main scanning direction when reading an image on the recording medium by the detected tilt angle. Further, it is preferable to provide a means for correcting the inclination of the image data read by inclining the main scanning direction for each line. And
A means for notifying that the tilt angle of the recording medium is detected by the tilt detecting means may be provided.

[0010]

The character recognition device according to the present invention reads an image of character information such as characters, numbers and symbols printed or entered on a recording medium such as a manuscript, inputs it as optical image data, and inputs the input image. When a dot pattern of a character information portion is extracted from data and character information is recognized from the extracted dot pattern, a tilt sensor in which a plurality of sensors are arranged in an arc shape in a direction orthogonal to the insertion direction of a recording medium Since the tilt angle when the recording medium is inserted is detected by the recording medium detection signal of, the tilt of the recording medium can be detected before the image is read.

Further, when the tilt angle of the inserted document is detected, the main scanning direction at the time of reading the image of the document is tilted by the detected tilt angle while the tilt of the recording medium is corrected. The image can be read.

Further, if the inclination of the image data read by tilting the main scanning direction is corrected line by line, the image can be read while correcting the tilt in the sub scanning direction. By notifying that the tilt angle of the recording medium is detected, the operator can be notified that the recording medium is tilted.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a data processing system including a character recognition device according to an embodiment of the present invention. This data processing system comprises a host computer 1 and a character recognition device 3, and the character recognition device 3 is connected to the host computer 1 via a communication line 2.

The host computer 1 is also provided with an input device 4 such as a keyboard and a mouse, a display device 5 such as a CRT and LCD, and a central processing unit 6 which is the main body of this system. The input device 4 and the display device 5 are connected via the.

The character recognition device 3 optically reads character information such as characters, numbers, and symbols written on a recording medium such as an original to recognize the character, and the recognized character information is transmitted via the communication line 2. To the host computer 1, and the host computer 1 performs various processes such as document creation and document registration according to the operation information input from the input device 4 and the character information received from the character recognition device 3, and the processing results and various Display messages etc. on the display device.

Next, the internal configurations of the central processing unit 6 and the character recognition unit 3 of the host computer 1 will be described. The central processing unit 6 includes an interface unit with the input unit 4, the display unit 5, and the character recognition unit 3 and various processing units, and each unit is realized by a microcomputer including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM and the like. .

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the internal structure of the character recognition device 3 shown in FIG. The character recognition device 3 includes an image input unit 7, a character portion extraction unit 8, a character recognition unit 9, and a host interface (I / F) unit 10 inside.
The image input unit 7 reads an image of character information such as characters, numbers and symbols printed or entered on a recording medium such as an original and inputs it as optical image data.

The character portion extraction unit 8 extracts the dot pattern of the character information portion from the image data input by the image input unit 7. The character recognition unit 9 recognizes character information from the dot pattern extracted by the character portion extraction unit 8. The host I / F unit 10 sends the character information recognized by the character recognition unit 9 to the host computer 1 via the communication line 2.
Send to.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the image input unit 7 of the character recognition device 3 shown in FIG. The image input unit 7 includes a CPU 11, a control memory 12, a main scanning control unit 13, a sub-scanning control unit 14, an image memory 15, an inclination control unit 16, a data transfer control unit 17, a light source 18, a photoelectric conversion sensor 19, and an inclination. It is composed of a sensor 20 and an internal bus 21.

The CPU 11 inputs image data of character information on a recording medium, detects an inclination angle when the recording medium is inserted, reads an image in which the main scanning direction is inclined by the inclination angle of the inserted recording medium, and the main scanning direction. Various control processes related to the correction of the inclination of the image data read by inclining the line, the notification of the inclination of the recording medium, and the like are performed. The control memory 12 stores programs for the CPU 11 to perform various control processes.

The main scanning control unit 13 controls to optically read the image of the character information on the recording medium as image data for each line and to display the image of the recording medium when the tilt angle of the inserted recording medium is detected. Control is performed to tilt the main scanning direction during reading by the detected tilt angle of the recording medium.
The sub-scanning control unit 14 performs control for sub-scanning the recording medium line by line and control for correcting the line-by-line inclination of the image data read by inclining the main scanning direction.

The image memory 15 stores the image data read by the main scanning controller 13. The tilt control unit 16 controls to send a recording medium detection signal from a plurality of sensors of the tilt sensor 20 to the CPU 11 when the recording medium is inserted. The data transfer control unit 17 uses the image memory 1
The image data stored in 5 is output through the communication line 2 and the data transfer is controlled.

The light source 18 irradiates the recording medium with light in order to read an image of character information on the recording medium. The photoelectric conversion sensor 19 converts the reflected light from the recording medium into an electric signal.
The tilt sensor 20 includes a plurality of sensors (for example, photosensors) arranged in an arc shape in a direction orthogonal to the insertion direction of the recording medium, and recording by the plurality of sensors when the recording medium is inserted. Outputs the medium detection signal. The internal bus 21 is a communication line for exchanging data between the above units.

Next, the operation between the respective parts inside the character recognition device 3 will be described. First, the CPU 1 of the image input unit 7
1 executes the program in the control memory 12,
Main scanning control unit 13, sub-scanning control unit 14, tilt control unit 16
Send instructions to. The sub-scanning control unit 13 sub-scans the recording medium line by line, and the main scanning control unit 1
The light from the light source 18 is emitted in the main scanning direction of the recording medium by means of 3.

The photoelectric conversion sensor 19 converts the reflected light from the recording medium into an electric signal, and the main scanning controller 13 converts the electric signal into image data for each line and stores it in the image memory 15. Also, the tilt sensor 2
The recording medium detection signal of the recording medium inserted by each sensor of 0 is sent to the tilt control unit 16, and the tilt control unit 16 sends data corresponding to the recording medium detection signal to the CPU 11
The CPU 11 detects the tilt angle of the recording medium.

That is, the CPU 11 monitors the tilt sensor 20 via the tilt control unit 16, and when the recording medium inserted by the sub-scanning control unit 14 reaches each sensor of the tilt sensor 20, it corresponds to the tilt of the recording medium. Since the sensor reacts, the presence or absence of the inclination of the recording medium and the inclination angle are detected based on the data corresponding to the sensor that has reacted, and the inclination of the recording medium is detected before scanning.

Further, when the tilt angle of the recording medium is detected by the CPU 11, the main scanning control section 13 sets the main scanning direction to the same angle as the tilt angle and reads the image. That is, when the recording medium is inserted and the tilt angle is detected by the CPU 11, the main scanning control unit 13
The main scanning direction is set to the same angle as the tilt angle of the recording medium to perform scanning, and image data having no deviation between the horizontal direction of the recording medium and the main scanning direction in the image input unit 7 is stored in the image memory 15.

Furthermore, when the main scanning control unit 13 sets the main scanning direction at the same angle as the tilt angle and reads an image, the CPU 11 tilts the main scanning direction and the tilt of the image data read is tilted line by line. to correct. That is, the main scanning control unit 13 corrects the sub-scanning direction of the image data for each line read by inclining the main scanning direction by the same angle as the tilt angle of the recording medium.

Next, the image reading of the recording medium (original) will be described. 1A and 1B are diagrams showing the outline of the internal structure of the image input unit 7 shown in FIG. 3, in which FIG. 1A is a side view thereof, and FIG. 1B is a top view thereof.

Inside the image input unit 7, the tilt sensor 20, the light source 18, and the photoelectric conversion sensor 19 are arranged in this order at predetermined intervals from the document insertion port side relative to the document table 22, and their The photoelectric conversion sensor 19 is arranged at a position where the reflected light of the light emitted from the light source 18 is received. Further, in the tilt sensor 20, a plurality of photo sensors are arranged in an arc shape with respect to the insertion opening at positions corresponding to the tilt angle of the document.

First, when a document ST is inserted from the insertion opening by a mechanism (not shown) for moving in the sub-scanning direction and the leading edge of the document reaches the tilt detection point P1, the tilt sensor 20 reacts and responds to the tilt of the document. Output the detection signal. If the tilt of the document is detected by this detection signal,
The main scanning direction of the light source 18 and the photoelectric conversion sensor 19 is tilted by the tilt angle.

After that, when the document is further moved in the sub-scanning direction and reaches the image input point P2, the light source 18 irradiates light in the main scanning direction of the document, and the photoelectric conversion sensor 19 reflects the light reflected from the document surface. By receiving the light and converting it into an electric signal, the image of the character information on the document is read line by line.

Next, the image reading process of the original will be described. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the processing.
First, when the image reading is started by the operator, it is determined whether or not the tilt sensor has reacted while inserting the document as the recording medium by the operation in the sub-scanning direction,
The document is inserted until it responds.

When the tilt sensor responds, a process for detecting (detecting) the tilt of the document and its tilt angle is performed, and it is determined whether the document is tilted. The image of one line is read. If the document is tilted, the process of tilting the main scanning direction when reading the image of the document is performed based on the already detected tilt angle, the document is further inserted by the operation in the sub-scanning direction, and the main scanning of the document is performed. The image of one line in the direction is read.

After reading the image of one line,
It is determined whether or not the document is tilted by the previous detection, and if not, the document is further inserted by the operation of moving in the sub-scanning direction, and it is determined whether or not the image reading area of the document is completed. On the other hand, if there is an inclination in the original, a process of correcting the inclination of the image data of one line read in the main scanning direction is performed, and the original is further inserted by the operation of moving the original in the sub-scanning direction, and the reading area of the image of the original ends. Judge whether or not.

If the reading area of the original is not finished, the process returns to the process of reading the image of one line in the main scanning direction on the original again, and the original is moved in the sub-scanning direction until the reading area of the original is finished. However, the image is read line by line in the main scanning direction, and when the reading area of the document is finished, this process is finished.

Next, the detection of the inclination of the original and the inclination angle will be described. First, the tilt sensor 20 shown in FIG. 4 will be described. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the tilt sensor 20 together with the tilt controller 16. The tilt sensor 20 in this case includes eleven sensors S1 to S11.

Each of the sensors S1 to S11 is arranged in an arc shape with respect to a direction orthogonal to the insertion direction of the recording medium, at positions corresponding to the inclination angle of the recording medium. And
When any of the sensors S1 to S11 detects the recording medium, a recording medium detection signal is sent to the tilt controller 16.

For example, the sensor S6 is inserted at a position when the recording medium is inserted at an inclination angle of 0 °, and the sensor S5 is inserted at an inclination angle of + 5 °, that is, the sensor S5 is inserted at the inclination angle of 5 ° to the right side in the inserting direction. The sensor S7 is arranged at the position when the recording medium is inserted at an inclination angle of −5 °, that is, at the position when the recording medium is inserted at the inclination angle of 5 ° to the left in the insertion direction.

Similarly, the sensors S4 and S8 are placed at the positions when the recording medium is inserted at inclination angles + 10 ° and -10 °, respectively, and the sensors S3 and S9 are inserted at the recording medium inclination angles + 15 ° and -15 °, respectively. At the position when it was inserted with
The recording mediums of the sensors S2 and S10 are tilted by +2
At the position when inserted at 0 ° and -20 °, the sensor S
1 and S11 are the recording medium tilt angles of + 25 ° and −, respectively.
Place it at the position when it was inserted at 25 °.

Therefore, when the recording medium is detected by the sensor S6, the inclination angle of the recording medium is 0 °, and when the recording medium is detected by the sensor S2, the recording medium is left 20 ° toward the insertion direction. When it is possible to detect that the recording medium is tilted and the recording medium is detected by the sensor S10,
It can be detected that the recording medium is tilted to the right by 20 ° in the insertion direction.

Next, the method for detecting the inclination of the original will be described. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram when the original has no inclination.
First, as shown in (a) of the same figure, when the document ST is inserted and reaches the position of the broken line frame in the figure as shown in (b) of the figure, the circular frame 23 in the figure is enlarged. ), The sensor S6 of the tilt sensor 20 responds and outputs a detection signal. Since the sensor S6 corresponds to a document inclination of 0 °, it can be detected from the detection signal that the document is not inclined.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram when the original has an inclination. First, as shown in (a) of FIG.
When T is inserted with a certain inclination and reaches the position of the broken line frame in the drawing, the sensor S7 of the tilt sensor 20 reacts as shown in FIG. Output the detection signal. Since the sensor S7 corresponds to the document inclination angle of + 5 °, it is possible to detect from the detection signal that the document is inclined 5 ° leftward in the insertion direction.

Next, the principle of the above-described document inclination detection method will be described. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram thereof. This document inclination detection method uses the relationship between a circle and a tangent to the circle, and as shown in FIG. 7A, a point a where the circle 25 and a reference line L passing through the center O intersect with each other. Tangent line L passing through
a becomes perpendicular to the reference line L, and this correspondence is one-to-one correspondence.

Therefore, if the reference line L extends in the original insertion direction, the tangent line La is replaced by the end of the original insertion side, and the point a is replaced by the sensor position, the tangent line L is replaced.
When a first reaches the point a, it can be detected that the tangent line La is perpendicular to the reference line L and there is no inclination.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 9B, a circle 25
The tangent line Lb at the point b is inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the reference line L, and the inclination angle is indicated by an angle R formed by the perpendicular line Lc extending from the center O of the circle 25 to the tangent line Lb and the reference line L. You can The angle R has a one-to-one correspondence with the angle formed by the tangent line Lb with respect to the reference line L.

Therefore, if the tangent line Lb is replaced with the end of the document on the insertion side and the point b is replaced with the position of the sensor, when the end on the insertion side of the document first reaches the point b, the insertion direction of the document is changed. On the other hand, it can be detected that the edge of the document is inclined at the angle R.

Next, the process of detecting the inclination of the original and the inclination angle will be described. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the processing. First, when the original paper is inserted, the CP
The tilt sensor 2 through the direction control unit 16 by U11
The response of 0 is monitored, it is judged whether or not any of the sensors of the tilt sensor 20 has reacted, and the tilt sensor 20 is continuously monitored until it responds.

When either of the sensors responds, CP
U11 identifies which reaction sensor it is through the tilt control unit 16, recognizes (detects) the tilt angle corresponding to the identified reaction sensor, and ends this processing.

Next, the tilt setting for tilting the main scanning direction when reading the image of the original will be described. FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram thereof. When the document ST is not tilted with respect to the insertion direction as shown in (a) of the figure, the main scanning line 26 is moved even if the document ST moves in the sub-scanning direction, as indicated by a broken line frame in the figure. It is sufficient to read the image of the document ST while keeping the above.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 11B, when the document ST is inserted with an inclination angle R with respect to the insertion direction, the main scanning line 26 is indicated by a broken line frame in the drawing. Tilt to line 27. That is, the main scanning line 26 is tilted to the tilt angle R ′ so as to face the document ST.

Then, the document ST is moved in the sub-scanning direction, and the image of the document ST is read by the main scanning line 27. Therefore, by reading the image, the original ST
It is possible to store image data having no deviation between the horizontal direction and the main scanning direction in the image input unit 7.

Next, a description will be given of the inclination setting process for inclining the main scanning direction when reading the image of the original. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the processing. First, when the operator starts reading the original, the inclination of the original is detected, it is determined whether the original is tilted, and if the original is not tilted, the reading of the image of the original is started as it is and the processing is terminated. . On the other hand, if the document is tilted, the main scanning is tilted at the same angle as the tilt angle, the reading of the image of the document is started, and the process is ended.

Next, the inclination correction of the image data of the image read from the original as described above will be described. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of development of image data of an image read from a document in the image memory 15. When an image of a document without tilt is read, image data 28 read from the document without tilt is stored in the image memory area 28, as shown in FIG.

On the other hand, when an image of a document in a tilted state is read, as shown in FIG. 13B, the image data 30 read from the document without a tilt is stored in the image memory area 28. The image data 30 is stored at the same inclination angle as the original inclination angle R ″.
The inclination of the image data 30 in the sub-scanning direction is corrected.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram of a method for correcting inclination of image data of an image read from a document. This is the image data N for each of a plurality of lines of the document read at the tilt angle R stored in the image memory 15, and for example, when correcting the line Nb in the sub-scanning direction, first,
The number M of lines up to the line Nb and the number of dots between points BB ′, which is the distance of deviation caused on the line Nb due to the document being tilted, are obtained.

The number X of dots (bits) between the points B and B'is obtained by X = M × tanR. And
The image data of line Nb read from the document is corrected by shifting X dots in the main scanning direction. Similarly, for each line N, the deviation is calculated after the reading, and the deviation is corrected and stored.

In this way, the correction value X is calculated from the tilt angle and the number of sub-scanning lines for each line during the main scanning of the document, and the correction value X corrects the deviation of the image data of the read line. At this time, the control program is set to perform main scanning while performing correction by calculating a correction value based on the tilt angle and the number of sub-scanning lines for each line.

Next, the inclination correction processing of the image data of the image read from the original will be described. FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing the processing. First, the inclination angle R of the document is obtained, and the number of lines M in the main scanning direction of the image read from the document is obtained. Then, the correction value X for each line is calculated by the correction value calculation formula X = M × tanR.

After that, it is judged whether the inclination of the document is on the right side or the left side with respect to the inserting direction, that is, whether the inclination angle is "+" or "-", and if it is "+". The read image data of the original is shifted to the right by X bits, and if "-", the read image data of the original is shifted to the left by X bits, and this processing is ended.

Therefore, the document is inserted and its inclination is detected, the main scanning direction is inclined at the same angle as the inclination angle of the original to start reading, and the image data for each main scanning is stored in the image memory 15. To do. At this time, the image data of each line of the image memory 15 is stored with being shifted in the sub-scanning direction according to the inclination angle of the document.

When the image data of each line is corrected by the above-described correction processing, the image data of the read image is stored in the image memory 15 without any deviation in the sub-scanning direction.

Next, the notification means when the inclination of the original is detected will be described. FIG. 16 shows the tilt controller 16 shown in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration when a means for notifying the inclination of the document is provided, and the necessary parts are omitted. in this case,
The tilt control unit 16 is provided with a warning lamp 31,
When the tilt of the document is detected by 11, the warning lamp 31 is turned on via the tilt control unit 16 to notify the operator that the document is tilted.

FIG. 17 is a flow chart showing the processing for notifying the inclination of the document. First, it is determined whether or not the inserted document has a tilt, and if there is no tilt, image reading is started and this process ends. If the original is skewed, it is judged whether the inclination is large or small based on the preset reference value. If it is large, the reading of the original is stopped, the warning lamp is turned on, and the original is ejected. Then, this process ends.

On the other hand, when the inclination of the original is small, the main scanning direction of reading the image of the original is tilted by the inclination angle of the original to start the reading, and the inclination of the read image in the sub-scanning direction is corrected. The process ends. As described above, when the document is largely tilted, the read image is often incomplete even if the read image is corrected. Therefore, if the document is read again, it is possible to prevent erroneous recognition during character recognition.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where the inclination of the document is notified by the warning lamp has been described, but other notification means such as voice may be used when the inclination of the document is detected.

In this way, the occurrence of tilt when the image of the original is read is efficiently detected before the reading, and when the tilt of the original is detected, the image is tilted at the tilt angle in the main scanning direction. Can be read and its inclination can be corrected. Further, the character recognition processing can be performed by the image data of the image of the original having a small inclination, and the inclination detection and the inclination correction processing after the reading are unnecessary, so that the character recognition rate can be performed with high accuracy and at high speed.

Next, the effects of the character recognition device of this embodiment will be listed. (1) Not only the tilt can be detected at the front end of the document by the tilt detection sensor in which a plurality of sensors are arranged in an arc shape in the document insertion direction, but also the tilt angle can be immediately detected. Further, since the inclination of the original is detected before the scanning of reading the original, the inclination can be corrected simultaneously with the scanning when the image of the original is input, and the time required for the image input and the inclination correction processing can be shortened.

(2) By tilting the main scanning direction at the same angle as the tilt angle of the document, correction of the tilt of the document in the main scanning direction can be performed simultaneously with image input, which is necessary for image input and tilt correction processing. The time can be shortened.

(3) Tilt correction in the main scanning direction can be performed while the document is sub-scanned using the tilt angle of the document whose tilt has been detected in advance, and the time required for image input and tilt correction processing can be shortened. In addition to that, the character recognition rate can be improved by using the image data without inclination for character recognition.

(4) It is possible to use the tilt angle of the document whose tilt has been detected in advance, notify the operator when the tilt angle is large, and insert the document again on the spot to perform the recognition process. it can. Therefore, it is possible to improve the accuracy and processing efficiency of the inclination correction by causing only the original having a small inclination to be read by the character recognition device, and it is also possible to improve the character recognition rate.

Next, another embodiment of the character recognition device according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 18 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the character recognition device in this embodiment together with the system device to which the character recognition device is connected. In this data processing device, the character recognition device 3 has a keyboard interface (I / F). It is connected via a cable 32 to a system device 33 having a document creating function, a data processing function and the like.

The character recognition device 3 has a function of optically reading character information such as characters, numbers and symbols printed or handwritten on a document inserted through the insertion opening and converting it into a keyboard signal. A keyboard signal corresponding to the character information read from the original document can be output to the system device 33.

The character recognition device 3 includes an image input section 7, a character recognition section 9, a keyboard operation code creation section 36, a keyboard operation code creation information storage section 37, a keyboard signal creation section 38, a keyboard signal creation information storage section 39, Also, each function of the keyboard signal output unit 40 is provided.

The image input unit 7 optically reads an image of character information such as characters, numbers and symbols printed or handwritten on an original, binarizes the information and sends it to the character recognition unit 5. When the image is read, the inclination of the document is detected, the main scanning direction is inclined to the inclination angle to start the reading, and the deviation of the read image in the sub scanning direction is corrected and then sent to the character recognition unit 5.

The character recognition unit 9 extracts the dot pattern of the character information portion from the binarized information received from the image input unit 7 by OCR, performs character information recognition processing from the dot pattern, and outputs the recognition code. It is sent to the keyboard operation code creation unit 36.

The keyboard operation code creation unit 36 uses the information stored in the keyboard operation code creation information storage unit 37 to recognize the recognition code sent from the character recognition unit 9 as a keyboard operation code (corresponding to a key operation. code)
And is sent to the keyboard signal creation unit 38.

Keyboard operation code creation information storage unit 37
Stores the information referenced by the keyboard operation code creation unit 36 in a table format, and for all character information such as characters, numbers, and symbols that can be recognized by the character recognition unit 35, those recognition codes are used as indexes. The corresponding keyboard operation code is registered.

The keyboard signal creation unit 38 uses the keyboard operation code sent from the keyboard operation code creation unit 36 based on the information stored in the keyboard signal creation information storage unit 39 to input a keyboard signal (key depression on the keyboard). (Corresponding to the time key code and its ON / OFF signal) and sends it to the keyboard signal output unit 40.

The keyboard signal creation information storage unit 39 stores information referred to by the keyboard signal creation unit 38, and each keyboard signal data corresponding to each keyboard operation code (1 key input) on the keyboard is in a table format. Registered at.

The keyboard signal data is, for example,
When the character "A" is input to the system unit from the keyboard, the keyboard is pressed to the system unit together with the physical position (key code) of the character "A" in the keyboard layout on the keyboard. Data indicating that the key is pressed (on) and released (off) is notified, and is the notification information regarding key press and key release determined for each key on the keyboard.

The keyboard signal output section 40 outputs the keyboard signal data received from the keyboard signal creating section 38 to the system unit 33 via the keyboard I / F cable 32 for exchanging data between the system unit 33 and the keyboard. .

FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example of a storage format of keyboard operation code creation information, and FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of a storage format of keyboard signal creation information. The keyboard operation code creation information is composed of recognition data and keyboard operation data. The recognition data is information such as characters and symbols corresponding to each key on the keyboard (for example, "0""A""A" etc.). Yes, the keyboard operation data is information on keyboard operation for inputting each of those pieces of information.

For example, the keyboard operation data for inputting "0" corresponding to the recognition data "0" has the number of key operations = 2 (indicating that two key operations are required) as operation data control information. , A pointer pointing to the "alphanumeric" key in the keyboard signal creation information indicating the operation of the "alphanumeric" key and a pointer pointing to the "0" key in the keyboard signal creation information indicating the operation of the "0" key.

Further, the keyboard operation data for inputting "A" corresponding to the recognition data "A" is key operation number = 2 as operation data control information and keyboard signal generation information indicating operation of the "Katakana" key. From the pointer that points to the "Katakana" key and the pointer that points to the "3" key in the keyboard signal creation information that indicates the operation of the "3" key (since the "A" key also serves as the "3" key) Become.

The keyboard signal creation information is shown in FIG.
As shown in, it consists of keyboard signals when each key is pressed and released.

Next, the operation between the respective parts of the character recognition device 3 shown in FIG. 18 will be described. First, the character recognition unit 9 outputs a pointer pointing to keyboard operation data corresponding to the corresponding character in the keyboard operation code creation information storage unit 37 as a result of the recognized character.

This keyboard operation data includes the number of key operations as operation data control information, as shown in FIG.
It has key operation information as operation data, and the number of key operations is the number of key operations when the recognized character is actually input from the keyboard, and the operation data corresponds to the input operation procedure. Input key types) are arranged in the order of input by the number of key operations. A pointer pointing to the corresponding key stored in the keyboard signal creation information storage unit 39 is set in the key operation information.

Upon receiving the pointer from the character recognizing unit 9, the keyboard operation code creating unit 36 extracts the number of key operations and the operation data corresponding to the pointer, and the key operation information (keyboard operation information for the number of key operations) (keyboard A pointer to signal creation information) is input and output to the keyboard signal creation unit 38.

The keyboard signal generation unit 38 sequentially outputs the code of the corresponding key and the keyboard signal indicating the pressing and releasing of the key to the keyboard signal output unit 40 by the pointer from the keyboard operation code generation unit 36. And
The keyboard signal output unit 40 outputs the keyboard signal to the system device 33 via the keyboard I / F cable 32.

Next, the process of inputting character information by the character recognition device 3 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, the image input unit 4 performs a character information input process on a document. At this time, it is detected whether or not the document is tilted before the image is read. If the document is tilted, the main scanning direction is tilted by the tilt angle to read the image, and the image data of the read image is sub-scanned. Correct the deviation in direction.

The image data of the read image is sent to the character recognizing unit 5, and the character recognizing unit 5 extracts the dot pattern of the character information portion from the image data and performs the character information recognizing process to generate the keyboard operation code creating unit. 36
The pointer of the recognized character information is sent to.

Upon receiving the pointer, the keyboard operation code creating section 36 obtains the number of key operations Kt of the corresponding data pointed to by the pointer from the keyboard creating code information,
The number Kn of key operations taken out is set to "0". The key operation number Kt is compared with the key operation extraction number Kn, and if they are equal, it is judged whether or not the input is completed. If YES, the process ends. If NO, the character information input process by the image input unit 7 is repeated again.

On the other hand, if Kt and Kn are not equal, 1 is added to Kn by the keyboard signal creating section 38 to obtain the operation of the Kn-th key from the operation data, and the pointer pointed to is pressed from the keyboard signal creation information. When the keyboard signal is obtained, the keyboard signal output unit 40 outputs the keyboard signal.

Further, when the release-time keyboard signal is obtained from the keyboard signal generation information by the pointer pointed to by the operation of the Kn-th key and output by the keyboard signal output unit 40, the process returns to the process of comparing Kt and Kn, and Kt and Kn. The process is repeated until is equal.

Next, with reference to the block diagram of FIG. 23, a processing example of actual character information input in the character recognition device 3 will be further described. Here, the case of inputting the katakana "A" will be described. When the image input unit 7 reads the katakana “A” written on the manuscript and sends it to the character recognition unit 9,
The character recognition unit 9 recognizes the katakana “A” and sends a pointer pointing to the recognition data “A” of the keyboard operation creation information to the keyboard operation code creation unit 6.

Then, the keyboard operation code creating section 36
Includes the data of the number of times the key is operated as the keyboard operation data corresponding to the recognition data "A" in the information stored in the keyboard operation code creation information storage unit 37. The pointer for key operation is sent to the keyboard signal creation unit 38.

In the keyboard signal creation unit 38, the keyboard signal when the "Katakana" key is pressed, the keyboard signal when the "Katakana" key is released, and "" in the information stored in the keyboard signal creation information storage unit 39 by the pointer. The keyboard signal when the 3'key is pressed and the keyboard signal when the 3'key is released are output to the keyboard signal output unit 40.

In this way, character information such as characters, numbers and symbols input by means other than key input is output to the system unit as a keyboard signal as if the key input was made from the keyboard. Therefore, the system unit can process the input information from other than the keyboard as the same data as the key operation input from the keyboard.

The effects of the character recognition device of this embodiment will be listed below. First of all, as to the improvement of the man-machine interface, (1) it is not necessary to remember the key arrangement, so that the input becomes easy. (2) The skill of key operation becomes unnecessary.

(3) Not only characters, numbers, and symbols but also various control information (for example, half-width, double-width, line feed, page break, conversion, etc.) can be input by handwriting without using an unfamiliar keyboard. Can also be entered quickly by combining letters, symbols, marks, etc.

(4) There is no risk of erroneous input unless the character or the like is input by mistake. (5) It is possible to easily perform a fixed input operation such as activating a device by reading a card on which a series of operation information is printed, like activating a business program that is used daily. (6) Even persons with disabilities can easily input characters and the like.

Regarding the hardware, (7) Since all the input information is input by the keyboard signal from the keyboard I / F, the load of different recognition processing on the system device side depending on the input means is increased. Absent. (8) It can be used as it is for most data processing devices using a general keyboard and has versatility.

(9) The size can be easily reduced without deteriorating the operability. (10) When applied to a filing device, the amount of data can be small because a code can be input instead of an image in the filing process, and resources such as a memory in the system device can be effectively used.

[0105]

As described above, according to the character recognition device of the present invention, the recording medium detection by the tilt sensor in which a plurality of sensors are arranged in an arc shape with respect to the direction orthogonal to the insertion direction of the recording medium is performed. Since the tilt angle when the recording medium is inserted is detected by the signal, the tilt of the recording medium can be detected before the image is read.

When the tilt angle of the inserted document is detected, the main scanning direction at the time of reading the image of the document is tilted by the detected tilt angle while the tilt of the recording medium is corrected. The image can be read. Further, if the inclination of the image data read by inclining the main scanning direction is corrected for each line, the image can be read while correcting the inclination in the sub-scanning direction.

By notifying that the tilt angle of the recording medium is detected, the operator can be notified that the recording medium is tilted. Therefore,
By detecting and correcting the inclination before reading the image on the recording medium, character recognition can be performed quickly and accurately.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of an internal structure of an image input unit in a character recognition device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a data processing system including a character recognition device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an internal hardware configuration of a character recognition device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of an image input unit 7 in the character recognition device 3 of FIG.

5 is a flowchart showing a process of reading an image of a document in the character recognition device of FIG.

6 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a tilt sensor 20 in the image input section 7 of FIG. 4 together with a tilt control section 16. FIG.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram when a document is not tilted when an image of the document is read by the image input unit 4 of FIG.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram when a document is tilted when an image of the document is read by the image input unit 4 of FIG.

9 is an explanatory diagram of the principle of the method for detecting the inclination of a document by the image input unit 4 in FIG.

10 is a flowchart showing a process of detecting an inclination of a document and an inclination angle of the document in the image input unit 7 of FIG.

11 is an explanatory diagram of tilt setting for tilting the main scanning direction when reading an image of a document by the image input unit 7 of FIG.

12 is a flowchart showing a tilt setting process of tilting the main scanning direction when reading an image of a document in the image input section 7 of FIG.

13 is a diagram showing an example of development of image data of an image read from a document in the image memory 15 of FIG.

14 is an explanatory diagram of a tilt correction method of image data of an image read from a document by the image input unit 7 of FIG.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an inclination correction process of image data of an image read from a document in the image input section 7 of FIG.

16 is a diagram showing a configuration in which the tilt control unit 16 of FIG. 4 is provided with means for notifying the tilt of a document.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing a process of notifying the inclination of a document in the image input section 7 of FIG.

FIG. 18 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a character recognition device according to another embodiment of the present invention together with a system device to which the character recognition device is connected.

19 is a diagram showing an example of a storage format of keyboard operation code creation information in the keyboard operation code creation information storage unit 37 of FIG.

FIG. 20 is a keyboard signal creation information storage unit 39 of FIG.
6 is a diagram showing an example of a storage format of keyboard signal creation information in FIG.

21 is a diagram showing an example of a storage format of keyboard operation data in the keyboard operation code creation information storage section 37 of FIG.

22 is a flowchart showing a character information input process in the character recognition device of FIG.

23 is a block diagram for describing an example of actual character information input processing by the character recognition device in FIG. 18.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Host Computer 2 Communication Line 3 Character Recognition Device 4 Input Device 5 Display Device 6 Central Processing Unit 7 Image Input Unit 8 Character Part Extraction Unit 9 Character Recognition Unit 10 Host Interface (I / F) Unit 11 CPU 12 Control Memory 13 Main Scanning control unit 14 Sub-scanning control unit 15 Image memory 16 Tilt control unit 17 Data transfer control unit 18 Light source 19 Photoelectric conversion sensor 20 Tilt sensor 21 Internal bus 22 Original platen 26, 27 Main scanning line 28-30 Image data 31 Warning lamp 32 keyboard interface (I / F) cable 33 system unit 36 keyboard operation code creation unit 37 keyboard operation code creation information storage unit 38 keyboard signal creation unit 39 keyboard signal creation information storage unit 40 keyboard signal output unit ST document P1 tilt detection point 2 image input point S1~S11 sensor

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An image input unit for reading an image of character information such as characters, numbers, and symbols printed or entered on a recording medium such as a manuscript and inputting it as optical image data, and an image input by the unit. In a character recognition device comprising dot pattern extraction means for extracting a dot pattern of a character information portion from data, and character information recognition means for recognizing character information from the dot pattern extracted by the means, in the image input means, An inclination sensor in which a plurality of sensors are arranged in an arc shape with respect to a direction orthogonal to the insertion direction of the recording medium, and the recording medium detection signal by the plurality of sensors of the inclination sensor when the recording medium is inserted A character recognition device, comprising: a tilt detection unit that detects a tilt angle of a medium. 2. The character recognition device according to claim 1, wherein
When the tilt angle of the recording medium inserted by the tilt detecting means is detected, the main scanning direction when reading an image on the recording medium is tilted by the detected tilt angle. Recognition device. 3. The character recognition device according to claim 2,
A character recognition device comprising means for correcting the inclination of each line of image data read by inclining the main scanning direction. 4. The character recognition device according to claim 1,
A character recognition device comprising means for notifying that the tilt angle of the recording medium has been detected by the tilt detecting means.