System for automatic adjustment and editing of handwritten text image

• US 4,727,588 A
• Filed: 10/09/1986
• Issued: 02/23/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/1984
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Fox, Abijah S., Tappert, Charles C., Greanias, Evon C., Kim, Joonki
• Primary Examiner(s): Boudreau, Leo H.
• Application Number:
  US06/917,280
• Time in Patent Office: 502 Days
• Field of Search: 178/18, 178/19, 178/21, 178/23 A, 340/707, 340/708, 340/724, 340/731, 382/9, 382/13, 382/57, 382/59
• US Class Current: 382/189
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/1423 the instrument generating sequences of position coordinates corresponding to handwriting preprocessing or recognising digital ink G06V30/32
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/32 Digital ink

Abstract

A system of information formatting and editing using handwritten input data on an all points addressable tablet. Input words are segmented then reformatted in a consistent manner of spacing and horizontal alignments to provide a legible output while still maintaining the handwritten format. Editing functions such as delete, add and move are provided in an interactive manner.

Claims

1. A data input and display system comprising:

x-y tablet means having an input stylus for inputting a handwritten image comprising a series of words and converting into coordinate signals as said words are input;

display means to portray said handwritten image on a display screen; and

means for formatting said handwritten image as it is input prior to display to modify said handwritten image in accordance with predetermined rules thereby uniformly separating and aligning word portions of said handwritten image with our word portions, and comprising means for completing a line of said handwritten image with succeeding words; and

means for determining when a word begins a new paragraph and for either indenting or outdenting said word on a new line or skipping a line and beginning a new sentence with that word, said means for determining comprising,

detector means for determining, based on coordinate signals, extremity positions of new words as they are input to said X-Y tablet, extremity store means to store extremity values representing maximum left, right and bottom positions of input words;

means to store extremity values of a prior input word; and

comparison means for determining whether an input word follows a preceding word on the same line, starts a new line without indenting, skips a line or starts a new line horizontally displaced with respect to prior lines.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said means for formatting further comprises means for segmenting one word of said handwritten image from another word of said handwritten image.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein said means for segmenting comprise register means to store extremities of strokes during a period of time when said stylus is in contact with said tablet, comparator means to determine whether a succeeding stroke exceeds the stored stroke extremity positions by a predetermined amount, and means to determine whether a succeeding stroke exceeds a predetermined zone of proximity that exceeds said stored extremity positions to determine whether a succeeding stroke is a continuation of a handwritten word or the beginning of a succeeding word.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said comparison means comprises logic means for comparing upper extremity value of an input word with said stored maximum bottom extremity value, said logic means producing an output for skipping a line when said upper extremity value exceeds said stored bottom extremity value by more than a predetermined amount.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein said comparison means comprises logic means for comparing the difference between a stored left maximum extremity value and a left extremity value of an input word, said logic means producing an output for beginning a new line without indentation when said comparison is less than a predetermined value.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein said comparison means comprises logic means for comparing an upper extremity value of an input word with a stored upper extremity value of a prior word;

said logic means producing an output for placing an input word on the same line as said preceding word when said comparison results are then a predetermined value and the left extremity of the input word is greater than the stored right extremity of said prior word by a predetermined amount.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein said comparison means comprises a new paragraph detector to determine whether an input word is the first word of a new paragraph.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein said means for formatting further comprises means for aligning said handwritten image on parallel horizontal lines.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein said means for aligning comprises first means for orienting an input word to be horizontal with respect to a predetermined horizontal orientation, and second means for aligning horizontal words on a common horizontal line.

10. The system of claim 9 wherein said first means comprises a word length detector for determining whether an input word is longer than a predetermined length and a word baseline determinator for establishing a baseline for words exceeds said predetermined length.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein said second means comprises a first register for storing baselines of input words from said baseline determinator, and a second register storing a running baseline updated by baselines stored in said first registers, and means to move an input word so that it conforms to said running baseline.

12. The system of claim 8 wherein said means for aligning said handwritten image comprises a word length detector receiving an input handwritten image, means to determine whether said word of said handwritten image contains any descender characters, a register to store a running baseline representative of the horizontal alignment of words of said handwritten image, means to establish the word baseline of the input handwritten image, means responsive to said running baseline, descender information and the word baseline to correct the running baseline as a function of the word baseline and, means to transform the position of said input handwritten image as a junction of the corrected running baseline.

13. The system of claim 1 further comprising means to edit said handwritten image.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein said X-Y tablet comprises an interactive zone responsive to said input stylus for generating edit commands to said means for formatting and a zone for entering replacement words.

15. The system of claim 13 wherein said means to edit comprises edit coordinate analyzer means for determining the functional command to be performed, means for storing an operand of said functional command to be performed, logic means for performing said operand and means for storing the edited image.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein said means to edit comprises means to shift segmented words of said handwritten image into locations on said display means that are positionally different from the position of input on said x-y tablet.

17. The system of claim 15 wherein said means to edit comprises means to delete portions of said handwritten image.