Mail distribution information recognition method and device

• US 6,587,572 B1
• Filed: 11/03/1999
• Issued: 07/01/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/03/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Miletzki, Udo, Suchenwirth-Bauersachs, Richard, Rosenbaum, Walter
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Jayanti K.
• Application Number:
  US09/423,211
• Time in Patent Office: 1,336 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/101, 382/103, 382/108, 382/218, 209/44.4, 209/546, 209/584, 209/587, 235/375, 704/251, 704/270, D 6/422
• US Class Current: 382/101
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 3/20 Arrangements for facilitating the visual reading of addresses, e.g. display arrangements coding stations
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/987 with the intervention of an operator

Abstract

The invention pertains to mail distribution information recognition technology, involving video-coding stations. According to the invention, the distribution information is fed into the screen of a video-coding unit by means of a speech input unit comprising a microphone (60), a speech recognition module (70) and, if need be, a key board (50). The input data are compiled to a list covering all possible proposals concerning the recognition of the distribution information, said proposals being assessed according to the plausibility criterion. After removal of the little plausible proposals, the selected ones are displayed.

Claims

1. A method for recognizing distribution information on surfaces of mail items with the aid of video-coding stations to which acquired, digitized and stored images of the mail item surfaces containing the distribution information are supplied, wherein the determined distribution information is compared to dictionaries, comprising the steps of:

displaying the respective distribution information of a mail item surface on a screen of the video-coding station and inputting totally or in part the respective distribution information by means of a connected voice input unit, including a microphone and a voice recognition module, where

distribution information suggestions for a mail item surface are generated in the voice input unit and evaluated as to reliability, so that the suggestion or suggestions with the highest reliability for confirmation/selection is (are) displayed on the video-coding station screen following a comparison with the dictionary.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein

at least existing numerical parts of the respective distribution information displayed on the video-coding station screen are input with the aid of a keyboard and names are input with the aid of the voice input unit;

for each distribution information, the data input with the keyboard and the name candidates determined via the voice input and evaluated on the basis of reliability are combined to form a list of complete distribution information suggestions; and

following a dictionary comparison, the suggestion or suggestions for information distribution with the highest reliabilities for the valid distribution information is (are) transmitted to the screen of the video-coding station for confirmation/selection.

3. A method according to claim 2, wherein

in addition to the input of numerical components of the distribution information by way of figure keys, larger mail item destinations can be input via control keys.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein

the respective distribution information is additionally evaluated in an OCR unit, which results in a list of distribution information suggestions based on reliability, and this list is combined with the list of distribution information suggestions based on reliability, determined at least via the voice input, to form a complete list with a uniform format, comprising reliabilities that result from the two lists, from which the candidates with the highest reliabilities are displayed on the screen of the video-coding station following a dictionary comparison.

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein

the distribution information suggestions from the OCR unit are correlated with the data input via the keyboard, a correction is made in case of a conflict and the resulting list of distribution information suggestions, rated as to reliability, is used to form the complete list.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein

distribution information suggestions that are not plausible for reliability, as determined by the evaluating step, are removed via a plausibility filter from the complete list by means of statistically determined threshold values.

7. An arrangement for recognizing distribution information on mail items, wherein the distribution information is compared to dictionaries, comprising:

a device for obtaining images of mail items;

an OCR unit for the automatic evaluation of the images of mail item surfaces containing distribution information;

a device for video-coding the images of the mail item surfaces containing the distribution information, said video-coding device having at least one video-coding station;

a processing unit, which controls data flows between input units and output units of the device for video-coding and the OCR unit; and

a voice input unit including a microphone and a voice recognition module, said voice input unit being connected to each video-coding station and distribution information suggestions being supplied by the voice input unit, where the distribution information suggestions with the highest reliability are transmitted by means of the processing unit to a screen of the respective video-coding station for selection or confirmation, following a comparison with the dictionary.

8. An arrangement according to claim 7, wherein

complete distribution information suggestions are generated in the processing unit from the name suggestions and key input signals, generated with the voice input unit.

9. An arrangement according to claim 7, wherein

from the list of distribution information suggestions rated according to reliability and determined at least via the voice input unit, and a list of distribution information suggestions rated according to reliability generated in the OCR unit, a complete list of distribution information suggestions is generated in the processing unit with reliabilities based on both lists, for which the most believable suggestions are transmitted to a video-coding station to be displayed there.