Digitizing documents

• US 8,116,567 B2
• Filed: 10/07/2008
• Issued: 02/14/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ginegar LLC (K.Mizra LLC)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Tzadok, Asaf, Walach, Eugeniusz
• Primary Examiner(s): Chawan, Sheela
• Application Number:
  US12/246,626
• Publication Number:
  US 20100086210A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,225 Days
• Field of Search: 382/171, 382/176, 382/173, 382/199, 382/100, 382/115, 382/119, 382/137, 382/181, 382/186, 382/276, 382/278, 382/123, 382/121, 382/122, 382/120, 382/190, 382/195, 713/176, 713/180, 713/177, 713/175, 713/168, 716/100, 716/101, 716/103, 715/205, 715/268, 235/380, 235/494, 705/76, 705/51, 707/E17.013, 707/999.01
• US Class Current: 382/181
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/10 Character recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/40 Document-oriented image-based pattern recognition

Abstract

Techniques for performing page verification of a document are provided. The techniques include performing a recognition technique on a document to recognize one or more objects in the document, excluding the one or more recognized objects from the document, and performing page verification of the document, wherein page verification comprises visual inspection of the document excluding the one or more recognized objects.

Claims

1. A method for performing page verification of a document, comprising the steps of:

performing a recognition technique on a document to recognize one or more objects in the document;

excluding the one or more recognized objects from the document; and

performing page verification of the document, wherein page verification comprises visual inspection of the document excluding the one or more recognized objects and further comprises facilitating viewing potentially neglected content in the document and deciding whether the potentially neglected content should be addressed or not;

wherein at least one of the steps is carried out by a computer device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein page verification is performed before a manual validation of the recognition technique.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein page verification is performed after a manual validation of the recognition technique.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more objects comprise at least one of text, one or more figures, one or more tables, one or more line arts and one or more images.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying one or more missing areas by drawing a bounding rectangle around the one or more missing areas and forwarding the one or more missing areas for further processing.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the further processing comprises at least one of optical character recognition (OCR), intelligent character recognition (ICR), manual data entry and storage as a separate image.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising using one or more identified objects to modify a scanned page image.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein modifying a scanned page image comprises removing, from the scanned page image, content marked for extraction.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein modifying a scanned page image comprises highlighting content marked for extraction in the scanned page image.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising de-noising a residue image obtained after removal of one or more recognition technique-processed areas.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the recognition technique comprises at least one of optical character recognition (OCR) and intelligent character recognition (ICR).

12. A tangible computer readable recordable storage medium having computer readable program code for performing page verification of a document, said computer program product including:

computer readable program code for performing a recognition technique on a document to recognize one or more objects in the document;

computer readable program code for excluding the one or more recognized objects from the document; and

computer readable program code for performing page verification of the document, wherein page verification comprises visual inspection of the document excluding the one or more recognized objects and further comprises facilitating viewing potentially neglected content in the document and deciding whether the potentially neglected content should be addressed or not.

13. The tangible computer readable recordable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the one or more objects comprise at least one of text, one or more figures, one or more tables, one or more line arts and one or more images.

14. The tangible computer readable recordable storage medium of claim 12, further comprising computer readable program code for identifying one or more missing areas by drawing a bounding rectangle around the one or more missing areas and forwarding the one or more missing areas for further processing.

15. The tangible computer readable recordable storage medium of claim 12, further comprising computer readable program code for using one or more identified objects to modify a scanned page image.

16. The tangible computer readable recordable storage medium of claim 12, further comprising computer readable program code for de-noising a residue image obtained after removal of one or more recognition technique-processed areas.

17. The tangible computer readable recordable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the recognition technique comprises at least one of optical character recognition (OCR) and intelligent character recognition (ICR).

18. An apparatus for performing page verification of a document, comprising:

a memory; and

at least one processor coupled to said memory and operative to;

perform a recognition technique on a document to recognize one or more objects in the document;

exclude the one or more recognized objects from the document; and

perform page verification of the document, wherein page verification comprises visual inspection of the document excluding the one or more recognized objects and further comprises facilitating viewing potentially neglected content in the document and deciding whether the potentially neglected content should be addressed or not.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the one or more objects comprise at least one of text, one or more figures, one or more tables, one or more line arts and one or more images.

20. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the at least one processor coupled to said memory is further operative to identify one or more missing areas by drawing a bounding rectangle around the one or more missing areas and forwarding the one or more missing areas for further processing.

21. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the at least one processor coupled to said memory is further operative to use one or more identified objects to modify a scanned page image.

22. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the at least one processor coupled to said memory is further operative to de-noise a residue image obtained after removal of one or more recognition technique-processed areas.

23. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the recognition technique comprises at least one of optical character recognition (OCR) and intelligent character recognition (ICR).

24. An apparatus for performing page verification of a document, said apparatus comprising:

means for performing a recognition technique on a document to recognize one or more objects in the document;

means for excluding the one or more recognized objects from the document; and

means for performing page verification of the document, wherein page verification comprises visual inspection of the document excluding the one or more recognized objects and further comprises facilitating viewing potentially neglected content in the document and deciding whether the potentially neglected content should be addressed or not.