OCR Technology

OCR, stands for Optical Character Recognition (OCR), is a process of converting text images into machine-readable text. It works by analyzing character structure and recognizing patterns. It can quickly convert printed or handwritten text into editable and searchable data, reducing the need for manual data entry, reducing errors, saving time, and improving business efficiency.

Why is OCR important?

Most business documents consist of printed materials, paper forms, invoices, scanned legal documents, and printed contracts. Each year, a large volume of documents is generated, requiring significant storage and management time. While paperless document management is the best option, this manual process can be time-consuming

OCR technology solves this problem by converting text images into text data that can be analyzed by other business software. This data can then be used to analyze, streamline operations, automate processes, and improve efficiency.

How does OCR work?

OCR scanning is divided into three steps.

• Preliminary Stage: Input data (such as images or documents) is processed to improve image quality. Low-quality images can impact OCR accuracy. The input data is denoised, skew corrected, and converted to binary (e.g., black and white) to improve image quality.
• Text Recognition: Text recognition includes character recognition and content analysis to improve accuracy.
• Post-Processing: Post-processing is used to correct errors and improve the quality of the output text, including correcting misspellings.

Types of OCR Readers

Different OCR readers are designed to suit different needs and situations.

• Flatbed Scanner: Flatbed scanners are the most popular type of scanner, often found in offices and homes. These scanners feature a flat glass surface for placing documents or pages to be scanned and can accommodate a wide range of document sizes.
• Sheet-Fed Scanner: Sheet-fed scanners are designed for scanning large volumes of documents. These scanners can quickly process large amounts of paper, making them ideal for businesses that handle large volumes of documents.
• Portable Scanner: Portable scanners are compact and lightweight, making them ideal for travelers or professionals on the move. They are often used to scan receipts, business cards, and other small documents.
• Handheld Scanner: Portable scanners are compact and portable, allowing you to scan documents anywhere, making them ideal for field work.

Recommended Models

ZEBRA DS3608-HP / DS3678-HP High-performance scanners capable of capturing 1D/2D barcodes over long distances, as well as OCR scanning photos and documents.

ZEBRA DS4678 Portable Scanner offers wireless mobility and can scan barcodes of all sizes and conditions. With a scan life of over 13 hours per unit

ZEBRA FS40 Fixed Industrial Scanner, featuring built-in DL-OCR support, delivers fast 2D barcode decoding and deep learning-based OCR capabilities. It supports Ethernet, Serial, USB, and industrial protocols.

Benefits of OCR

Save Time
Automate data entry processes by quickly converting printed text into digital format. OCR scans can process data up to ten times faster than manual data entry, significantly reducing administrative workloads.

Improved Data Accuracy
Improved data accuracy. Manual data entry is often plagued by errors due to human error. OCR guarantees data accuracy of up to 99%.

Searchability
Enables data search. Google's OCRopus has an accuracy rate of over 90%.

Multilingual Support
Can recognize text in languages including English, Latin, Chinese, Arabic, Russian, and Hindi.

Cost Savings
Reduce costs associated with document management. Paper is not only cumbersome but also expensive to maintain. It also requires storage space, manual labor for sorting and storing, and the cost of paper, ink, and other equipment.