Handbook of Document Image Processing and Recognition

International audienceThe Handbook of Document Image Processing and Recognition provides a consistent, comprehensive resource on the available methods and techniques in document image processing and recognition. It includes unified comparison and contrast analysis of algorithms in standard table formats. Thus, it educates the reader in order to help them to make informed decisions on their particular problems. The handbook is divided into several parts. Each part starts with an introduction written by the two editors. These introductions set the general framework for the main topic of each part and introduces the contribution of each chapter within the framework. The introductions are followed by several chapters written by established experts of the field. Each chapter provides the reader with a clear overview of the topic and of the state of the art in techniques used (including elements of comparison between them). Each chapter is structured in the same way: It starts with an introductory text, concludes with a summary of the main points addressed in the chapter and ends with a comprehensive list of references. Whenever appropriate, the authors include specific sections describing and pointing to consolidated software and/or reference datasets. Numerous cross-references between the chapters ensure this is a truly integrated work, without unnecessary duplications and overlaps between chapters. This reference work is intended for the use by a wide audience of readers from around the world such as graduate students, researchers, librarians, lecturers, professionals, and many other people

A robust braille recognition system

Braille is the most effective means of written communication between visually-impaired and sighted people. This paper describes a new system that recognizes Braille characters in scanned Braille document pages. Unlike most other approaches, an inexpensive flatbed scanner is used and the system requires minimal interaction with the user. A unique feature of this system is the use of context at different levels (from the pre-processing of the image through to the post-processing of the recognition results) to enhance robustness and, consequently, recognition results. Braille dots composing characters are identified on both single and double-sided documents of average quality with over 99% accuracy, while Braille characters are also correctly recognised in over 99% of documents of average quality (in both single and double-sided documents)

Feature Type Analysis in Automated Genre Classification

In this paper, we compare classifiers based on language model, image, and stylistic features for automated genre classification. The majority of previous studies in genre classification have created models based on an amalgamated representation of a document using a multitude of features. In these models, the inseparable roles of different features make it difficult to determine a means of improving the classifier when it exhibits poor performance in detecting selected genres. By independently modeling and comparing classifiers based on features belonging to three types, describing visual, stylistic, and topical properties, we demonstrate that different genres have distinctive feature strengths.

Multimedia search without visual analysis: the value of linguistic and contextual information

This paper addresses the focus of this special issue by analyzing the potential contribution of linguistic content and other non-image aspects to the processing of audiovisual data. It summarizes the various ways in which linguistic content analysis contributes to enhancing the semantic annotation of multimedia content, and, as a consequence, to improving the effectiveness of conceptual media access tools. A number of techniques are presented, including the time-alignment of textual resources, audio and speech processing, content reduction and reasoning tools, and the exploitation of surface features