Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and non-transitory storage medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11941903-B2
Application number	US-202117538882-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 30, 2021
Priority date	Dec 10, 2020
Publication date	Mar 26, 2024
Grant date	Mar 26, 2024

Abstract

An image processing apparatus that generates an image for character recognition from a read image includes at least one memory that stores instructions, and at least one processor that executes the instructions to perform extracting of an area of handwritten character information and an area of printed character information from the read image, clipping of a partial image of the area of handwritten character information and a partial image of the area of printed character information out of the read image, and generating of the image for character recognition by combining the partial image of the area of handwritten character information and the partial image of the area of printed character information being associated with each other.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image processing apparatus that generates an image for character recognition from a read image, the image processing apparatus comprising:
at least one memory that stores instructions; and
at least one processor that executes the instructions to perform:
extracting a character information area, which includes character information from the read image;
classifying handwritten character information and printed character information from the extracted character information area;
clipping a partial image of the area of handwritten character information and a partial image of the area of printed character information classified out of the read image; and
generating the image for character recognition by combining the partial image of the area of handwritten character information and the partial image of the area of printed character information being associated with each other,
wherein the combined partial image of the area of handwritten character information and the combined partial image of the area of printed character information are arranged in a row direction on the generated image even if the partial image of the area of handwritten character information and the partial image of the area of printed character information are arranged in a column direction on the read image.

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the at least one processor executes the instructions to further perform:
acquiring of association information obtained by associating the handwritten character information with the printed character information, and
wherein the partial image of the area of handwritten character information and the partial image of the area of printed character information being associated with each other are determined based on the association information.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the at least one processor executes the instructions to further perform:
analyzing of a structure of a document based on the read image, and
wherein the partial image of the area of handwritten character information and the partial image of the area of printed character information are associated with each other based on a result of analyzing.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the image for character recognition is generated by adjusting a size of each of the handwritten character information and the printed character information.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one processor executes the instructions to further perform:
controlling to display the generated image for character recognition.

6. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing a program for causing a processor of an information processing apparatus to perform an image processing method, the method comprising:
extracting a character information area, which includes character information from the read image;
classifying handwritten character information and printed character information from the extracted character information area;
clipping a partial image of the area of handwritten character information and a partial image of the area of printed character information classified out of the read image; and
generating an image for character recognition by combining the partial image of the area of handwritten character information and the partial image of the area of printed character information being associated with each other,
wherein the combined partial image of the area of handwritten character information and the combined partial image of the area of printed character information are arranged in a row direction on the generated image even if the partial image of the area of handwritten character information and the partial image of the area of printed character information are arranged in a column direction on the read image.

Assignees

• Canon Kk

Inventors

• Takahashi Katsuyuki

Classifications

• G06V30/22 Primary

  characterised by the type of writing · CPC title

• G06V30/141

  using multiple overlapping images; Image stitching · CPC title

• G06V30/15

  Cutting or merging image elements, e.g. region growing, watershed or clustering-based techniques · CPC title

• G06V30/18076

  by analysing connectivity, e.g. edge linking, connected component analysis or slices · CPC title

• G06V30/41

  Analysis of document content (recognition of printed characters based on code marks G06V30/224) · CPC title