What We Should Know About Ocr

By Author: Lisa Hathorn
Total Articles: 4717
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What is OCR?
Optical Character Recognition, or OCR, is a technology which allows scanned images of text to be converted into fully editable and searchable digital files. If you try to digitize a book without the use of OCR, it could take you hours, or even days of typing. However, with the use of a scanner and Optical Character Recognition, this process takes only minutes.
What is OCR used for?
Optical Character Recognition technology is used by enterprises, libraries, government agencies and other institutions that need to digitize their paper documents to help speed up workflows.
How Does OCR Work?
First of all, the source document is scanned with the help of an optical scanner. Latest OCR technology also allows the recognition of photos or screenshots. The image is then processed with OCR software. There are also online OCR services, such as Free Online OCR, which are convenient for smaller OCR tasks.
What Fonts Does OCR Recognize?
The recognition capabilities of different software applications and online services may vary, but generally OCR technology nowadays can recognize most ...
... types of printed fonts. However, handwriting and script fonts are still a great challenge.
How Accurate is OCR?
Optical Character Recognition technology is in a very advanced state. Most OCR software programs can perform conversions at an accuracy rate of over 95 percent. The higher the accuracy, the less time is spent on correcting mistakes in the resulting document.
Achieving Best Results
There are several factors which can affect the recognition results. The quality of the original paper document is very important. Any imperfections, such as smudges and stains, will reduce the accuracy of the conversion. During scanning, the higher number of dots per inch, the higher accuracy. Usually, users are recommended to scan their documents at 300 dpi.
More information about OCR technology and software is available at http://www.ocrworld.com
About Author:
Lisa Hathorn is a specialist in optical character recognition . To learn more, please visit http://www.ocrworld.com.