Infrared and Visible Imaging of Documents
AssigneeDocument Capture Technologies, Inc.
InventorJung-Chih Huang
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A payment item having a magnetic ink character recognition (MICR)-line on its front is handled by generating, using visible light, a front image of the front of the payment item, generating, using infrared light, an infrared image of the front of the payment item or of a portion of the front of the payment item containing its MICR-line, and performing optical character recognition on the infrared image to identify data encoded in the MICR-line.
Claims20
A method for handling a payment item having a magnetic ink character recognition (MICR)-line, the method comprising:
- generating, using visible light, a front image of the front of said payment item;
- generating, using infrared light, an infrared image of the front of said payment item or of a portion of the front of said payment item containing its MICR-line;
- and
- performing optical character recognition on said infrared image to identify data encoded in said MICR-line.
A method for scanning a document in a scanner having an infrared light source and one or more visible light sources, the method comprising.
- mechanically advancing said document to a position in said scanner;
- and
- while said document is at said position, and without further mechanically advancing said document, illuminating a line of the front of said document, one light source at a time, with said infrared light source and at least one of said one or more visible light sources, and capturing output of sensors that is generated as a result of illuminating said line one light source at a time,
- wherein said sensors are responsive to at least a visible range of the radiation spectrum and to at least an infrared range of the radiation spectrum.
A method for scanning a document in a scanner, the method comprising:
- mechanically advancing said document to a position in said scanner;
- and
- while said document is at said position, and without further mechanically advancing said document:
- illuminating a line of the front of said document with a light source having output in an infrared range of the radiation spectrum and having output in a visible range of the radiation spectrum;
- capturing output of first sensors that are responsive to at least said infrared range, wherein said first sensors are optically coupled to first optical filters to filter out all hut said infrared range;
- and
- capturing output of second sensors that are responsive to at least said visible range, wherein said second sensors are optically coupled to second optical filters to filter out all but said visible range.
A method for scanning a document in a scanner having an infrared light source and one or more visible light sources, the method comprising:
- mechanically advancing said document to a position in said scanner;
- and
- while said document is at said position, and without further mechanically advancing said document:
- illuminating a first line of the front of said document with at least one of said one or more visible light sources;
- capturing output of first sensors that is generated as a result of illuminating said first line, wherein said first sensors are responsive to at least a visible range of the radiation spectrum;
- illuminating a second line of the front of said document with said infrared light source;
- and
- capturing output of second sensors that is generated as a result of illuminating said second line, wherein said second sensors are responsive to at least an infrared range of the radiation spectrum.
A system for handling a payment item having a magnetic ink character recognition (MICR)-line, the system comprising:
- a first imaging device to generate, using visible light, a front image of the front of said payment item and a back image of the back of said payment item;
- a second imaging device to generate, using infrared light, an infrared image of the front of said payment item or of a portion of the front of said payment item containing its MICR-line;
- and
- a computer-readable medium storing software to be executed on a computer that is coupled via a communication link to said first imaging device and to second imaging device, wherein said software is configured to control said computer to receive said front image and said back image via said communication link and to receive said infrared image via said communication link and to perform optical character recognition on said infrared image to identify data encoded in said MICR-line.
A system for handling a payment item having a magnetic ink character recognition (MICR)-line, the system comprising:
- an imaging device to generate, using visible light a front image of the front of said payment item and a back image of the back of said payment item, and to generate, using infrared light, an infrared image of the front of said payment item or of a portion of the front of said payment item containing its MICR-line;
- and
- a computer-readable medium storing software to be executed on a computer that is coupled via a communication link to said imaging device, wherein said software is configured to control said computer to receive said front image and said back image via said communication link and to receive said infrared image via said communication link and to perform optical character recognition on said infrared image to identify data encoded in said MICR-line.
A method for scanning a payment item having a magnetic ink character recognition (MICR)-line, the method comprising:
- receiving said payment item into a scanner for scanning lines substantially parallel to said MICR-line;
- generating, using infrared light, an infrared image of a portion of a front of said payment item, wherein said MICR-line is contained in said portion, by line-by-line scanning at a first resolution in lines that are substantially parallel to said MICR-line;
- generating, using visible light, a visible image of said portion by line-by-line scanning at a second resolution in lines that are substantially parallel to said MICR-line;
- generating, using visible light, a visible image of a remaining portion of said front of said payment item by line-by-line scanning at a third resolution in lines that are substantially parallel to said MICR-line;
- and
- performing optical character recognition on said infrared image to identify data encoded in said MICR-line.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.