SimpleInvoice is a preconfigured solution that uses the OCR and dictionary matching functionality of the SimpleIndex scanning and indexing software to automatically scan, name, and organize incoming invoices into your chosen folder structure of searchable PDF files.
SimpleInvoice requires minimal configuration to get started. It comes with everything you need to index most common invoice styles. The customer and vendor lists, as well as your particular Purchase Order and Invoice number styles, can be customized for your company.
Use SimpleInvoice to:
- Automatically receive and enter invoices in your accounting software, especially QuickBooks
- Create full-text searchable invoice files
- Create an organized filing system for archiving invoices
- Quickly find specific invoices based on vendor, date, invoice number and other index fields
Please Contact Us to find out more about SimpleInvoice!
Will your SimpleQB allow me to scan in old invoices or bank statements directly into QuickBooks?
SimpleQB enables you to scan and link documents to QuickBooks transactions through a custom menu. When you have an invoice, purchase order, work order, bank reconciliation or other transaction open, simply click the Scan menu to scan a document and save it with that transaction.
To view the documents for a transaction, just click the View menu.
You can also use SimpleSearch to find and view documents scanned with SimpleQB without the QuickBooks interface.
- Published in Database & Retrieval, SimpleQB
Can SimpleQB be used to scan in receipts and invoices which are then matched to the files kept in the QuickBooks System?
Yes, That is exactly what SimpleQB was designed to do.
SimpleQB uses the information from your QuickBooks documents to file images under the appropriate customer/vendor, document type, document number and date. Simply pull up the corresponding file in QuickBooks and click scan!
- Published in SimpleQB
How do you train the OCR engine for better accuracy?
Training has been removed with version 7 due to the addition of the ABBYY FineReader OCR engine.
- Published in OCR
How can I improve recognition rates for my OCR fields?
There are several things you can do to improve accuracy for OCR.
-Scan at 300dpi, black & white for best results.
-Adjust the scan settings to remove background noise and improve the definition of characters.
-For Zone OCR, field recognition can often vary based on the surrounding white space and text in the zone. Try varying the size of the zone to achieve optimal results.
-For template matching, make sure all variations of the field format are included in the template list.
-For dictionary matching, add common variations and OCR mistakes to the “thesaurus” list.
-On the Zones & OCR tab (accessed from the Job Options) you can adjust the Max Errors setting to allow for more mistakes in the dictionary matching process.
-Use the Strip Spaces, Strip Characters, Replace Characters and Case Fixing options to standardize the field format prior to matching.
Please refer to the manual for details on how to configure these options.
Find out more about Optical Character Recognition on the SimpleOCR Guide. You may also check out our Advanced OCR Guide to find out how to use third-party OCR applications with SimpleIndex.
- Published in OCR
SimpleInvoice Invoice Processing Solution
SimpleInvoice is a preconfigured solution that uses the OCR and dictionary matching functionality of the SimpleIndex scanning and indexing software to automatically scan, name, and organize incoming invoices into your chosen folder structure of searchable PDF files.
SimpleInvoice requires minimal configuration to get started. It comes with everything you need to index most common invoice styles. The customer and vendor lists, as well as your particular Purchase Order and Invoice number styles, can be customized for your company.
Use SimpleInvoice to:
- Automatically receive and enter invoices in your accounting software, especially QuickBooks
- Create full-text searchable invoice files
- Create an organized filing system for archiving invoices
- Quickly find specific invoices based on vendor, date, invoice number and other index fields
Please Contact Us to find out more about SimpleInvoice!
Template Autofill
This feature added in SimpleIndex 8.1 allows you to spell out the specific OCR pattern of a vendor’s invoice number as a column in your Vendor database. When processing invoices only the template specific to that vendor is loaded and all other templates are ignored. This greatly improves the accuracy of the invoice number capture, since each vendor uses a different label and numbering scheme for their invoices.
FAQ Related to Invoice Processing
- Regular Expression (RegEx) - Syntax or Type
- Will your SimpleQB allow me to scan in old invoices or bank statements directly into QuickBooks?
- Is there a way to just use part of a bar code or OCR value? For example, extract "50" from the value "124450"
- Can SimpleQB be used to scan in receipts and invoices which are then matched to the files kept in the QuickBooks System?
- How do you train the OCR engine for better accuracy?
Invoice Processing with Full Page OCR
This job configuration uses a 3-step process to automate the OCR processing:
Step 1 uses a full-page OCR process on each image. Field data is extracted from the full-page OCR using template and dictionary matching algorithms. This is done in Pre-Index mode to allow unattended processing. Data is saved to a database so it can be reviewed and corrected in Step 2.
Step 2 uses Database Update mode to find images with missing index values and allow the user to manually enter the correct data.
Step 3 uses a SimpleSearch configuration to search and view the indexed images, including full text searches.
FAQ Related to Invoice Processing
Coming SoonPDF Invoice OCR Demo
This demonstrates the PDF OCR text processing capabilities of SimpleIndex by extracting the Document Number, Date, Document Type, Customer and Total from a number of Estimates and Invoices.
All of this information is read automatically using the existing text layer of a computer generated PDF, such as those created using PDF printer drivers. Template and dictionary matching algorithms are used to locate and extract the correct data values from the text.
Since the existing text is being used, OCR is not performed. This makes processing much faster and 100% accurate. OCR can be used to get text from scanned PDF files with no existing text.
FAQ Related to PDF Invoice
Coming SoonZone OCR with Template Matching
This video shows the Zone OCR Invoice Processing sample job. Zone OCR is the traditional method for extracting index data from printed text appearing in fixed locations on every page.
The video also shows how Zone OCR is enhanced with SimpleIndex‘s Template Matching and Dictionary Matching features, giving you much more margin for error than other solutions.
FAQ Related to Zone OCR
Coming SoonZone OCR and Dynamic OCR
Many document scanning solutions use Zone OCR to obtain index data from the page, while SimpleIndex improves upon this time-tested but ultimately limited model with its unique Dynamic OCR feature. Let’s look at the difference between the two methods:
Zone OCR
Zone OCR is used to read document indexes or tags from text on the page. It is a great way to automate the data entry associated with scanning documents.
However, there are several limitations to zone OCR that must be overcome:
- Index information must be in the exact same place on every page
- Documents shift and skew during scanning, causing the zones to not line up
- If surrounding lines or text on the document are too close, they can encroach on the zone
Dynamic OCR
SimpleIndex overcomes these limitations by using Dynamic OCR technology to locate the desired text even when it moves around on the page. Our simplified version of Dynamic OCR works great for many types of documents at a fraction of the cost of other solutions.
- Index information can appear anywhere on any page
- Unwanted characters are automatically ignored
- Find unique patterns of letters and numbers using Template Matching
(Social Security #, Date, etc.) - Use Dictionary Matching to find a value from a list of possible values
(Vendor Name, Document Type, etc.)
Dynamic OCR Examples
In the video we see how SimpleIndex approaches a typical Zone OCR example. With SimpleIndex you can use large zones that give a wide margin for error. Template and Dictionary matching are then used to extract the 7-digit Account Number, 6-digit Order Number and Company Name. SimpleIndex discards the surrounding text and keeps the correct value.
Another common example is finding a unique identifier, for example a social security number, that could appear anywhere on the page. Simply enter the template ###-##-#### and SimpleIndex will search the full OCR text until it finds a match. Since only one social security number is likely to appear on the page, a match on this pattern is almost certainly the required value.
With dictionary matching, you can give SimpleIndex a list of possible values and it will automatically search the zone or page for each possible value until it finds a match.
Many dynamic forms processing applications can be implemented using these simple algorithms. This makes SimpleIndex far more versatile than other zone OCR solutions that require the index value to be in the exact same location on every page. Yet SimpleIndex costs only a fraction of the price!
SimpleIndex‘s dynamic forms processing can greatly speed up data entry by eliminating a good percentage of indexing work. For many this can put the labor cost of scanning within their reach.
Dynamic OCR can also be applied to MS Office and PDF files, creating a fully automated process for intelligently indexing and reorganizing electronic documents.
Support for Regular Expressions
SimpleIndex OCR has a simple built-in template format, as well as support for Regular Expressions. Regular Expressions (RegEx for short) let you define complex search patterns to extract matching values from the text. This greatly enhances the functionality of the dynamic OCR in SimpleIndex, making it capable of finding variable-length fields with no distinct pattern.
Regular Expressions are a commonly used in text parsing applications. The Perl programming language makes extensive use of RegEx, as do UNIX utilities like “grep”. Many programmers and IT personnel are already familiar with RegEx and can create complex expressions without specific training.
Click here for a reference guide to Regular Expressions
New OCR Features in Version 9
- OCR language pack now includes all available Tesseract languages including Hindi, Tamil, Arabic, Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian, Hebrew and many more.
New OCR Features in Version 8
Versions 7 and above include the industry leading ABBYY FineReader® OCR engine for dramatically improved OCR accuracy and speed. Other OCR enhancements in version 8+ include:
- Point & Click OCR
- Tesseract OCR Engine now included with all license versions
- Match OCR index fields against other index fields
- Skip OCR processing on imported files that already include text, such as PDF + Text files for faster batch times
How to Configure SimpleIndex OCR
Watch this Simple Software University training video to see how to configure and run an OCR job with SimpleIndex.
KB Articles for Optical Character Recognition (OCR)
- Languages Supported in SimpleSoftware OCR Engines
- What is Document Imaging?
- Change the Dictionary Separator Value
- Change the OCR Font or Type
- Regular Expression (RegEx) - Syntax or Type
- Autonumber Increment Value
- I'm using full page OCR. The information is all appearing in the txt file but it is losing format about half way through. Data to the right is ending up at the end of the txt doc. Can this be fixed?
- Is there a way to just use part of a bar code or OCR value? For example, extract "50" from the value "124450"
- If I have a form which is filled manually by hand, can SimpleIndex read the data from it?
- How do you train the OCR engine for better accuracy?
Video Demos
These videos demonstrate several ways SimpleIndex® can automatically index different types of documents. If you are new to SimpleIndex, watching these videos is the easiest way to see what it can do. You can follow along using the sample files included in the SimpleIndex Trial.
- Zone OCR with template matching
- Document barcode recognition
- PDF OCR text parsing
- Sort and index MS Office documents
- Indexing with full-text OCR
- Running jobs from an icon
The sample files are copied to your Configuration Folder when you run the SimpleIndex Trial for the first time. If you can’t find the samples, copy them with the Global Settings Wizard in the File menu.
Compare Major Scanning Solutions
Integrated Solutions Built with SimpleIndex
Zone OCR with Template Matching
Document Barcode Recognition
PDF OCR Text Parsing
Sort and Index MS Office Documents
Full Page OCR Invoice Processing
KB Articles for Optical Character Recognition
- Languages Supported in SimpleSoftware OCR Engines
- What is Document Imaging?
- Change the Dictionary Separator Value
- Change the OCR Font or Type
- Regular Expression (RegEx) - Syntax or Type
- Autonumber Increment Value
- I'm using full page OCR. The information is all appearing in the txt file but it is losing format about half way through. Data to the right is ending up at the end of the txt doc. Can this be fixed?
- Is there a way to just use part of a bar code or OCR value? For example, extract "50" from the value "124450"
- If I have a form which is filled manually by hand, can SimpleIndex read the data from it?
- How do you train the OCR engine for better accuracy?