Integrated document separation: combines pages into multi-page documents without the need for a 2-step configuration.
Separation of pages into multi-page documents.
Indexing Solutions with Barcode Recognition
Barcode recognition is the most efficient way to capture index data printed on documents. If you are unfamiliar with the use of barcodes in document scanning, you can learn more about barcodes in our Barcode Scanning Guide, but if you want to know more about barcode use with SimpleSoftware products, read on.
Some documents already have key information in barcode format on them. In many cases adding a barcode to a document is as simple as changing or adding a font. Adding barcodes to new documents is preferable as all the index data is on the document at the time it is created and in a format that can be read with near 100% accuracy.
As an alternative to placing barcodes on the individual documents, it is possible to print out a barcode cover page and place it on the file before it is scanned. The SimpleCoversheet application was designed to make this easy by providing a simple interface for selecting index values and printing a standard coversheet that contains these values in barcode format.
Barcode recognition can also be useful when you have documents with a variable number of pages that will all receive the same index values. If it is not possible to generate an indexed coversheet for these at the time they are created, a generic barcode coversheet can be used to separate the scanned images into multi-page files, one for each document. A second process can then be used to index these images one file at a time instead of one page at a time, greatly increasing throughput.
Barcode Recognition Features
With SimpleIndex Barcode you can:
- Read barcodes printed on scanned paper documents
- Read barcodes embedded in PDF files
- Automatically rename files based on barcodes
- Export barcode data to CSV file or any database
- Separate multi-page documents with cover pages
- Recognize 2D formats like PDF417, DataMatrix, Aztec and QR Code
- Recognize 30 different 1D barcode formatsCode 39, Codabar, UPC, Code 128, EAN 13, 2 of 5, etc.
- Recognize postal barcodes like Planet, PostNet, Royal Post and Australian Post
- Lookup barcode values in a database for additional data
- Complete list of document scanning & indexing features
With SimpleCoversheet you can:
- Create barcode coversheets for use with SimpleIndex and other scanning applications
- Print barcodes on Avery label templates that can be applied to documents
- Affordably enable every employee to print barcodes
- Create coversheets that allow SimpleIndex to automatically index and file documents
- Enable scanning and indexing from MFPs, network scanners and digital copiers
- Perform “mail merge” with barcodes to print many coversheets at once
- Supports many 1D and 2D barcode formats
Learn More:
KB Articles for Barcode Recognition
- Turn On Replacement Characters for Barcodes
- Regular Expression (RegEx) - Syntax or Type
- Autonumber Increment Value
- What are some other terms for Bar Code Scanning Software?
- Can SimpleIndex read bar codes from existing PDF files?
- I cannot recognize PDF417 or QR Code bar codes. What does "Advanced "Only" mean?
- Can I split TIFF or PDF files based on barcodes as a separator and also name the file with the barcode value?
- Will SimpleIndex read multiple barcodes on a page and save the value to the appropriate index field?
- Is there a way to just use part of a bar code or OCR value? For example, extract "50" from the value "124450"
- How can I delete the barcode or blank page cover/separator sheet that I don't need to save?
Zone OCR and Dynamic OCR
Other document scanning applications in this price range use Zone OCR to obtain index data from the page.
SimpleIndex improves upon this time-tested but limited model with its 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 extract values from anywhere 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
- Unwanted characters are ignored
- Find unique patterns of letters and numbers using Template Matching
- Use Dictionary Matching to find a value from a list of possible values
- Use Cloud OCR or ChatGPT to perform AI analysis and intelligent data extraction
Dynamic OCR and AI Assisted OCR
AI assisted OCR is the popular solution to the problem of unstructured and semi-structured documents. But there are many scenarios where simple Template and Dictionary matching provide much better results. And all of these solutions are much more expensive than SimpleIndex!
Often there are only a few key values that need to be extracted, and a wide variety of possible layouts. AI-based document training requires manual processing of several samples of each possible format before it learns how to read them reliably, where a Template could read them all with a single setting. Dictionary matching can perform advanced classification without analyzing thousands of samples.
When data extraction requires natural language processing, field label extraction, handwriting, AI document analysis, or other advanced features, SimpleIndex offers Cloud OCR and ChatGPT integrations.
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.
Amazon AWS Textract Cloud OCR
With Textract you can capture data from almost any type of form, including handwritten ones! Textract identifies labeled text anywhere on the document and returns the label text along with the corresponding value. Map the labels to index fields in SimpleIndex and you are ready to capture that data no matter where it appears on the page.
Textract uses machine learning with a huge model based on the billions of pages processed using Textract to provide the most accurate OCR and form field extraction solution available.
By default, Textract is only available as an API and requires custom coding to integrate it into your document workflows. SimpleIndex turns it into a fully-featured batch document and data processing app that is ready to use out-of-the-box.
Since there are no templates to configure or train, setup can be done in hours instead of days or weeks months required by other enterprise data capture solutions.
Pay-as-you-go pricing makes SimpleIndex with Textract the most affordable way to batch process forms for projects with less than 50,000 pages per year to process, especially if you need to read handwriting or have forms with many layout variations.
Got a preference for ABBYY Cloud OCR, Microsoft Azure AI Vision, or Google Cloud Vision OCR? These can be quickly added for a small customization fee. Contact Us for a quote!
Wiki: How to configure AWS Textract OCR in SimpleIndex
Handprint and Handwriting Recognition
SimpleIndex 11 adds handprint recognition capabilities to the FineReader OCR engine to allow recognition of simple form fields and printed text. It works best with constrained form fields, with letter boxes for each character like you see on tax forms and credit applications. And no additional licensing or per-page costs are required!
For unconstrained handprint and cursive handwriting, use the Cloud OCR option to achieve the best recognition accuracy available. This option requires additional AWS processing fees for each page.
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
How to Configure SimpleIndex OCR
Our Wiki help has extensive information on how to configure OCR for various document and data capture scenarios.
- Zone OCR read data in a specific location
- Template matching to match unique patterns
- Dictionary matching to match a list of possible values
- OCR Options OCR job settings that apply to all fields
- File Formats that can be output by OCR
- Languages supported by OCR
- FineReader versus Tesseract OCR engines
- Searchable PDF with MRC compression
- OCR to Field for point and click OCR during verification
- Cloud OCR using Textract
Watch this Simple Software University training video to see how to configure and run an OCR job with SimpleIndex.
Learn More:
KB Articles for Optical Character Recognition (OCR)
- Language Pack for Standard/Tesseract 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?
OMR Optical Mark Recognition
Simple Checkbox Recognition
Some forms require scanning software to recognize the presence or absence of a mark in a particular location, such as a checkbox, without worrying about the specific shape or symbol drawn therein. The ability to do this is called Optical Mark Recognition, or OMR. Let’s take a look at how this feature can help you index your documents and how SimpleIndex improves upon the standard OMR process:
Optical Mark Recognition
Optical Mark Recognition lets you define check box regions on scanned images. OMR is very fast and can be used for a variety of applications:
- Business reply mail
- Simple surveys
- Separate multi-page documents
- Document routing control
- Verify presence of signatures
To configure OMR, use an unfilled form to obtain baseline counts of how many black “pixels” are in the box. When processing, SimpleIndex compares the amount of black in each image to the baseline value to determine if the box is checked or not.
With OMR, it is very important that the check boxes appear in the same place on every scan, and that other text on the document does not move into your check box zone. For best results, use large boxes with plenty of white space around them.
We wouldn’t recommend using the SimpleIndex OMR feature to grade the SATs, but if your documents include a few check box values that you want to capture the SimpleIndex OMR feature is what you need. For more advanced OMR and forms processing solutions, please visit ScanStore.com.
OMR Document Separation
SimpleIndex includes a unique use for mark recognition that can save you thousands on document separator pages. One of the most labor-intensive parts of scanning multi-page files is detecting where one document ends and the next one starts. Traditionally this has been done with blank pages (which doesn’t work with 2-sided documents) or barcodes and patch codes (which must be printed). All of these solutions require someone to insert a piece of paper between each document before scanning, wasting time, money, and paper.
- Using the OMR feature in SimpleIndex, create a checkmark field in the upper-left corner of the page.
- Create an Autonumber field that increments a document number each time the checkmark is found.
- Use this job file to scan and separate documents into multi-page files.
- Create a 2nd job file to index the multi-page files.
- Use the Post-Process feature to run the two jobs consecutively.
When prepping files, simply take a felt tip pen and put a small mark the upper-left corner on the first page of each new document. This can be done very quickly, creates no additional paper and has a negligible effect on scan quality.
Learn More: