System and method for page set separation based on identifier on scanned page

A method for distinguishing a page set is presented. The method includes receiving multiple page sets. A first page or a last page of each page set marked with an identifier. The method also includes scanning a page of the multiple page sets. The method further includes determining whether the scanned page comprises the identifier and one or more of a false positive identifier or a color changed identifier. The method still further includes distinguishing the page set, corresponding to the scanned page, from other page sets of the multiple of page sets when the scanned page includes the identifier.

BACKGROUND

Field

Certain aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to separating documents and, more particularly, to a system and method for separating documents based on a detected mark.

Background

Document processing devices, such as scanners, are used to process pages from a batch of documents. In most cases, multiple sets of pages may be included in the batch. In conventional systems, a physical separator page is placed between the sets of pages to separate each set.

In the conventional systems, the document processing device detects a mark on the physical separator page. For example, the mark may be a barcode or machine-readable text. The physical insertion of a separator page increases processing times. As such, it is desirable to improve a system for separating sets of pages processed by a document processing device.

SUMMARY

In one aspect of the present disclosure, a method for distinguishing a page set is disclosed. The method includes receiving multiple page sets. A first page or a last page of each page set marked with an identifier. The method also includes scanning a page of the multiple page sets. The method further includes determining whether the scanned page includes the identifier and one or more of a false positive identifier or a color changed identifier. The method still further includes distinguishing the page set, corresponding to the scanned page, from other page sets of the multiple page sets when the scanned page includes the identifier.

In another aspect of the present disclosure, a non-transitory computer-readable medium with non-transitory program code recorded thereon is disclosed. The program code is for distinguishing a page set. The program code is executed by a processor and includes program code to receive multiple page sets. A first page or a last page of each page set marked with an identifier. The program code also includes program code to scan a page of the multiple page sets. The program code further includes program code to determine whether the scanned page includes the identifier and one or more of a false positive identifier or a color changed identifier. The program code still further includes program code to distinguish the page set, corresponding to the scanned page, from other page sets of the multiple of page sets when the scanned page includes the identifier.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is directed to an apparatus for distinguishing a page set. The apparatus having a memory and one or more processors coupled to the memory. The apparatus also having a page receiver for receiving multiple page sets, a first page or a last page of each page set marked with an identifier. The apparatus further having a scanner for scanning a page of the multiple page sets. The processor(s) is configured to determine whether the scanned page includes the identifier and one or more of a false positive identifier or a color changed identifier. The processor(s) is also configured to distinguish the page set, corresponding to the scanned page, from other page sets of the plurality of page sets when the scanned page includes the identifier.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As previously discussed, document processing devices may be used to capture an image of each page from a batch of documents. The batch of documents may include multiple sets of pages. When scanning the batch of documents, it is desirable to separate each set of pages. In conventional systems, a physical separator page is placed between adjacent sets of pages to separate the sets.

In the present disclosure, a document refers to a set of pages (e.g., page set), where each document includes one or more pages. A set of documents may be referred to as a batch of documents. The batch of documents may also be referred to as multiple page sets (e.g., a plurality of page sets). For clarity, the batch of documents may be referred to as a batch. Additionally, in the present disclosure the document processing device may be referred to as a document image processing device or an image processing device.

For example, a human operator may place a physical separator page between adjacent documents. The physical separator page may include a mark, such as a barcode or machine-readable text, to distinguish the physical separator page from other pages. The document processing device identifies the end of one document and the beginning of another document by identifying the mark on the physical separator page. The mark may be referred to as an identifier or an identifier mark.

Medical related documents are an example of documents that may be processed by a document processing device. Medical documents include medical history, insurance information, insurance claims, medical payments, insurance payments, and/or other related medical documents. These documents may be received at a processing center for scanning and digital storage.

The processing center may receive multiple medical documents. Each medical document (e.g., each set of medical pages) may be provided in a separate storage unit, such as an envelope or box. Although each document is received in a separate storage unit, to improve processing times, the documents may be processed at once in a batch. In this example, to distinguish each document in the batch, when the medical documents are received, a human operator places a physical separator page on top of each document removed from the storage unit.

Physically placing a separator page increases processing time. For example, the processing time is increased because the human operator is specified to place the physical separator page between adjacent documents. The number of human work hours increases as the number of groups increase. Additionally, because a human is involved, the task is prone to error.

Moreover, the addition of each physical separator page increases a number of pages that are processed. Thereby increasing processing time and also increasing wear and tear on a document processing device. As such, it is desirable to improve a system for separating documents. The absence of the physical separator page reduces the number of pages that are processed.

Some conventional systems mark a first page or last page of each document instead of using a separator page. These conventional systems use a calibration page to provide the selected mark to the document processing device. Specifically, in these conventional systems (e.g., calibration page systems), a human operator selects a mark and marks the first or last document in each group with the mark. The human operator provides the selected mark to the document processing device prior to processing the batch of documents.

For example, the selected mark may be provided on the calibration page that is fed to the document processing device. The document processing device identifies the selected mark via the calibration page and then processes the batch of documents. A document is identified based on an identified mark on a first or last page of a document.

The use of a calibration page in the calibration page system mitigates the use of a physical separator page. Nonetheless, the calibration page system still uses a human operator for selecting a mark, marking pages, and feeding the calibration page to the document processing device. As such, the calibration page system increases document processing time and increases the possibility of human error.

Aspects of the present disclosure are directed to reducing document processing time while also reducing the number of processed pages. In one configuration, a marking device is used to mark a first or last page of the document. The mark may also be referred to as an identifier. The first and last page of a document may also be marked. Each document is identified based on the mark. The identified document may be separated from an adjacent document. The documents may be separated by inserting a virtual separator sheet between documents, a flagging each document, or other separation techniques.

In one configuration, a human operator retrieves a document and marks the first or last page via the marking device. The document may be retrieved from a storage unit, such as an envelope. The marked page is then placed back into the document. The human operator may continue to mark a specific page of each document and stack the mark documents to generate a batch. The batch is then input to the document processing device.

FIG. 1illustrates a block diagram of a document processing system100according to aspects of the present disclosure. As shown inFIG. 1, the document processing system100receives different physical documents104A,104B,104C. Physical document104A,104B,104C includes one or more pages116. For illustrative purposes,FIG. 1illustrates each physical document104A,104B,104C as having three pages116. In one example, each physical document104A,104B,104C is received at a document processing center in a storage unit, such as an envelope or box. For clarity, the physical documents104A,104B,104C may be referred to as documents104A,104B,104C.

The documents104A,104B,104C may include, for example, negotiable instruments, such as checks, deposit slips, coupons, lottery tickets, or currency. Additionally, or alternatively, the documents104A,104B,104C may include medical forms, credit applications, architectural drawings, mechanical drawings, envelopes, and other types of documents. The pages116of the documents104A,104B,104C are not limited to paper pages. The pages may be printed on any material that is scannable, such as cardboard, plastic, metal, glass, and other media substrates or structures.

In one configuration, a first or last page116of each document104A,104B,104C is input to a document marking device106. The first or last page116may be input by a human operator. The document marking device106marks the page116to identify a start or end page of the document104A,104B,104C. The document marking device106may be a device used by a human or an autonomous device.

For example, the document marking device106may be a pen, a stamp, or a printing apparatus (e.g., laser printer, ink jet printer, etc.). The mark102may be a machine-readable image, machine-readable text, a barcode, a quick response (QR) code, an invisible ink mark, or another type of mark identifiable by a mark validator and/or a mark detector. The type of mark102and/or location of the mark102may be preset by an operator or determined by the document marking device106.

In the current example, the mark102is a circle in a corner of a first page116of each document104A,104B,104C. Still, the mark102is not limited to a circle, other types of marks are contemplated. For example, the mark102may be two circles. Also, the mark102is not limited to a specific corner, or other areas, of a document. That is, the mark can be anywhere on the page. Additionally, the mark102is not limited to the first page116of each document104A,104B,104C. As discussed, the mark102may also be defined on a last page116or the first and last page116of each document104A,104B,104C.

After marking a page116from the documents104A,104B,104C, the documents104A,104B,104C are combined (e.g., stacked) to form a batch108. For example, the second document104B may be placed on top of the second document104A. The third document104C may be placed on the second document104B, and so on, such that a batch108is formed. The batch108may be formed by a human or a stacking device. As discussed, rather than separately processing each document104A,104B,104C by a document processing device110, to improve processing time, the batch108is processed.

That is, as shown inFIG. 1, the batch108is fed (e.g., input) to the document processing device110for processing. In one configuration, the document processing device110captures an image of each page116of a document104A,104B,104C. Still, the document processing device110is not limited to capturing images and may perform other tasks. The document processing device110may be in communications with the document marking device106via a communications channel114. The document marking device106may notify the document processing device110of the selected mark102(e.g., type of mark, shape of the mark, color of the mark, and/or location of the mark) via a communications channel114. The document processing device110and the document marking device106may be separate devices or may be components of the same device. As such, the communications channel114may be an external communications channel (e.g., Internet connection) or an internal communications channel (e.g., computer bus).

In an optional configuration, after receiving the selected mark102from the document marking device106, the document processing device110begins processing the batch108. In another configuration, the selected mark102is pre-set in the document processing device110and the document processing device110does not receive the selected mark102from the marking device106. When processing the batch108, the document processing device110may capture an image of a front and/or back of each page116. Additionally, the document processing device110may scan each page116to detect the mark102. As discussed below, the document processing device110may initiate a process for separating adjacent documents104A,104B,104C after detecting the mark102. For example, based on whether the mark102was placed on the first or last page116of a document104A,104B,104C, a virtual separator sheet may be placed in front of or behind the marked page116.

After processing the batch108, the document processing device110outputs separated documents112A,112B,112C that are separated based on the marked pages116of the physical documents104A,104B,104C. That is, each separated document112A,112B,112C corresponds to one of the physical documents104A,104B,104C. The separated documents112A,112B,112C may be scanned documents (e.g., electronic documents).

In one configuration, the batch108is a batch of electronic documents. That is, a document processing center may receive a scanned batch108. For example, one document processing center may scan documents104A,104B,104C without separating the documents104A,104B,104C. The scanned documents104A,104B,104C form a batch108. Another document processing center may receive the scanned batch108and may electronically mark the first or last page116of each document104A,104B,104C in the scanned batch108. The document processing device110may then proceed to separate the documents104A,104B,104C as previously discussed.

FIG. 2illustrates an example of a batch200according to aspects of the present disclosure. As shown inFIG. 2, different documents202A,202B,202C,202D may be merged to form the batch200. Each document202A,202B,202C,202D may be composed of different types of pages204or a same type of page204, such as bills or medical records. Additionally, the pages204in each document202A,202B,202C,202D may have different shapes and/or thicknesses. The pages204in each document202A,202B,202C,202D may be unrelated to one another and/or may be in any order. The documents202A,202B,202C,202D are merged and processed together as a batch200.

When merging the documents202A,202B,202C,202D, the individual pages204from each document202A,202B,202C,202D are not merged together. Rather, the documents202A,202B,202C,202D may be sequentially grouped to form a batch200. For example, second documents202B may be placed on top first documents202A. Subsequently, third documents202C may be placed on top of the second documents202B, and so on.

FIG. 3Aillustrates a block diagram of a transport system300of a document processing device according to aspects of the present disclosure. The transport system300transports pages along a transport path (not shown inFIG. 3). As shown inFIG. 3A, the transport system300includes a feed module302for feeding documents on the transport path. That is, the feed module302moves each page through the transport path of the document processing device, such that each page is processed by a different module.

Additionally, as shown inFIG. 3A, the transport system300includes a mark detector304, a front image module306, a back image module308, and a stacker module310. The transport system300may be controlled by a system controller312. In one configuration, a task administrator314may control functions of the transport system300via the system controller312. For example, the task administrator314may be a remote device that is used to initiate a document processing task, such as capturing electronic images of pages (e.g., scanning pages). As another example, the task administrator314may be a module of the document processing device. In this example, a user may initiate document processing by commands that are input via a user interface associated with the task administrator314.

In one configuration, the mark detector304scans each page to detect a mark. The mark detector304may be a hardware device or software. Additionally, the mark detector304may be before or after the front image module306and back image module308. That is, in one configuration, the mark detector304scans the electronic image(s) captured by the front image module306and/or the back image module308.

The front image module306captures an electronic image of the front side of a page, and the back image module308captures an electronic image of the back side of the same page processed by the front image module306. The back image module308may be omitted from the process if only one side of a page is to be scanned. The transport system300may also include sensors, such as light sensors, to track each page that is fed along the transport path. The tracking may be used by the system controller312to determine a location of a page on the transport path. Finally, the stacker module310may stack pages at the end of the path. For example, once a page is processed by the different modules302,304,306,308, the stacker module310stacks the page on top of previously processed pages.

In one configuration, the mark detector304includes a light source350to illuminate a document358and an optical collector356to receive light reflected by the document358(seeFIG. 3B). The light source350and the optical collector356may be adjustable to improve detection of the color changed identifier. That is, a controller (not shown) may control the light source350and/or the optical collector356to adjust an angle (e.g., position) for omitting or receiving light.

Specifically, the light source350may be controlled in both a frequency range of the light illuminated onto the document358and an angle of which the light is transmitted onto the document358. A light source filter352may filter a frequency of the light source350. An optical collector filter354may control a frequency range of the light received at the optical collector356.

The mark detector304may customize both the light source350and the optical collector356for specific business processes, such as a detection of a color change in either a visible range or an infrared range. The light source350, light source filter352, optical collector356, and optical collector filter354may be a component of the mark detector304or a separate component. The light source350, light source filter352, optical collector356, and optical collector filter354may be collectively referred to as an information detector.

FIG. 4illustrates a block diagram400for processing documents according to aspects of the present disclosure. As shown inFIG. 4, a batch406of marked documents is generated by a document marking device404. As discussed, the document marking device404marks a first or last page of each document with a mark402. In this example, the first page of each document includes the mark402.

A feed module of a transport system408feeds each physical page of the batch406along a transport system path. The transport system408is integrated with a document processing device420. In one configuration, a mark detector scans each physical page to determine whether the page includes the mark402. Additionally, a front image module captures an electronic image of the front side of a physical page, and a back image module captures an electronic image of the back side of the same physical page.

In one configuration, a system controller410receives data from the mark detector. In this configuration, the system controller410receives data corresponding to each page scanned by the mark detector. The data may be an indication that a page includes a marking. For example, the data may be a flag, where a positive flag identifies a marked page.

The system controller410may be hardware or software. The system controller410may be integrated with the document processing device420or may be integrated with a remote computing device. When the system controller410is integrated in a remote device, the remote computing device may communicate with the document processing device420via a wired or wireless communications channel.

When the mark detector identifies a marked page, a mark validator412determines a validity of the detected mark402. If the page includes a valid mark402, the document corresponding to the marked page may be separated from an adjacent document. The mark validator412may be a module of the document processing device420or a separate module (e.g., computing device) that is remote from the document processing device420. In one configuration, the mark validator412is a component of the mark detector.

In another configuration, the mark validator412is a separate hardware or software component of the transport system408or system controller410. In yet another configuration, the mark validator412is implemented on a device that is remote from the document processing device420. For example, the mark validator412may be a software component of a remote computing device. The remote computing device may communicate with the document processing device420via a wired or wireless communications channel.

As previously discussed, in a conventional calibration page system, the conventional document processing devices, or associated devices, determine a type of mark to identify based on a calibration page. The calibration page system does not handle false positives, such as marks in incorrect locations. Additionally, the calibration page system does not compensate for background color.

In some cases, a mark may be placed in a location that does not correspond to the mark location selected by the document marking device404. For example, the document marking device404may be set to mark the top right corner of a page. An error may occur if the mark is located at an incorrect location, such as a bottom left corner. A mark in the incorrect location may be referred to as an incorrect mark, and a mark in the correct location may be referred to as a correct mark. An incorrect mark may be caused by human error and/or machine error. For example, a human operator may stamp a wrong spatial area of a page with the document marking device404. In this example, the incorrect insertion may place the mark in an incorrect location. A mark in an incorrect location may be referred to as a false positive mark.

As another example of a false positive mark, a page may already include a mark that is similar to the selected mark. For example, a page may include colored markings, such as highlighting or redaction marks, in one or more spatial locations. In this example, if the mark is the same color as the colored markings, a conventional mark validator may incorrectly identify one of the colored markings as the mark. An original mark of a page that is in a same location as a selected mark may be referred to as a false positive mark. An original mark refers to a mark that is present on the page prior to processing by a document processing device. The selected mark refers to a mark provided on the page by a marking device.

In yet another example of a false positive mark, a page may already include one or more marks that are similar to the selected mark. For example, the selected mark may be a triangle. In this example, if the mark includes two or more triangles in different locations, a conventional mark validator may fail to correctly separate the documents corresponding to the marked page. The selected mark refers to a mark provided on the page by a marking device.

In still yet another example of a false positive mark, when a page includes original colored markings, the selected mark may blend into the colored marking if the selected mark is the same color as the original colored marking and overlaps with one of the original colored markings. For example, a page may be redacted with black redaction marks. In this example, the selected mark is a black circle. As such, if the selected mark is placed over an area with a black redaction mark, the selected mark will not be visible to a conventional mark validator.

According to aspects of the present disclosure, the mark validator412may identify a marking in a location corresponding to the selected mark location. In the example above, the mark validator412may identify a black marking in a location corresponding to the selected mark location. Therefore, the mark validator may flag the page as having a false positive mark. As such, the false positive mark also refers to a situation where one or more original marks of a page correspond to a location of the selected mark and match a shape and/or color of the selected mark. A page with a false positive mark may be flagged for further review.

A page may include one or more of the selected mark and/or the false positive mark. In one configuration, the mark validator412determines if the page includes a false positive mark. If the page includes the false positive mark, the document and/or page may be flagged as an error. In one configuration, when a document and/or page is flagged for an error, a quality control function is initiated. The quality control may include further analysis by a human operator, generating a notification, stopping the document processing system, and/or other types of quality control analysis.

In another configuration, the mark validator compensates for background color. According to aspects of the present disclosure, the mark may be any color that is identifiable by a hardware component or a software component, such as the mark validator412or the document processing device420. In some cases, the color of the mark may change due to the color of the document. Conventional systems may not detect the mark due to the change of color. For example, if a red colored mark is placed on white paper, the mark will show the true red color. As another example, if the red mark is placed on blue paper, the mark may change to a violet fuchsia color. In this example, a conventional system would not detect the violet fuchsia mark.

In one configuration, when determining if a page includes the mark402, the mark validator412considers the change in color. That is, the mark validator412has prior information, from the document marking device404, regarding the color and type of mark. In this configuration, the mark validator412and/or the mark detector may determine the color of the current page. The mark validator412and/or the mark detector may also identify the colors of one or more markings on the page. Accordingly, the mark validator412may determine the resulting color from the combination of the color of the current page and the color of the mark.

The resulting color may be determined by a color combination function that combines the two colors to determine the combined color. Additionally, or alternatively, the resulting color may be pre-set and identified by looking up the mark color and the page color. After determining the resulting color, the mark validator412may then identify a mark corresponding to the resulting color of the mark instead of the original color of the mark.

Additionally, as shown inFIG. 4, a task administrator414may control functions of the transport system408and the mark validator412via the system controller410. As discussed, the task administrator414may initiate a document scan. As shown inFIG. 4, in one configuration, the system controller410transmits an electronic file416of the separated documents to the task administrator414. For example, the system controller410may transmit the electronic file416to an email address or remote storage device corresponding to the task administrator414.

The electronic file416may include all documents in the batch406, where the documents are separated. Alternatively, the system controller410transmits multiple electronic files416to the task administrator414. In this configuration, each electronic file corresponds to one document that has been separated from the batch406.

The content of the electronic file416may be set by a user via the task administrator414. That is, the task administrator414may communicate with one or more of the transport system408, system controller410, and mark validator412to perform user-specific tasks. The task administrator414may be a device and/or software component that is integrated with a remote computing device or the document processing device420. The remote computing device may communicate with the document processing device420via a wired or wireless communications channel.

The electronic file416received by the task administrator414may not be distinguishable from another electronic file generated by a conventional document processing device. As such, any downstream components integrated with the task administrator414or configured for receiving the electronic file416may not determine a difference between an electronic file generated via a conventional document processing device and the electronic file416generated according to aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5illustrates an example of inserting a virtual separator sheet according to aspects of the present disclosure. As shown inFIG. 5, a batch of marked documents502may be processed by document processing device. The content of each page in the batch of marked documents502may be analyzed by a mark validator504. Upon detecting a mark506on a page, the mark validator504may flag the page. Based on the flag, the document may be separated from an adjacent document. In one configuration, a virtual separator sheet508is used to separate documents.

In one example, the mark506is placed on the first page of each document. In this example, the mark validator detects the mark506on the first page of an initial document. Additionally, upon detecting a subsequent mark506, the mark validator504determines that a previous page was the last page of the initial document. As such, the mark validator504inserts a virtual separator sheet508between the last page of the initial document and a first page of the current document. That is, the mark validator504inserts a virtual separator sheet508before the first page of the current document. The virtual sheet separates the current documents from the initial document. The process continues until all documents are separated. The virtual sheet may be an image of a separator sheet.

In another example, the mark506is placed on the last page of each document. In this example, upon detecting the mark506on a page of a document, the mark validator504determines that the current page is the last page of the document. As such, the mark validator504inserts a virtual sheet after the current page with the mark506. The process continues until all groups of documents are separated via a virtual sheet.

The output file may be one file including the batch of marked documents502separated with virtual separator sheets508. That is, the one file may include all of the pages in the batch of marked documents502. In another example, different output files may be generated based on the virtual separator sheets508. That is, after inserting the virtual separator sheet508, an output file may be generated for the documents. The pages in the output file may be determined based on the virtual separator sheets508. In this example, multiple output files are generated from the batch of marked documents502.

As discussed, aspects of the present disclosure are not limited to using virtual separator sheets. The documents may be separated via other separation systems. For example, each document may be flagged and scanned from the determined first and last page. The scanned document may be stored in a separate portion of memory. The process may continue until all documents are separated and scanned.

FIG. 6illustrates a method600for distinguishing a page set from other page sets according to an aspect of the present disclosure. As shown inFIG. 6, at block602, in an optional configuration, a document processing device receives information corresponding to an identifier. The identifier is used for distinguishing one page set from an adjacent page set of the multiple page sets.

The information includes a color of the identifier, a shape of the identifier, and/or a spatial location of the identifier. The identifier includes a shape, text, and/or a barcode. The page set may be referred to as a document, where each document includes multiple pages. The multiple page sets may be referred to as a batch of documents.

The information may be received from an information detector. The information detector may include a light source for projecting spectrum of light on the page. The light may be projected at an angle that is acute in relation to the page. The mark detector may also include a light source filter for filtering the spectrum of light projected onto the page. The information detector may further include an optical collector for receiving light reflected from the page. An optical collector filter may be used to filter the spectrum of reflected light received at the optical collector.

At block604, the document processing device receives the multiple page sets. A first page or a last page of each page set is marked with the identifier. At block606, the document processing device scans a page of the multiple page sets. That is, the document processing device page obtains a digital image of the page. The page may be a medical insurance claim form, a medical insurance explanation of benefits statement, an x-ray, a credit application, a check, a deposit slip, a remittance statement, a coupon, a lottery ticket, an architectural drawing, a mechanical drawing, an envelope, or any other type of document.

At block608, the document processing device determines whether the scanned page includes the identifier and one or more of a false positive mark or a color changed identifier. The document processing device may initiate a quality control function in response to determining the page includes the false positive mark.

To determine whether the page includes the false positive, the document processing device determines whether the page includes the identifier in a spatial location that is different from an intended spatial location of the identifier. Additionally, the document processing device determines whether the page includes a marking matching a color of the identifier or a shape of the identifier in the intended spatial location of the identifier.

To determine whether the page includes the color changed identifier, the document processing device determines a color of the page. The document processing device also determines a resulting color from a combination of the color of the page and a color of the identifier. Additionally, the document processing device determines whether the page includes the identifier having a same color as the resulting color in a spatial location of the identifier.

At block610, the document processing device distinguishes a page set, corresponding to the scanned page, from other page sets of the multiple page sets when the scanned page includes the identifier. The page set may be distinguished by flagging the page set, inserting a separation image before the page, or inserting the separation image after the page. The separation image may be a virtual image or an image on a physical page. The document processing device may output an electronic file including the multiple page sets, where each page set is distinguished from the other page sets. Alternatively, the document processing device may output one electronic file for each distinguished page set.

The document processing device may include a document marking device, an automated document feeder, a mark detector, a mark validator, an image camera, a stacker, a pocket, and a system controller. The document processing device may be a non-impact or impact printing device. Additionally, the document processing device may be controlled manually or controlled by the transport system.

In one configuration, the feeder controls the speed and feed rate of pages. Additionally, the detector scans the pages for a color changed identifier. As discussed, the identifier's color may change based on a color of a page. Finally, the validator may be used to increase the accuracy of detecting the color changed identifier.

Based on the teachings, one skilled in the art should appreciate that the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover any aspect of the present disclosure, whether implemented independently of or combined with any other aspect of the present disclosure. For example, an apparatus may be implemented or a method may be practiced using any number of the aspects set forth. In addition, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover such an apparatus or method practiced using other structure, functionality, or structure and functionality in addition to, or other than the various aspects of the present disclosure set forth. It should be understood that any aspect of the present disclosure may be embodied by one or more elements of a claim.

The various illustrative logical blocks, modules and circuits described in connection with the present disclosure may be implemented or performed with a processor configured to perform the functions discussed in the present disclosure. The processor may be a neural network processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array signal (FPGA) or other programmable logic device (PLD), discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. The processor may be a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine specially configured as described herein. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or such other special configuration, as described herein.

The steps of a method or algorithm described in connection with the present disclosure may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. A software module may reside in storage or machine-readable medium, including random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), flash memory, erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. A software module may comprise a single instruction, or many instructions, and may be distributed over several different code segments, among different programs, and across multiple storage media. A storage medium may be coupled to a processor such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be integral to the processor.

The processor may be responsible for managing the bus and processing, including the execution of software stored on the machine-readable media. Software shall be construed to mean instructions, data, or any combination thereof, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise.

If implemented in software, the functions may be stored or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include both computer storage media and communications media including any storage medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. Additionally, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared (IR), radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray® disc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Thus, in some aspects computer-readable media may comprise non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., tangible media). In addition, for other aspects computer-readable media may comprise transitory computer-readable media (e.g., a signal). Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

Further, it should be appreciated that modules and/or other appropriate means for performing the methods and techniques described herein can be downloaded and/or otherwise obtained by a user terminal and/or base station as applicable. For example, such a device can be coupled to a server to facilitate the transfer of means for performing the methods described herein. Alternatively, various methods described herein can be provided via storage means, such that a user terminal and/or base station can obtain the various methods upon coupling or providing the storage means to the device. Moreover, any other suitable technique for providing the methods and techniques described herein to a device can be utilized.