FORM READER

Abstract: The present invention regards a method and an apparatus for reading data on an object document, wherein the document has areas for markings with different reflective characteristics. The document is illuminated with differently coloured light and the reflective characteristic is analysed to determine the colour of detected markings on the document.

Description: Form Reader The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for reading an image having image information in different colours, and, more particularly, to a method and an apparatus for analysing differently coloured image information. Such an apparatus having differently coloured light sources for illuminating an image with differently coloured light is known for example through US 4,670,779. Another apparatus of this kind for analysing differently coloured parts of a picture is known for example through WO 93/05480. In WO 93/05480 an object image is scanned with a light sensitive detector device having a certain scan frequency, whereby an elongate part of the object image is read into a memory with each scan. The object is illuminated with one colour at a time concurrently with the scan frequency. In the case with two colours, e.g. red and green, the light source is alternated such that each second scan is illuminated with red light and green light respectively. This results in two pictures, each having half the possible resolution, viz. a red one wherein image information not reflecting red light is visible, and a green one wherein image information not reflecting green light is visible. Object reading apparatuses of this kind operate with a relative movement between the object picture and a light sensitive scanning device. A drawback with the state of the art technology of alternating light having different colours is i.a. that a part of a scan, especially close to the transfer between a first and a second scan, is illuminated with light having the wrong colour for that particular scan. This leads to an uncertain interpretation of a part of the picture. Furthermore, illuminating light alternating with the scan frequency is carried out on the expense of the resolution, and detecting a full resolution picture by illuminating each part of the picture with both or all colours would on the other hand be carried out on the expense of the scanning speed. The object of the present invention is to provide a method and an apparatus that eliminates the problem of illuminating light having alternating colours. The problem is solved by a method and an apparatus according to the independent claims. The physical background of colour separation, i.e. the ability to distinguish between surfaces having different colours, is based on the fact that a surface that is perceived as having a particular colour in reality has the characteristic property that it reflects light of a particular wavelength or a particular wavelength range and absorbs light of other wavelengths. Different surfaces reflecting light of different CONFIRMATION wavelengths can be distinguished by the human eye due to a perceived contrast between the reflection characteristics of the respective surfaces. For example, consider a light source radiating white light, which consists of a wide spectrum of light wavelengths with components from different colour spectra. Imagine that this light source illuminates a first surface reflecting light of all wavelengths and a second surface reflecting light of a particular wavelength only, e.g. within the red spectrum. The first surface reflects light having components from all wavelengths or colour spectra of the illuminating light and will therefore be perceived as white, whereas the second surface in accordance with its reflection characteristic only reflects the exemplifying red component of the white light. In contrast, if the same surfaces would be illuminated with light within the exemplifying red wavelength spectrum, both surfaces would reflect the red illuminating light and it would be impossible to distinguish between them. An apparatus performing colour separation on image information may thus be based on the fact that a marking on the object image in a particular colour is indistinguishable from a substantially white surrounding if the object is illuminated with light of the same colour as the marking, due to the above described reasons. On the other hand, a marking having a colour differing from the illuminating colour absorbs illuminating light and thereby becomes distinguishable from the same substantially white surrounding. The invention is based on the inventor's realisation that a light sensitive scanning device having a light intensity detector and operating on an object image, which is illuminated simultaneously with light of more than one differing wave- lengths or wavelength ranges, detects light reflected from the object image with contributions from all the illuminating wavelengths. In daily speech, the differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges are referred to as colours or coloured light and these terms will also be used in the following description. Depending on the selected type of light sensor in different embodiments, the reflected light is basically sensed or detected with respect to its intensity level, which corresponds to the energy content of reflected photons. In any case, it should be appreciated that the sensed light is composed of components dependent on each of the differing light wavelengths. For the sake of simplicity, the inventive principle will be illustrated hereinafter with exemplifying embodiments using illuminating light of two different colours. In an example of illuminating light of the two colours red and green, a light detector output signal V representing e.g. a detected light intensity level is composed of signal components R. (red) and G (green) dependent on each colour. With calibration factors k and m for each respective colour, the detector output signal can be formulated as a function V = k*R + m*G. A substantially white background colour on the object image will reflect light of both colours and thereby give rise to a maximum signal level V. A marking on the object image only reflecting light of one of the colours, e.g. red, and absorbing other colours, thereamong green, will only give rise to a contribution in the detector output signal from the green component G. In fact the maximum signal level for a detected marking of this colour will be the calibration factor m times signal component G, i.e. m*G. Likewise, a marking only reflecting light of the other colour, in this case green, will only give rise to a contribution in the detector output signal from the red component R, and the maximum signal level for a detected marking of this colour will be the calibration factor k times signal component R, i.e. k*R. Threshold levels corresponding to the maximum signal levels for each colour may thus be set in order to discriminate between markings having one or the other of the selected colours. A marking that absorbs light of both the selected illuminating colours, i.e. having a third colour e.g. blue, will give rise to a detector output signal with contributions from both colour components. However, since the marking absorbs light of both illuminating colours, the signal level will be lower than the maximum level for each respective colour component taken by itself. Further advantages and details of the inventive concept will be apparent from the following description of embodiments with the aid of the drawings and in connection with the dependent claims. There is shown in: Fig 1 an outline of an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention; Fig 2 a diagram showing in principle the level of a signal delivered from a light detector dependent on the reflective characteristic of the surface, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; Fig 3 another exemplifying diagram showing the signal levels of an embodiment of the invention; Fig 4 a block diagram of a circuit for image reading in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; Fig 5 an overview of the inventive apparatus applied in a form reader. The image reading apparatus 1 of Fig 1 comprises a light sensitive detector 10 coupled to a detector circuit 12 for analysing a detector signal. The light detector 10 is arranged to cooperate with a lens 8 and possibly a light reflecting mirror in order to detect light reflected from an object image 2 that can be transported past a focusing area 7, preferably a point or a line, of the lens and detector arrange- ment. The object image 2 and in particular the part of the image currently being present in the focusing area, is illuminated from at least two directions simultaneously with light having at least two differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges. The illumination is realised by means of first and second light sources 3 and 4, such a light emitting diodes (LED:s), laser diodes or lamps, being arranged to emit selected differing first and second wavelengths. Fig 2 is a diagram showing on the vertical axis the level of a signal delivered from a light detector in response to detected light reflected from the surface of an exemplifying object image. Along the horizontal axis S, parts of the surface being transported past the focusing area of the detector arrangement and having differing reflective characteristics perceived as different colours are depicted as the sequence apparent from the figure. SO symbolises a substantially white background colour of the object image, SI a red part, S2 green and S3 blue. Assuming the above mentioned relation V = k*R + m*G and that the object image is simultaneously illuminated with red and green light, the white background areas SO would give rise to a maximum detector output signal Vmax. The surface SI reflecting red light would at most cause a signal level Tl and the surface S2 reflecting green light would at most cause a signal level T2. A third colour, for example blue, as in S3, that at least reflects a part of the green light would at most cause a third signal level T3. The signal levels for red Tl and green T2 are complementary and correspond to the respective calibration factors k=Tl and m=T2. The calibration factors may be set in order to achieve a colour balance that is suitable for a certain purpose or application of the invention. Thus, setting threshold levels equalling maximum signal levels Tl, T2, T3 caused by reflecting light from each respective colour enables detection of markings of said colours. In the example of Fig 2, the signal may in one embodiment be analysed as follows: If V>T1 then detected surface colour is considered red; If T2<V<T1 then detected surface colour is considered green; and If T3<V<T2 then detected surface colour is considered differing from white, red and green; If V<T3 then detected surface colour is considered black. The above described analysing scheme is based on the assumption that the involved colours of light and reflective characteristics of surfaces are quite distinct within a narrow wavelength range. In reality, light and the reflective characteristics of surfaces are not always so distinct that fixed signal levels are caused, instead coloured light and particular surface colours rather cause signal levels within ranges typical for those colours. However, maximum signal levels Tl, T2, T3 or If Tlmin < V < Tlmax then detected surface colour considered red. Naturally, the threshold levels for different colours may be set and utilised in a similar manner, however, dependent on the conditions for the particular colour and the particular application. In a third embodiment of the invention, adapted for detecting red and green or black markings on a white sheet of paper, the signal levels are as shown in Fig 3 in the same manner as in Fig 2. Thus, an object surface having a substantially white background colour W reflects 100 % of an illuminating light R + G from red and green light sources. In a realistic application of the invention the colour balance setting would for example be: red light 60 % corresponding to threshold Tl, which in this example is the maximum attainable value for detected red light, and green light 40 % corresponding to threshold T2, which in this example is the maximum attainable value for detected green light. In a calibrated apparatus, an upper threshold value Tlmax for detecting red markings on the reflecting object surface is in this example set to Tlmax = 85 %, and a lower threshold value Tlmin for green or black markings Tlmin = 55 %. A threshold for updates, see further below, is set as update level = 95 %. In this example, all percentage threshold values refer to the white background light intensity level. Fig 4 shows an embodiment of a circuit for realising the inventive method. A contact image sensor (CIS) 14 for reading e.g. a line of a document is coupled to an A/D-converter 16. The A/D-converter outputs at A grey scale image pixels of 6 bits to a comparator 22, in which the pixel values are compared to threshold values as described above and decisions are made with regard to the colour of detected marks on the document. In this example the comparator outputs at B pixel data in 2 bits representing 4 possible different states of each pixel to a buffer 24 and a direct memory access (DMA) 26. The pixel data is then passed on to a software reader 26 and a software application 28 where more advanced image processing is carried out. The CIS 14, the comparator 22, the buffer 24, the DMA 26 and the software reader are coupled to a controller, which inter alia controls clock signals and other control signals required by the different components. The controller is also coupled to the illuminating light and document transport 18. Fig 5 shows the invention applied in a form reader 30. The form reader comprises a document transport system 38 having an input slot 36 for receiving a document, feed rolls 32, document detectors 34. The CIS 40 is placed in a part of the transport system having well defined distances between the transport track and the CIS 40. After having passed before the CIS, a document is placed in an output stacker 42. The above described embodiments of the invention are given merely as examples, and it should be appreciated that light sources of other selected colours may be used to analyse object image surfaces with respect to different selected colours without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the claims.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A method for reading data on an object document, said data being represented as areas having at least two different reflective characteristics and wherein such an object document is illuminated with light having at least two differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges corresponding to the reflective characteristics of said data appearing on the object document, the method comprising the steps of: a) selecting illuminating light having first and second differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges corresponding to the reflective characteristics of image data appearing on the object document; b) determining a relation describing the intensity level (V) of light reflected from the illuminated object document dependent on said first R and second G wavelengths; c) setting first (k) and second (m) calibration factors such that said intensity level (V) is proportional or equal to k*R+m*G, where k*R is the intensity contribution due to reflected light of the first wavelength and m*G is the intensity contribution due to reflected light of the second wavelength. 2. A method for reading data on an object document, said data being repre- sented as areas having at least two different reflective characteristics and wherein such an object document is illuminated with light having at least two differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges corresponding to the reflective characteristics of said data appearing on the object document, the method comprising the steps of: d) illuminating the object document simultaneously with light having first and second differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges corresponding to the reflective characteristics of data appearing on the object document; e) sensing the intensity level of light reflected from the object document; f) comparing said intensity level with a first threshold level > the threshold Tl representative of the maximum attainable intensity level caused by reflected light of said first wavelength or wavelength range: g) determining that said intensity level is caused by first data reflecting illuminating light of said first wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level is lower than said first threshold level (Tl, Tlmax). 3. Method according to claim 2, comprising the further steps of: h) comparing said intensity level with a second threshold level > the threshold level T2 representative of the maximum attainable intensity level caused by reflected light of said second wavelength or wavelength range, wherein T2<T1 ; i) determining that said intensity level is caused by said first data, if said intensity level also is higher than said second threshold level T2; and j) determining that said intensity level is caused by said second data reflecting illuminating light of said second wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level is lower than said second threshold level Tl . 4. Method according to claim 2 or 3, comprising the further steps of: k) comparing said intensity level with a third threshold level > the threshold level T3 representative of the maximum attainable intensity level caused by reflected light of a third wavelength or wavelength range differing from said first and second wavelengths, wherein T3<T2; 1) determining that said intensity level is caused by third data reflecting illuminating light of said third wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level is lower than said third threshold level T3. 5. Method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said first wavelength or wavelength range is within the red spectrum and said second wavelength or wavelength range is within the green spectrum. 6. A method for reading data on an object document, said data being represented as areas having at least two different reflective characteristics and wherein such an object document is illuminated with light having at least two differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges corresponding to the reflective characteristics of said data appearing on the object document, the method comprising the steps of: d) illuminating the object document simultaneously with light having first and second differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges corresponding to the reflective characteristics of first and second data appearing on the object document; e) sensing the intensity level of light reflected from the object document; f) comparing said intensity level with a first lower threshold level Tlmin, Tlmin being lower than the maximum attainable intensity level Tl caused by reflected light of said first wavelength or wavelength range. 7. Method according to claim 6, comprising the steps of: determining that said intensity level is not caused by first data reflecting illuminating light of said first wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level is lower than said first lower threshold level Tlmin. 8. Method according to claim 6 or 7, comprising the step of: comparing said intensity level with a second upper threshold level Tlmax, Tlmax being higher than the maximum attainable intensity level Tl caused by reflected light of said first wavelength or wavelength range. 9. Method according to claim 8, comprising the step of: determining that said intensity level is not caused by first data reflecting illuminating light of said first wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level is lower than said second upper threshold level Tlmax. 10. Method according to claim 9, comprising the step of: determining that said intensity level is caused by first data reflecting illuminating light of said first wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level Tlmin < V < Tlmax. 11. An apparatus comprising means for performing the steps according to any of the claims 1-10. 12. An apparatus for reading data on an object document, said data being represented as areas having at least two different reflective characteristics and wherein such an object document is illuminated with light having at least two differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges corresponding to the reflective characteristics of said data appearing on the object document, the method comprising: d) means for illuminating the object document simultaneously with light having first and second differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges corresponding to the reflective characteristics of data appearing on the object document; e) means for sensing the intensity level of light reflected from the object document; f) means for comparing said intensity level with a first threshold level > the threshold Tl representative of the maximum attainable intensity level caused by reflected light of said first wavelength or wavelength range: g) means for determining that said intensity level is caused by first data reflecting illuminating light of said first wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level is lower than said first threshold level (Tl, Tlmax). 13. An apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising: h) means for comparing said intensity level with a second threshold level > the threshold level T2 representative of the maximum attainable intensity level caused by reflected light of said second wavelength of wavelength range, wherein T2<T1; i) means for determining that said intensity level is caused by said first data, if said intensity level also is higher than said second threshold level T2; and j) means for determining that said intensity level is caused by said second data reflecting illuminating light of said second wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level is lower than said second threshold level Tl. 14. An apparatus according to claim 12 or 13, comprising the further step of: k) means for comparing said intensity level with a third threshold level > the threshold level T3 representative of the maximum attainable intensity level caused by reflected light of a third wavelength or wavelength range differing from said first and second wavelengths, wherein T3<T2; 1) means for determining that said intensity level is caused by third data reflecting illuminating light of said third wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level is lower than said third threshold level T3. 15. An apparatus according to any of claim 12-14, wherein said first wavelength or wavelength range is within the red spectrum and said second wavelength or wavelength range is within the green spectrum. 16. An apparatus for reading data on an object document, said data being represented as areas having at least two different reflective characteristics and wherein such an object document is illuminated with light having at least two differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges corresponding to the reflective characteristics of said data appearing on the object document, the method comprising: d) means for illuminating the object document simultaneously with light having first and second differing wavelengths or wavelength ranges corresponding to the reflective characteristics of first and second data appearing on the object document: e) means for sensing the intensity level of light reflected from the object document; f) means for comparing said intensity level with a first lower threshold level Tlmin, Tlmin being lower than the maximum attainable intensity level Tl caused by reflected light of said first wavelength or wavelength range. 17. An apparatus according to claim 16, comprising: means for determining that said intensity level is not caused by first data reflecting illuminating light of said first wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level is lower than said first lower threshold level Tlmin. 18. An apparatus according to claim 16 or 17, comprising: means for comparing said intensity level with a second upper threshold level Tlmax, Tlmax being higher than the maximum attainable intensity level Tl caused by reflected light of said first wavelength or wavelength range. 19. An apparatus according to claim 18, comprising: means for determining that said intensity level is not caused by first data reflecting illuminating light of said first wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level is lower than said second upper threshold level Tlmax. 20. An apparatus according to claim 19, comprising: means for determining that said intensity level is caused by first data reflecting illuminating light of said first wavelength or wavelength range, if said intensity level Tlmin < V < Tlmax.

Inventors: NORDSTROEM RAGNAR, NORDSTROEM, RAGNAR
Applicants: ESSNET AB, NORDSTROEM RAGNAR, NORDSTROEM, RAGNAR
Application year: 1998
Main classification: G06K9
IPC codes: G06K7