Data Capture - ICR

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Data Capture - ICR

• Typical Workflow
• Image Movement /Data Extraction Processing
  Centre/s

2
Data Capture - ICR

• Typical Workflow
• Image Interpretation
• Automated Process
• Background Task
• Page Identification
• De-skew
• Image Cleanup
• Predefined Areas

3
Data Capture - ICR

• Typical Workflow
• Character Inspection
• Tiling
• High Confidence
• Operator decision
• Field Context
• Tall to short

4
Data Capture - ICR

• Typical Workflow
• Key Correction
• Low Confidence
• Operator decision
• Form Context
• External Verification

5
Data Capture - ICR

• Typical Workflow
• Data Export
• ASCII File
• CSV Format
• 1 line/form
• CSPro Import

6
Data Capture - ICR

• Typical Workflow
• ICR

7
Data Capture - ICR

• Accuracy
• This is always the first Question.
• Handprint
• Numeric only in isolated fields 98
• Numeric only in semi constrained fields 95-96
• Alpha upper case only 90
• Alpha lowercase only 85-87
• Alpha mixed case 75-80
• Alpha/Numeric mixed case 50 or less
• reduce by 5 if there are special characters not
  a-z and 0-9
• The accuracy level post data correction (e.g. the
  final output accuracy) should be 100 (subject to
  good operators)

8
Data Capture - ICR

• Accuracy Continued
• The accuracy of all modern ICR engines are pretty
  much comparable
• The major differences with suppliers solutions
  are the methods and workflow utilised with each
  offering
• False positive detection takes 10 times longer
  than entry of characters recognized with low
  confidence false positives (substitutions) are
  the most expensive errors

9
Data Capture - ICR

• Accuracy Continued
• Accuracy can be improved by
• Restricting the responses to any given question
  thus using external verification
• Using multiple ICR engines to vote which is
  expensive
• Training your ICR engines on local hand writing
  styles (If possible)

10
Data Capture - ICR

• Advantages
• No Specialist hardware required
• An Image archive is automatically produced of
  every form
• Very high speed scanning can be achieved
• Both OMR and ICR can be interpreted using ICR
  software
• Forms designed for ICR relatively easy to fill
  in. Locally printed forms can be used.
• Allows capturing much more complex data than with
  OMR alone

11
Data Capture - ICR

• Disadvantages
• Significant Hardware/software and trained IT
  staff will be required
• Accuracy dependant on manual intervention
• High calibre IT staff are required to support the
  ICR system
• More complex cost/benefit analysis than with OMR
  alone.

12
Data Capture - ICR

• Indicative Costs Labour
• For 65 Million Population Census (20M Single
  Sided A4 household form)
• Processing period of 12 Weeks (8 hours/day 5
  days/week)
• Hardware 800k-1M in total
• Software 700k-1.3M in total
• Total Indicative Costs are 1.5M to 2.3M
• No. of Staff 100-190 in total
• 6-10 Managers
• 94-180 PC Operators

13
Data Capture - ICR

• Summary
• The single most important factor for timely and
  accurate data capture is to make sure
• the forms are filled in correctly and are
  returned in good condition
• ICR offers considerable flexibility at the cost
  of higher skilled IT personnel

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Worldwide specialists in data capture from paper