Barcode Recognition in ABBYY FineReader & FlexiCapture
Recognition of Barcodes in ABBYY technologies
- the coordinates
- the characters
- character confidence information
- start/stop symbols of different barcode types,
for barcodes of type Code 39 the start/stop symbol is the asterisk “*” - The barcode value can then be used for file naming.
- This feature is implemented in FlexiCapture projects
- With FineReader Engine, the developers can “cut” the page stream with custom code
- Separation in FineReader Server
- Separation in the ABBYY Scan Station (FineReader Server & FlexiCapture)
Tips for working with barcodes
Barcode recognition quality depends on:
- the barcode print quality
- settings used in the document scanning process
- Placement of the barcode when it is manually added
In order for the barcodes to be recognized well, follow these recommendations:
- A barcode must be separated from other text by a fairly wide white gap.
- Barcode size and the width of its separate bars or dots must meet the following requirements:
- The optimal barcode height is more than 10 millimetres. The size of a barcode should be less than A4 size.
- Barcode height must be higher than the double height of a text line
- For not-square barcodes, their length must be bigger than their height
- For 1D barcodes, the width of the thinnest bar in the barcode must be at least 3-5 pixels in terms of pixels of the image
- For 2D barcodes, the dimensions of their cells should be at least 2×2 pixels, the recommended size is 4×4 pixels or more. Besides, for all 2D barcodes except PDF417, the cells should be square, because barcodes with the prolate cells most likely will be recognized incorrectly
- Compressing images of barcodes using JPEG compression should be avoided, because it makes the barcode borders fuzzy.
- Skewing barcodes is not recommended.
- The grey-scale scanning mode is the best for OCR purposes.
- Scanning in black-and-white can cause issues, please adjust the brightness setting.
- If the barcode is “torn” or very light, decrease the brightness to make the image darker.
- If the barcode is distorted or its parts are glued together, increase the brightness to make the image brighter.
- Avoid printing barcodes in frames.
- Avoid printing barcodes over a text or a picture.
Barcodes that do not fit these recommendations can still be recognized, however the quality of recognition may be lower.
Predefined processing profile for fast implementation
Some products, for example the ABBYY FineReader Engine (starting with version 10) provide a predefined processing profile for recognition of barecodes that detects barecodes and extracts their values, while texts, pictures, or tables are not detected. This profile contains settings that are optimized for barcoderecognition.
Barcode types supported by ABBYY technologies
Barcode Requirements
Common recommendation for barcodes to be processed properly: barcodes should comply with an appropriate barcode specification. That means if a barcode is created in accordance to a specification corresponding to its type,
Barcode recognition quality depends on barcode print quality and scanning settings. Below are some recommendations for barcodes to be recognized correctly:
- Barcode must be separated from other text by a fairly wide white gap.
- Barcode size and the width of its separate bars or dots must meet the following requirements:
- The optimal barcode height is more than 10 millimeters. The size of a barcode should be less than size A4
- Barcode height must be bigger than the double height of a text line
- For not-square barcodes, their length must be bigger than their height
- For 1D barcodes, the width of the thinnest bar in the barcode must be at least 3-5 pixels in terms of pixels of the image
- For 2D barcodes, the dimensions of their cells should be at least 2×2 pixels, the recommended size is 4×4 pixels or more. Besides, for all 2D barcodes except PDF417, the cells should be square, because barcodes with the prolate cells most likely will be recognized incorrectly
- We do not recommend compressing images of barcodes using JPEG compression as it makes barcode borders fuzzy
- We do not recommend skewing barcodes, i.e. an angle of the barcode should be a multiple of 90 degrees relative to the horizontal axis
- The grayscale scanning mode is the best for OCR purposes. When scanning in black-and-white, adjust the brightness setting. If the barcode is “torn” or very light, lower the brightness to make the image darker. If the barcode is distorted or its parts are glued together, increase the brightness to make the image brighter.
- Avoid printing barcodes in frames
- Avoid printing barcodes over a text or a picture.
In some cases, barcodes which do not fit these recommendations also can be recognized, but the quality of recognition may be poor.
How to set up barcode separation on the scanning station
In this video, you will learn how to use FineReader Server to easily split documents by using barcodes.
In this scenario, a single file contains multiple documents. FineReader Server uses the barcodes on each first page to group and separate the pages into documents. Simple and efficient processing:
- Select your batch options and the barcode type used.
- Scan your document or upload from your computer. You can even take a photo from a mobile device and use predefined or manual editing to create a document from the photo.
- Send the file to FineReader Server and it will do the work for you.
FineReader Server automatically converts large collections of documents into searchable, sharable digital libraries. See how our server-based OCR and pdf conversion feature converts scanned and electronic documents into pdf, PDF/A, Microsoft Word, or other formats for search, long-term retention, collaboration, or additional processing – quickly, accurately, and automatically.
How to split the pages flow by multiple barcode types in FineReader Server 14
In FineReader Server 14 you have a possibility to split the pages flow by multiple barcode types using regular expressions.
For example, the following regular expression will allow you to split pages by barcodes starting with HY and barcodes starting with GT:
(HY[0-9]+)|(GT[0-9]+)
Read more about Regular Expressions.
To set this option up, go to workflow properties, choose the option Start new document after barcoded page and type in regular expressions for barcodes that you need to split the pages with:
Tip: the documents will be named according to barcodes that were used to split them if you choose the naming rule in the Output tab: