Those days are now gone when people have to devote a significant amount of time and effort to decoding or extracting essential text from photos. Instead, an automated technology known as “OCR” is now being used for this purpose.

The OCR technology can efficiently decode text from images within seconds without compromising on accuracy. However, if you are not aware of this innovation, then this article is especially for you.

In this blog, we are going to take an inside look into OCR technology by understanding its definition, working mechanism, and many more. So, it would be great if you stick around with us till the end.

An Overview of OCR Technology

OCR is a short form of Optical Character Recognition. It is a pattern-based recognition matching technology that efficiently scans the text that the input image contains and then starts to decode/extract it without making any kind of mistakes.

Apart from photos, this technology also can decode text from scanned documents, PDFs, invoices, bank statements, etc. with just one click.

The good thing is that the decoded text OCR provides will be in machine-readable format. The machine-readable format here refers to text that is totally editable, copyable, indexable, and searchable.  

Now, let’s understand how this technology works to accurately decode text from photos.  

How OCR Efficiently Decodes Text from Photos

Please note that Optical Character Recognition is just a technology (a set of algorithms). It will only be able to perform text decoding from photos when it is paired with some kind of tool.

That is why, you will find a variety of OCR-powered text extraction tools. So, the working mechanism we are going to discuss below will be in the context of these tools.

Working Mechanism:

The OCR-based tools work in three stages to efficiently and accurately decode text photos. Here are those stages.

Image Pre-processing: In the image pre-processing both OCR and the tool will work together to remove all kinds of distortions, noises, etc. from the input photo. After this, the picture will then be converted into a grayscale version so that the tool’s algorithms can efficiently scan and analyze the letters or characters that the input photo contains.

Text or feature recognition: Here, the OCR tool will start comparing all the characters in the input photo with its database of characters, words, and symbols. And then decodes or extracts the ones that have a successful match with the database.

Post-Processing: This is the final stage in which the tool will closely review the decoding text to ensure that it is completely accurate and free of grammatical mistakes. After this, it will then provide the decoded output to the user.

Example:

To provide you with a better idea of how OCR decodes text from pictures, we are going to submit an image to an OCR-based photo to text converter.

Below is the image we submitted:

The decoded text we got from the tool:

As you can see, the tool has quickly and accurately extracted all the text in an editable format. So, you can easily do the same as well to get the extraction job done.

Benefits of Using OCR Technology for Decoding Text Photos

There are numerous benefits of using Optical Character Recognition technology for decoding text from pictures. Some of the major ones are discussed below.

1.     100% Accuracy:

The Optical Character Recognition technology uses advanced algorithms, which means there is almost zero chance that its decoded text will contain any type of error. This will save employees’ reputations and prevent them from severe consequences like embarrassment or even termination etc.

On the other hand, when extracting information from pictures manually. There are strong chances the person may make mistakes like skipping some words or making grammatical mistakes due to human nature.    

2.     Maximized Efficiency:

Manually decoding text from photos will definitely require a significant amount of time and effort. Because the person first has to review the picture text and then note it down. This can greatly damage the workflow as well as the productivity of the employees.

Fortunately, Optical Character Recognition has solved this issue. It will automatically extract all the text from the input picture in an editable form within seconds.  

3.     Save Cost:

This benefit is only for organizations. By utilizing OCR for decoding text, companies can eliminate the need to hire professional persons, saving overall cost.

Moreover, OCR will also reduce the need to purchase scanners, printers, etc. This is because the OCR does not require any special equipment to scan and provide results in editable format. So that, it can be saved digitally.

So, these are some of the major benefits of using OCR technology for decoding text from photos.

Conclusion

Optical Character Recognition has become a quite popular option for performing data extraction. This is all because of its ability to automatically copy data within seconds. However, there are still some individuals who don’t know much about this useful technology. This blog post is specifically crafted for them.  

Further Reading:

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