JP2012243063A - Recording medium processor, control method for recording medium processor and program - Google Patents

Abstract

A recognition rate is improved when magnetic ink characters are recognized.
A check reading apparatus including a check conveyance mechanism, a magnetic head, and a control unit is obtained by magnetically reading magnetic ink characters recorded on a check to be conveyed by a magnetic head. The signal waveform data values are sequentially integrated for each sampling unit to obtain an integrated value. In the signal waveform data, a change point where the integrated value decreases and then increases is detected, and one magnetic field is determined based on the position of the change point. The character cutout start position of the ink character is determined, the character waveform data is cut out from the signal waveform data in a range corresponding to one magnetic ink character, and magnetic ink character recognition is executed on the cut out character waveform data. .
[Selection] Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to a recording medium processing apparatus, a control method for the recording medium processing apparatus, and a program.

  A recording medium processing device (check device reader) that includes a magnetic head for reading magnetic ink characters recorded on a recording medium such as a check, and that reads magnetic ink characters on a recording medium conveyed on a conveyance path and recognizes the magnetic ink characters ) Is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In such a recording medium processing apparatus, the first peak of the character is detected in the signal waveform data obtained by reading the magnetic ink character, and one magnetic ink character is detected from the signal waveform data based on the detected position of the first peak. The character waveform data corresponding to is cut out. Then, the character waveform data that has been cut out is compared with the reference waveform of the character type specified in the standard, and magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) is performed to determine the character type of the magnetic ink character. Yes.

JP 2004-206362 A

  However, the first peak of the character may not be detected correctly due to the small output of the signal waveform data acquired from the magnetic ink character or the narrow width of the magnetic ink character. In such a case, when character waveform data is extracted from signal waveform data, the character extraction start position is erroneously determined, and magnetic ink character recognition cannot be performed from the extracted character waveform data, or the recognition rate may decrease. There was a problem that there was.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least a part of the problems described above, and the invention can be implemented as the following forms or application examples.

  Application Example 1 A recording medium processing apparatus according to this application example includes a conveyance unit that conveys a recording medium, a reading unit that magnetically reads magnetic ink characters recorded on the recording medium, the conveyance unit, and the reading unit A control unit that controls the recording unit, the control unit controlling the transport unit to transport the recording medium, and reading the magnetic ink characters of the transported recording medium by the reading unit. The signal waveform data values are sequentially integrated for each sampling unit to obtain an integrated value, and in the signal waveform data, a change point that starts to increase after the integrated value decreases is detected, and the change point position is detected. The character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character is determined based on the character waveform data in a range corresponding to the one magnetic ink character from the signal waveform data, and the cut out sentence And executes a magnetic ink character recognition with respect to the waveform data.

According to this configuration, the character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character is determined based on the position of the change point where the integrated value of the signal waveform data obtained by reading the magnetic ink character decreases and then increases.
When the values of the detection signal waveform data obtained magnetically are sequentially integrated, the integrated value ideally increases from zero at the beginning of one magnetic ink character and then returns to zero at the end. That is, the integrated value of the values of the detection signal waveform data decreases at the end of the previous magnetic ink character, and then starts increasing at the start of the next magnetic ink character. Therefore, it is possible to detect the beginning of each magnetic ink character by detecting a change point where the integrated value decreases and then increases. Therefore, by determining the character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character based on the position of the change point, even if the output of the acquired signal waveform data is small or the width of the magnetic ink character is narrow, the character waveform is accurately obtained. Data can be cut out. As a result, the recognition rate of magnetic ink character recognition can be improved.

  Application Example 2 In the recording medium processing apparatus according to the application example, it is preferable that the control unit sets the point at which the value of the signal waveform data changes from a negative value to a positive value as the change point.

  According to this configuration, since the change point at which the integrated value changes from decrease to increase is detected as the point at which the value of the signal waveform data changes from a negative value to a positive value, the sign of the data changes from negative to positive. Can be detected. Thereby, compared with the case where a change point is detected by comparing the value of an integrated value, a change point can be detected easily.

  Application Example 3 In the recording medium processing apparatus according to the application example described above, the control unit determines that the integrated value at one change point position is greater than the integrated value at the change point positions adjacent to each other. Is also smaller, it is preferable to determine the character cutout start position based on the position of the one change point.

According to this configuration, when the integrated value of the middle change point is smaller than the integrated value of the change points before and after the three change points adjacent to each other, character segmentation is started based on the position of the middle change point. Determine the position.
Depending on the character type, there may be a plurality of change points in the waveform data of one magnetic ink character. That is, the change point includes a change point that is the start of the character and a change point that is not the start of the character. Since the integrated value of the change point that is the beginning of the character is smaller than the integrated value of the change point that is not the start of the character, the integrated value of the change point in the middle is smaller than the integrated value of the change points before and after that, It can be determined that the middle change point is the beginning of the character. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the character cutout start position from being erroneously determined based on the position of the change point that is not the beginning of the character.

  Application Example 4 In the recording medium processing apparatus according to the application example, the control unit may extract the character when the determined interval between the character extraction start positions adjacent to each other is equal to or greater than a predetermined range. It is preferable to detect the change point between the start positions.

  According to this configuration, when the determined interval between adjacent character extraction start positions is equal to or greater than a predetermined range, there is a high possibility that a character waveform for two characters exists between the two. Therefore, if there is a change point between the two, it is possible to determine a new character cutout start position for cutting out a character waveform for two characters.

  Application Example 5 In the recording medium processing apparatus according to the application example described above, the control unit may determine an interval from the character cutout start position when a plurality of change points exist between the character cutout start positions. Preferably, the character cutout start position is newly determined based on the change point closest to the range corresponding to the one magnetic ink character.

  According to this configuration, when there is a possibility that a character waveform for two characters exists between the character cutout start positions and there are a plurality of change points between the two, the interval from the character cutout start position The character extraction start position is newly determined based on the change point closest to the range corresponding to one magnetic ink character. Thereby, it is possible to cut out the character at the most likely character cutting start position.

  Application Example 6 A control method of a recording medium processing apparatus according to this application example includes a conveyance unit that conveys the recording medium, and a reading unit that magnetically reads magnetic ink characters recorded on the recording medium. A method for controlling a recording medium processing apparatus, wherein the recording medium is conveyed by the conveying unit, and the value of signal waveform data obtained by reading the magnetic ink characters of the conveyed recording medium by the reading unit is sampled Accumulated sequentially for each unit to obtain an accumulated value, and in the signal waveform data, a change point where the accumulated value decreases and then increases is detected, and a character of one magnetic ink character is determined based on the position of the change point A cutout start position is determined, character waveform data is cut out from the signal waveform data in a range corresponding to the one magnetic ink character, and the cut out character waveform data And executes a magnetic ink character recognition Te.

According to this method, the values of the signal waveform data obtained by reading the magnetic ink characters are sequentially integrated for each sampling unit to acquire the integrated value, and based on the position of the changing point where the integrated value decreases and then increases. The character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character is determined.
When the values of the detection signal waveform data obtained magnetically are sequentially integrated, the integrated value ideally increases from zero at the beginning of one magnetic ink character and then returns to zero at the end. That is, the integrated value of the values of the detection signal waveform data decreases at the end of the previous magnetic ink character, and then starts increasing at the start of the next magnetic ink character. Therefore, it is possible to detect the beginning of each magnetic ink character by detecting a change point where the integrated value decreases and then increases. Therefore, by determining the character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character based on the position of the change point, even if the output of the acquired signal waveform data is small or the width of the magnetic ink character is narrow, the character waveform is accurately obtained. Data can be cut out. As a result, the recognition rate of magnetic ink character recognition can be improved.

  Application Example 7 A program according to this application example includes each unit of a recording medium processing apparatus including a conveyance unit that conveys a recording medium and a reading unit that magnetically reads magnetic ink characters recorded on the recording medium. Obtained by reading the magnetic ink characters of the recording medium to be conveyed by the reading unit. The signal waveform data values are sequentially integrated for each sampling unit to obtain an integrated value, and in the signal waveform data, a change point that starts increasing after the integrated value decreases is detected, and based on the position of the change point The character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character is determined, and character waveform data is cut out from the signal waveform data in a range corresponding to the one magnetic ink character. Characterized in that to function as a means for performing a magnetic ink character recognition on the character waveform data cut out.

According to this configuration, the values of the signal waveform data obtained by reading the magnetic ink characters are sequentially integrated for each sampling unit to acquire the integrated value, and based on the position of the changing point where the integrated value decreases and then increases. The character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character is determined.
When the values of the detection signal waveform data obtained magnetically are sequentially integrated, the integrated value ideally increases from zero at the beginning of one magnetic ink character and then returns to zero at the end. That is, the integrated value of the values of the detection signal waveform data decreases at the end of the previous magnetic ink character, and then starts increasing at the start of the next magnetic ink character. Therefore, it is possible to detect the beginning of each magnetic ink character by detecting a change point where the integrated value decreases and then increases. Therefore, by determining the character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character based on the position of the change point, even if the output of the acquired signal waveform data is small or the width of the magnetic ink character is narrow, the character waveform is accurately obtained. Data can be cut out. As a result, the recognition rate of magnetic ink character recognition can be improved.

1 is an external perspective view of a check reading apparatus according to the present embodiment. It is a figure which shows the internal structure of a check reading apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the functional structure of a check reading apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of a character recognition part. It is a figure which shows an example of detection signal waveform data. It is a figure which shows an example of character waveform data. It is a figure which shows an example of character waveform data. It is a figure which shows an example of the detection signal waveform data in case an output is small. It is a figure which shows an example of the detection signal waveform data when a character width is narrow. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the character recognition part at the time of execution of a character cutout start position determination process. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the character recognition part at the time of execution of a character cutout start position determination process. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the character recognition part at the time of execution of a character cutout start position determination process. It is a figure which shows the waveform of the integrated value of detection signal waveform data in case an output is small. It is a figure which shows the waveform of the integrated value of detection signal waveform data when a character width is narrow. It is a figure for demonstrating a difference amount. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the character recognition part at the time of execution of an optical recognition process.

  Hereinafter, a recording medium processing apparatus, a control method for the recording medium processing apparatus, and a program according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In each drawing referred to, in order to show the configuration in an easy-to-understand manner, the dimensional ratio, angle, and the like of each component may be different.

<Recording medium processing apparatus>
A recording medium processing apparatus according to this embodiment will be described. The recording medium processing apparatus according to this embodiment includes a check reading apparatus 1 and a host computer 70.

First, a schematic configuration of the check reading apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a check reading apparatus 1 according to this embodiment.
The check reading device 1 reads a magnetic ink character (MICR character) recorded on the check 4, reads images on both sides of the check 4, and endorses the check 4 with respect to the check 4 that is a sheet-like recording medium. It is an apparatus that performs processing such as recording of a predetermined image.

The check reading device 1 includes a main body case 2 and a lid case 3 placed on the upper side of the main body case 2, and each component is incorporated therein.
The cover case 3 is formed with a conveyance path 5 of a check 4 consisting of a narrow vertical groove having a U shape when viewed from above, and one end of the conveyance path 5 is a check consisting of a wide vertical groove. The other end of the conveyance path 5 branches right and left and is connected to a first check discharge portion 7 and a second check discharge portion 8 each having a wide vertical groove.

On the surface 4a of the check 4, a money amount, a payer, a number, a signature, and the like are written on the background on which a predetermined pattern is formed, and the lower end portion thereof has a long side direction as shown in FIG. An extended magnetic ink character string 4A is recorded. The magnetic ink character string 4A is formed by arranging a plurality of magnetic ink characters in the horizontal direction.
In addition, an endorsement column is formed on the back surface 4 b of the check 4. A predetermined image related to the endorsement is recorded in the endorsement column by a recording device 56 described later.

  The check 4 is aligned in the vertical direction so that the upper end 4e is positioned upward and the lower end 4f is positioned downward, and the front and back are aligned so that the surface 4a faces the outside of the U-shaped conveyance path 5 ( In the state shown in FIG. 1, it is inserted into the check supply unit 6. The check 4 inserted into the check supply unit 6 is sent out to the transport path 5 with the rear end 4d as the first.

  As the check 4 sent out from the check supply unit 6 is conveyed along the conveyance path 5, the front image that is the image of the front surface 4a and the back image that is the image of the back surface 4b are read, and further, the check 4 is transferred to the front surface 4a. The recorded magnetic ink character string 4A is magnetically read. The check 4 for which the magnetic ink character string 4 </ b> A has been successfully read is discharged to the first check discharge unit 7 after a predetermined image related to the endorsement is recorded.

  On the other hand, the check 4 that has failed to be read is discharged to the second check discharge unit 8 without recording a predetermined image related to the endorsement. The check 4 discharged to the second check discharge unit 8 is subjected to processing such as investigation of the cause of reading failure and re-reading.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the internal structure of the check reading device 1.
The check supply unit 6 is provided with a check delivery mechanism 10 for sending the check 4 to the transport path 5. The check delivery mechanism 10 includes a delivery roller 11, a delivery roller 12, a retard roller 13 pressed against the delivery roller 12, a delivery motor 14, and a check pressing hopper 15.

  When the feeding motor 14 is driven, the check 4 placed in the check supply unit 6 is pressed against the feeding roller 11 by the hopper 15, and in this state, the feeding roller 11 and the feeding roller 12 rotate synchronously.

  The check 4 is fed between the feed roller 12 and the retard roller 13 by the feed roller 11. The retard roller 13 is given a predetermined rotational load, and only one check 4 that is in direct contact with the delivery roller 12 is separated from the other checks 4 and delivered to the transport path 5.

  The conveyance path 5 has a U shape as described above, and is connected to the linear upstream conveyance path portion 21 connected to the check supply unit 6, the first check discharge unit 7, and the second check discharge unit 8. In addition, a downstream conveyance path portion 23 extending in a slightly bent state and a curved conveyance path portion 22 that connects the downstream conveyance path portion 22 are provided.

  A check conveyance mechanism 30 that conveys the check 4 sent from the check supply unit 6 to the conveyance path 5 along the conveyance path 5 is pressed by the first conveyance roller 31 to the sixth conveyance roller 36 and the rotation. The first pressing roller 41 to the sixth pressing roller 46 and a transport motor 37 for rotationally driving the first transport roller 31 to the sixth transport roller 36 are provided. The 1st conveyance roller 31-the 6th conveyance roller 36 rotate in synchronization. For example, a stepping motor is used as the transport motor 37. For this reason, the conveyance amount of the check 4 can be known from the number of steps for driving the stepping motor.

  The first conveyance roller 31 to the third conveyance roller 33 are respectively disposed at the upstream end of the upstream conveyance path portion 21, the middle position thereof, and the boundary position with the curved conveyance path portion 22. The fourth transport roller 34 is disposed at a downstream position in the curved transport path portion 22. The fifth transport roller 35 and the sixth transport roller 36 are respectively disposed at the middle position and the downstream end in the downstream transport path portion 23.

  Between the first transport roller 31 and the second transport roller 32 in the upstream transport path portion 21, the magnet 51 for magnetizing the magnetic ink characters, the front contact image sensor 52, and the back contact image from the upstream side. A sensor 53 is arranged. The front-side contact image sensor 52 faces the front surface 4a of the check 4 transported on the transport path 5, and reads a front surface image that is an image of the front surface 4a. The back side contact image sensor 53 faces the back side 4b of the check 4 conveyed on the conveyance path 5, and reads a back side image that is an image of the back side 4b.

Further, a magnetic head 54 as a reading unit for reading magnetic ink characters is disposed between the second transport roller 32 and the third transport roller 33, and the check 4 is pressed against the magnetic head 54. The pressing roller 55 faces each other.
Between the fifth transport roller 35 and the sixth transport roller 36 in the downstream transport path portion 23, a recording device 56 for recording a predetermined image related to the endorsement is disposed. The recording device 56 includes a print head, a stamp, and the like that can record a predetermined image in an appropriate direction at an appropriate position on the back surface 4b of the check 4 conveyed on the conveyance path 5.

  Various sensors for check conveyance control are arranged in the conveyance path 5. A paper length detector 61 for detecting the length of the check 4 to be sent out is disposed at a position on the front side of the magnet 51. Between the back side contact image sensor 53 and the second transport roller 32, a double feed detector 62 for detecting that the check 4 is transported in an overlapping state is disposed. A jam detector 63 is disposed at a position on the front side of the fourth transport roller 34. When the check 4 is continuously detected by the jam detector 63 over a predetermined time, the transport path 5 is detected. It can be seen that the check 4 is jammed.

  A print detector 64 for detecting the presence or absence of the check 4 endorsed by the recording device 56 is disposed at a position on the front side of the fifth transport roller 35. Furthermore, it is discharged into these positions on the downstream side of the sixth transport roller 36, that is, the position of the branch path 9 that branches from the transport path 5 to the first check discharge section 7 and the second check discharge section 8. A discharge detector 65 for detecting the check 4 is arranged.

  A switching plate 66 that is switched by a drive motor 67 (see FIG. 3) is disposed in the branch path 9. The switching plate 66 is a member for selectively switching the downstream end of the transport path 5 with respect to the first check discharge unit 7 and the second check discharge unit 8 and guiding the check 4 to the selected discharge unit.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the check reading apparatus 1.
The control unit 71 centrally controls each part of the check reading device 1 under the control of the host-side control unit 73 of the host computer 70 described later, and controls the CPU, ROM, RAM, and other peripheral circuits. I have.

  The control unit 71 drives the delivery motor 14 and the conveyance motor 37 under the control of the host-side control unit 73 to feed the checks 4 (see FIG. 1) one by one to the conveyance path 5, and the sent checks 4 is transported along the transport path 5. The conveyance control of the check 4 by the control unit 71 is based on detection signals from the paper length detector 61, the double feed detector 62, the jam detector 63, the print detector 64 and the discharge detector 65 arranged in the conveyance path 5. Based on.

As the check 4 is transported, the front-side contact image sensor 52 and the back-side contact image sensor 53 respectively read the image on the front surface and the back surface of the check 4 transported on the transport path 5, and read the read images. The image data shown is output to the control unit 71. The control unit 71 outputs these image data to the host side control unit 73.
Further, the magnetic head 54 detects an electromotive force generated by a change in the magnetic field formed by the passing magnetic ink character string 4A (see FIG. 1) under the control of the control unit 71, and the signal processing circuit 74 as a detection signal. Output to.

The signal processing circuit 74 includes an amplifier, a noise removal filter circuit, an A / D converter, and the like, amplifies the detection signal input from the magnetic head 54, shapes the waveform, and outputs the amplified signal to the control unit 71 as data. To do. The control unit 71 transmits data indicating the detection signal input from the signal processing circuit 74 to the host side control unit 73.
The operation unit 75 includes various switches such as a power switch and operation switches formed on the main body case 2 (see FIG. 1), detects user operations on these switches, and outputs them to the control unit 71.

A host computer 70 is connected to the check reading device 1 via a communication cable 72.
The host computer 70 includes a host-side control unit 73 that includes a CPU, ROM, RAM, and other peripheral circuits. The host-side control unit 73 includes a character recognition unit 80 described later.

The host-side control unit 73 includes a display 76 that can display various types of information, an operation unit 77 to which input devices such as a keyboard and a mouse are connected, and a storage unit that stores various types of rewritable data such as an EEPROM and a hard disk. 78 is connected.
The storage unit 78 stores the front image of the check 4 input from the check reading device 1, data indicating the back image, and data indicating the detection signal.

  In the present embodiment, the control unit 71 of the check reading device 1 controls each part of the check reading device 1 under the control of the host side control unit 73 of the host computer 70. Specifically, the host-side control unit 73 executes a program stored in the ROM by the CPU to generate control data for controlling the control unit 71, and uses the generated control data for the check reading device 1. By outputting to the control unit 71, each part of the check reading device 1 is controlled. That is, in this embodiment, the host computer 70 and the check reading device 1 cooperate to function as a recording medium processing device that executes various processes on the check 4 as a recording medium.

<Character recognition part>
Next, the character recognition unit 80 included in the host-side control unit 73 will be described.
The character recognition unit 80 performs character recognition for each of the magnetic ink characters constituting the magnetic ink character string 4A. The magnetic ink character is a character magnetically printed on the check 4 in accordance with a predetermined font (for example, E-13B font), and one magnetic ink character has a plurality of predetermined character types. Corresponds to any one character type. The recognition of the magnetic ink character is to determine the character type of each magnetic ink character for each of the read magnetic ink characters or to detect that the character type of the magnetic ink character cannot be determined.

  In the E-13B font, the shapes of magnetic ink characters are “0” to “9”, transit symbol (TRANSIT SYMBOL), amount symbol (AMOUNT SYMBOL), on-as symbol (ON-US SYMBOL), and Shapes corresponding to 14 character types of dash symbols (DASH SYMBOL) are prepared. The reference waveforms of the plurality of character types determined by the standard are stored in the storage unit 78.

  In addition, each magnetic ink character of the magnetic ink character string 4A may be printed on the check 4 by offset printing or may be printed by laser printing. The magnetic ink characters printed by offset printing and the magnetic ink characters printed by laser printing have different shapes. In this embodiment, as described later, The recognition of magnetic ink characters is executed.

In the present embodiment, if the character type of the magnetic ink character can be determined for all the magnetic ink characters included in the magnetic ink character string 4A, it is determined that the magnetic ink character string 4A has been successfully read. If one of the characters cannot determine the character type of the magnetic ink character, it is determined that the reading of the magnetic ink character string 4A has failed.
As described above, under the control of the host-side control unit 73, the control unit 71 conveys the check 4 to the first check discharge unit 7 for the check 4 for which the magnetic ink character string 4A has been successfully read. For the check 4 for which reading of the magnetic ink character string 4A has failed, the check 4 is conveyed to the second check discharge unit 8 after executing a predetermined process.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the character recognition unit 80. The flow chart of FIG. 4 shows the operation of the character recognition unit 80 when executing recognition of a magnetic ink character string 4A recorded on a check 4 for a certain check 4. The magnetic ink character string 4A recorded on the check 4 is read by the magnetic head 54, and the signal processing circuit 74 performs various processing such as amplification processing, filtering processing, and waveform shaping processing. It is assumed that data indicating the detection signal (hereinafter referred to as “detection signal waveform data”) is generated and the detection signal waveform data is output to the host-side control unit 73 by the control unit 71.
Further, it is assumed that an image of the surface of the check 4 is read by the front-side contact image sensor 52 and output from the control unit 71 to the host-side control unit 73 as image data. The function of the character recognition unit 80 is realized by the cooperation of hardware and software, such as the CPU of the host-side control unit 73 executing a program stored in the ROM.

<Cutting out magnetic ink characters>
As shown in FIG. 4, first, the host-side control unit 73 analyzes the detection signal waveform data input from the control unit 71, and determines the character cutout start position for each magnetic ink character included in the magnetic ink character string 4A. Determine (step SA21). In step SA21, character cutout of each magnetic ink character is started by utilizing the characteristic that when the magnetically acquired detection signal waveform data values are sequentially integrated, the integrated value of the waveform data returns to zero (0) for each magnetic ink character. The position is determined. Details of the character cutout start position determination method in step SA21 will be described later.

  Next, for one magnetic ink character among the magnetic ink characters included in the magnetic ink character string 4A, the character is cut out from the detection signal waveform data based on the character cutting start position determined in step SA21 (step SA1). . Character segmentation refers to generating character waveform data indicating the waveform of a magnetic ink character for one magnetic ink character included in the magnetic ink character string 4A based on the detection signal waveform data. is there.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing an example of the contents of the detection signal waveform data (part), and FIGS. 6 and 7 are examples of the contents of the character waveform data generated by the processing in step SA21 and step SA1. FIG. Specifically, FIGS. 6A and 7A show character waveform data cut out from the detection signal waveform data, and FIGS. 6B and 7B show FIGS. 6A and 7A. ) Shows the waveform of the integrated value obtained by sequentially integrating the values of the character waveform data. 6A and 6B show waveforms when the character type is “4”, and FIGS. 7A and 7B show waveforms when the character type is “1”. 6A and 6B and FIGS. 7A and 7B show the waveform shapes in comparison, and the scales in the Y-axis direction are not the same. .

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the magnetic ink character string 4 </ b> A recorded on the check 4 is read by the magnetic head 54 while the check 4 is being conveyed in the conveyance path 5. The magnetic ink character string 4A of the check 4 being conveyed is read at a predetermined sampling period from the rear end 4d side to the front end 4g side, thereby reading the magnetic ink character string 4A. In the following description, the interval of the minimum unit of the sampling period is assumed to be one sampling unit.

  In FIG. 5, the X axis (horizontal axis) defines the passage of time (sampling period) (showing that one sampling unit has passed sequentially from the origin toward the right of the X axis), and the Y axis ( The vertical axis) defines the relative value of the amount of change in magnetic charge with time. In FIG. 5, in the magnetic ink character string 4A, how the relative value of the change amount of the magnetic charge changes every predetermined sampling period from the rear end 4d side of the check 4 to the front end 4g side. The value in the Y-axis direction rises and falls according to the amount of change in magnetic charge of each magnetic ink character included in the magnetic ink character string 4A, and the amount of change in magnetic charge is positive or negative. Depending on whether the value is positive or negative in the Y-axis direction.

  As shown in the example of FIG. 6A, the range in which the waveform corresponding to one magnetic ink character is cut out in the X-axis direction of the detection signal waveform data is defined as a predetermined sampling unit S0 (for example, 70 sampling units). In order to comply with this rule, various transport controls are executed and the length of one sampling unit is specified. In the waveform corresponding to one magnetic ink character, it is defined that the first peak P is located at a predetermined sampling unit S1 (for example, the 11th sampling unit) from the character cutout start position.

  By the way, in the detection signal waveform data acquired magnetically, the value in the Y-axis direction of the waveform corresponding to one magnetic ink character rises from zero (0) at the beginning of the waveform rising to the end side in the ideal waveform. After changing toward the plus side and the minus side, it returns to zero (0) on the terminal side. The value of the blank portion between the end of the previous magnetic ink character and the start of the next magnetic ink character is zero (0).

  Further, as shown in the examples of FIGS. 6B and 7B, the integrated value obtained by sequentially integrating the values in the Y-axis direction of the waveform corresponding to one magnetic ink character from the start end side for each sampling unit is In an ideal waveform, it rises from zero (0) on the start side, increases and decreases on the plus side toward the end side, and then returns to zero (0) on the end side. That is, the integrated value of the detection signal waveform data is the minimum value (0) before and after one magnetic ink character, and the minimum value (0) continues from the end of the previous magnetic ink character to the start of the next magnetic ink character. .

  Therefore, it is possible to detect the beginning of one magnetic ink character by searching for a point where the integrated value of the detection signal waveform data starts to increase after the smallest value (hereinafter referred to as a change point). In the detection signal waveform data, one magnetic ink character is found by searching for a point (change point) that changes from a negative value to zero (0) at the end of the previous magnetic ink character and then changes to a positive value. Can be detected. If the beginning of this magnetic ink character is detected, the character cutout start position can be determined based on this.

  For example, in the waveform of the character type “4”, there are two changing points from a negative value through zero (0) to a positive value as indicated by a circle in FIG. The change point E on the left side of the X axis is the beginning of the character, and the change point F on the right side of the X axis is a point on the way from the minus peak to the plus peak. As indicated by a circle in FIG. 6B, in the integrated value, the value of the change point E, which is the beginning of the character, is smaller than the value of the change point F.

  In the waveform of the character type “1”, the change point is only the change point E, which is the beginning of the character, as indicated by the circles in FIGS. Although not shown in the figure, depending on the character type, one magnetic ink character may have three changing points including the beginning of the character. In the case of a character type having a blank portion in one magnetic ink character, such as a transit symbol, the integrated value may once return to zero (0) in the blank portion between the start and end. .

  In the present embodiment, the character cutout start position of each magnetic ink character is determined using the characteristic that the integrated value of the waveform data is the smallest before and after each magnetic ink character (ideally zero). . Hereinafter, a method for determining the character cutout start position in step SA21 will be described in comparison with the conventional method.

  First, before describing the character cutout start position determination method of the present embodiment, a conventional character cutout start position determination method will be described. In the conventional method, the character recognition unit analyzes the detection signal waveform data, and on the rear end side (right side of the X axis) of each peak of the waveform exceeding the value of the predetermined level L1 shown in FIG. The first peak P appearing first is detected.

  Here, the peak is a portion corresponding to the maximum value and the minimum value in the detection signal waveform data, and these peaks are defined to appear in a predetermined cycle in the X-axis direction. The value on the X axis corresponding to each peak is called the peak position. Further, the predetermined level L1 is a value indicating a predetermined height of the detection signal in the Y-axis direction, and is appropriately set so as to be higher than the jumping out of the waveform due to external noise that is normally generated. For example, the predetermined level L1 is set to a value corresponding to 10 steps on the plus side, with the amplitude of the detection signal waveform data divided into 256 steps in the Y-axis direction, with 128 steps being zero on the Y-axis.

  Next, when cutting out in a range of a predetermined sampling unit S0 corresponding to one magnetic ink character in step SA1, the position of the detected first peak P is the predetermined sampling unit S1 in the X-axis direction of the waveform. The character extraction start position is determined. That is, the position of the predetermined sampling unit S1 on the left side of the X axis from the detected position of the first peak P is determined as the character cutout start position.

  By the way, in magnetic reading by the magnetic head 54, the character cutout start position is determined by the fact that the output of the detection signal waveform data acquired from the magnetic ink character is small, the width of the printed magnetic ink character is narrow, etc. In some cases, the first peak P serving as a reference to be detected cannot be accurately detected. Such a case will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of detection signal waveform data when the output is small. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of detection signal waveform data when the character width is narrow. 8 and 9, the scales of the X axis and the Y axis are not the same.

  The example of the detection signal waveform data shown in FIG. 8 includes waveforms corresponding to 13 magnetic ink characters C1 to C13. Each magnetic ink character from C1 to C13 has a width of one parenthesis corresponding to one character, and each has a first peak from P1 to P13. However, due to the small output, the first peaks P1, P2, P3, P5, P8, in the waveform corresponding to the magnetic ink characters C1, C2, C3, C5, C8, C9, C10, C11, C13, Since the values of P9, P10, P11, and P13 are smaller than the predetermined level L1, it is difficult to detect these peaks as the first peak P.

  Among these, in the waveforms corresponding to the magnetic ink characters of C1, C2, C3, C5, C8, C11, and C13, the peaks Q1, Q2, Q3, Q5, Q8, Q11, and Q13 other than the first peak have a predetermined level L1. Therefore, these peaks are erroneously detected as the first peak P. On the other hand, since no peak is detected in the waveforms corresponding to the magnetic ink characters C9 and C10, the character extraction start position cannot be determined correctly.

  In the example of the detection signal waveform data shown in FIG. 9, the detection signal waveform data includes waveforms corresponding to 10 magnetic ink characters C1 to C10. In FIG. 9, the width of one bracket corresponds to one character as in FIG. 8, but the character width of each magnetic ink character is variously different. For example, the character width of C3 and C5 is C2, It is smaller than the character width of C4.

  Here, in the conventional character cutout start position determination method, the magnetic ink character cut out first with a predetermined interval S2 (for example, 80 sampling units) from the start of one magnetic ink character to the start of the next magnetic ink character. Detection of the first peak P of the next magnetic ink character is started from the position separated by a predetermined interval S2 from the character cutout start position toward the X-axis direction of the waveform.

  At this time, a position spaced by a predetermined interval S2 from the character cutout start position of the waveform corresponding to the C2 magnetic ink character is ahead of the first peak P3 in the waveform corresponding to the next C3 magnetic ink character (left of the X axis). )), It is possible to detect the first peak P3. However, a position spaced by a predetermined interval S2 from the character cutout start position of the waveform corresponding to the C3 magnetic ink character is behind the first peak P4 in the waveform corresponding to the next C4 magnetic ink character (X-axis right side). )), It becomes impossible to detect the first peak P4. Similarly, the first peak P6 in the waveform corresponding to the C6 magnetic ink character cannot be detected, and as a result, the character cutout start position cannot be determined correctly.

  As described above, in the conventional character cutout start position determination method, the character cutout start position is determined based on the position of the first peak P. Therefore, when the first peak P cannot be detected correctly, the character cutout start position is accurately determined. Therefore, the character waveform data cannot be cut out with high accuracy.

  Next, a method of character cutout start position determination processing according to the present embodiment will be described. 10 to 12 are flowcharts showing the operation of the character recognition unit when the character cutout start position determination process is executed. Specifically, FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an outline of the operation in the character cutout start position determination process, FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the operation in the change point detection process, and FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the operation in the start edge detection process. .

  13 and 14 are diagrams showing examples of waveforms obtained by sequentially integrating the values of the detection signal waveform data. Specifically, FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a waveform of an integrated value obtained by integrating detection signal waveform data when the output of FIG. 8 is small, and FIG. 14 is integrated with detection signal waveform data when the character width of FIG. 9 is narrow. It is a figure which shows the waveform of an integrated value.

  As shown in FIG. 10, as the character cutout start position determination processing in step SA21, the character recognition unit 80 performs input data integration processing in step SA22, change point detection processing (see FIG. 11) in step SA23, and step SA24. Character start edge detection processing (see FIG. 12) is executed in order.

  In the input data integration process in step SA22, the character recognition unit 80 uses the leading position (X axis and Y axis in FIG. 5) in the detection signal waveform data (see FIG. 5) obtained by magnetically reading the magnetic ink character string 4A. Then, the values for each sampling unit (elapsed time) are sequentially integrated as input data from the intersection) to obtain the integrated value at the position of each sampling unit (value on the X axis in FIG. 5) of the detection signal waveform data.

  By this input data integration processing, for example, the waveform of the integrated value as shown in FIG. 13 is obtained from the detection signal waveform data when the output of FIG. 8 is small, and the waveform of the detection signal waveform when the character width of FIG. 14 is obtained. In FIGS. 13 and 14, since the ideal waveform is not obtained due to the characteristics of the magnetic head 54 and the influence of noise at the time of reading, the integrated value is the same on the start side and the end side of one magnetic ink character. In addition, the integrated values on the start side and the end side are not the same between the magnetic ink characters.

  Next, the change point detection process (step SA23 in FIG. 10) will be described with reference to FIG. In the change point detection process in step SA23, each process from step SB1 to step SB7 is executed using the value for each sampling unit (elapsed time) from the head position of the detection signal waveform data acquired from the magnetic ink character string 4A as input data. To do. The change point detection process in step SA23 is intended to find a point (change point) in the waveform obtained by integrating the detection signal waveform data that starts to increase after the integrated value decreases.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the character recognition unit 80 first determines whether or not the value of the input data is a value other than zero (0) (step SB1). When the value of the input data is a value other than zero (0) (step SB1: YES), the character recognizing unit 80 shifts the processing procedure to step SB2. On the other hand, when the value of the input data is zero (0) (step SB1: NO), the character recognizing unit 80 proceeds to step SB7.

  Next, the character recognition unit 80 determines whether or not the value of the input data is a positive value (step SB2). If the value of the input data is a positive value (step SB2: YES), the character recognition unit 80 moves the processing procedure to step SB3. On the other hand, when the value of the input data is a negative value (step SB2: NO), the character recognition unit 80 sets the flag value to a negative value (for example, −1) (step SB6), and then performs the processing procedure. Control goes to step SB7.

  Next, the character recognition unit 80 determines whether or not the value of the flag is a negative value (step SB3). If the value of the flag is a negative value (step SB3: YES), the character recognition unit 80 determines that a change point has been detected, and proceeds to step SB4. On the other hand, when the value of the flag is a positive value (step SB3: NO), the character recognizing unit 80 proceeds to step SB7. The initial value of the flag value is a negative value (for example, -1).

  Next, when the character recognition unit 80 determines that the change point has been detected in step SB3, the position of the input data determined to be the change point (X-axis value) and the input data integration process in step SA22 at that position. Is stored in the storage unit 78 (step SB4). Then, the character recognition unit 80 sets the flag value to a positive value (for example, +1) (step SB5), and then moves the processing procedure to step SB7.

  In step SB7, the character recognition unit 80 determines whether or not the processing has been completed for all data included in the detection signal waveform data acquired from the magnetic ink character string 4A. If the processing has not been completed for all the data included in the detection signal waveform data (step SB7: NO), the character recognition unit 80 returns the processing procedure to step SB1 and executes each processing for the next input data. On the other hand, when the processing is completed for all the data included in the detection signal waveform data (step SB7: YES), the process proceeds to the character start edge detection processing in step SA24.

  As described above, in the change point detection process of step SA23, the change point where the integrated value decreases and then increases in the waveform obtained by integrating the detection signal waveform data is not the positive value of the value of the detection signal waveform data. Is detected as a point at which the flag representing the value changes from a negative value to a positive value, that is, a point where the waveform of the detection signal waveform data changes from the minus side to zero (0) in the Y axis direction and changes to the plus side. . The flag value is rewritten to a positive value when the detection signal waveform data value changes from a negative value to a positive value, and negative when the detection signal waveform data value changes from a positive value to a negative value. Will be rewritten to the value of. Therefore, the change point can be detected more easily than when the change point is detected by comparing the magnitudes of the integrated values.

  The change points detected from the detection signal waveform data by the change point detection process in step SA23 are indicated by circles in FIGS. 8, 9, 13, and 14. FIG. 8 and 9, the change point is a point where a negative value continues in the detection signal waveform data and then passes through zero (0) and changes to a positive value. In FIG. 13 and FIG. 14, the change point is a point where the integrated value decreases and then increases.

  As described above, depending on the character type, there are cases where there is one change point in the waveform corresponding to one magnetic ink character and cases where there are a plurality of change points. When there are a plurality of change points in one magnetic ink character, in addition to the change point at the beginning of the magnetic ink character, a change point that passes zero (0) from the minus peak toward the plus peak is included. It is. Therefore, it is necessary to extract the change point that is the start of the magnetic ink character from the change points detected by the change point detection process in step SA23.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 12, the character start edge detection process (step SA24 in FIG. 10) will be described. In the character start edge detection process in step SA24, the process from step SC1 to step SC10 is executed for each change point detected in the change point detection process in step SA23, thereby detecting the start edge of each magnetic ink character. The purpose is to extract.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the character recognizing unit 80 first determines that the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the position of the previous change point (left side of the X axis) from the integrated value at the target change point position is negative. It is determined whether there is, that is, whether the integrated value at the position of the target change point is smaller than the integrated value at the previous change point position (step SC1). When the difference between the integrated values is negative (step SC1: YES), the character recognition unit 80 shifts the processing procedure to step SC2. On the other hand, if the difference between the integrated values is not negative (step SC1: NO), the character recognition unit 80 determines that the target change point is not the start of the character (step SC9), and the process proceeds to step SC10. To do.

  Next, the character recognizing unit 80 determines whether or not the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the next (X-axis right side) change point from the integrated value at the target change point position is negative, that is, It is determined whether or not the integrated value at the position of the target change point is smaller than the integrated value at the position of the next change point (step SC2). If the difference between the integrated values is negative (step SC2: YES), the character recognition unit 80 shifts the processing procedure to step SC3. On the other hand, if the difference between the integrated values is not negative (step SC2: NO), the character recognizing unit 80 determines that the target change point is not the start of the character (step SC9), and shifts the processing procedure to step SC10. To do.

  The processes in steps SC1 and SC2 up to this point are processes aimed at searching for a change point having a smaller integrated value than change points adjacent to each other in the front and rear directions. For one magnetic ink character, the ideal integrated value of the detection signal waveform data increases from zero (0) on the start side, increases or decreases on the plus side (the method of increase / decrease varies depending on the character type), and then ends Return to zero (0). Therefore, the integrated value at the change point that is the start of the character is smaller than the integrated value at the change point located between the start and end. Therefore, first, the process of step SC1 and step SC2 is executed to detect a change point having a smaller integrated value than the change points located before and after.

  Next, the character recognition unit 80 determines that the interval between the position of the target change point and the position of the change point detected as the start of the previous magnetic ink character (hereinafter referred to as the start of the previous character) is a predetermined value. It is determined whether or not there is a range or more (step SC3). The predetermined range is, for example, a width of 1.5 characters (120 sampling units). If the interval between the target change point position and the start position of the previous character is greater than or equal to the predetermined range (step SC3: YES), the character recognition unit 80 shifts the processing procedure to step SC4.

  On the other hand, when the interval between the position of the target change point and the start position of the previous character is less than the width of 1.5 characters (step SC3: NO), the character recognition unit 80 determines that the target change point is The position of the target change point (X-axis value) and the integrated value obtained by the input data integration process at step SA22 at that position are stored in the storage unit 78 by determining that it is the start of the character ( Step SC8). Thus, in the subsequent processing, this change point becomes the start of the previous character. Then, the processing procedure proceeds to step SC10.

  In step SC4, if another change point exists between the target change point and the start point of the previous character, the character recognition unit 80 determines the position of the change point next to the start point of the previous character and the start point of the previous character. It is determined whether or not the position is at least 1.5 characters wide. When the interval between the position of the next change point after the beginning of the previous character and the position of the beginning of the previous character is greater than or equal to a predetermined range (for example, a width of 1.5 characters) (step SC4: YES), the character recognition unit 80 Determines that the change point is the beginning of the character, and stores the position (X-axis value) and the integrated value at the position in the storage unit 78 (step SC6). Thus, in the subsequent processing, this change point becomes the start of the previous character. Then, the processing procedure proceeds to step SC7.

  In step SC4, there is no other change point between the target change point and the start of the previous character, and the interval between the target change point and the start of the previous character is 1.5. If the width is equal to or greater than the character width (step SC4: YES), the character recognition unit 80 determines that the target change point is the start of the character, and performs the process of step SC6. When the interval between adjacent magnetic ink characters is wide, the interval between the target change point position and the start position of the previous character may be 1.5 characters or more.

  On the other hand, when the interval between the position of the next (after) change point after the start of the previous character and the position of the start of the previous character is less than the width of 1.5 characters (step SC4: NO), the character recognition unit 80 Then, the process proceeds to step SC5. In step SC5, the character recognition unit 80 sets the interval from the start position of the previous character to one character among the change points existing between the position of the target change point and the start position of the previous character. The change point closest to the width is detected. Then, with the change point detected in step SC5 as the beginning of the character, the process proceeds to step SC6, where the target change point position (X-axis value) and the input data integration process in step SA22 at that position are performed. Is stored in the storage unit 78. Thus, in the subsequent processing, this change point becomes the start of the previous character. Then, the processing procedure proceeds to step SC7.

  Next, the character recognition unit 80 determines whether or not the target change point matches the change point stored as the start point of the previous character in step SC6 (step SC7). If the target change point coincides with the change point stored as the start of the previous character in step SC6 (step SC7: YES), the character recognition unit 80 shifts the processing procedure to step SC10. On the other hand, when the target change point does not coincide with the change point stored as the start of the previous character in step SC6 (step SC7: NO), the character recognition unit 80 does not change the target change point and performs the processing procedure. Return to step SC3.

In step SC10, it is determined whether or not the processing from step SC1 to step SC9 has been completed for all the change points detected in the change point detection process in step SA23. When the process has not been completed for all the change points (step SC10: NO), the character recognition unit 80 returns the processing procedure to step SC1 and executes each process for the next change point.
On the other hand, when the process is completed for all the changing points (step SC10: YES), the character recognition unit 80 ends the character start edge detection process of step SA24.

  Here, as described above, depending on the character type, there is a case where there is only one starting point of the change point in one magnetic ink character. If such character types are adjacent to each other, in step SC1 and step SC2, the change points that are the start ends of the characters are compared with each other, and the change that is determined not to be the start end although it is the start end of the characters. Dots will occur. Therefore, if the difference between steps SC1 and SC2 is negative, it is considered that the target change point is the start of the character, but in step SC3, the target change point is 1. If it is 5 or more characters apart, there is a possibility that another character start point may exist before the target change point. In step SC4 and step SC5, the position of the start point of the previous character is determined. A change point separated by about one character width is detected as the beginning of the character.

  Next, an example of the character start edge detection process in step SA24 will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 13, each process is performed from the change point F1 toward the right of the waveform of the integrated value with the change point E1 as the start of the first character. Since the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the position of the change point E1 from the integrated value at the position of the change point F1 in step SC1 is positive (step SC1: NO), it is determined in step SC9 that the change point F1 is not the beginning of the character. Is done. In step SC10, since the process has not been completed for all the changing points, the processing procedure is returned to step SC1, and each process is executed for the next changing point F2.

  In the process of the change point F2, since the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the position of the change point F1 from the integrated value at the position of the change point F2 in step SC1 is negative (step SC1: YES), the process proceeds to step SC2. Since the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the position of the next changing point E2 from the integrated value at the position of the changing point F2 is positive (step SC2: NO), it is determined at step SC9 that the changing point F2 is not the beginning of the character. The processing target moves to the next change point E2.

  In the process of the change point E2, since the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the position of the change point F2 from the integrated value at the position of the change point E2 in step SC1 is negative (step SC1: YES), the process proceeds to step SC2. Since the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the position of the next changing point F3 from the integrated value at the position of the changing point E2 is negative (step SC2: YES), the process proceeds to step SC3. Although not explicitly shown in FIG. 13, the interval between the position of the change point E2 and the position of the change point E1 which is the start of the previous character is less than the width of 1.5 characters (step SC3: NO). The change point E2 is determined to be the beginning of the character, and the processing procedure proceeds to step SC8. As a result, the change point E2 becomes the start of the previous character in the subsequent processing, and the processing target shifts to the next change point F3.

  In the process of the change point F3, since the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the position of the change point E2 from the integrated value at the position of the change point F3 in step SC1 is positive (step SC1: NO), the change point F3 is determined in step SC9. It is determined that it is not the beginning of the character, and the processing target moves to the next change point E3.

  In the process of the change point E3, since the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the position of the change point F3 from the integrated value at the position of the change point E3 in step SC1 is negative (step SC1: YES), the process proceeds to step SC2. Since the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the position of the next changing point E4 from the integrated value at the position of the changing point E3 is positive (step SC2: NO), it is determined at step SC9 that the changing point E3 is not the beginning of the character. The processing object moves to the next change point E4.

  In the process of the change point E4, since the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the position of the change point E3 from the integrated value at the position of the change point E4 in step SC1 is negative (step SC1: YES), the process proceeds to step SC2. Since the difference obtained by subtracting the integrated value at the position of the next changing point F4 from the integrated value at the position of the changing point E4 is negative (step SC2: YES), the process proceeds to step SC3. Since the interval between the position of the change point E4 and the position of the change point E2 that is the start of the previous character is equal to or greater than the width of 1.5 characters (step SC3: YES), the process proceeds to step SC4.

  Here, returning to the change point F3 located next to the change point E2, the interval between the change point F3 and the change point E2 is smaller than the width of one character (step SC4: NO), and the next change point E3. And the change point E2 are close to the width of one character, it is determined in the next step SC5 that the change point E3 is the start of the character, and the processing procedure proceeds to step SC6. As a result, the change point E3 becomes the beginning of the previous character in the subsequent processing. In step SC7, since the change point E4 to be processed does not coincide with the change point E3 that is the start of the previous character, the process returns to step SC3 for the change point E4.

  In step SC3, the interval between the position of the change point E4 and the position of the change point E3 which is the start of the previous character is less than the width of 1.5 characters (step SC3: NO), so the change point E4 is the start of the character. It is determined that there is, and the processing procedure proceeds to step SC8. As a result, the change point E4 becomes the start of the previous character in the subsequent processing, and the processing target shifts to the next change point F4.

  In this manner, the character start edge detection process of step SA24 is performed for all the change points detected by the change point detection process of step SA23. As a result, the change points E1, E2, E3, E4, E5 for the magnetic ink characters C1, C2, C3, C5, C8, C9, C10, C11, and C13 in the detection signal waveform data with a small output shown in FIG. , E6, E7, E8, E9, E10, E11, E12, and E13 are detected as the beginning of the character, that is, the character cutting start position.

  Similarly, by executing the character start edge detection process in step SA24 on the detection signal waveform data having a narrow character width shown in FIG. 14, each of C1, C2, C3, C5, C8, C9, and C10 in FIG. For magnetic ink characters, the change points E1, E2, E3, E4, E5, E6, E7, E8, E9, and E10 are detected as the beginning of the character, that is, the character cutout start position.

  Note that a character type having a blank portion in one magnetic ink character, such as the above-described transit symbol, has a changing point where the integrated value temporarily returns to zero (0) between the start end and the end. There is something. Even in such a case, in step SC5, a change point whose interval from the start position of the previous character is closest to one character is detected as the start end of the next character, so that the start end and the end of one magnetic ink character are detected. It is possible to suppress erroneous detection of a change point located in the middle as the start of a character.

  As described above, the character recognition unit 80 ends the character cutout start position determination process in step SA21, and corresponds to the width of one magnetic ink character from the detection signal waveform data in step SA1 based on the determined character cutout start position. Cut out characters in a range. As a result, character waveform data as shown in FIGS. 6A and 7A is generated for one magnetic ink character included in the magnetic ink character string 4A.

The character cut-out in step SA1 is performed for each magnetic ink character included in the magnetic ink character string 4A from the magnetic ink character arranged on the rear end 4d side of the check 4 to the magnetic ink character arranged on the front end 4g side. Steps SA <b> 2 and subsequent processing relating to character recognition are executed for each magnetic ink character cut out in order.
Hereinafter, one magnetic ink character cut out in step SA1 is referred to as a “processing target character”.

After the character segmentation is performed, the character recognition unit 80 determines that the amplitude level in the Y-axis direction of the waveform indicated by each data has the amplitude level in the Y-axis direction of the reference waveform data for pattern matching. Data normalization is performed so as to be equal to the amplitude level (step SA2).
The reference waveform data for pattern matching is data indicating an ideal waveform of a detection signal when a magnetic ink character corresponding to one of the 14 character types described above is read by the magnetic head 54. This is data corresponding to template data provided in pattern matching processing in so-called magnetic ink character recognition.

<Magnetic ink character recognition processing>
The predetermined processing after step SA3 is processing related to so-called magnetic ink character recognition, which is sequentially executed on the magnetic ink characters (processing target characters) cut out in step SA1, and thereby the magnetic ink character string 4A. Is executed once for each of the magnetic ink characters included in the.

  As shown in FIG. 4, four recognition phases of the first recognition phase (step SA3) to the fourth recognition phase (step SA11) are included after step SA3. These four recognition phases are phases in which magnetic ink character recognition of the character to be processed is performed by different methods, and the character type of the character to be processed is determined or it is detected that it cannot be determined.

  If the character type of the character to be processed is confirmed in any of the first to third recognition phases, the next magnetic ink character of the character to be processed is processed without executing the next phase. After selecting the target character, magnetic ink character recognition is executed for the new processing target character.

  In the first recognition phase (step SA3), the character recognition unit 80 detects a difference amount between each of the character waveform data of the character to be processed and each of the reference waveform data corresponding to the 14 character types.

The detection of the difference between the character waveform data of the character to be processed and the reference waveform data will be described. FIG. 15 is a diagram for explaining the difference amount detected in step SA3. In FIG. 15, the waveform indicated by the character waveform data is indicated by a thin line, and the waveform indicated by the reference waveform data is indicated by a thick line.
The difference amount is the size of the hatched area in FIG. 15, and more specifically, in the Y-axis direction of the waveform indicated by the character waveform data in each sampling unit defined on the X-axis. This is the sum of absolute values of the difference between the value and the value in the Y-axis direction of the waveform indicated by the reference waveform data. The smaller the difference between the waveform indicated by one character waveform data and the waveform indicated by one reference waveform data, the smaller the waveform indicated by the one character waveform data and the waveform indicated by the one reference waveform data. And the character type of the magnetic ink character corresponding to the one character waveform data is highly likely to be the character type corresponding to the one reference waveform data.

  The detection of the difference amount of the waveform data in the first recognition phase is performed, for example, when the waveform indicated by the character waveform data of the character to be processed is simply compared with the waveform of the reference waveform data corresponding to the type of character to be compared, This is performed when the waveform indicated by the character waveform data of the character and the waveform of the reference waveform data corresponding to the character type to be compared are slid by a predetermined distance within a predetermined range and compared.

Based on the detection result of the difference amount, the character recognition unit 80 sets the character type corresponding to the reference waveform data having the smallest difference amount as the first candidate, and then the character type corresponding to the reference waveform data having the smallest difference amount. Is the second candidate.
Then, the character recognizing unit 80 compares the difference amount between the reference waveform data corresponding to the character types determined as the first candidate and the second candidate and the character waveform data of the character to be processed with a predetermined threshold value. As a result, the amount of difference between the reference waveform data corresponding to the first candidate and the character waveform data of the character to be processed is equal to or less than the threshold, and the reference waveform data corresponding to the second candidate and the character waveform data of the character to be processed are When the difference amount exceeds the threshold value, the character type set as the first candidate is determined as the character type of the processing target character. If the difference from the first candidate exceeds the threshold, the first recognition phase is terminated without determining the character type of the processing target character.

  On the other hand, the reference waveform data corresponding to the character type determined as the second candidate and the difference amount between the reference waveform data corresponding to the character type determined as the first candidate and the character waveform data of the character to be processed is equal to or smaller than the threshold. If the difference between the character waveform data of the character to be processed and the character waveform data to be processed is equal to or smaller than the threshold, the character recognition unit 80 does not determine the character type of the character to be processed.

  Here, the above threshold value is such that only the amount of difference between the character waveform data of the character to be processed and the reference waveform data corresponding to the correct character type of the character to be processed is equal to or less than the threshold, and The amount of difference from the reference waveform data corresponding to the character type is appropriately set so as to exceed the threshold value. By setting the threshold value in this manner, if the check 4 is conveyed normally and the magnetic head character string 4A is normally read by the magnetic head 54, the number of character types related to the difference amount that is equal to or less than the threshold value is limited to one.

  On the other hand, when there are a plurality of character types related to the difference amount that are less than or equal to the threshold, the situation appears due to a reading error by the magnetic head 54, a conveyance error of the check 4, or some other cause. there is a possibility. Therefore, if the character type of the character to be processed is determined in such a situation, there is a risk of erroneous recognition.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the shape of the magnetic ink character printed by offset printing is different from the shape of the magnetic ink character printed by laser printing. Two types of data, reference waveform data for offset printing and reference waveform data for laser printing, are prepared corresponding to one character type. In the first recognition phase, various processes are executed using the reference waveform data for offset printing out of the two types of reference waveform data. In the third recognition phase (step SA9), various processes are executed using the reference waveform data for laser printing.

After execution of the first recognition phase (step SA3), the character recognition unit 80 determines whether or not the character type of the processing target character has been confirmed in the first recognition phase (step SA4).
If the character type of the character to be processed can be confirmed (step SA4: YES), the character recognition unit 80 proceeds to step SA5 without performing the second recognition phase.

  In step SA5, it is determined whether or not all magnetic ink characters included in the magnetic ink character string 4A have been processed. In other words, all the magnetic ink characters included in the magnetic ink character string 4A are processed in step SA1. Is cut out, and it is determined whether or not processing relating to character recognition has been executed.

  When all the magnetic ink characters included in the magnetic ink character string 4A are not the processing target characters (step SA5: NO), the character recognition unit 80 returns the processing procedure to step SA1 for the next magnetic ink character. Cut out characters. On the other hand, when all the magnetic ink characters included in the magnetic ink character string 4A are characters to be processed (step SA5: YES), the processing procedure proceeds to step SA6.

  If it is determined in step SA4 that the character type of the processing target character cannot be determined in the first recognition phase (step SA4: NO), the character recognition unit 80 executes the second recognition phase (step SA7).

  In the second recognition phase (step SA7), the expansion or contraction of the magnetic ink character is detected based on the character spacing of the processing target character in the detection signal waveform data, and the detected character type is reflected by reflecting the detected expansion or contraction. For example, the waveform of the reference waveform data corresponding to is corrected by expanding and contracting to both sides or one side of the character interval. Then, a difference amount between each of the corrected reference waveform data (corrected waveform data) and the waveform of the character waveform data corresponding to the character to be processed is detected.

  Here, due to the magnetic ink characters being printed out of the center value of the printing standard, the magnetic ink characters are contracted in the horizontal direction (direction corresponding to the X axis) or in the expanded state. May be printed. In this case, the waveform of the character waveform data generated based on the detection signal waveform data may extend or contract in the X-axis direction. In addition, depending on the state of conveyance of the check 4, the waveform of the character waveform data may extend or contract in the X-axis direction. Based on this, by sliding the waveform of the reference waveform data within a predetermined range from a predetermined position, the amount of difference from the waveform of the character waveform data of the character to be processed is detected. Thus, the difference amount can be appropriately calculated.

  In the second recognition phase, the character recognition unit 80 sets the character type corresponding to the corrected waveform data having the smallest detected difference amount as the first candidate, and then the character type corresponding to the corrected waveform data having the smallest difference amount. Is the second candidate. Then, a difference amount between the corrected waveform data corresponding to the character types determined as the first candidate and the second candidate and the character waveform data of the character to be processed is compared with a predetermined threshold, and the reference waveform data corresponding to the first candidate When the amount of difference between the character waveform data of the character to be processed is equal to or less than the threshold and the amount of difference between the reference waveform data corresponding to the second candidate and the character waveform data of the character to be processed exceeds the threshold, The determined character type is determined as the character type of the processing target character.

  Further, the reference waveform data corresponding to the character type determined as the second candidate and the difference amount between the reference waveform data corresponding to the character type determined as the first candidate and the character waveform data of the character to be processed is equal to or less than a threshold value. Even if the difference between the character waveform data of the character to be processed and the character to be processed is equal to or less than the threshold, if the difference is greater than or equal to the difference between the first candidate and a predetermined coefficient, the first candidate The selected character type is determined as the character type of the processing target character. In other cases, the character type of the character to be processed is not fixed.

  In the second recognition phase, as described above, the first candidate and the second candidate character type are selected after reflecting the expansion and contraction of the waveform of the character waveform data. Therefore, it can be said that the first candidate and the second candidate selected in the second recognition phase have the highest reliability compared to the first candidate and the second candidate selected in the other recognition phases in the present embodiment.

After execution of the second recognition phase (step SA7), the character recognition unit 80 determines whether or not the character type of the character to be processed has been confirmed in the second recognition phase (step SA8). (SA8: YES), the process proceeds to step SA5, and if it cannot be determined (step SA8: NO), the third recognition phase is executed (step SA9).
In the third recognition phase (step SA9), the reference waveform data for laser printing is used, and various processes similar to those in the first recognition phase are executed.

  After execution of the third recognition phase, the character recognition unit 80 determines whether or not the character type of the processing target character has been confirmed in the third recognition phase (step SA10), and if it can be confirmed (step SA10: YES). Then, the process procedure proceeds to step SA5, and if it cannot be determined (step SA10: NO), the fourth recognition phase is executed (step SA11).

  In the fourth recognition phase (step SA11), not all sampling units but the peak position of the reference waveform data and the waveform of the reference waveform data in the sampling unit before and after that are compared with the waveform of the character waveform data of the character to be processed. To do. As a result, in the waveform of the character waveform data of the character to be processed, the influence is removed when there is any disturbance, and when partial expansion, shrinkage, or deviation occurs, these are reflected and processed appropriately. Perform character recognition of the target character.

  In the fourth recognition phase, the character type of the processing target character is not finalized, and the character type of the processing target character is determined only when a predetermined condition described later is satisfied. Based on this, the determination of the character type of the character to be processed in the fourth recognition phase is expressed as “provisional determination” and is distinguished from the determination of the character type in the other recognition phases.

After the end of the fourth recognition phase, the character recognition unit 80 determines whether or not the character type of the character to be processed has been provisionally determined in the fourth recognition phase (step SA12).
If the character type of the processing target character cannot be temporarily determined in the fourth recognition phase (step SA12: NO), in other words, the character type of the processing target character is determined in any of the first recognition phase to the fourth recognition phase. If not, the character recognition unit 80 determines that the character type of the character to be processed cannot be determined by magnetic ink character recognition (step SA13), and the process proceeds to step SA5.

  When the character type of the processing target character can be provisionally confirmed in the fourth recognition phase (step SA12: YES), the character recognition unit 80 determines the character type provisionally confirmed in the fourth recognition phase and the first candidate in the second recognition phase. It is determined whether or not the character type determined and the character type determined as the second candidate match (step SA14).

If they do not match (step SA14: NO), the character recognition unit 80 determines that the character type of the character to be processed cannot be determined by magnetic ink character recognition (step SA13), and moves the processing procedure to step SA5.
On the other hand, if they match (step SA14: YES), the character recognition unit 80 determines the character temporarily determined in the fourth recognition phase as the character type of the processing target character (step SA15), and the processing procedure proceeds to step SA5. To do.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the character type temporarily determined as the character type of the processing target character in the fourth recognition phase is the character type that is the first candidate in the second recognition phase and the second candidate. Only when it matches one of the character types, the temporarily determined character type is determined as the character type of the processing target character. This is due to the following reason.
That is, in the second recognition phase, magnetic ink characters are recognized using a difference amount between the waveform of the character waveform data of the character to be processed and the waveform of the reference waveform data in all sampling units. On the other hand, in the fourth recognition phase, magnetic ink characters are recognized using a comparison value obtained by comparing the waveform of the reference waveform data and the waveform of the character waveform data in a specific sampling unit.

Therefore, the strength of the correlation in the degree of approximation between the waveform of the reference waveform data and the waveform of the character waveform data in the fourth recognition phase using this comparison value is higher than that in the second recognition phase using the difference amount between the waveforms. Inferior, if the character type is determined based only on the recognition result of the fourth recognition phase, there is a possibility of causing erroneous recognition.
Therefore, the character type temporarily determined in the fourth recognition phase matches either the character type related to the first candidate or the second candidate selected in the second recognition phase with higher reliability than the other recognition phases. Only in this case, the temporarily determined character type is determined as the character type of the character to be processed, thereby suppressing erroneous recognition.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the waveform of the character waveform data of the character to be processed is compared with the waveform of the reference waveform data in any of the first recognition phase to the fourth recognition phase, and both waveforms are compared. Magnetic ink characters are recognized based on the difference between the data and the comparison value. Therefore, when the output of the signal waveform data acquired from the magnetic ink character is small or when the width of the magnetic ink character is narrow, when character waveform data is cut out from the signal waveform data, the character waveform data at the wrong character cutting start position If it is cut out, magnetic ink character recognition cannot be performed from the cut out character waveform data, and the recognition rate may be significantly reduced. Therefore, in the present embodiment, by utilizing the characteristic that the integrated value of the waveform data is the smallest at the start and end of each magnetic ink character, even when the output is small or the character width is narrow, the accuracy of each magnetic ink character is improved. The character extraction start position can be determined.

  Next, when it is determined in step SA5 that all magnetic ink characters included in the magnetic ink character string 4A have been processed (step SA5: YES), the character recognition unit 80 adds the magnetic ink character string 4A to the magnetic ink character string 4A. The number of magnetic ink characters included is detected (step SA6).

  Next, the character recognition unit 80 determines whether or not the character type has been determined for all the magnetic ink characters included in the magnetic ink character string 4A (step SA16).

  When the character type is determined for all the magnetic ink characters (step SA16: YES), the host-side control unit 73 assumes that the magnetic ink character string 4A has been successfully read, and that the magnetic ink character string 4A has been successfully read. The process to be performed is performed (step SA17). The processing to be performed when the reading of the magnetic ink character string 4A is successful includes, for example, storing the information indicated by the magnetic ink character string 4A in the storage unit 78, and causing the control unit 71 to control the recording device 56, A predetermined image related to the endorsement is recorded on the back surface of the check 4, and the first check discharge unit 7 discharges the check 4.

  On the other hand, when at least one of the magnetic ink characters included in the magnetic ink character string 4A has not been determined (step SA16: NO), the character recognition unit 80 has not determined the character type. An optical recognition process (step SA18) for performing optical character recognition on the magnetic ink character is executed.

  Next, the character recognition unit 80 determines whether or not the character type has been determined for all the magnetic ink characters whose character type has not been determined by the optical recognition process (step SA19), and for all the magnetic ink characters. If the character type is determined (step SA19: YES), processing to be performed when the magnetic ink character string 4A is successfully read is performed (step SA17).

On the other hand, if there is at least one magnetic ink character whose character type has not been determined (step SA19: NO), the host-side control unit 73 performs processing to be performed when reading of the magnetic ink character string 4A fails. (Step SA20).
As a process to be performed when reading of the magnetic ink character string 4A fails, the host-side control unit 73 controls the control unit 71 to perform the second check discharge unit without printing an image related to the endorsement. The process of conveying the check 4 to 8 is performed. The check 4 discharged to the second check discharge unit 8 is subjected to processing such as investigation of the cause of reading failure and re-reading.

<Optical recognition processing>
Next, the operation of the optical recognition process of the character recognition unit 80 will be described. FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing the operation of the character recognition unit 80 during the execution of the optical recognition process in step SA18.
In the optical recognition process, first, the character recognition unit 80 is included in the magnetic ink character string 4A based on data indicating the image of the surface of the check 4 generated based on the reading result of the front-side contact image sensor 52. Optical character recognition of magnetic ink characters is executed (step SK1).

  In step SK1, for example, the character recognition unit 80 specifies the range of data corresponding to the image of the magnetic ink character string 4A in the image data indicating the surface of the check 4, and uses the magnetic ink character for the specified range of data. The image data is cut out every time.

  Next, the character recognition unit 80 tentatively determines each character type of the magnetic ink character by comparing the bitmap pattern corresponding to each of the 14 character types with the image data of the cut out magnetic ink character. . Note that the character type determined in step SK1 is not final character type determination, and is therefore expressed as “provisional determination”.

  Next, the character recognition unit 80 detects the number of magnetic ink characters included in the magnetic ink character string 4A based on the result of optical character recognition in step SK1 (step SK2).

  Next, the character recognition unit 80 matches the number of characters detected in step SA6 in FIG. 4, that is, the number of characters detected based on the detection signal waveform data read by the magnetic head 54, and the number of characters detected in step SK2. It is determined whether or not to perform (step SK3).

If the number of characters does not match (step SK3: NO), the character recognition unit 80 determines that reading of the magnetic ink character string 4A has failed (step SK4), and ends the optical recognition process. This is due to the following reason.
That is, the processing after step SK5 is processing for trying to determine the character type for magnetic ink characters whose character type has not been determined using the result of the optical character recognition processing in step SK1, and the number of characters is different. If it is, at least one of the magnetic reading and the optical reading may have failed. Therefore, certainty cannot be ensured for the correspondence between each magnetic ink character cut out based on the detection signal waveform data by magnetic ink character recognition and each magnetic ink character cut out by optical character recognition, and the optical in step SK1. This is because the character type cannot be determined using the result of the character recognition process.

  When the number of characters matches (step SK3: YES), the character recognition unit 80 processes one magnetic ink character from the magnetic ink characters determined in step SA13 in FIG. (Step SK5).

The processes after step SK5 are sequentially performed for each magnetic ink character whose character type cannot be determined by magnetic ink character recognition. Hereinafter, the magnetic ink character specified in step SK5 is referred to as a “processing target character”.
Next, the character recognition unit 80 acquires the character type temporarily determined in step SK1 for the processing target character (step SK6).

Next, the character recognition unit 80 determines the character type temporarily determined in step SK1, the character type determined as the first candidate in the above-described second recognition phase, and the character type determined as the second candidate for the processing target character. It is determined whether or not any of the above matches (step SK7).
If they match (step SK7: YES), the character recognizing unit 80 determines the temporarily determined character as the character type of the processing target character (step SK8), and shifts the processing procedure to step SK9.
On the other hand, if they do not match (step SK7: NO), the character recognition unit 80 determines that the character type of the processing target character cannot be determined even by character recognition using optical character recognition (step SK10), and the processing procedure is stepped. Move to SK9.

  In step SK9, the character recognizing unit 80 determines whether or not all the magnetic ink characters determined to be unable to determine the character type in step SA13 in FIG. 4 have been processed. If not all magnetic ink characters are characters to be processed (step SK9: NO), the character recognition unit 80 returns the processing procedure to step SK5.

  On the other hand, when all the magnetic ink characters have been processed (step SK9: YES), the character recognition unit 80 determines whether there is even one magnetic ink character whose character type cannot be determined, that is, in step SK10. Then, it is determined whether or not there is even one magnetic ink character determined that the character type cannot be determined (step SK11).

If there is no character type that cannot be determined (step SK11: NO), the character recognition unit 80 determines that the magnetic ink character string 4A has been successfully read (step SK12), and ends the optical recognition process. To do.
On the other hand, if there is even one character type that cannot be determined (step SK11: YES), the character recognition unit 80 determines that reading of the magnetic ink character string 4A has failed (step SK4), and optical recognition is performed. The process ends.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the character type of the processing target character is provisionally determined in the optical character recognition process in step SK1, and the character type that has been provisionally confirmed is the character type that is the first candidate in the second recognition phase. And only when it matches with one of the character types made into the 2nd candidate, the said character type decided temporarily is decided as a character type of a character for processing. This is due to the following reason.
That is, in the optical character recognition process in step SK1, the character type of the magnetic ink character is provisionally determined by optical character recognition based on the image data indicating the surface of the check 4. Here, as described above, a sign or dirt written on the surface of the check 4 with a pen or the like may cause erroneous recognition of the magnetic ink character string 4A. Based on this, for the magnetic ink characters for which the character type cannot be determined by magnetic processing, the character type is not simply determined by optical character recognition. In the present embodiment, the character type temporarily determined by optical character recognition is the character type related to the first candidate that has the highest probability of being the correct character type in the second recognition phase, and the probability that it is the correct character type. Only when it matches one of the character types related to the second candidate that is the second highest, the temporarily determined character type is determined as the character type of the processing target character. As a result, erroneous recognition is effectively suppressed.

  As described above, according to the recording medium processing apparatus, the control method for the recording medium processing apparatus, and the program according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

In the present embodiment, the values of the signal waveform data obtained by reading the magnetic ink characters are sequentially integrated for each sampling unit to acquire the integrated value, and based on the position of the changing point where the integrated value decreases and then increases. The character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character is determined.
When the values of the magnetically acquired detection signal waveform data are sequentially integrated, the integrated value decreases at the end of the previous magnetic ink character and then increases at the start of the next magnetic ink character. Therefore, it is possible to detect the beginning of each magnetic ink character by detecting a change point where the integrated value decreases and then increases. By determining the character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character based on the position of such a change point, even when the output of the acquired signal waveform data is small or the width of the magnetic ink character is narrow, the character is accurately obtained. Waveform data can be cut out. As a result, the recognition rate of magnetic ink character recognition can be improved.

  Further, in this embodiment, since the point where the value of the signal waveform data changes from a negative value to a positive value is detected as a change point, it can be detected by changing the sign of the data from negative to positive. Compared with the case where the change point is detected by comparing the magnitudes of the values, the change point can be detected more easily.

  Further, in the present embodiment, when the integrated value of the middle change point is smaller than the integrated value of the change points before and after the three change points adjacent to each other, character extraction is performed based on the position of the middle change point. Since the start position is determined, it is possible to prevent the character cutout start position from being erroneously determined based on the position of the change point that is not the start end of the character.

  Further, in the present embodiment, when the determined interval between adjacent character extraction start positions is equal to or greater than a predetermined range, a change point is further detected between the two, thereby generating a character waveform for two characters. It becomes possible to determine a new character cutout start position to be cut out.

  Further, in this embodiment, there is a possibility that a character waveform for two characters exists between the character cutout start positions, and when there are a plurality of change points, the interval from the character cutout start position is one. By newly determining the character cutout start position based on the change point closest to the range corresponding to the magnetic ink character, the character can be cut out at the most likely position.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the character type indicated by the magnetic ink character can be recognized in a multifaceted manner based on the results of magnetic ink character recognition in a plurality of recognition phases for recognizing the magnetic ink character by different methods. It becomes possible to suppress erroneous recognition of characters. Furthermore, even if recognition by magnetic ink character recognition is not possible, since recognition by optical character recognition is attempted, the recognition rate of magnetic ink characters is improved, and magnetic ink character recognition and optical character recognition are improved. Since both results can be used, erroneous recognition can be effectively suppressed.

  The above-described embodiment is merely an aspect of the present invention, and can be arbitrarily modified and applied within the scope of the present invention. A modification will be described below. In addition, about the structure same as embodiment mentioned above, the same code | symbol is used and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

(Modification)
For example, in the embodiment described above, the start end of the detected character is set as the character cutout start position, but the present invention is not limited to such a configuration. A position where a predetermined interval (sampling unit) is returned forward from the start end of the detected character may be set as the character cutout start position.

  In the above-described embodiment, the first positive value when the value of the detection signal waveform data changes from a negative value to a positive value is detected as a change point. However, the present invention is limited to such a configuration. Not. Of one or more zero (0) points between a negative value and a positive value, a change point may be a zero (0) point immediately before the first positive value.

In the above-described embodiment, when the character type of the magnetic ink character cannot be recognized by the magnetic ink character recognition, the optical character is detected if the number of characters detected by the magnetic ink character recognition matches the number of characters detected by the optical character recognition. Although it is the structure which performs recognition, it is not limited to such a structure.
For each of the magnetic ink characters included in the magnetic ink character string 4A, the character type is determined by magnetic ink character recognition and the character type is determined by optical character recognition, and the character is determined by magnetic ink character recognition and optical character recognition. When the types match, the final character type of the magnetic ink character may be determined. In this way, the certainty of magnetic ink character recognition can be further increased.

  In the above-described embodiment, the host computer 70 includes the character recognition unit 80 and recognizes magnetic ink characters. However, the check reader 1 has the function of the character recognition unit 80. In addition, the check reading device 1 may be configured to execute various processes related to the recognition of the magnetic ink characters alone. In this case, the check reading device 1 functions as a recording medium processing device.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Check reading apparatus (recording medium processing apparatus), 4 ... Check (recording medium), 4A ... Magnetic ink character string, 30 ... Check conveyance mechanism (conveyance part), 54 ... Magnetic head (reading part), 70 ... Host computer (Recording medium processing device) 71... Control unit 73.

Claims (7)

A transport unit for transporting the recording medium;
A reading unit that magnetically reads magnetic ink characters recorded on the recording medium;
A controller that controls the transport unit and the reading unit;
The controller is
Controlling the transport unit to transport the recording medium,
The value of the signal waveform data obtained by reading the magnetic ink characters of the recording medium being conveyed by the reading unit is sequentially integrated for each sampling unit to obtain an integrated value,
In the signal waveform data, a change point that starts to increase after the integrated value decreases is detected, a character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character is determined based on the position of the change point, and the signal waveform data is Cutting out character waveform data in a range corresponding to the one magnetic ink character;
A recording medium processing apparatus for performing magnetic ink character recognition on the extracted character waveform data. The controller is
The recording medium processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the change point is a point at which the value of the signal waveform data changes from a negative value to a positive value. The controller is
When the integrated value at the position of one change point is smaller than the integrated value at the positions of the change points adjacent to each other, the character cutout start position is determined based on the position of the one change point. The recording medium processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording medium processing apparatus is a recording medium processing apparatus. The controller is
The change point is detected between the character cutout start positions when the determined interval between the character cutout start positions adjacent to each other is equal to or greater than a predetermined range. Recording medium processing apparatus. The controller is
When there are a plurality of the change points between the character cutout start positions, the interval from the character cutout start position is newly based on the change point closest to the range corresponding to the one magnetic ink character. The recording medium processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the character cutout start position is determined. A control method for a recording medium processing apparatus comprising: a conveying unit that conveys a recording medium; and a reading unit that magnetically reads magnetic ink characters recorded on the recording medium,
Transport the recording medium by the transport unit;
The value of the signal waveform data obtained by reading the magnetic ink characters of the recording medium being conveyed by the reading unit is sequentially integrated for each sampling unit to obtain an integrated value,
In the signal waveform data, a change point that starts to increase after the integrated value decreases is detected, a character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character is determined based on the position of the change point, and the signal waveform data is Cutting out character waveform data in a range corresponding to the one magnetic ink character;
A method for controlling a recording medium processing apparatus, comprising: performing magnetic ink character recognition on the extracted character waveform data. A program that is executed by a control unit that controls each unit of a recording medium processing apparatus that includes a conveyance unit that conveys a recording medium, and a reading unit that magnetically reads magnetic ink characters recorded on the recording medium. ,
The control unit
Transport the recording medium by the transport unit;
The value of the signal waveform data obtained by reading the magnetic ink characters of the recording medium being conveyed by the reading unit is sequentially integrated for each sampling unit to obtain an integrated value,
In the signal waveform data, a change point that starts to increase after the integrated value decreases is detected, a character cutout start position of one magnetic ink character is determined based on the position of the change point, and the signal waveform data is Cutting out character waveform data in a range corresponding to the one magnetic ink character;
A program which functions as means for executing magnetic ink character recognition on the extracted character waveform data.

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