Mobile Form Digitization via OCR and Tagging
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for collecting and managing release forms, especially in industries like film and television, are labor-intensive and lack efficient digital solutions for capturing, processing, and searching information, particularly when signatures are needed in remote or on-site locations without access to computers or printers.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that processes blank forms by identifying fields and coordinates, receives information, populates the fields, generates a superimposed image of a completed form, and applies tags, allowing for electronic signature capture and searchable data management using mobile devices and remote processing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional hardcopy release forms are used and scanned, then the forms can be physically collected and stored, but the process becomes labor-intensive and the data becomes unsearchable once filed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical processes (physically collecting, scanning, and searching through hardcopy forms) with an electronic system that automatically captures images of release forms, extracts data using optical character recognition (OCR), and stores the information in a searchable database. This substitution eliminates manual labor and enables rapid digital searching.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates digital copies of the release forms by capturing images with a mobile device and storing them in an electronic database. These digital copies replace the physical hardcopy forms, enabling efficient storage, retrieval, and searching without the need for manual handling of original documents.
2Ease of operation
If electronic signatures are used, then the process becomes more efficient and searchable, but requires access to computers or printers which may not be available at remote locations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the form completion process universal by designing it to work on any mobile device (smartphones, tablets) with camera and processing capabilities, rather than requiring specific computers or printers. The system can capture images, extract data, and store information anywhere, making it adaptable to various locations including remote field sites.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service form completion by allowing users to capture their own images, have their information automatically extracted, and complete the release form independently using their mobile devices, without requiring assistance from office staff or access to computer facilities.
3Device complexity
If manual collection and filing of release forms is used, then no additional technology is needed, but the process is labor-intensive and unsearchable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a mobile device as an intermediary between the release form collection process and the database storage system. The mobile device captures images, extracts data locally, and communicates with the remote database server, enabling automated data management without requiring complex on-site infrastructure at collection locations.
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces manual mechanical data entry and filing processes with automated electronic image capture, optical character recognition (OCR) for data extraction, and digital database storage. This substitution dramatically improves data management efficiency while keeping the overall system relatively simple and deployable in various environments.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention is a method for collecting a person's information, completing a form, and searching for the form, the method comprising; processing, by one or more processors, a blank form, wherein a plurality of fields and field coordinates are identified, receiving, by one or more processors, a set of information, populating, by one or more processors, each of the plurality of fields with sections of the set of information in the plurality of fields, generating, by one or more processors, a superimposed image of a completed form, and applying, by one or more processors, at least one tag associated with the completed form.