OCR has revolutionized the way that companies extract data from documents. OCR stands for Optical Character Recognition, and it’s modern technology to convert printed or handwritten text into machine-readable text. OCR technology works under forms recognition SDKs that can locate and extract particular data fields from forms, invoices, receipts, and other kinds of documents. Businesses can automate data extraction, get rid of manual mistakes, and increase precision by using these SDKs.
This article will introduce the top 5 SDKs for form recognition for easily extracting data from documents.
Contents
Filestack
Filestack’s Capture is an OCR SDK that simplifies document digitization and data extraction. Capture can quickly and accurately convert physical documents into a digital format. This can include anything from passports, driver’s licenses, credit cards, invoices, receipts, and tax receipts. Capture has the ability to recognize printed text characters and image qualities through digital image analysis. Because of Filestack Capture’s OCR SDK, data is captured effectively and with fewer manual mistakes.
Key Features
- OCR for various document types
- Integration with multiple libraries and SDKs
- Accurate data extraction using Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
Pros
- Scalable for small businesses and large enterprise-level corporations
- Efficient and accurate data entry process
- Easy integration with website or application using any coding language
Cons
- Requires some technical knowledge
Leadtools
Leadtools is a suite of software tools for creating applications to integrate document, medical, and multimedia technologies. Leadtools provides a Form recognition SDK that offers advanced OCR and ICR SDK technology for .NET 6+, .NET Framework, Xamarin, UWP, C#, VB, C/C++, Java, Objective-C, Swift, and HTML / JavaScript developers. With the help of LEADTOOLS, the complete document image life cycle can be automated, resulting in measurable time and resource savings. These features include scanning, image cleanup, OCR, OMR, ICR, barcode, and more. Furthermore, LEADTOOLS has created a quick, patented form processing and identification technology that can handle processing millions of pages per day and recognize data from thousands of master forms.
Key Features
- Advanced OCR & ICR SDK
- Text in forms is identified, sorted, examined, and matched with relevant traits
- Any inconsistencies are instantly detected and highlighted in some forms using AI-powered recognition
- Cross-platform SDKs for form recognition
Pros
- For each form entry, complete reporting is generated
- Carries a library of templates that make master form generation faster
- Can handle a wide variety of document variations
Cons
- Complex for beginners
- Images do not scan well
- Unstable and could crash during scanning
SmartOCR
SmartOCR is one of the most cost-effective form processing kits available. It’s also simple to use, making it the best option for those unfamiliar with form processors. SmartOCR transforms scanned PDFs, images, and text into editable and searchable files. All of this while maintaining the original structure and formatting. SmartOCR supports multiple output forms, including DOC, RTF, HTML, and batch conversion. The text editor’s built-in spell checker and direct scanner link make quick error correction possible.
Key Features
- Increased character recognition accuracy of over 99.8%
- Format detection to keep the original document’s formatting in the final file layout
- Batch OCR conversion for processing multiple documents automatically
Pros
- Supports multiple input image formats
- Provides numerous predefined Quick Tasks for quick document conversion
- Built-in text editor for making changes to the recognized text before saving
Cons
- No mention of mobile device compatibility for image input
FormFix
Accusoft’s FormFix is a robust toolkit for developing and processing OMR (Optical Mark Recognition) apps and structured forms. It allows users to perform OMR for single and multiple mark recognition. Users can also recognize, identify, drop out, enhance, and clean up scanned images. Users can easily set up fields, form templates, and form sets using FormFix. They can define OMR, text, image, and custom fields on each form and compare forms to see if they are identical and contain the same form fields.
Key Features
- Easy setup and customization of forms
- Quick identification of thousands of different forms with automatic identification and form matching
- Sub-second form drop out with precise removal of lines, broken lines, shading, noise, and guide text
- Advanced color and bitonal image cleanup
- OMR feature to detect the presence of check marks
Pros
- Enables users to build powerful forms processing applications for structured forms and OMR with ease and precision
- Advanced features allow for efficient and accurate form recognition, identification, dropout, image cleanup, and OMR
- Allows customization capabilities
Cons
- Difficult for users who are not familiar with structured forms and OMR
- The product may be more suitable for larger data capture projects, making it less ideal for smaller projects
FormSuite
Accusoft’s FormSuite is a powerful form-processing SDK that combines four products: ScanFix, SmartZone, FormFix, and FormAssist. This is ideal for developers looking for comprehensive character recognition and form processing powers. Developers can do away with time-consuming and expensive manual data entry using the OCR, ICR, and OMR capabilities of the FormSuite SDK to identify and extract data from a variety of forms, such as invoices, surveys, and tax forms.
FormFix eliminates background noise, SmartZone locates the pertinent regions of a document for processing, ScanFix helps clean up scanned documents, and FormAssist provides tools for improving recognition outcomes.
Key Features
- FormSuite enables faster time-to-market for developers looking to add structured forms processing capabilities to their applications
- Developers have full control over the features they choose to integrate into their applications
- Customizable form recognition enables businesses to build a database of form templates that align with their specific business needs
- Confidence levels can be set to route OCR results to a validation station for review and selection of the correct result
- FormSuite provides world-class support and multilingual support for multiple Western and Eastern languages
Pros
- Customizable form processing and data capture for enhancing application functionality
- Document data capture for typed phone numbers, signatures, filled-in bubbles, hand-printed text fields, and more
- Form recognition for automatic identification and matching of forms to predefined templates
- Image cleanup for enhanced OCR/ICR/OMR performance
- OCR for eliminating manual processes
- ICR for detecting and capturing handwritten information
- OMR for detecting signatures and capturing data from bubble fields and checkboxes
Cons
- Not suitable for developers who do not require advanced character recognition and form processing capabilities in their applications
- Some level of technical expertise may be required for integration, particularly for developers not familiar with form-processing SDKs
Conclusion
Forms recognition SDKs provide a strong option for companies seeking to accurately and quickly extract data from a variety of documents. Although every application has advantages and disadvantages of its own, the five options covered in this article—FileStack Capture, Leadtools, SmartOCR, FormFix, and FormSuite—are all solid choices that should be taken into account. The ideal tool for your company will ultimately depend on your unique requirements, financial constraints, and degree of technical expertise. Before choosing, it is advised to consider each alternative thoroughly.
