CVISION Technologies

Question: Can I use document scanning via my MFP (multi-functional printing) device and OCR download software to completely eliminate the paper documents that are cluttering up our office ?

Answer: Yes, with a few caveats. Every office would like to go paperless, i.e. “the paperless office”, but there are many reasons why this is non-trivial. For one, scanning documents, particularly legacy data, is labor intensive and many firms are not geared up for it. Often this legacy scanning is best outsourced to a company that specializes in document scanning. It is generally easier to come up with a workflow solution that includes in-house day forward scanning of new documents into the system.

Scanning is usually done in addition to document retention, but does not necessarily replace the need in many applications for retention of original documents.Once scanned, original documents can be stored offsite, while the scanned versions are loaded into the corporate database. These electronic files essentially replace the original paper and are used internally and to present to clients on demand. It is only under unusual circumstances, e.g., litigation with a client, that the original paper files might need to be retrieved.

Under Check 21 rules, and in various other applications, the scanned electronic image of the original file can be used to completely replace the original paper document. In mortgage applications, the original paper document is retained and stored (usually offsite) while the electronic scanned version is kept in the company database.

So effective document scanning can reduce a lot of the office clutter caused by paper document retention.

The typical company office has an MFP device, though maybe not a dedicated scanning device. Nevertheless, scanning paper documents into your company database as electronic files is fairly easy. A standard MFP supports network-based scan to email and scan to folder. The client at a firm typically types in a code and then decides whether to scan to email or to a folder. In the event that clients at a firm all scan to folder for later use, such as email attachments, then it is easy for a program to intercept the scanned electronic file. In particular, for each client there can be a hidden watched folder and an exposed client folder, which is actually the watched outfolder. When a new document is scanned in by the client, the hidden watched folder picks it up and processes it. OCR and converson to PDF would be a typical set of hidden processes off the MFP. When the user returns to his/her computer, the electronic scanned file waiting in their directory is a searchable, web-optimized PDF file.

For this to all work seamlessly, the OCR download program must accomodate watched folder. Conversion to PDF is also desirable in the OCR program. Preferrably, this OCR download also supports compression and web-optimization (see http://www.cvisiontech.com/pdf_compressor_31.html) making it very well-suited for generating text-searchable PDFs that are ideal for web-based applications and sending as email attachments.

Question: Our office is taking steps towards the paperless office. We are utilizing the office scanner for most of our company documents. A colleague of mine referred me to CVISION for scanner software. What sort of solutions do you provide?

Answer: CVISION Technologies provides solutions to optimize your scanner. We create more manageable output for scanners and MFPs. PdfCompressor, our most common application, is designed for document imaging solutions within the corporate setting; we are used by countless Fortune 500 companies, and are applicable to industries across all vertical markets.

PdfCompressor works to compress the size of scanned documents. As you may all ready realize, the output files of your scanner are rather large in storage size. These oversized files are difficult to open, email, and manage. In addition to compression, PdfCompressor also equips files with OCR, OCR is short for optical character recognition. OCR converts image documents into text searchable files. Searchable files created by OCR, are far more manageable and users are more efficient. PdfCompressor also converts the scanner output into PDF documents. PDF are readily viewable with Adobe’s free reader.

To download PdfCompressor for a free trial, click the link below:
http://www.cvisiontech.com/download_main.html

Question: Every office these days has an MFP (Multi Function Printer) device, or two. Maybe more. The relevant IT question is : How can the office get the most use from this MFP device? Once converting office paper into electronic documents, text searchability seems like an important function. The problem is twofold: i. Many office MFP devices offer no, or very limited, OCR (optical character recognition) capability, and ii. running OCR directly from the MFP device, even if possible, will slow down the machine processing rate tremendously. Of course, slowing down the MFP increases the waiting time for anyone using the device. How then do you OCR from an MFP device without slowing down machine throughput?

Answer: The best solution to this problem is based on a separation of processes. Do not run the OCR directly from the MFP device, even if it has OCR support. The performance of an OCR system embedded on a typical MFP devices tends to be mediocre, at best. In addition, trying to run the OCR process in real-time, in sync with your MFP, will take up much of your MFP resources and hurt your processing speed.

Any heavy-duty CPU process, such as OCR, should be taken off the MFP device and performed elsewhere. A perfect OCR solution for MFPs consists of assigning to each user (that needs OCR) a passcode that, when in “scan to folder” mode, actually scans to a watched folder. That is, the MFP scans the file and drops it in a watched folder and proceeds to the next document. Meanwhile, the watched folder for this user is being “watched” by another process on a separate machine.

This other process, such as our PdfCompressor, can perform all post-scan processes to this document such as OCR, web-optimization, compression, security, and meta-data, and then deposit the document in the user’s actual ouput scanning folder. This solution keeps the MFP available and running at full capacity, while providing extremely functional PDF documents to the end-user.

In the current office workflow, as companies move toward the paperless office, effective use of MFP, MFD, and digital copier devices is essential. For documents starting out in paper form, there needs to be a seamless way to introduce them into the Company’s electronic workflow. Any MFP, MFD, or digital copier device is capable of converting a paper document to a scanned, electronic one. What is missing, though, are seamless methods to allow for text searching the file, compression to support emailing and web-optimization to support web-hosting, as well as dropping files into a client folder or attaching and indexing into a database.

In general, these devices allow for users to copy a paper document to paper, email, or a folder. Folders are generally the easiest way to seamlessly intercept and enhance the document workflow. For example, assume a given MFP device is capable or generating PDF files from paper documents and dropping them into an output directory, based on client code. However, these captured PDF files are typically large, not OCRed, or web-optimized, or compressed. To use these files effectively, some processing off the MFP device is required.

This is where effective PDF document management software can make a real difference. Operating on a bank of hidden client directories, seamless to the user, this PDF software (e.g., CVISION PdfCompressor, run in watched folder mode) can OCR, compress, and web-optimize the MFP or digital copier output file before the client is even back at his desk. This file is still in his / her same MFP folder, but now much more amenable to email, web-hosting, or attaching to the Company database.

Every company has an ever increasing number of MFPs, MFDs, and/or digital copiers to manage. It is up to the Company IT guys to make sure these devices are utilized as effectively as possible.