Merkkientunnistus

Merkkientunnistus, often translated as character recognition, is a technology that enables computers to identify and interpret characters within an image or document. This process typically involves several stages. First, an image containing text is acquired, often through scanning or photography. Next, preprocessing techniques are applied to enhance the image quality, such as noise reduction, binarization (converting the image to black and white), and skew correction. Following preprocessing, segmentation is performed to isolate individual characters or words. Feature extraction then identifies distinctive characteristics of each character, such as curves, lines, and loops. Finally, a classification algorithm, commonly a machine learning model trained on a large dataset of characters, compares these extracted features to known patterns and assigns a label to the recognized character. Merkkientunnistus is a fundamental component of optical character recognition (OCR) and finds applications in document digitization, data entry automation, form processing, and even in assistive technologies for visually impaired individuals. Its accuracy has significantly improved over the years, making it a powerful tool for making text-based information more accessible and manageable.