Streamlining Invoice, Remittance, And Check Processing

By Samuel L. Schrage, AnyDoc Software

The capabilities of standard optical character recognition (OCR)-based software has increased dramatically in the past decade. Many don't realize that semi-structured and unstructured forms processing has been in use successfully for several years. With more powerful recognition engines and the development of "memory" technologies, automating the processing of documents such as invoices and checks - which was previously not feasible - is now a proven and effective alternative to time-consuming and costly manual processes.

Traditionally, utilizing proper template design, an organization could readily automate the extraction of data from static locations on structured documents such as credit applications or property tax forms - eliminating the need for manual data entry. On these structured documents, the data is located in the same place on every form. Standard OCR solutions use a static template-based process, where users define the desired type of data to be extracted based on the location on the form using zones. Other elements on the form, such as company logos, field descriptions (e.g., ‘Street Address') and lines are excluded from processing. This is a solid method of collecting the data you need from consistent - therefore structured - forms.