Help constructing new Laser P scanner?

Built a scanner? Started to build a scanner? Record your progress here. Doesn't need to be a whole scanner - triggers and other parts are fine. Commercial scanners are fine too.

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Stevo
Posts: 10
Joined: 10 Sep 2012, 12:51
Number of books owned: 0
Country: Aus

Help constructing new Laser P scanner?

Post by Stevo »

Hi

I have decided to attempt a design more for destructive document scanning, as I need to scan print outs first, and my books latter. I might consider trying a design with contactless air page turning for the books afterwards.

As I have mentioned before, I do get very sick, and at the moment my ability to read and research is becoming very difficult again. So, I need some advice on what to do.

The design is simple, load the pages in a laser printer, print blank pages and shoot them with a camera each time they drop out of the top. Then feed the results to paper port 12 to produce ORC'd searchable pdf's. Write a script to print and trigger paper port to accept picture each time a page comes out. It keeps with my Kisc design principle (Keep it cheap stupid).

I have an older Brother HL-2140 printer that prints out of the top. I have Paperport 12.1, and I prefer to use my 14mp Sanyo GS20 camera or a webcam to take the pictures on a frame.
Example
Example
As you can see with little modification, and something stiff to act as a tray to lay on, paper can be easily photographed from the right angle. The modification, is to move up or remove the little plastic lugs that guide the paper down to make the full paper visible, or a guide in the paper well to make the paper move forward beyond the plastic bits. However, you could easily use software to unwarp the perspective of the image and photograph from the front instead, even getting rid of the tray and unwarping the curve, as it is minor and predictable.

So, what I probably heed to find out is how to setup the scripting with the printer camera and paper port, how to use webcam or Sanyo, and how to get paper port to do this, any advice? Or do I need to go another route to do it?


I hopefully will be looking at the camera latter today.

If I can't figure out at least a way in the next couple of days to eventually try this, I might have to consider a secondhand Brother ADS-2100 24ppm scanner, to get into the 60k pages that I need to scan that have accumulated while I have been sick.

http://www.brother.co.uk/g3.cfm/s_page/ ... #specstabs


Thanks


Steve
Stevo
Posts: 10
Joined: 10 Sep 2012, 12:51
Number of books owned: 0
Country: Aus

Re: Help constructing new Laser P scanner?

Post by Stevo »

OK, I need to do a lot as soon as possible to restart my life, so I am going to get the Brother, and leave the retrofit laser printer solution for latter (I should say the high speed tray scanners will probably be less than $199 soon enough and even book readers like the new hover, there is enough free IP revealed here for manufacturers to make cheap without being blocked by monopolistic patents). Using camera tech, it may pay to do a higher speed tray and book versions.

I have not got to look at the camera due to a number of issues, but did looked into paperport. After hours, I have found and explored the options to import photos into searchable pdf, and PDF imaging files for use with the Brother. It is a bit more cumbersome and sloppy than scanning from the printer, seems to be no scripting and not all options available, like author rotate in batch conversion or contrast (to reduce the compression size of images while maintaining OCR accuracy by lightening it (75% 400dpi seems good for my old brother in small text for well printed double pages). Also some other options seem more constricted.

However, you will be pleased to know that somewhere there is supposed to be 3d paper mapping and correction features, but as I have not got to hook up the camera yet to try out it's capture pane, I do not know what the options are. It might be that paper port allows command line functions to allow me to script camera trigger capture etc, or maybe there is some option elsewhere. I have been around some fairly advanced ed camera design issues and consulted on some products. I can tell you that there is a chip at ambarella that can ingress at 16mp at 30 frames a second, or 8mp at 60 frames a second. So I hope that at least some 8mp p60 will turn up, otherwise it will have to be hacked. There is also cheap frame grabbers from a company at the moment, when 4k versions become available 4k could be pulled straight from the HDMI port on a cheap camera. However, we might get a cheap 4k video camera recording at 30p sometime, so the video file could be used if enough quality. Ah, my mate Julian Assange on TV again, new tele movie. However, with a little hacking into the control lines of the camera, limited control of the shutter might be possible, allowing timing for page capture.

Using the above techniques it should be possible to get 222000 pages an hour, have fun guys, and remember, keep your hands clear and use bullet proof perplex etc ). (: (there is a company that does higher resolution faster for if you have the money).


Thanks

Steve.
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daniel_reetz
Posts: 2812
Joined: 03 Jun 2009, 13:56
E-book readers owned: Used to have a PRS-500
Number of books owned: 600
Country: United States
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Re: Help constructing new Laser P scanner?

Post by daniel_reetz »

It's been quite a while since you posted this, but it's just as brilliant as the day you came up with it. Did you ever get anywhere with it?
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