DRS DIGITIZER is a fully automated optical scanner for microfiche and microfilm, including COM fiche and 35 mm jackets. It utilizes modern CCD chip technology to achieve fast and cheap document scanning. It is produced and sold worldwide by the Oberhausen Company and provides efficient and fast digitization of large amounts of data of good quality. DRS DIGITIZER is powered by advanced CCD technology and uses a high performance microfiche feed system. Therefore, it can convert large quantities of microfilm jackets and analogue microfiche speedily and with great quality into various data formats. As it is fully automated, no cassette changes are required, which increases the convenience of microfiche scanning and microfilm scanning.
Why digitize?
Using the DRS DIGITIZER, your microfilm archive can be converted into a modern and much more practical digital archive. Digitizing is a method to store images in a format suitable for transmission and computer processing. Digitization can be used to create digital copies of microfilm, books, newspapers and videotapes and thus provide a means to preserve the content of original materials by creating a highly accessible copy of the object for the purpose of convenience and conservation. The digitizer makes it simple to convert many varieties of microfilm archives to formats suitable for processing in digital environments and computers and transmission and is therefore an invaluable aid for document scanning and document imaging companies.
Features and working
A 2300 x 3500 pixels high resolution CCD full-frame chip camera is utilized by the DRS digitizer, which scans the whole image unlike scanning across the image which a line scanner does. With it, a DRS DIGITIZER will save image information in the form of a file. Immediately, the file may either be edited with any program capable of editing images or archived. Unlike most other systems, each document may be recorded independently on microfilm and optimally digitized with a DRS DIGITIZER. Even orders with high quality requirements may be transferred over to EDP with the highest quality.
DRS DIGITIZER makes grayscale images (with 256 grayscale levels) from all your microfilm documents. It performs Microfilm to digital conversion by projecting the film on a CCD array; this is then captured in raw digital format. The raw capture is then converted into the standard image format required, such as TIFF, JPEG etc. for archival by internal software. Image output formats also include Multipage formats. A customized image output format such as MOD: CA is possible as well. These images can be stored in an EDM system or Electronic Filing Cabinet, so that they may be found quickly & easily.
A resolution of up to 300dpi is standard, although higher resolution is possible. Grayscale images are 12bit w/ high dynamic range resolution. It takes about 1/2 second per image (at maximum camera resolution and grayscale level). It possesses a machine throughput of 120,000 Images in a day with a refilled cartridge. For COM fiche, the refill interval is around 12 hours. It supports all fiche/jacket types such as COM fiche, AB-Dick, diazo, positive, negative, silver, duplex, comic-mode and cine-mode. The Fiche and jacket formats supported are 105mmx148mm & 103mmx152mm (metric, imperial) and others on request.
The hopper can hold 100 microfiche jackets or 200 microfiche sheets. The digitizer scans images from the fiche automatically and no operator intervention is needed. When microfiche scanning is finished, microfiche sheets are transferred to the output pocket. Here the sheets are stored in the exact same order of their placement in the hopper. Microfiche used can be stored back in its respective tray easily.
The documents which are to be captured are optimally exposed. This is done utilizing wear-free exposure through a LED panel which has chip-on-board technology. The innovative pneumatic feeder system is able to feed up to two hundred microfiches and works extremely reliably while preserving documents – even when they are from jackets and microfiche that are heavily worn. The digitalized fiche/jackets are arranged in the original order by the specially developed turning system. The image detection & further processing software then determines the precise position of every single document in the microfiche. The program then picks up the specific document, aligns it, crops it and places it back in a required file format. It also carries out further image processing by automatically cropping and aligning documents. Documents are reduced by 15 times and up to 48 times is the maximum. The Open software design means that much individual customization is made possible according to the demands of document imaging and document scanning; customized defaults are also made possible.
The Automatic fiche/jacket feed preserves originals because of its low-contact. It has precise & automatic position detection of the documents in the fiche/jackets even in the case of difficult, low-contrast originals. Manual document recognition and additional raster scan is also possible. High digitalization quality is achieved by individual quality optimization. This is done for every document through automatic contrast optimization. Precise and constant exposure is possible via chip-on-board exposure technology. There is no motion throughout the digitalization process.
System components
The system components include an embedded industrial computer based on Windows with system-control. It also has a gigabit Ethernet-interface for data transfer. The LCD-monitor can be used to control progress, system control and features and to make adjustments. It has a standard keyboard and mouse. The Feeder has a sample container and also an optional over-turning system. Much customization is possible, such as the Receiver device being designed for special jacket/Fiche formats and overview recognition being designed for special types of samples. Another area is Customized indexing.
A great buy
It is a great buy because of quality, wear-resistance, speed and the fact that it may be tailored to a specific user and his needs. It is very reliable and has a high capacity. As mentioned before, it is a very economical way to get document scanning and document imaging done. The DRS digitizer performs microfiche scanning and microfilm scanning at high spatial resolution, which is increased even more by stitching [assembling images through software], high reading rate plus constant quality exposures. It is useful for document scanning and document imaging related businesses. It is utilized by many German authorities and also Foreign Service centers within Europe and by the US Dept of Defense and various Pension Insurance Institutions in Canada.