Bangla Optical Character Recognition for Mobile Platforms: A Comprehensive Cross-Platform Approach

Abstract

The development of Optical Character Recognition (OCR) systems for Bangla script has been an area of active research since the 1980s. This study presents a comprehensive analysis and development of a cross-platform mobile application for Bangla OCR, leveraging the Tesseract OCR engine. The primary objective is to enhance the recognition accuracy of Bangla characters, achieving rates between 90% and 99%. The application is designed to facilitate the automatic extraction of text from images selected from the device's photo library, promoting the preservation and accessibility of Bangla language materials. This paper discusses the methodology, including the preparation of training datasets, preprocessing steps, and the integration of the Tesseract OCR engine within a Dart programming environment for cross-platform functionality. This integration provides that the application could be introduced on mobile platforms without substantial alterations. The results demonstrate significant improvements in recognition accuracy, making this application a valuable tool for various practical applications such as data entry for printed Bengali documents, automatic recognition of Bangla number plates, and the digital archiving of vintage Bangla books. These improvements are crucial to further enhance the usability and reliability of Bangla OCR on mobile devices. Our cross-platform method for Bangla OCR on mobile devices provides a strong solution with exceptional identification accuracy, which helps in preserving and making Bangla language information accessible in digital format. This study has significant implications for future research and advancement in the field of optical character recognition (OCR) for intricate writing systems, especially in mobile settings.