Character recognition employing offset registration control masks

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR DETERMINING BY ITS IMAGE THE IDENTITY OF A RECORDED INDICIUM BELONGING TO A PREDETERMINED GROUP OF INDICIA, EACH HAVING A UNIQUE IMAGE, COMPRISING: MASK MEANS INCLUDING AN IMAGE MASK OF EACH OF THE INDICIA IN SAID GROUP AND A PAIR OF REGISTRATION MASKS; SCANNING MEANS FOR MOVING AN IMAGE OF SAID INDICIUM ACROSS EACH OF SAID IMAGE AND REGISTRATION MASKS IN UNISON SO THAT AN IMAGE OF SAID INDICIUM ACHIEVES MAXIMUM COINCIDENCE WITH ONE OF SAID REGISTRATION MASKS PRIOR AND WITH THE OTHER REGISTRATION MASK SUBSEQUENT TO OPTIMUM REGISTRATION OF SAID IMAGES AND SAID IMAGE MASKS; MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE DEGREE OF COINCIDENCE BETWEEN EACH SAID IMAGE MASK AND THE IMAGE MOVING THEREACROSS FOR PRODUCING AN OUTPUT SIGNAL CORRESPONDING TO EACH OF SAID IMAGE MASK OF AMPLITUDE PROPORTIONATE TO THE DEGREE OF COINCIDENCE BETWEEN EACH IMAGE MASK AND THE IMAGE THEREON; INDICATING MEANS FOR EACH OF SAID IMAGE MASKS SELECTION MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE OUTPUT SIGNAL OF GREATEST AMPLITUDE FOR ACTIVATING THAT ONE OF SAID INDICATING MEANS WITH WHICH SAID OUTPUT SIGNAL CORRESPONDS; AND CONTROL MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE COINCIDENCE BETWEEN SAID REGISTRATION MASKS AND THE IMAGES THEREON FOR OVERRIDING SAID SELECTION MEANS EXCEPT DURING SAID OPTIMUM REGISTRATION BETWEEN SAID IMAGE MASKS AND SAID IMAGES THEREON.