IT directors have deployed laptops, PDAs and even tablet
PCs to provide end-users with the ability to input data when they
are out of the office, but there is another option.
A digital pen works like a normal pen, but has a built-in sensor
that captures and digitises handwriting while the user writes. Some
versions work on ordinary paper, while some require paper printed
with tiny patterns so future changes can be associated with the
correct form.
One example of the latter approach is from digital pen
specialist Anoto. Its digital pen, which is also a ballpoint pen,
contains a digital camera, an image processing system and a
wireless Bluetooth connection to link to a mobile phone.
The paper the user writes on has a special dot pattern,
invisible to the eye, that is either pre-printed or printed on a
laser printer. According to Anoto the displacement of the dots,
0.1mm in size, can be used to tell the pen the exact location on
the page - such as which box on a paper form is being
completed.
The tiny camera registers the pen's movement across the grid
surface on the paper and stores it as a series of map coordinates.
These convert into an image of the handwriting script and can be
sent to and displayed on a computer.
So how does this technology work in practice? Handwriting notes
with pen and paper have helped debt collection firm Equita speed up
and clean up data capture to achieve a £100,000 cost saving.
The company implemented digital pens for on-the-hoof data
collection by bailiffs. IT manager Daniel Grant-Brown, said, "I
knew Windows Mobile 5.0 was coming out later in the year and was
looking for mobile solutions."
But he also knew that handheld devices had not worked well in
the past for Equita. "In the pre-wireless days bailiffs downloaded
a week's work onto their Casio from an analog line, and then
uploaded their casework at the end of the week.
We discovered that they were not inputting anything directly
onto their Casio, but inputting handwritten notes at the end of the
day," he said.
Anything that deviated from the routine had not been readily
embraced by the bailiffs in the past, so the idea of effectively
generating a barcode that could be sent in real-time and integrated
into the company's back office case system had immediate
appeal.
"With the digital pen we are not adding or subtracting anything
from the norm - bailiffs still have their pen, paper and mobile
phone."
The one piece that needed customising was the design of the
digital paper template. It is in A4 format with a maximum number of
tick boxes and a couple of free prose sections where all the
options are not covered.
Three iterations were necessary - all tweaks to wording rather
than technology - and it was ready.
The kit itself is inexpensive - the pens cost £135 each and the
forms cost £35,000 per million. The other piece of spend is the
file conversion which is performed by Destiny Wireless.
The barcode image is sent via bluetooth as a .pcg file to the
supplier, who in turn converts it into XML and sends it to Equita's
FTP server. An auto processor updates the in-house case system with
the received files.
A major objective was to reduce the number of bailiffs and data
in-putters, but the system has had a more radical impact.
"Fundamentally it has delivered cleaner data and this means
unwanted visits and incorrect details have been massively reduced,"
said Grant-Brown.
A big leap to 95% accuracy of bailiff data has been achieved,
compared with the 25% accuracy previously recorded. "Handwritten
notes are inherently error-prone," said Grant-Brown.
A further stage, currently in pilot, will see bailiffs use
digital pens and paper to capture a cheque counterfoil of the money
banked at the end of each day.
Clients, including London boroughs, can view the cleaner, more
transparent data capture too. Token-secured web access to the
management stats means they can view debt collection in real time
and detail - down to the image of a debtor's case notes if they so
wish.
Gartner recommends users consider digital pens in applications
where there is value in simultaneously capturing a digital and
handwritten copy of data.
"In many cases, the attraction is in the "low tech" feel of the
technology, where writing with a pen on paper is more acceptable
than using a handheld device," Gartner said.
However, in most cases, Gartner sees digital pens as a stopgap
that will ultimately be replaced with handwriting recognition on
tablet PCs or other mobile devices.
Jackie Fenn, an analyst at Gartner, expected digital pens to be
used in specialist application areas. She said, "I expect the
tablet PC will become a very common device and will be much more
useful than the digital pen."
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