Abstract: A forms recognition system having a method which assists an operator in creating an electronic template. The automated method would allow an operator to view an electronic bitmap of a master or blank form on a graphical display, the master form having bounded or semi-bounded regions depicting fields. An operator would display the bitmap, select a single point within a bounded or semi-bounded region on the bitmap with a pointing device, and the coordinates representing the bounded region would be automatically determined using the single point selected by the operator.

Abstract: A self-clocking glyph code is provided for encoding dual bit digital values in the cardinal rotations (0.degree., 90.degree., 180.degree. and 270.degree.) of a logically ordered sequence of wedge-shaped glyphs that are written, printed, or otherwise recorded on a hardcopy recording medium in accordance with a predetermined spatial formatting rule. For example, these wedge-shaped glyphs suitably are essentially identical right triangles. The widths of such glyphs vary unidirectionally as a function of their height, so they can be decoded reliably, even when they are degraded by scan errors, dropped scan lines and/or random noise patterns.