Recognition of Cuneiform Inscription Signs by use of a Hybrid-Optoelectronic Correlator Device

“A hybrid-optoelectronic correlator device and an algorithm are proposed for recognizing cuneiform inscription signs. The device is based on the extended correlator architecture with three liquid-crystal display(s) (LCD)s and three light detectors: one CCD camera for capturing the input image, one LCD for displaying the input image, two LCDs for the complex correlation filter (amplitude and phase parts), and two detectors for measuring the total and peak intensities of the output correlation information. The recognition algorithm is designed to allow automatic as well as real-time processing. The recognition results are given for the cuneiform signs impressed on an original clay tablet. The investigated tablet (VAT 12890 of the Pergamon Museum, Berlin, Germany) was found in Bogazköy (Hattusha) and dates from the 14th century B.C. It is a fragment of the Epic of Gilgamesh in the Akkadian language with a large number of the sign samples.”