THE PEN
From ink to digital data: quick and easy
A digital pen looks and feels like using its normal ballpoint counterparts. However, it contains an integrated digital camera, an advanced image microprocessor and a mobile communications device for wireless connection. When using a digital pen you capture, store and then securely send the handwriting. Here’s how digital pens convert and transfer ink to digital data.
What happens when you’re writing
When writing digital snapshots of the pattern on the paper are automatically taken (in fact, more than 50 pictures per second). Every snapshot contains enough data to determine the exact position of the pen and what it writes or draws, including the time each pen stroke was made as well as which particular paper form was written on. All this data is then retained in the pen’s memory as a series of coordinates. The pen can store up to 50 full A4/Letter size pages of handwritten data.
THE PAPER
Handwritten information no longer locked in a form
All types of ordinary paper can take advantage of Anoto technology. To make the paper digitally legible a patent-protected dot pattern from Anoto is added before printout.
The pattern
Almost invisible to the naked eye, the Anoto pattern consists of numerous intelligent small black dots that can be read by a digital pen. The pattern indicates the exact positions of the digital pen. What’s more, the pattern on each paper has a unique identity so that each page can be kept separate from another
