SCANNED IMAGES: How Well Do They Depict the Subtle Features in Handwriting?

It is increasingly common for companies and government agencies to retain scanned images of documents in lieu of originals. In many instances, the original document is destroyed after imaging. As a result, the best image of a document may be a digital image. This project is not intended to be an inquiry into the parameters document examiners should use in scanning documents for their own records. Rather, it is a study of digital images captured using guidelines like those utilized by companies and agencies in maintaining records. A study was made to determine which features are reliably and accurately depicted in these scanned images and which are not. A comparison of the image quality obtained using various scanning parameters and transmission methods was made. In addition, examinations from originals, from first-generation photocopies, and from scanned images were considered.