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What type of image filtering/processing do mobile PDF scanners use to convert a captured image into a monochrome/black and white image?

I am trying to implement my own monochrome/black and white filter in C# to scan text documents. My approach is to apply a threshold filter on the captured image. However, I often run into the problem that the varying brightness on the image causes a ''shadowing effect'' on the processed image. Refer to the link below (it is pretty blurry but it should suffice). The image to the far left is the original image. When I apply my threshold filter, I get the same result as the image in the middle; some of the text becomes unreadable because the brightness of the image varies, so some portions become really black or really white. However, with the right filter, you can obtain the processed image to the right where everything looks crystal clear.
https://www.google.dk/search?q=monochrome+image+processing&espv=2&biw=1706&bih=859&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwir8vXlhIzPAhUFiywKHeSBC1wQ_AUIBigB#imgrc=4UTzoIpyqTkwrM%3A
I would like to know what the process is to obtain the image to the far right. Another example can be seen in the image below. It shows a sample mobile PDF scanner in use. Scanning the image results in a very nice black and white image, where the text can be easily read and no ''shadowing'' occurs on the image. Does anyone know what this process is or what it is called? It is very often used in mobile PDF scanning applications. Thank you in advance.
EDIT: The filter is called ''Adaptive Thresholding''. You can use the BradleyLocalThresholding class to implement the filter, or you can write it yourself (which is what I did). Please refer to my response to the comment by Yves Daoust down below.

You need two ingredients.
One is "background reconstruction", i.e. retrieving the intensity of the white sheet "under the characters", for instance by morphological opening.
The other is "shading correction", i.e. compensating the unevenness of the background illumination by comparing to the reconstructed background, for instance by subtraction.
This will "flatten" the image, making it perfectly amenable to global thresholding.

A simple method is to convert the image to grayscale and then convert it to B/W using an error diffusion algorithm such as Floyd–Steinberg dithering.

How to get a bitmap drawn in a handled control

I am working with a fingerprint sensor under C# .NET. It shows the captured fingerprint by handling a control, like this:
this.Sensor.SetDisplay((int)this.PictureBoxFingerprint.Handle);
I need to get the image the sensor displays and save it to an Image control. However, PictureBoxFingerprint.Image does not contain any data (because of the handling strategy, I suppose).
I have tried to use the DrawToBitmap method from the containing form, setting all the coordinates where the fingerprint image is placed, without any luck also.
Is there another way of accomplishing this?
Thanks!

Sounds like a sub-standard library if you can't get the image.
Assuming PictureBoxFingerprint is a standard window control you might get some mileage from basic interop; get the control dc and bitblit (copy) the content to an in memory bitmap. This article [1] should point you in the right direction; start with the int CaptureAnImage(HWND hWnd) method.
There is of course the problem that the quality of the image you get may not be all that good depending on what has happened to it on the way to the screen. Good Luck
[1] http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-gb/library/windows/desktop/dd183402(v=vs.85).aspx

Overlaying a 'dot' on to an image on click

I am trying to write a simple program that lets me overlay a dot on top of an image when the image is clicked. I can save the X and Y data back to my database but then I will want to be able to call that information back at a later date and overlay the dots again via code unlike the first time when the user had to click the image.
I got as far as capturing the X and Y of the click no problem but I am having trouble finding examples specifically for what I am trying to do. All of the examples online seem to be for saving the image with the added graphic but I do not need to do that as it will be the same image every time.
Once I can do this, I also need to work out a way that I can detect what area of the image has been clicked. The areas I need to mark out vary in shape and size so I need to try and work out a way to 'map' these areas and then cross reference with the co-ordinates of the users click (I assume that I may need to do some clever geometry stuff for that?)
If anyone has any suggestions of what subjects/classes/methods etc. to research for either of my queries, I would very grateful.
Thanks in advance

You can use the System.Drawing namespace to achieve this.
Create a control and override OnPaint and OnPaintBackground. Store your clicks in a List
In OnPaintBackground, draw the image using DrawImageUnscaled using the graphics object which is passed to you as a parameter.
In OnPaint, loop through your points array and call graphics.FillElipse or similar to draw a little dot.
Because this isnt a retained mode graphics system, you need to keep drawing these items so this may not suit a large number of dots. In that case, you can create an in memory bitmap and get a graphics drawing object using graphics.FromImage.

How do you draw a string to a Bitmap in Silverlight?

In normal C# it is easy to draw to a bitmap using the Grpahics.DrawString() method. Silverlight seems to have done away with Bitmap objects and Graphics is no longer available either. So...How am I meant to manipulate/create a bitmap when using Silverlight? If it helps, I am using Silverlight 3.
Let me tell you what I am doing. I am being given a template, basically a pre-rendered image. The user is then able to select from multiple images and enter the deisred text. I then render it to the image, adjusting size etc... within bounds and centering it in the pre-defined area of the image. If I can calculate the size (as in the MeasureString method) and then draw the string (as in the Graphics.DrawString method) that would be fine. The real question, no matter why I want to be able to do this, is can it be done?

The question is: why do you want to? Why not just use a TextBlock?
If you are trying to dynamically generate an image, use standard Silverlight/WPF controls (including TextBlock) and render them to a WritableBitmap.
Edit:
Ok, you've updated and expanded, which gives me more to go on. Unfortunately, you're not going to like the answer. First, keep in mind that Silverlight and WPF in general are vector based, and intended to be used as such. Although the Canvas allows you to do pseudo-pixel manipulations, you cannot be nearly as pixel-accurate as old-school GDI. This is a factor of your medium. If you absolutely have to measure things the way you want to measure them, I suggest you build your images on a remote server and transmit them to your Silverlight app.
You can calculate the size on-screen of the text rendered via a TextBlock using the ActualWidth and ActualHeight properties. But it only works on an already rendered control. Something like MeasureString is simply not available in Silverlight. Based on your description of your app, some user interaction could accomplish what you want. The user selects the image, enters the text, and is shown a preview. The user can then adjust the width and height of the various text areas until satisfied, at which point you can take a snapshot using the render method I liked to above.

The following may work, its a bit nebulous because I haven't tried yet myself.
The object you are looking for is the WritableBitmap.
You create a Visual tree, for example create your self a Grid or Canvas (you're not adding this to the UI). Add to it the selected image and a TextBlock positioned and sized as you prefer.
Create a new WritableBitmap either of a specific size or using the selected image to initialize it.
Use the WritableBitmap Render method passing the above root Grid or Canvas to it.
Now you have a bitmap which you should able to use to do whatever its you needed to do that required all this hoop jumping in the first place.

.Net & C#: Trying to have a transparent image on a button (assigned from IDE)

Using VS2005 and C#.
Having a button in a form and an image from a resource, the image does not have transparency.
How can I have transparency when assigning the image from the IDE ?
Thank you.

Open the image in an image editor (Paint.NET and GIMP are free) and add the transparencies wherever you need to.
It will all work once the image actually has transparent pixels.
You can also use a couple methods of the Bitmap class to do this:
Bitmap b = Properties.Resources.MyImage;
b.MakeTransparent(b.GetPixel(0, 0));

I don't really understand what you are asking. You can use an image with transparency on a button as long as the image type you are using supports transparency - such as .png.
Edit: I read your question again and it is still confusing, but maybe you meant to say that you want to add transparency to the image? If so, you would have to use an image editor to add the transparency and save it in a format that supports this. Paint.Net is a good free tool for this.