Ballot duplication system and methods thereof

Abstract

A computer-implemented system for on-screen ballot duplication is disclosed, that may be deployed for generating a revised ballot that satisfies predetermined rules or thresholds for further processing.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A computer-implemented method of ballot duplication, comprising:
 accessing by a computing device an original ballot image associated with an original ballot;   mapping, by the computing device, areas of interest of the original ballot image based on a ballot style associated with the original ballot;   generating a duplicate ballot image from the original ballot image, the duplicate ballot image defining the same areas of interest of the original ballot image and the ballot style; and   generating a second set of marks along the areas of interest of the duplicate ballot image based on a first set of marks of the original ballot image.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 processing an area of interest of the original ballot image to identify a mark intersecting a predetermined minimum number of graphical indicators defined along the area of interest; and   suggesting a mark application along the same area of interest as the duplicate ballot image.   
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 applying optical character recognition to identify a mark outside the areas of interest of the original ballot image; and   removing the mark from the duplicate ballot image.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first set of marks of the original marked ballot is highlighted along the display. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising rendering a common duplication identifier along the original ballot, the original ballot image, and the duplicate ballot image. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising accessing the original ballot image from a ballot repository associated with an elections office. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising generating a print file from the duplicate ballot image that defines a set of print instructions for generating a new ballot that satisfies predetermined mark rules and reflects voter intent as defined by the first set of marks of the original ballot image. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising customizing one or more detection parameters for analyzing an area of interest along the original ballot image. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising employing Optical Character Recognition to read the original ballot to determine ballot style. 
     
     
         10 .- 20 . (canceled)