CVL-DataBase: An Off-Line Database for Writer Retrieval, Writer Identification and Word Spotting

In this paper a public database for writer retrieval, writer identification and word spotting is presented. The CVL-Database consists of 7 different handwritten texts (1 German and 6 English Texts) and 311 different writers. For each text an RGB color image (300 dpi) comprising the handwritten text and the printed text sample are available as well as a cropped version (only handwritten). A unique ID identifies the writer, whereas the bounding boxes for each single word are stored in an XML file. An evaluation of the best algorithms of the ICDAR and ICHFR writer identification contest has been performed on the CVL-database.