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Robotics help HEC bring archives into the digital age.

Friday, August 23 2019

Robotics help HEC bring archives into the digital age.

At HEC it is our goal to bring our globally significant archives within reach of anyone in the world. However, when one has a collection that spans 260 years, it would take only slightly fewer years for one person to scan these pages manually. One really needs 21st century technology to bring our historic documents to life. Fortunately, our robo scanner does just that!

The scanner is a remarkable piece of engineering. It uses vacuum technology to hold the book in place and to turn the pages. The dimensions of both the book and page are calibrated by lasers within the machine. This process requires minimal human intervention; it even detects when two pages are mistakenly selected. Once in place two 50.6-megapixel cameras take ultra-high-resolution images. The result is that this machine can scan up to 1500 pages an hour. As one of only two organisations in the country to own such a machine, we feel beholden to scan and digitise as much as possible.

Indeed, our first objective is to scan our world-renowned Register of Shipping books. These volumes were the ‘universal standard’ of shipping information for the Georgian and Victorian eras. Not much has changed since, as we still get untold inquiries a year about the vessels we have catalogued. In the coming months every single edition from 1764 to the present day will be available online. From the Cutty Sark to the QE2, some of the world’s most famous ships are catalogued within these books. Each document will be fully searchable and, most importantly, free to access.

This is only the beginning for us. We are soon going to digitise all our internal magazines and staff journals. In fact, we are working at such a rapid pace the best way for you to keep up to date is to follow our monthly newsletter!

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