pdf_signature_extraction/SESSION_CHECKLIST.md

Session Handoff Checklist ✓

Before You Exit This Session

• All documentation written
• Test results recorded (7/10 signatures, 70% recall)
• Session initialization files created
• .gitignore configured
• Commit guide prepared
• Git commit performed (waiting for user approval)

Files Created for Next Session

Essential Files ⭐

• SESSION_INIT.md - Read this first in next session
• NEW_SESSION_PROMPT.txt - Copy-paste prompt template
• PROJECT_DOCUMENTATION.md - Complete 24KB history
• HOW_TO_CONTINUE.txt - Visual guide

Supporting Files

• README.md - Quick start guide
• COMMIT_SUMMARY.md - Git instructions
• README_page_extraction.md - Page extraction docs
• README_hybrid_extraction.md - Signature extraction docs
• .gitignore - Configured properly

Working Scripts

• extract_pages_from_csv.py - Tested (100 files)
• extract_signatures_hybrid.py - Tested (5 files, 70% recall)
• extract_handwriting.py - Component script

What's Working ✅

Component	Status	Details
Page extraction	✅ Working	100 files tested
VLM name extraction	✅ Working	100% accurate on 5 files
CV detection	⚠️ Conservative	Finds 70% of signatures
VLM verification	✅ Working	100% precision, no false positives
Overall system	✅ Working	70% recall, 100% precision

What's Not Working / Unknown ⚠️

Issue	Status	Next Steps
Missing 30% signatures	Known	Tune CV parameters
Text layer method	Untested	Need PDFs with text
Large-scale performance	Unknown	Test with 100+ files
Full dataset (86K)	Unknown	Estimate time & optimize

Critical Context to Remember 🧠

1. VLM coordinates are unreliable (32% offset on test file)

   • Don't use VLM for location detection
   • Use VLM for name extraction only

2. Name-based approach is the solution

   • VLM extracts names ✓
   • CV finds locations ✓
   • VLM verifies regions ✓

3. Test file with coordinate issue:

   • 201301_2458_AI1_page4.pdf
   • VLM found 2 names but coordinates pointed to blank areas
   • Actual signatures at 26% (reported as 58% and 68%)

To Start Next Session

Simple Method (Recommended)

cat /Volumes/NV2/pdf_recognize/NEW_SESSION_PROMPT.txt
# Copy output and paste to new Claude Code session

Manual Method

Tell Claude:

"I'm continuing the PDF signature extraction project at /Volumes/NV2/pdf_recognize/. Please read SESSION_INIT.md and PROJECT_DOCUMENTATION.md to understand the current state. I want to [choose option from SESSION_INIT.md]."

Quick Commands Reference

View Documentation

less /Volumes/NV2/pdf_recognize/SESSION_INIT.md
less /Volumes/NV2/pdf_recognize/PROJECT_DOCUMENTATION.md

Run Scripts

cd /Volumes/NV2/pdf_recognize
source venv/bin/activate
python extract_signatures_hybrid.py  # Main script

Check Results

ls -lh /Volumes/NV2/PDF-Processing/signature-image-output/signatures/*.png

View Session Handoff

cat /Volumes/NV2/pdf_recognize/HOW_TO_CONTINUE.txt

What Can Be Improved (Future Work)

Priority 1: Increase Recall

• Current: 70%
• Target: 90%+
• Method: Tune CV parameters in lines 178-214 of extract_signatures_hybrid.py

Priority 2: Scale Testing

• Current: 5 files tested
• Next: 100 files
• Future: 86,073 files (full dataset)

Priority 3: Optimization

• Current: ~24 seconds per PDF
• Consider: Parallel processing, batch VLM calls

Priority 4: Text Layer Testing

• Current: Untested (all PDFs are scanned)
• Need: Find PDFs with searchable text layer

Verification Steps

Before next session, verify files exist:

cd /Volumes/NV2/pdf_recognize

# Check essential docs
ls -lh SESSION_INIT.md PROJECT_DOCUMENTATION.md NEW_SESSION_PROMPT.txt

# Check working scripts
ls -lh extract_pages_from_csv.py extract_signatures_hybrid.py

# Check test results
ls /Volumes/NV2/PDF-Processing/signature-image-output/signatures/*.png | wc -l
# Should show: 7 (the 7 verified signatures)

Known Good State

Environment

• Python: 3.9+ with venv
• Ollama: http://192.168.30.36:11434
• Model: qwen2.5vl:32b
• Working directory: /Volumes/NV2/pdf_recognize/

Test Data

• 5 PDFs processed
• 7 signatures extracted
• All verified (100% precision)
• 3 signatures missed (70% recall)

Output Files

201301_1324_AI1_page3_signature_張志銘.png (33 KB)
201301_1324_AI1_page3_signature_楊智惠.png (37 KB)
201301_2061_AI1_page5_signature_廖阿甚.png (87 KB)
201301_2458_AI1_page4_signature_周寶蓮.png (230 KB)
201301_2923_AI1_page3_signature_黄瑞展.png (184 KB)
201301_3189_AI1_page3_signature_黄益辉.png (24 KB)
201301_3189_AI1_page3_signature_黄辉.png (84 KB)

Git Status (Pre-Commit)

Files staged for commit:

• extract_pages_from_csv.py
• extract_signatures_hybrid.py
• extract_handwriting.py
• README.md
• PROJECT_DOCUMENTATION.md
• README_page_extraction.md
• README_hybrid_extraction.md
• .gitignore

Waiting for: User to review docs and approve commit

Session Health Check ✓

• All scripts working
• Test results documented
• Issues identified and recorded
• Next steps defined
• Session continuity files created
• Git commit prepared

Status: ✅ Ready for handoff

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Last Updated: October 26, 2025 Session End: Ready for next session Next Action: User reviews docs → Git commit → Continue work