Fig. (6) Slashdot solution stages. (a) original images (b) thresholded images (c) line pattern is detected (d) the remaining line fragments (e) columns with large height gradient differences (f) segmentation columns identified by scanning Δh for positive runs that are followed by negative runs (g) segmentation lines between crests (h) images after segmentation finishes (i) first stage of merging characters (j) second stage of merging.