Transforming Optical Prescription Processing with Custom OCR Solutions

A prominent eyewear brand with an extensive network of retail stores and a reputation for stylish, high-quality optical products, including prescription glasses and sunglasses, sought to improve its in-store customer experience and operational efficiency.

Business Challenge

The eyewear brand faced inefficiencies in its in-store glasses ordering process. Opticians had to manually transcribe customers’ prescription (RX) details into the brand’s proprietary point-of-sale (POS) system, a process that often took up to 2–3 minutes per order for complex prescriptions. This diverted the opticians’ focus from engaging with customers, potentially impacting service quality. Additionally, manual transcription introduced the risk of human error, further complicating order fulfillment.

To address these challenges, the client sought a custom Optical Character Recognition (OCR) solution to automatically and securely process RX forms. The goal was to minimize errors, reduce transcription time, and enhance the overall customer experience. If successful, the client intended to extend this automation to its e-commerce operations, where similar challenges existed with processing online customer RX submissions.

Solution Overview

Coherent Solutions partnered with the client to develop an innovative RX transcription tool based on AI software solutions. Designed to extract and process data from RX prescription images automatically, the tool was engineered for adaptability and precision, overcoming challenges such as:

• Variations in RX formats and types.
• Suboptimal image quality due to lighting conditions.
• Handwritten prescriptions prone to transcription errors.

The solution also incorporated correction logic to address potential inaccuracies and alert opticians in cases such as:

• Misinterpreted data.
• Expired prescriptions.
• Transcription errors that could prevent order fulfillment.

Key Features and Implementation

To ensure a robust and HIPAA-compliant solution, Coherent Solutions and the client took the following steps:

1. Data Set Creation
   A dataset of 10,000 annotated prescription images was curated to train and refine the OCR model, ensuring accuracy across diverse RX formats and conditions.

2. Training Pipelines
   Robust training pipelines were developed to create highly precise and efficient models for detecting and extracting essential prescription data.

3. Model Deployment
   The trained models were seamlessly integrated into the client’s workflow, enabling the accurate transcription of RX information in real-time.

4. Correction Logic Implementation
   Advanced correction logic was implemented to identify and resolve potential transcription errors. Alerts were generated for opticians to intervene when necessary, ensuring reliable order fulfillment.

5. Serverless Solution Design
   A serverless architecture was adopted to optimize operational costs and streamline the deployment and maintenance of the RX transcription tool.

6. iPad Application Development
   An intuitive iPad application was created for in-store use. The app allowed retail assistants to leverage the OCR tool seamlessly during the glasses dispensing process, enhancing efficiency and customer interaction.

Results

The RX transcription tool has been successfully deployed across more than 200 retail locations, revolutionizing the client’s in-store operations. Key benefits include:

Enhanced Customer Experience: Reduced processing time allows opticians to focus more on customer interaction and personalized service.
Operational Efficiency: Significant reduction in time and effort for processing RX data, minimizing human error.
Scalability: The solution’s success in physical stores has encouraged the client to expand its use to online customers and explore additional categories of RX products.
This innovative tool has positioned the eyewear brand as a leader in leveraging technology to enhance service quality and operational performance.

This case study highlights how Coherent Solutions’ custom OCR development addressed a critical challenge for a leading eyewear brand, transforming its prescription processing workflow. By implementing a secure, adaptable, and scalable RX transcription tool, the client not only streamlined its in-store operations but also laid the groundwork for future expansion into e-commerce and other product lines.

The collaboration underscores the transformative potential of tailored AI-driven solutions in improving customer experiences and operational outcomes across industries.