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Combining Handwriting Dynamics with ConvNeXtV2 Convolutional Backbone for Handwritten Character Recognition on Russian- and English-language Datasets

https://doi.org/10.15514/ISPRAS-2026-38(2)-13

Abstract

This work extends the author’s previous research on leveraging dynamic pen-motion characteristics to improve handwritten text recognition. We combine the earlier proposed dynamic component–angular and spectral trajectory features–with a modern visual backbone, ConvNeXtV2_tiny, and evaluate on three datasets: EMNIST (by_class), UJI Pen Characters 2, and our own Russian Handwritings Tracked. We show that, after moderate augmentation tuning, the visual branch achieves state-of-the-art performance on EMNIST among the models compared, while the dynamic branch and their ensemble improve robustness on datasets with greater handwriting variability (UJI, Russian Handwritings Tracked). The results confirm the complementarity of visual and kinematic features and highlight the promise of the method for “difficult handwriting” scenarios.

About the Author

Dmitry Vladimirovich IATSENKO
Institute of High Technologies and Piezotechnics, SFedU
Russian Federation

Senior lecturer in the Department of Applied Informatics and Innovation at the Institute of High Technologies and Piezotechnics at SFedU since 2020. His research interests include machine learning, deep learning models, and cryptographic methods for information security.



References

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Review

For citations:


IATSENKO D.V. Combining Handwriting Dynamics with ConvNeXtV2 Convolutional Backbone for Handwritten Character Recognition on Russian- and English-language Datasets. Proceedings of the Institute for System Programming of the RAS (Proceedings of ISP RAS). 2026;38(2):195-203. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.15514/ISPRAS-2026-38(2)-13



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ISSN 2079-8156 (Print)
ISSN 2220-6426 (Online)