Two-Dimensional Mathematical Notation

This chapter discusses the use of coordinate grammars for the recognition of two-dimensional (2 D) mathematics notation. The discussion is based on material in [7.1–2], and includes complete grammars for the recognition of commonly used arithmetic and matrix math notation. The format of the coordinate grammar rules has been completely revised for this chapter from earlier versions in an effort to increase the readability of the grammar. A top-down parsing scheme is used to partition a two-dimensional character configuration into subproblems. Syntax rules contain all necessary partitioning instructions. The syntax-directed recognition system described here has been successfully demonstrated in several prototype systems, and could be used to provide real-time interpretation of 2 D math expressions handprinted on a data tablet as input to an interactive computing system.