Document AI: A Comparative Study of Transformer-Based, Graph-Based Models, and Convolutional Neural Networks For Document Layout Analysis

TL;DR

This paper compares transformer-based, graph-based, and CNN models for document layout analysis, evaluating their effectiveness and exploring cross-lingual transfer capabilities using machine translation techniques.

Contribution

It provides the first comprehensive comparative analysis of different architectures for document layout analysis and investigates cross-lingual transfer using machine translation.

Findings

Transformer models outperform CNNs in layout accuracy.

Graph-based models excel at capturing spatial relationships.

Cross-lingual transfer shows promising results with machine translation.

Abstract

Document AI aims to automatically analyze documents by leveraging natural language processing and computer vision techniques. One of the major tasks of Document AI is document layout analysis, which structures document pages by interpreting the content and spatial relationships of layout, image, and text. This task can be image-centric, wherein the aim is to identify and label various regions such as authors and paragraphs, or text-centric, where the focus is on classifying individual words in a document. Although there are increasingly sophisticated methods for improving layout analysis, doubts remain about the extent to which their findings can be generalized to a broader context. Specifically, prior work developed systems based on very different architectures, such as transformer-based, graph-based, and CNNs. However, no work has mentioned the effectiveness of these models in a comparative analysis. Moreover, while language-independent Document AI models capable of knowledge transfer have been developed, it remains to be investigated to what degree they can effectively transfer knowledge. In this study, we aim to fill these gaps by conducting a comparative evaluation of state-of-the-art models in document layout analysis and investigating the potential of cross-lingual layout analysis by utilizing machine translation techniques.