Tables - Amazon Textract

Tables

Use Amazon Textract to extract tables in a document and extract cells, merged cells, column headers, titles, section titles, footers, table type (structured or semistructured), and summary cells within a table.

Detected tables are returned as Block objects in the responses from AnalyzeDocument and GetDocumentAnalysis. You can use the FeatureTypes input parameter to retrieve information about key-value pairs, tables, or both. For tables only, use the value TABLES. For an example, see Exporting Tables into a CSV File. For general information about how a document is represented by Block objects, see Text Detection and Document Analysis Response Objects.

The following is an example of a table that could be detected by Amazon Textract.

Balance sheet table showing transactions from 2022-12-24 to 2023-01-15, with starting balance of $11,000, credits of $1,040, debits of $1,040, and ending balance of $11,000 as of 2023-01-20.

The following diagram shows how a single cell in a table is represented by Block objects.

Diagram depicting the structure of a table with cells, including a merged cell spanning 5 columns for the table title. The table comprises nested components like pages, cells, words, and a merged title cell.

A cell contains WORD blocks for detected words, and where applicable, TABLE_TITLE blocks for table titles, TABLE_FOOTER blocks for table footers, and SELECTION_ELEMENT blocks for selection elements such as check boxes.

The following is part of the JSON for the preceding table. The PAGE block object has a list of CHILD block IDs for the TABLE block and each LINE of text that's detected.

{
    "BlockType": "PAGE",
        "Geometry": {
            "BoundingBox": {
                "Width": 1.0,
                "Height": 1.0,
                "Left": 0.0,
                "Top": 0.0
                },
            },
    "Id": "8a5d3f57-97bc-4a05-b028-f72617877626",
    "Relationships": [
        {
            "Type": "CHILD",
            "Ids": [
                "7499ac64-3fa9-46fd-8e3f-581ec9c316eb",
                "87ed4709-66f2-4b3d-abda-52c92a111474",
                "27a87eb3-bd21-475e-80fe-3f8e16958dcf",
                "d89894ea-2f37-4667-94b6-d90def01c5c1",
                "9f9d6383-ed6d-4bd0-ba8c-71fc3eec704e",
                "cdc74e1a-c568-439b-9eef-7bd54e060f18",
                "1b64f24c-5e84-4c7e-851a-cb1f5258a53c",
                "84a84878-04b4-4608-81b6-38117ead1629",
                ...
                "8cef603b-932e-452b-adc4-15f8e02ad1fe",
                "a3f97508-0d6b-4ae0-aa04-76078f9fe11a",
                "dd1f23c6-dfad-447b-8105-29ba136bd3a4",
                "46138f38-5b77-41a9-b068-f8394587122f",
                "a5e5247c-2637-4fa8-a271-ab46399cd77c",
                "63d7b889-71e3-422a-8cb7-2103ba0aa276",
                "033e5c86-371a-46fb-bbea-eb7f6b0cd092",
                "559b1354-ef94-4cb9-8e03-9eca83c6dba4",
                "55edc4fa-052f-40f9-9edd-739b100e6f75"
            ]
        }
    ]
},

To learn more about the table, access the TABLE block object. The table block includes four types of relationships: “Child,” “Merged Cells,” "Title," and "Footer." For relationship type CHILD, each child ID represents a single cell within the table. A merged cell is broken down into all the individual cells that are combined to make one merged cell. TABLE_TITLE and TABLE_FOOTER relationship types contain the block ID for the corresponding TABLE_TITLE and TABLE_FOOTER blocks, where information about the title and footer is stored. The table block type has an EntityType of either STRUCTURED_TABLE or SEMI_STRUCTURED_TABLE that identifies the type of table.

The following JSON shows that the preceding table has 65 cells for 13 rows and 5 columns, which are listed in the CHILD relationship Ids array. For relationship type MERGED_CELL, each merged cell ID represents a single merged cell within the table. The following JSON shows that the table has 9 merged cells, which are listed in the MERGED_CELL relationship Ids array. The two additional relationship types, TABLE_TITLE and TABLE_FOOTER, list the IDs of the respective title and footer blocks. The following JSON also shows that the table is structured in the EntityTypes block.

{
    "BlockType": "TABLE",
    "Confidence": 99.8046875,
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "55edc4fa-052f-40f9-9edd-739b100e6f75",
    "Relationships": [
        {
            "Type": "CHILD",
            "Ids": [
                "c1c03d64-d365-4906-af7a-a852f1acc040",
                "8b415996-6b05-4183-a959-d27d12ccef79",
                "48b0e972-7dba-4db7-896e-ca7066e8c761",
                "69948207-47d8-4825-8929-1d7abb650a88",
                "b9ac9f14-8899-43b3-8572-0e997180e0a4",
                "6f06c024-0b36-4acd-b61f-4467203234dd",
                "c8a88487-dbc7-4662-a69b-21103049b61d",
                ...
                "2b41c8e1-f754-4b37-91b6-a97cdc413f91",
                "365a1bab-0c18-4cd8-a465-6f7bc7e25e60",
                "f08af959-cfac-4ad6-a63f-2771c7a8ff62",
                "e4f6fbfd-c7d8-4f64-9102-733d4806850f",
                "68c0b8ff-fd35-41ce-ba76-de08c26084d7",
                "44e80372-aa70-4a36-9aac-3a93aaa91bb1"
            ]
        },
        {
            "Type": "MERGED_CELL",
            "Ids": [
                "a27a3ecc-afd0-4f7c-9db2-6f8e6d31c605",
                "6c02cf21-40de-4480-b755-e94462ac4884",
                "6faad856-8d37-4751-b741-c4ad8d5dcbe3",
                "d777d6e2-7430-4c6e-a261-03ec5a612c8c",
                "f0f5a9fb-5bfa-4c80-8f41-1d4fad674b09",
                "83c7af02-8128-4479-89c9-962544ad4048",
                "b2b5126c-409f-4b67-9adf-e3e12f60bf86",
                "87d7f688-3d38-4198-b491-433af0da4d8b",
                "1c2436e2-a1fc-4b2a-9e73-cc8a1ca67568"
            ]
        },
        {
            "Type": "TABLE_TITLE",
            "Ids": [
                "cde34920-0131-4e68-a3ec-82922269afd4"
            ]
        },
        {
            "Type": "TABLE_FOOTER",
            "Ids": [
                "11dfd98c-6140-49e8-a544-e220d76bdd2f",
                "ad1b9c81-3b53-4fc7-a533-dabb3d29b0b1"
            ]
        }
    ],
    "EntityTypes": [
        "STRUCTURED_TABLE"
    ]
},

The block type for each table cell is CELL. The cell block type will always have row span of 1 and column span of 1. The block object for each cell includes information about the cell location compared to other cells in the table. It also includes geometry information for the location of the cell on the document. In addition, cell blocks can have different EntityTypes that identify them as a particular type of cell, including TABLE_TITLE, TABLE_FOOTER, TABLE_SECTION_TITLE, COLUMN_HEADER, and TABLE_SUMMARY. For example, in the preceding table, the cell that contains the word “Date” is a column header, as shown in the following example. 

{
    "BlockType": "CELL",
    "Confidence": 81.8359375,
    "RowIndex": 2,
    "ColumnIndex": 1,
    "RowSpan": 1,
    "ColumnSpan": 1,
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "6f06c024-0b36-4acd-b61f-4467203234dd",
    "Relationships": [
        {
            "Type": "CHILD",
            "Ids": [
                "c49f55d5-a7e4-41d5-9c29-d8244f56181c"
            ]
        }
    ],
    "EntityTypes": [
        "COLUMN_HEADER"
    ]
},

The cell that contains the word "Deposit" is not a title, footer, column header, section title, or summary cell. This is shown by the lack of the field "EntityTypes".

{
    "BlockType": "CELL",
    "Confidence": 86.181640625,
    "RowIndex": 7,
    "ColumnIndex": 2,
    "RowSpan": 1,
    "ColumnSpan": 1,
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "7af5160b-bd60-45f5-a12c-bf376e9d742c",
    "Relationships": [
        {
            "Type": "CHILD",
            "Ids": [
                "bb9bcaed-5998-44a6-9076-aa1ecc82fbc6"
            ]
        }
    ]
},

All the merged cells are listed under "Type": "MERGED_CELL" in the TABLE block. In the preceding example table, there are nine merged cells. 

{
    "Type": "MERGED_CELL",
    "Ids": [
        "a27a3ecc-afd0-4f7c-9db2-6f8e6d31c605",
        "6c02cf21-40de-4480-b755-e94462ac4884",
        "6faad856-8d37-4751-b741-c4ad8d5dcbe3",
        "d777d6e2-7430-4c6e-a261-03ec5a612c8c",
        "f0f5a9fb-5bfa-4c80-8f41-1d4fad674b09",
        "83c7af02-8128-4479-89c9-962544ad4048",
        "b2b5126c-409f-4b67-9adf-e3e12f60bf86",
        "87d7f688-3d38-4198-b491-433af0da4d8b",
        "1c2436e2-a1fc-4b2a-9e73-cc8a1ca67568"
    ]
},

To find specific details associated with each merged cell, go to "BlockType": "MERGED_CELL". For the merged cell “Balance Sheet”, which is also a title cell, the ID associated with it is "a27a3ecc-afd0-4f7c-9db2-6f8e6d31c605".

There are 5 cells that constitute this merged cell, as shown by the "ColumnSpan" of 5. To find the text within the merged cell, go further down to the Ids array for details on "BlockType": "CELL" followed by "BlockType": "WORD".

{
    "BlockType": "MERGED_CELL",
    "Confidence": 77.44140625,
    "RowIndex": 1,
    "ColumnIndex": 1,
    "RowSpan": 1,
    "ColumnSpan": 5,
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "a27a3ecc-afd0-4f7c-9db2-6f8e6d31c605",
    "Relationships": [
        {
            "Type": "CHILD",
            "Ids": [
                "c1c03d64-d365-4906-af7a-a852f1acc040",
                "8b415996-6b05-4183-a959-d27d12ccef79",
                "48b0e972-7dba-4db7-896e-ca7066e8c761",
                "69948207-47d8-4825-8929-1d7abb650a88",
                "b9ac9f14-8899-43b3-8572-0e997180e0a4"
            ]
        }
    ],
    "EntityTypes": [
        "TABLE_TITLE"
    ]
},

On the cell level, there are 5 cells for the merged cell “Balance Sheet”. Each cell has an EntityType of TABLE_TITLE because the title was identified in the merged cell. The cell with an Id of 48b0e972-7dba-4db7-896e-ca7066e8c761 contains two CHILD relationship IDs that correspond to the WORD blocks that make up this merged title cell. 

{
    "BlockType": "CELL",
    "Confidence": 77.44140625,
    "RowIndex": 1,
    "ColumnIndex": 1,
    "RowSpan": 1,
    "ColumnSpan": 1,
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "c1c03d64-d365-4906-af7a-a852f1acc040",
    "EntityTypes": [
        "TABLE_TITLE"
    ]
},
{
    "BlockType": "CELL",
    "Confidence": 77.44140625,
    "RowIndex": 1,
    "ColumnIndex": 2,
    "RowSpan": 1,
    "ColumnSpan": 1,
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "8b415996-6b05-4183-a959-d27d12ccef79",
    "EntityTypes": [
        "TABLE_TITLE"
    ]
},
{
    "BlockType": "CELL",
    "Confidence": 77.44140625,
    "RowIndex": 1,
    "ColumnIndex": 3,
    "RowSpan": 1,
    "ColumnSpan": 1,
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "48b0e972-7dba-4db7-896e-ca7066e8c761",
    "Relationships": [
        {
            "Type": "CHILD",
            "Ids": [
                "998394ef-c6cf-491b-9bac-ec470c638ecd",
                "1c875a06-f8e5-4df7-8f6a-583c47cbd9fe"
            ]
        }
    ],
    "EntityTypes": [
        "TABLE_TITLE"
    ]
},
{
    "BlockType": "CELL",
    "Confidence": 77.44140625,
    "RowIndex": 1,
    "ColumnIndex": 4,
    "RowSpan": 1,
    "ColumnSpan": 1,
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "69948207-47d8-4825-8929-1d7abb650a88",
    "EntityTypes": [
        "TABLE_TITLE"
    ]
},
{
    "BlockType": "CELL",
    "Confidence": 77.44140625,
    "RowIndex": 1,
    "ColumnIndex": 5,
    "RowSpan": 1,
    "ColumnSpan": 1,
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "b9ac9f14-8899-43b3-8572-0e997180e0a4",
    "EntityTypes": [
        "TABLE_TITLE"
    ]
},

On the word level, there are two words, “Balance” and "Sheet." Since the first two and last two cells on columns 1, 2, 4, and 5 are blank, there are no words associated with them. This is also shown in the previous JSON output, where only the third cell contains child IDs. 

{
    "BlockType": "WORD",
    "Confidence": 99.95711517333984,
    "Text": "Balance",
    "TextType": "PRINTED",
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "998394ef-c6cf-491b-9bac-ec470c638ecd"
},
{
    "BlockType": "WORD",
    "Confidence": 99.87372589111328,
    "Text": "Sheet",
    "TextType": "PRINTED",
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "1c875a06-f8e5-4df7-8f6a-583c47cbd9fe"
},

The TABLE_TITLE and TABLE_FOOTER block types contain information about title and footer cells, including CHILD relationships that point to the WORD blocks that make up the title or footer. This is shown in the following JSON response.

In this example, the title is an in-table title, meaning it is found within the structure of the table itself, as opposed to outside of the table as a floating title. This means that the title also has a CELL block type that contains the child IDs of the word blocks that make up the title. See the previous JSON output for the five cell blocks that comprise the merged title cell, which includes the title cell block with the child IDs of the word blocks. The footer cells for this table would also be represented by cell blocks for each footer.

{
    "BlockType": "TABLE_TITLE",
    "Confidence": 97.802734375,
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "cde34920-0131-4e68-a3ec-82922269afd4",
    "Relationships": [
        {
            "Type": "CHILD",
            "Ids": [
                "998394ef-c6cf-491b-9bac-ec470c638ecd",
                "1c875a06-f8e5-4df7-8f6a-583c47cbd9fe"
            ]
        }
    ]
},
{
    "BlockType": "TABLE_FOOTER",
    "Confidence": 88.0859375,
    "Geometry": {...},
    "Id": "11dfd98c-6140-49e8-a544-e220d76bdd2f",
    "Relationships": [
        {
            "Type": "CHILD",
            "Ids": [
                "77a70b2d-c137-4161-8d9c-65170266e5ff",
                "d413ef1f-fa1b-44cb-87ed-809494fc87d8",
                "19616f50-1a34-431f-94bf-7e575106cd85",
                "35063ea4-a3c7-4e19-9d32-10eca92807b8",
                "48de1523-7776-49ef-96d9-fc19bcde89c5"
            ]
        }
    ]
},