Lottery Betslip Recognition for Germany's Largest Lottery

summary

An AI-Cloud Solution for Reading Lottery Tickets - together with my colleague Sebastian Brückner, I developed and deployed a cloud-native AI-based lottery slip recognition system for Germany’s largest lottery. Optimized for tablet use at smaller sales points, the solution launched in early 2023 and has been running flawlessly for 20+ months with zero reported issues in production (as of November 2024).

Leveraging Google Cloud technology, machine learning, and classical image processing algorithms, the system achieves >99% accuracy in interpreting lottery numbers, even from low-quality, dirty, crumpled, or folded slips. This robust solution currently processes 40,000 bet slips monthly in production. The solution was presented on several conferences in the United States, Turkey, Poland, and Germany.

key features

  • Specialized Algorithms: Combines machine learning and classical image processing to interpret lottery numbers from photos with >99% accuracy.
  • Tablet-Based Solution: Eliminates the need for traditional scanner terminals, making it ideal for space-limited sales points such as kiosks and bakeries.
  • Enhanced Accessibility: Enables customers to use conventional lottery coupons at smaller outlets seamlessly.
High-level architecture overview of the solution architecture.

business impact

  • Delivers a cost-effective alternative to traditional lottery terminals with >99% accuracy and reduced scaling costs.
  • Expands lottery services to 100+ sales points across North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
  • Efficiently processes 40,000+ bet slips per month, ensuring reliability and scalability.

technical highlights

  • Integrates cloud-native technology, machine learning, and classical image processing algorithms for robust performance.
  • Dynamically scales to accommodate increasing users and sales points.
  • Machine learning approach enables processing of low-quality, dirty, crumpled, or folded slips with >99% accuracy.
  • Easily expandable to support new lottery betslips, ensuring future-proof scalability.

techstack

client statement

“After successfully designing and implementing our gaming portal, which adesso realised for our customers, we worked in close cooperation with them to put the ticket recognition software on Android tablets. By doing so, we are creating a complete alternative to the conventional terminal, as tickets can now also be recorded and processed on tablets via camera.”

Michael Stücker, Head of IT Development @ WestLotto GmbH & Co. OHG

(see more client recommendations here)

showcases



Disclaimer:
I was responsible for this project as part of my role as Head of Machine Learning & GenAI - Google Cloud at adesso SE in Hamburg, Germany.