PURPOSE: To provide a character recognition device capable of correctly extracting a character area within a ruled line.

CONSTITUTION: A character rectangle decision part 10 classifying picture data into a character rectangle or into others, a table rectangle decision part 12 extracting a linear component in the rectangle as to data except for the character rectangle and judging whether it is a table or others except for the table from the linear component, and a ruled line area extraction part 13 detecting circumscribing rectangle black element density and whole black picture element density in a rectangle area as to circumscribing rectangle of the others except for the table and judging whether the area is the ruled line area or a graphic area from black picture element density and linear component information are provided. Rectangle information on the rectangle judged to be the ruled line area is exchanged with the extracted linear component.