PURPOSE: To accurately recognize an input character through easy processing by providing a character shaping part which converts coordinate data on a slanting character into coordinate data on a correctly shaped character and outputs the data when the character slants upward or downward to the right, and performing the character recognition with the shaped coordinate data.

CONSTITUTION: When a character shaping part 4 detects a slanting segment such as a right upward or downward segment according to coordinate data obtained from a tablet 1 through a preprocessing part and a feature point extraction part 3, the part 4 calculates the inclination of the slanting part of a stroke including the slanting segment. Further, the character shaping part 4 compares the inclination with a specific value and converts the coordinate data on the stroke so that the inclination of the slanting part of the stroke is horizontal when the stroke including the slanting segment except when the inclination is extremely large is decided. Consequently, the accurate character recognition is performed through the easy processing.