7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more associated search criteria comprises a type of the image object to detect, its physical properties, its search area, and its spatial relationships with other elements.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more associated search criteria comprises a type of the image object to detect, its physical properties, its search area, and its spatial relationships with other elements. 11. The method of claim 7 , wherein the search area for an element is specified in terms of search constraints selected from the group consisting of an absolute search constraint specified in terms of a array of rectangles with specified coordinates; a relative search constraint specified relative to the edges of the image of the paper document; and a relative search constraint specified relative to other search elements.