Automated voter registration and tabulation system

• US 20020091673A1
• Filed: 12/21/2001
• Published: 07/11/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: John Seibel, Nicholas Koumoutseas
• Original Assignee: John Seibel, Nicholas Koumoutseas
• Inventors: Koumoutseas, Nicholas, Seibel, John
• Granted Patent: US 7,406,480 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 13/00 Voting apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image

Abstract

A system and method of registering voters and tabulating an election is provided. A voter database is maintained with a record of each eligible voter comprising at least one voter characteristic. Based on the at least one voter characteristic, a set of positions and issues for which the voter is eligible to vote is determined. The set of positions and issues is printed onto a ballot. The ballot may be printed on demand or mailed to the voter along with a return envelope and an anonymous ballot envelope. The invention further comprises a system and method for tabulating and auditing election results. Voted ballots are scanned and computer readable visual representations of the ballots are generated and stored. The visual representations are analyzed to generate vote data. The visual representation, vote data and ballot are associated with each other by a unique ballot identification. Visual representations of ballots can be received based on a database query and displayed along with the associated vote data for review. Based on the unique ballot identification, the ballot associated with the vote data may also be identified and reviewed. If necessary, vote data associated with a ballot may be corrected.

Claims

1. A method of conducting an election comprising the steps of:

storing a database of voter records, each voter record comprising at least one voter characteristic,

based on said at least one voter characteristic, generating a ballot.

2. A method as in claim 1, further comprising the step of:

based on said at least one voter characteristic, determining a set of positions and issues for which a voter is eligible to vote, and generating a ballot comprising said set of positions and issues.

3. A method as in claim 1, further comprising the step of:

marketing the voter record associated with said generated ballot as voted.

4. A method as in claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

generating said ballot comprising a voter associated portion and an anonymous portion, and

mailing said ballot to a voter identified in said voter associated portion, together with an anonymous envelope and a return envelope.

5. A method as in claim 4, wherein said generated ballot comprises means for separating said voter associated portion and said anonymous portion.

6. A method as in claim 4, wherein said anonymous portion is adapted to be inserted into said anonymous envelope.

7. A method as in claim 4, wherein said anonymous envelope is adapted to be enclosed in said return envelope.

8. A method as in claim 4, wherein said voter associated portion is adapted to be enclosed in said return envelope out side of said anonymous envelope, said anonymous portion is adapted to be enclosed in said anonymous envelope, and said anonymous envelope is adapted to be enclosed in said return envelope.

9. A method as in claim 8, further comprising the steps of:

receiving said return envelope,

separating said anonymous envelope from said voter associated portion, and marking the voter record associated with the voter identified in said voter associated portion as voted.

10. A method as in claim 4, wherein said return envelope is addressed to a vote receiving location.

11. A system for conducting an election comprising:

a database adapted to store records for a plurality of voters, each record comprising at least one voter characteristic,

a printer adapted to print a ballot for at least one voter based on said at least one voter characteristic associated with said voter.

12. A system as in claim 11, wherein said printer is further adapted to determine, based on said at least one voter characteristic, a set of positions and issues for which said at least one voter is eligible to vote, and to print said ballot comprising said set of positions and issues.

13. A system as in claim 11, wherein each record comprises a voted field adapted to indicate whether an associated voter has voted.

14. A system as in claim 11, wherein said printer is further adapted to print a ballot comprising a voter associated portion and an anonymous portion.

15. A system as in claim 14, further comprising a return envelope and an anonymous envelope.

16. A system as in claim 15, wherein said anonymous portion of said ballot is adapted to be inserted into said anonymous envelope, and said anonymous envelope is adapted to be inserted into said return envelope.

17. A system as in claim 14, wherein said voter associated portion is adapted to be separated from said anonymous portion.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein said vote data comprises said unique ballot identification.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising the step of storing said computer readable visual representation and said vote data in a database.

21. The method of claim 18, further comprising the step of storing said computer readable visual representation and said vote data in a relational database.

22. The method of claim 18, further comprising the steps of:

retrieving at least one of said computer readable visual representations,

displaying said visual representation and said vote data associated therewith on a display device, and

modifying said vote data associated therewith.

23. The method of claim 18, further comprising the steps of:

retrieving at least one of said computer readable visual representations,

displaying said visual representation and said vote data associated therewith on a display device,

retrieving the voted ballot associated with said visual representation based on said unique ballot identification, and

modifying said vote data associated with said voted ballot and said visual representation.

25. A system as in claim 24, further comprising a display device adapted to display at least one said visual representation and said vote data associated therewith.

26. A system as in claim 24, further comprising a ballot marking device adapted to mark said voted ballot with a unique ballot identification.

27. A system as in claim 26, wherein said processor is adapted to associate said unique ballot identification with said vote data and said visual representation of said voted ballot.

28. A system as in claim 24, further comprising a storage device for storing said vote data and said visual representation.

29. A system as in claim 28, wherein said storage device comprises a database.

30. A system as in claim 28, wherein said storage device comprises a relational database.

31. A system as in claim 28, further comprising a display device, wherein said processor is adapted to retrieve said visual representations and said associated vote data, and to display said visual representation and said vote data on said display device.

32. A system as in claim 28, wherein said processor is adapted to retrieve at least one of a plurality of records from said storage device, each record comprising vote data and a visual representation of a voted ballot.

33. A system as in claim 31, wherein said processor is adapted to modify said vote data.

34. A system as in claim 26, wherein said processor is adapted to modify said vote data based on a review of the voted ballot associated with said unique ballot identification in said vote data.

36. A computer readable medium of instructions as in claim 35, further comprising a third set of instructions adapted to control said system to display at least one said visual representation and said vote data associated therewith.

37. A computer readable medium of instructions as in claim 35, further comprising a fourth set of instructions adapted to control said system to mark said voted ballot with a unique ballot identification.

38. A computer readable medium of instructions as in claim 37, wherein said fourth set is further adapted to control said system to associate said unique ballot identification with said vote data and said visual representation.

39. A computer readable medium of instructions as in claim 35, further comprising a fifth set of instructions adapted to control said system to store said vote data and said visual representation in a storage device.

40. A computer readable medium of instructions as in claim 39, wherein said storage device comprises a database.

41. A computer readable medium of instructions as in claim 39, wherein said storage device comprises a relational database.

42. A computer readable medium of instructions as in claim 39, further comprising a sixth set of instructions adapted to control said system to retrieve at least one record from said storage device, said record comprising a visual representation of a voted ballot and vote data associated with said visual representation and said voted ballot.

43. A computer readable medium of instructions as in claim 42, further comprising a seventh set of instructions adapted to control said system to receive an input, and modify said vote data based on said input.

18. A method of auditing an election, said method comprising the steps of:

marketing each of a plurality of voted ballots with a unique ballot identification,

scanning said plurality of voted ballots and generating computer readable visual representations of each of said ballots,

generating vote data associated with each of said plurality of voted ballots based on said visual representations,

associating each said visual representation and corresponding vote data with said voted ballot based on said unique ballot identification.

24. An election auditing system comprising:

a scanner adapted to generate a computer readable visual representation of a voted ballot,

a processor adapted to generate vote data based on said visual representation,

said visual representation being associated with said vote data and said voted ballot.

35. A computer readable medium of instructions for controlling a system to record and audit election results comprising:

a first set of instructions adapted to control said system to generate a computer readable visual representation of a voted ballot, and

a second set of instructions adapted to control said system to generate vote data from said computer readable visual representation, and associate said vote data with said computer readable visual representation.