Address disambiguation for mail-piece routing

• US 20040065598A1
• Filed: 06/16/2003
• Published: 04/08/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/17/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Matthews International Corporation
• Original Assignee: Matthews International Corporation
• Inventors: Ross, David Justin, Teudt, Richard C.
• Application Number:
  US10/462,377
• Publication Number:
  US 20040065598A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 209/584
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 3/14 using light-responsive detecting means for information carriers G06K7/14

Abstract

Improvements are disclosed for automatically routing items, such as mail-piece items (FIG. 2), in support of efficiently and correctly delivering them to an intended destination. A destination address is read by a recognizer (12) but it may be too ambiguous (14,18) initially for routing the piece. The addressee name is also read (24), and the recognizer data is provided to a directory (26) that accesses a name+address database (28). The addressee name is used to disambiguate the recognizer address data (26,30) and thereby properly route the piece (32). In addition, the name+address directory (42,44) can detect incorrect address data (42,50), and notwithstanding the incorrect address, correctly routing the item (52,46) to the intended addressee based on the recognized addressee name (40).

Claims

1. A method of address disambiguation for routing an item having an associated destination address and associated non-address data, the method comprising the steps of:

recognizing the destination address;

said recognizing step including determining address data;

transmitting the address data to a directory service to obtain a first result;

if the first result indicates that the address data is insufficient to route the item, recognizing the associated non-address data from the item;

transmitting the recognized non-address data to the directory service to obtain a second result; and

if the second result indicates that the recognized non-address data together with the address data is sufficient to route the item, routing the item.

2. A method of disambiguation according to claim 1 wherein the non-address data comprises an addressee name.

3. A method of disambiguation according to claim 2 wherein the addressee name is the name of a person or family.

4. A method of disambiguation according to claim 2 wherein the directory service is implemented as a computer program having access to a name+address data source.

5. A sorting system for routing items to an intended address comprising:

a first recognizer for reading address data from the item;

a directory service for checking the read address data;

a second recognizer for reading non-address data from the item; and

a directory service for checking association between the read address data and the read non-address data to remove ambiguity in the recognition of the address data.

6. A sorting system according to claim 5 wherein the non-address data comprises an addressee name.

7. A sorting system according to claim 6 wherein the addressee name is the name of a person or family.

8. A sorting system for according to claim 6 wherein the first and second recognizers are implemented in a single computer program.

9. A method of correctly routing an item having readable non-address data and an incorrect destination address, the method comprising the steps of:

recognizing the destination address on the item;

recognizing the non-address data on the item;

checking for correspondence between the read destination address and the read non-address data;

if the read destination address corresponds to the read non-address data, routing the item in accordance with the read destination address; and

if the read destination address does not correspond to the read non-address data, determining second destination address that does correspond to the read non-address data, and routing the item in accordance with the second destination address.

10. A method of correctly routing an item according to claim 9 and wherein said checking step comprises use of a name+address directory.

11. A method of correctly routing an item according to claim 9 wherein the non-address data comprises an addressee name.

12. A method of correctly routing an item according to claim 11 wherein the addressee name is the name of a person or family.

13. A method of correctly routing an item according to claim 11 and wherein said item is a letter or package.