System and method for deferred processing of OCR scanned mail

• US 5,031,223 A
• Filed: 10/24/1989
• Issued: 07/09/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/1989
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Hilliard, John J., Rosenbaum, Walter S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Boudreau, Leo H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fox, David
• Application Number:
  US07/426,617
• Time in Patent Office: 623 Days
• Field of Search: 209/900, 209/584, 382/1, 364/478, 235/379
• US Class Current: 382/101
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 3/00 Sorting according to destination collating the pages of a book B42C1/00
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 3/20 Arrangements for facilitating the visual reading of addresses, e.g. display arrangements coding stations
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/10 Character recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/127 with the intervention of an operator
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/268 Lexical context
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 209/90 Sorting flat-type mail

Abstract

The invention is characterized as a data processing architecture and method for multi-stage processing of mail, using knowledge based techniques. The system includes OCR-scanning a multipart address field of a mail piece at a sending location, the address field including at least two portions, a first stage routing portion (destination city, state, country, zip code) and a second stage routing portion (destination street address, building floor, corporate addressee internal routing). At the sending location, the image of the entire address field is captured by an OCR head and stored in memory. A serial number is printed on the mail piece. The first routing portion is then converted into sorting signals to sort the mail piece to a truck at the sending location which is to be dispatched to the city, state and country indicated in the first stage routing portion. Then, while the mail piece is in transit by truck to the destination city, the image of the second stage routing portion is analyzed by a knowledge base processor to resolve street addresses, building floor, corporate addressee internal routing information and addressee name. The deferred execution of the analysis by the knowledge base processor is available because of the sporadic volume of mail pieces submitted to the sytem. While the mail piece is in transit on the truck, the knowledge processor completes its analysis and is able to transmit by electronic communications link to the destination location, the information that the mail piece is on its way and the second stage routing information needed to automatically sort and deliver the mail piece to its corporate addressee.

Claims

1. A method for deferred processing of a mail piece having a destination address block including a first routing portion designating at least a destination postal region location and a second routing portion designating at least an addressee, comprising the steps of:

capturing an image of said destination address block at a sending marking said mail piece with an indicium representing its identity location;

sorting said mail piece at said sending location in response to said first signal for transport to said destination location;

transporting said mall piece to said destination postal region location;

analyzing said image during a second time interval later than said sorting step, to generate a second signal representing said addressee;

transmitting said second signal after said second time interval to said destination postal region location;

receiving said mail piece at said destination postal region location, identifying said mail piece by reading said indicium, and sorting said mail piece in response to

2. The method of claim 1, which further comprises the step of:

computing postal resource allocation information for said destination location in response to said first signal.

3. The method of claim 1, which further comprises the step of:

determining, during said step of analyzing to generate said second signal, whether said addressee, as represented by said second signal, is located at said destination location;

presenting said image of said destination address block to an operator for interpretation of addressee information therein, if said addressee, as represented by said second signal, is not located at said destination location.

4. A method for deferred processing of a mail piece having a destination address block including a first routing portion designating at least a destination state and a second routing portion designating at least an addressee, comprising the steps of:

capturing an image of said destination address block at a sending location;

marking said mail piece with an indicium representing its identity;

analyzing said image of said destination address block at said sending location to generate a first signal representing said destination state;

sorting said mail piece at said sending location in response to said first signal for transport to said destination state;

transporting said mail piece to said destination state;

transmitting said image of said destination address block to a second location and analyzing said image thereat to generate a second signal representing said addressee;

transmitting said second signal and said identity of said mail piece from said second location to said destination state;

receiving said mail piece at said destination state;

identifying said mail piece at said destination state by reading said indicium thereon and sorting said mail piece in response to said second signal for delivery to said addressee.

5. The method of claim 4, which further comprises the step of:

computing postal resource allocation information for said destination state in response to said first signal.

6. The method of claim 4, which further comprises the step of:

determining, during said analyzing at said second location, whether said addressee, as represented by said second signal, is located at said destination state;

representing said image of said destination address block to an operator for interpretation of addressee information therein, if said addressee, as represented by said second signal, is not located at said destination state.

7. A method for deferred processing of a mail piece having a destination address block including a first routing portion designating at least a destination city and a second routing portion designating at least an addressee, comprising the steps of:

capturing an image of said destination address block at a sending location;

marking said mail piece with an indicium representing its identity;

analyzing said image of said destination address block at said sending location to generate a first signal representing said destination city;

sorting said mail piece at said sending location in response to said first signal for transport to said destination city;

transporting said mail piece to said destination city;

transmitting said image of said destination address block to a second location and analyzing said image thereat to generate a second signal representing said addressee;

transmitting said second signal and said identity of said mail piece from said second location to said destination city;

receiving said mail piece at said destination city;

identifying said mail piece at said destination city by reading said indicium thereon and sorting said mail piece in response to said second signal for delivery to said addressee.

8. The method of claim 7, which further comprises the step of:

computing postal resource allocation information for said destination city in response to said first signal.

9. The method of claim 7, which further comprises the step of:

determining, during said analyzing at said second location, whether said addressee, as represented by said second signal, is located at said destination city;

presenting said image of said destination address block to an operator for interpretation of addressee information therein, if said addressee, as represented by said second signal, is not located at said destination city.

10. A method for deferred processing of a mail piece having a destination address block including a first routing portion designating at least a destination country and a second routing portion designating at least an addressee, comprising the steps of:

capturing an image of said destination address block at a sending location;

marking said mail piece with an indicium representing its identity;

analyzing said image of said destination address block at said sending location to generate a first signal representing said destination country;

sorting said mail piece at said sending location in response to said first signal for transport to said destination country;

transporting said mail piece to said destination country;

transmitting said image of said destination address block to a second location and analyzing said image thereat to generate a second signal representing said addressee;

transmitting said second signal and said identity of said mail piece from said second location to said destination country;

receiving said mail piece at said destination country;

identifying said mail piece at said destination country by reading said indicium thereon and sorting said mail piece in response to said second signal for delivery to said addressee.

11. The method of claim 10, which further comprises the step of:

computing postal resource allocation information for said destination country in response to said first signal.

12. The method of claim 10, which further comprises the step of:

determining, during said analyzing at said second location, whether said addressee, as represented by said second signal, is located at said destination country;

presenting said image of said destination address block to an operator for interpretation of addressee information therein, if said addressee, as represented by said second signal, is not located at said destination country.

13. A system for deferred processing of a mail piece having a destination address block including a first routing portion designating at least a destination location and a second routing portion designating at least an addressee, comprising:

means for capturing an image of said destination address block at a sending location;

means for marking said mail piece with an indicium representing its identity;

representing said destination location;

means coupled to said analyzing means, for sorting said mail piece at said sending location in response to said first signal for transport to said destination location;

means coupled to said capturing means, for transmitting said image of said destination address block to a second location;

means coupled to said transmitting means, for analyzing said image at said second location to generate a second signal representing said addressee;

means coupled to said analyzing means at said second location, for transmitting said second signal to said destination location;

means for transporting said mail piece from said sending location to said destination location;

means coupled to said transmitting means at said second location, for receiving said mail piece at said destination location identifying said mail piece by reading said indicium, and sorting said mail piece in response to said second signal for delivery to said addressee.

14. The system of claim 13, which further comprises:

means coupled to the first said analyzing means, for computing postal resource allocation information for said destination location in response to said first signal.

15. The system of claim 13, which further comprises:

means in said analyzing means at said second location, for determining whether said addressee, as represented by said second signal, is located at said destination location;

means at said second location, for presenting said image of said destination address block to an operator for interpretation of addressee information therein, if said addressee, as represented by said second signal, is not located at said destination location.

16. A method for deferred processing of a mail piece having a destination address block including a first routing portion designating at least a postal region destination location and a second routing portion designating at least an addressee, comprising the steps of:

capturing an image of said destination address block at a sending location;

marking said mail piece with an indicium representing its identity;

analyzing said image of said destination address block during a first time interval to generate a first signal representing said destination postal region location;

analyzing said image during a second time interval later than said first time interval, to generate a second signal representing said addressee;

sorting said mail piece at said sending location in response to said first signal for transport to said destination location;

transporting said mail piece to said destination postal region location;

transmitting said second signal after said second time interval to said destination postal region location;

receiving said mail piece at said destination postal region location identifying said mail piece by reading said indicium, and sorting said mail piece in response to said second signal for delivery to said addressee.