Franking machine

• US 5,408,416 A
• Filed: 03/11/1994
• Issued: 04/18/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/1988
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Neopost Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Neopost Incorporated
• Inventors: Gilham, Dennis T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cosimano, Edward R.
• Application Number:
  US08/208,913
• Time in Patent Office: 403 Days
• Field of Search: 101/71, 101/91, 101/93.04, 101/93.07, 364/464.02
• US Class Current: 705/406
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 17/00508 Printing or attaching on mailpieces printing mechanisms B41J; security printing B41M3/14; marking methods B41M5/00; inks C09D11/00; record carriers with at least a part designed to carry digital markings G06K19/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 2017/00427 Special accounting procedures, e.g. storing special information
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 2017/0054 Thermal printhead
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 2017/0062 Label
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 2017/00645 Separating print into fixed and variable parts

Abstract

A machine for printing a postage stamp for application to a mail item includes a a thermal printer to print the stamp on a tape of thermally sensitive paper. The speed of feeding of the tape is controlled to be uniform to synchronize with the operation of the printer. The printer is non-secure and accounting for the value of postage charge printed on the stamps is accomplished by machine reading of the stamps by the Postal Authority. The stamp printing machine generates an accumulated value of postage charge for a series of stamps printed and then prints, on the same tape, a label including an indication of user account and accumulated value, the value preferably being in encoded form.

Claims

1. A postage stamp printing machine including:

a calculator module including a keyboard, a data display device and electronic calculator means;

said electronic calculator means being operable to scan keys of said keyboard to detect operation of said keys and thereby input data corresponding to operated ones of said keys to said electronic calculator means;

said electronic calculator means being operative in response to said input data to drive said display device to display said input data;

electronic accounting and control means including memory means for storing accounting data and electronic processing means for carrying out accounting operations on said accounting data and for reading and writing said accounting data respectively from and to said memory means;

an interface circuit connected to said electronic processing means and responsive to scanning of said keys by said electronic calculator means to input said input data to said electronic processing means;

each key of the keyboard including a pair of electrical contacts and for each said key said interface circuit including switch means connected across said pair of electrical contacts and wherein the electronic processing means generates output signals representing data to be displayed to operate said switch means in emulation of operation of said keys;

operation of said switch means being detected by scanning of said electrical contacts of said keys by the electronic calculator means to thereby input said data represented by said output signals to said electronic calculator means to cause said electronic calculator means to drive the display device to display said data represented by said output signals;

thermal printing means including a line of thermal printing elements;

feeding means for feeding a mail item past said line of thermal printing elements in a direction transverse to said line of printing elements;

a drive motor having a variable operational speed dependent upon electrical input power to said drive motor and said drive motor being drivingly connected to said feeding means to drive said feeding means at a feed speed dependent upon said operational speed of said drive motor;

sensing means responsive to said feed speed of said feeding means;

control means responsive to said sensing means to control said electrical power input to said drive motor to control said operational speed of said motor and thereby control said feed speed of said feeding means to feed the mail item substantially in synchronism with operation of said printing elements in said series of clock cycles;

storage means for storing data relating to fixed postage data; and

said electronic accounting and control means being responsive both to said data stored by said storage means relating to fixed postage data and to said input data representing selected variable postage data to produce printing data signals to operate said line of thermal printing elements selectively in a series of clock cycles to print in a line by line manner said fixed postage data and said selected variable postage data on said mail item during feeding of said mail item past said line of thermal printing elements.

2. A postage stamp printing machine as claimed in claim 1, further including severing means operable to sever a length of postage tape bearing the fixed postage data and the variable postage date printed by operation of the printing means from a supply of said postage tape.

3. A postage stamp printing machine as claimed in claim 2, further including a pad impregnated with ink movable into engagement with the length of postage tape to impress thereon an ink mark, said pad being movable into said engagement with said length of postage tape by operation of the severing means.

4. A postage stamp printing machine including:

a calculator module including a data display device;

electronic calculator means operable to drive said display device;

a keyboard having keys manually operable to an operated state;

scan lines connecting said keys of the keyboard to said electronic calculator means and said electronic calculator means;

said electronic calculator means being operable to detect via said scan lines any of said keys in said operated state and to operate said keys in said operated state;

electronic accounting and control means;

an interface circuit connected to said scan lines of said calculator module and operative in response to detection of operated ones of said keys by said electronic calculator means to generate input data corresponding to said keys in said operated state;

said electronic accounting and control means including memory means for storing accounting data and electronic processing means for reading and writing said accounting data respectively from and to said memory means and operable to carry out accounting operations in respect of said accounting data and selected variable postage data input represented by said input data generated by said interface circuit as a result of manual operation of said keys of said keyboard;

each key of the keyboard including a pair of electrical contacts and for each said key said interface circuit including switch means connected across said pair of electrical contacts and wherein the electronic processing means generates output signals representing display data to operate said switch means in emulation of operation of said keys;

said electronic calculator means being operative to detect via said scan lines operation of said switch means and to drive the display device to display said display data;

printing means; and

said electronic accounting and control means being responsive to said input data and representing selected variable postage data to produce printing signals to operate said printing means to print said selected variable postage data.

5. A postage stamp printing machine as claimed in claim 4, wherein the calculator module includes data storage means;

and

the electronic calculator means is operable in response to operation of keys of the keyboard to input selected postage values to said data storage means.