Reading encrypted data on a mail piece to cancel the mail piece

• US 6,112,193 A
• Filed: 05/22/1998
• Issued: 08/29/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Pitney Bowes Incorporated (Böwe Systec AG)
• Original Assignee: Pitney Bowes Incorporated (Böwe Systec AG)
• Inventors: Dlugos, Daniel F., Sansone, Ronald P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cosimano, Edward R.
• Application Number:
  US09/083,877
• Time in Patent Office: 830 Days
• Field of Search: 283/71, 283/72, 382/101, 705/401, 705/404, 705/408, 705/410
• US Class Current: 705/408
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 17/00733 Cryptography or similar special procedures in a franking system
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 2017/00443 Verification of mailpieces, e.g. by checking databases
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 2017/00709 Scanning mailpieces
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 2017/00717 Reading barcodes
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 2017/00967 PSD [Postal Security Device] as defined by the USPS [US Postal Service]

Abstract

A system that uses a digital postage meter or Postal Security Device to add information to the indicia that indicates that the mail piece has already been scanned. This information will inform the scanner and a human that the postage paid for, as indicated in the indicia, has been used. The foregoing is accomplished by printing a scanner readable data field in the indicia or in the vicinity of the indicia that indicates the mail piece was received. Human readable data is also printed in the indicia or in the vicinity of the indicia that indicates the mail piece was received. For instance, the word "VOID" may be written in coded form and/or in human readable form. Information regarding the canceling of the indicia is transmitted to a data center.

Claims

1. An incoming mail monitoring system, said system comprises:

a plurality of mailers digital units that stores unique information contained in a postal indicia of a mail piece;

a plurality of recipient units that reads stores and cancels the unique information contained in the postal indicia after the mail piece has been delivered to the recipient; and

a data center that receives information stored by the mailers units and the recipients units to determine if the mail piece has been delivered and canceled.

2. The system claimed in claim 1, wherein the mailers unit includes means for automatically transmitting information to the data center at predetermined intervals.

3. The system claimed in claim 1, wherein the recipient units are digital postage units.

4. The system claimed in claim 1, wherein the recipient units are Postal Security Devices.

5. The system claimed in claim 1, wherein the recipients unit includes means for automatically transmitting information to the data center at predetermined intervals.

6. The system claimed in claim 5, wherein the data center further includes:

means for sorting the information received from each of the recipient units by the recipient unit that sent the information.

7. The system claimed in claim 5, wherein the data center further includes:

means for crediting the recipients unit for sending information to the data center.

8. The system claimed in claim 1, wherein the recipient'"'"'s unit includes a scanner that reads the postal indicia.

9. The system claimed in claim 8, wherein the scanner verifies the information contained in the postal indicia.

10. The system claimed in claim 9, wherein the scanner produces a record indicating that a specific indicia was produced.

11. The system claimed in claim 8, wherein the recipient unit includes a printer that cancels the postal indicia.

12. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the printer cancels the indicia by printing alphanumeric characters within the postal indicia.

13. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the printer cancels the indicia by printing alphanumeric characters in the vicinity of the postal indicia.

14. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the printer cancels the indicia by printing a code in the postal indicia.

15. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the printer cancels the indicia by printing a code in the vicinity of the postal indicia.

16. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the cancellation information is printed in an area other than the indicia area of the mail piece.

17. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the printer cancels the indicia by printing information within the postal indicia with an invisible ink.

18. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the printer cancels the indicia by printing information in the vicinity of the postal indicia with an invisible ink.

19. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the printer cancels the indicia by printing information within the indicia.

20. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the printer indicates that the indicia was a fraudulent indicia by printing information within the indicia.

21. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the printer indicates that the indicia was a fraudulent indicia by printing information in the vicinity of the indicia.

22. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the printer cancels the indicia by printing cancellation information within the postal indicia.

23. The system claimed in claim 22, wherein the cancellation information is encrypted.

24. The system claimed in claim 22, wherein the cancellation information includes the date and time of cancellation.

25. The system claimed in claim 22, wherein the cancellation information includes the recipient unit that canceled the mail piece.

26. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the printer cancels the indicia by printing cancellation information in the vicinity of the postal indicia.

27. The system claimed in claim 26, wherein the cancellation information is encrypted.

28. The system claimed in claim 26, wherein the cancellation information includes the date and time of cancellation.

29. The system claimed in claim 26, wherein the cancellation information includes the recipient unit that canceled the mail piece.

30. The system claimed in claim 11, wherein the recipients unit stores the time and date that the recipient unit canceled the postal indicia.

31. The system claimed in claim 30, wherein the data center further includes:

means for informing the mailers unit when the mail piece was canceled by the recipients unit.

32. The system claimed in claim 31, wherein the data center determines the amount of time that has elapsed between the time the postal indicia was affixed to the mail piece and the time that the recipient unit canceled the postal indicia.

33. The system claimed in claim 32, wherein the data center further includes:

means for informing the mailers unit of the amount of time that has elapsed between the time the postal indicia was affixed to the mail piece and the time that the recipient unit canceled the postal indicia.

34. The system claimed in claim 33, wherein the data center further includes:

means for informing the post of the amount of time that has elapsed between the time the postal indicia was affixed to the mail piece and the time that the recipient unit canceled the postal indicia.

35. The system claimed in claim 33, wherein the data center further includes:

means for informing the post of mail pieces that have been canceled more than one time.

36. The system claimed in claim 35, wherein the data center further includes:

means for charging the post to inform the post of mail pieces that have been canceled more than one time.

37. A incoming mail monitoring system, said system comprises:

a plurality of mailers digital postage meters that stores unique information contained in a postal indicia of a mail piece;

a plurality of recipient addressee mail piece units that reads stores and cancels the unique information contained in the postal indicia after the mail piece has been delivered to the recipient; and

a data center that receives information stored by the mailers meters and the recipients meters to determine if the mail piece has been delivered and canceled.