Method and device for online processing of forwarding mail

• US 6,292,709 B1
• Filed: 07/21/1999
• Issued: 09/18/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Uhl, Berthold, Irion, Astrid, Rosenbaum, Walter
• Primary Examiner(s): Olszewski, Robert P.
• Assistant Examiner(s): RIDLEY, RICHARD W L
• Application Number:
  US09/297,138
• Time in Patent Office: 790 Days
• Field of Search: 700/226, 207/584, 207/900, 207/939
• US Class Current: 700/226
• 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 10/987 with the intervention of an operator
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 209/90 Sorting flat-type mail
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 209/937 Laundry sorting

Abstract

The invention relates to a method and a device for the online processing of mail items to be forwarded. In the process, an image of the mail item is taken and the mail item is stored in an intermediate storage area. Following digitizing, the areas with interesting information are determined and forwarding instructions, names and addresses of recipients and, in the case of a return notation by a delivery person, the sender address are read automatically. The results are checked against a name address data bank and, if they do not coincide, are checked against a forwarding directory. Items that are not read clearly automatically, but for which at least one forwarding instruction exists for possible delivery locations, are evaluated with priority in a multistage video coding process by taking into account the printed-on instructions for forwarding and return. In that case, if the first video coding is incomplete, the items are again read automatically by taking into account the coding results and, if necessary, an additional video coding. The items leaving the intermediate storage area are then imprinted with forwarding instructions and distributed correspondingly.

Claims

1. A method for online processing of items of mail to be forwarded, including the following online processing steps:

a. making an image of a side of respective mail items that contain information including names and addresses, and transporting the items to an intermediate storage;

b. digitizing and storing the respective images,

c. determining areas containing interesting information, including sender name and sender address, receiver name and receiver address, and instructions for forwarding or returning the respective mail items;

d. classifying areas containing interesting information,

e. automatically reading in of instructions for returning or forwarding of mail items and reading of recipient name and address by means of an OCR reader, including automatically checking of results in a name address data bank and, in case they do not coincide, in another data bank where forwarding requests relative to delivery points are stored, wherein only the sender address is read in case of determination of a return notation made by a delivery person on the mail item;

f. online evaluating recipient names and recipient addresses that are not clearly read by the OCR reader, including checking the name/address data bank, and the data banks for forwarding with the aid of video coding of the images of each item of mail for which at least one forwarding instruction exists for possible deliver points, by taking into account the forwarding or return instructions;

g. printing, legibly and encoded, a new recipient address, and forwarding instructions on the mail items leaving the intermediate storage; and

h. distributing the mail items according to the new address and the forwarding instructions.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein coding according to predetermined rules takes place during the first video coding.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein a selection coding takes place during the additional video coding, in such a way that a selection is made from unclear results of the coding.

4. The method according to claim 1, further including supplying a return instruction to the video coding in case return instructions from a postal carrier cannot be read with certainty by means of an OCR reader.

5. The method according to claim 1, including supplying a sender address to the video coding if it cannot be read automatically and with certainty by means of an OCR reader.

6. The method according to claim 1, including imprinting advance instructions by the sender, and one of the sender address and customer number onto a recipient address field in addition to the legible information.

7. A device for carrying out the method according to claim 1, comprising:

a device for generating and storing images of items;

an OCR reader for automatic evaluation of information on the items, the automatic evaluation including a result of checks in a name/address data bank and a forwarding directory;

a device for video coding the mail images, said device having a plurality of video coding stations, including means for checking the results of a comparison of the image information in the name/address data bank and the forwarding directory;

an image controller for controlling the flow of data between the device for the automatic evaluation and the device for video coding, the image controller supplying, during the video coding, images of the items not identified with certainty to the OCR reader for further automatic evaluation by using the results of the video coding, wherein the images of items for which possible delivery points for at least one forwarding instruction exist are supplied first to the device for video coding;

a printing device for printing on addresses in legible and encoded forms, and for printing on forwarding instructions;

an intermediate storage; and

at least one sorting device.

8. A method according to claim 1, comprising the following processing steps for realizing the video encoding of the processing step f:

transmitting the images of the items, not read with certainty in the automatic OCR evaluation, to a first video coding;

feeding of those images, which were not evaluated with certainty during the video coding, to another automatic evaluation in the OCR reader by taking into accounting the results of the first video coding; and

evaluating images of items not evaluated with certainty during the further automatic evaluation, said items containing at least one forwarding instruction for possible delivery points, during another video coding by using the results from the additional automatic evaluation.

9. A method for online processing of items of mail to be forwarded, including the following processing steps:

making an image of a side of respective mail items that contain information including names and addresses, and transporting the items to an intermediate storage;

digitizing and storing the respective images,

determining areas containing interesting information, including sender name and sender address, receiver name and receiver address, and instructions for forwarding or returning respective mail items;

classifying areas containing interesting information;

automatically reading in of instructions for returning or forwarding of mail items and reading of recipient name and address by means of an OCR reader, including automatically checking of results in a name/address data bank and, in case they do not coincide, in another data bank where forwarding requests relative to delivery points are stored, wherein only the sender address is read in case of a determination of a return notation made by a delivery person on the mail item;

evaluating recipient names and recipient addresses that are not clearly read by the OCR reader, including checking the name/address data bank, and the data banks for forwarding with the aid of video coding of the images of each item of mail for which at least one forwarding instruction exists for possible deliver points, by taking into account the forwarding or return instructions;

said evaluating step including;

transmitting the images of the items, not read with certainty in the automatic OCR evaluation, to a first video coding;

feeding of those images, which were not evaluated with certainty during the video coding, to another automatic evaluation in the OCR reader by taking into accounting the results of the first video coding; and

evaluating images of items not evaluated with certainty during the further automatic evaluation, said items containing at least one forwarding instruction for possible delivery points, during another video coding by using the results from the additional automatic evaluation;

printing, legibly and encoded, a new recipient address, and forwarding instructions on the mail items leaving the intermediate storage; and

distributing the mail items according to the new address and the following instructions.