Personal mail piece and electronic mail tracking system

• US 8,874,451 B2
• Filed: 07/23/2013
• Issued: 10/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: The Escher Group, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: The Escher Group, Ltd.
• Inventors: Smith, Joshua R., Yarin, Paul Michael, Murphy, Michael J., Sutherland, Andrew V. II, Metois, Eric
• Primary Examiner(s): Brooks, Matthew L.
• Application Number:
  US13/948,719
• Publication Number:
  US 20130311394A1
• Time in Patent Office: 462 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1.1
• US Class Current: 705/1.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0833 Tracking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/234 for tracking messages

Abstract

A system and method for linking data objects and physical objects of various kinds to an identified user is described. The system provides to the identified user information relating to the delivery status of mail pieces directed to or sent by the user, and the user then tracks and traces the mail pieces. The system further provides to the identified user information relating to continued sessions through which the user provides to a postal service system information relating to mailing labels and postage.

Claims

1. A personal mail piece tracking and tracing system including:

A. one or more servers that are configured to perform the operations of;

i. acquiring delivery information, about a plurality of mail pieces electronically, by receiving messages from and/or by access to respective databases of

(1) multiple different delivery companies and delivery services,

(2) a postal service and at least one delivery company, or

(3) one or more senders and either of (1) or (2)

the delivery information about a given mail piece identifying an intended recipient of the given mail piece,

ii. associating the delivery information about the given mail piece, and the actual given mail piece, with a user identifier that corresponds, in the system, to the intended recipient,

iii. at a linking component creating linked information corresponding to the given mail piece, said linked information including (1) delivery status information (2) address and delivery particulars, (3) a digital copy of the mail piece, and (4) an excerpt from the mail piece;

associating said linked information with the user identifier of the intended recipient; and

sending an email with a link or providing access to the linked information to a web component, thereby providing the user with the capability to track and trace the given mail piece, said linked information being sent or accessible to the user by logging onto a website;

iv. at the web component upon clicking on the sent link, or while logging into website, authenticating a user-supplied user identifier and associated password and providing, for display to the user, the delivery status information linked to the user identifier including (1) the date of shipment of the given mail piece, (2) the date of delivery of the mail piece, and (3) one or more dates of debiting or crediting one or more payments associated with the mail piece;

B. at a video monitor on a computer connected to a computer network that provides access to the website, displaying the one or more graphical user interfaces through which the user enters their user identifier and their associated password and, after authentication by the web component, displaying the delivery status information linked to the user identifier on the website and

C. the one or more servers being further configured to

i. acquire information about a plurality of electronic mailings from one or more of senders of the electronic mailings and/or one or more intended recipients of the electronic mailings by receiving messages from the senders or intended recipients and/or by access to respective databases of the senders or intended recipients,

ii. associate the information about a given electronic mailing with a user identifier that corresponds, in the system, to the intended recipient,

iii. at the linking component creating linked information corresponding to the given electronic mailing, said linked information including (1) an address, (2) a copy of the electronic mailing, (3) one or more dates of debiting or crediting one or more payments associated with the electronic mailing.

2. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 1 wherein

respective electronic mailings are signed with digital signatures that apply to certain or all of the content of the respective electronic mailings, and

the one or more servers are further configured to use the digital signature to verify the content to which the digital signature applies.

3. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 1 wherein the one or more servers are further configured to receive messages, not actually contained in the electronic mailing, from the sender of the electronic mailing and at the linking component link the messages to the information for the given electronic mailing.

4. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 3 wherein

the messages provide to a user links to web pages associated with on-line bill payment services offered through the senders of the respective mail pieces and electronic mailings,

the one or more servers are further configured to include in the information about the mail pieces and/or the electronic mailings the dates of the payments made using the links.

5. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 1 wherein the one or more servers are further configured to associate with the respective mail pieces and electronic mailings links to URLs associated with the senders.

6. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 5 wherein the links are to URLs through which the user responds to offers included in one or more of the respective mail pieces and electronic mailings and the messages linked to the respective mail pieces and electronic mailings.

7. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 1 wherein the one or more servers are further configured to provide the information for display on the video monitor as a table in which one or more fields of the table are cross-linked to one or more URLs associated with the sender of a given mail piece or electronic mailing.

8. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 7 wherein the one or more URLs provide access for the user to respond to one or more offers included in the given mail piece or electronic mailing.

9. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 7 wherein a given URL provides access for the user to make a payment associated with the given mail piece or electronic mailing.

10. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 7 wherein the one or more servers are further configured to include in the table fields one or more pull down menus with links to the URLs.

11. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 10 wherein at least one pull down menu is included in a sender field of the table.

12. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 10 wherein at least one pull down menu is included in a message field of the table.

13. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 1 wherein the one or more servers are further configured to link delivery instructions from a user with the user identifier and provide the instructions to one or more of the postal service, delivery companies and delivery services.

14. The personal mail piece tracking and tracing system of claim 1 further including in the linking component one or more links associating one or more invoices corresponding to the mail piece or the electronic mailing with the user identifier.