System for mailing and collecting items
DCFirst Claim
1. A system for accepting and storing items for subsequent pickup by a commercial carrier, comprising:
- an outer housing;
means on said outer housing for weighing an item which a customer may intend to ship;
means for inputting information relating to the destination of the item from customer;
control means for calculating a shipment fee for the item, said control means being in communication with said weighing means and said information inputting means;
means in communication with said control means, for accepting identification information relating to eventual payment from the customer;
a storage area defined by said outer housing; and
secure deposit means for permitting a customer to securely deposit the item into the storage area, said secure deposit means including an intermediate holding space which is defined by an outer door, an inner door, and means for closing said inner door when said outer door is opened.
11 Assignments
Litigations
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A system for accepting and storing items for subsequent pickup by a commercial carrier may include a storage area which is defined by an outer housing, and a customer interface area that includes a weighing unit and a unit, such as a magnetic card reader, for accepting payment from a customer. The system may also include a control system that accepts address information from the customer through a key pad, and then instructs a printer to print an address label for the item. The system includes safeguards which prevent unauthorized access to the storage area, and will not provide a receipt to the customer until internal sensors verify deposit of the item. A manifest printer may also be provided for the benefit of the commercial carriers who service the system, to print out a summary of the transactions that pertain to each carrier.
88 Citations
16 Claims
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1. A system for accepting and storing items for subsequent pickup by a commercial carrier, comprising:
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an outer housing; means on said outer housing for weighing an item which a customer may intend to ship; means for inputting information relating to the destination of the item from customer; control means for calculating a shipment fee for the item, said control means being in communication with said weighing means and said information inputting means; means in communication with said control means, for accepting identification information relating to eventual payment from the customer; a storage area defined by said outer housing; and secure deposit means for permitting a customer to securely deposit the item into the storage area, said secure deposit means including an intermediate holding space which is defined by an outer door, an inner door, and means for closing said inner door when said outer door is opened. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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Specification