Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
  • G07F—COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
  • G07F17/00—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services
  • G07F17/0014—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for vending, access and use of specific services not covered anywhere else in G07F17/00
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
  • G07B—TICKET-ISSUING APPARATUS; FARE-REGISTERING APPARATUS; FRANKING APPARATUS
  • G07B17/00—Franking apparatus
  • G07B17/00185—Details internally of apparatus in a franking system, e.g. franking machine at customer or apparatus at post office
  • G07B17/00193—Constructional details of apparatus in a franking system
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
  • G07C—TIME OR ATTENDANCE REGISTERS; REGISTERING OR INDICATING THE WORKING OF MACHINES; GENERATING RANDOM NUMBERS; VOTING OR LOTTERY APPARATUS; ARRANGEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS FOR CHECKING NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE
  • G07C9/00—Individual registration on entry or exit
  • G07C9/30—Individual registration on entry or exit not involving the use of a pass
  • G07C9/38—Individual registration on entry or exit not involving the use of a pass with central registration
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
  • G07F—COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
  • G07F11/00—Coin-freed apparatus for dispensing, or the like, discrete articles
  • G07F11/62—Coin-freed apparatus for dispensing, or the like, discrete articles in which the articles are stored in compartments in fixed receptacles
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
  • G07F—COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
  • G07F17/00—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services
  • G07F17/26—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for printing, stamping, franking, typing or teleprinting apparatus
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
  • G07B—TICKET-ISSUING APPARATUS; FARE-REGISTERING APPARATUS; FRANKING APPARATUS
  • G07B17/00—Franking apparatus
  • G07B17/00185—Details internally of apparatus in a franking system, e.g. franking machine at customer or apparatus at post office
  • G07B17/00193—Constructional details of apparatus in a franking system
  • G07B2017/00233—Housing, e.g. lock or hardened casing
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
  • G07B—TICKET-ISSUING APPARATUS; FARE-REGISTERING APPARATUS; FRANKING APPARATUS
  • G07B17/00—Franking apparatus
  • G07B17/00185—Details internally of apparatus in a franking system, e.g. franking machine at customer or apparatus at post office
  • G07B17/00362—Calculation or computing within apparatus, e.g. calculation of postage value
  • G07B2017/0037—Calculation of postage value
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
  • G07B—TICKET-ISSUING APPARATUS; FARE-REGISTERING APPARATUS; FRANKING APPARATUS
  • G07B17/00—Franking apparatus
  • G07B17/00459—Details relating to mailpieces in a franking system
  • G07B17/00661—Sensing or measuring mailpieces
  • G07B2017/00701—Measuring the weight of mailpieces

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a parcel franking device, and more particularly a franking device enabling a user to carry out the franking operation himself. It is known in post offices to place a device comprising a weighing pan on which the user places his parcel, means of calculating the postage price as a function of the measured weight, means of payment and means of printing to edit a postage sticker. Once the payment has been made, the sticker is edited, the user sticks it on the package and removes the package from the weighing pan to drop it in a post office box, which is most often made up of a simple bin accessible through a hole formed in one of the walls of the public space.
• a handling device moves the package so as to drop it into one or other of the receptacles provided under the weighing unit.
• the handling of the parcel by the franking system is a source of drawbacks. Indeed the package can be damaged during its fall or by receiving another package. It can also get caught in the handling device, which has the effect of putting the system out of service. It will also be noted that this system is particularly expensive and complex because of the need to provide a large number of electromechanical actuators.
• the object of the present invention is to provide a franking device which can be used independently and reliably, that is to say in particular by guaranteeing that the packages will not be damaged during the franking operation.
• the subject of the present invention is a package franking device characterized in that it comprises: - a plurality of boxes, each provided with a door and intended to contain packages; - a management unit; - locks adapted to lock each door and individually controlled by the management unit; - position detectors which are each associated with a door and which are adapted to inform the management unit when the corresponding door is in the closed position; - at least one weight sensor adapted to transmit to the management unit an indication of the weight of a package placed in one or the other of the boxes; and display means, data input means and payment means, said means being connected to the management unit, and in that the management unit is suitable for: - performing a calculation of a postage price of a package placed in a safe determined from the data provided by the input means, and the indication of the weight of said package transmitted by the weight sensor, when a position detector associated with a door of said determined trunk detects a closed position; - order the locking of the door of said safe following payment of the calculated postage price;
• the package is not subjected to any manipulation that risks damaging it between the time it is left in the safe by the user and the time it is picked up by an employee of a shipping company.
• the absence of a manipulator simplifies the construction of the franking device and reduces the risk of it being taken out of service. Note that waiting for information on the closed position of the door before calculating the postage price considerably reduces the possibility of fraud.
• the simple fact that a parcel is contained in a locked safe means that the postage price of this parcel has been paid, so that it is not necessary to mark the parcel as soon as it is deposited in the trunk to physically indicate on this one that he was properly freed.
• the management unit comprises storage means suitable for storing tables of postage rate corresponding to different types of destinations and / or different types of shipping services, the management unit being adapted to calculate the postage price using a rate selected from the data provided by the input means, so that the user has a large choice of destination and types of services such as for example a normal shipment or an express shipment;
• the management unit comprises storage means adapted to store a plurality of predefined shipping companies and a table associating a determined safe with a predefined shipping company, the management unit being adapted to record the association of a safe specific to a shipping company predefined from the data provided by the input means, so that the device can be used in a pooled manner by several shipping companies;
• the management unit is adapted to control the unlocking of the doors of all of the associated safes to a predefined shipping company, following the recognition of a recovery code transmitted by the data entry means.
• the present invention also relates to a method of implementing a package franking device as defined above and comprising a franking operation, in which the franking operation comprises the following steps: - the waiting for information indicating that the door of a given safe is in the closed position; then - the calculation of a postage price for a package placed in said box determined from the data supplied to the input means and using the indication of weight of said package transmitted by the weight sensor; - payment of the postage price calculated previously; and - the locking of the door of said determined trunk.
• the franking operation includes prior to stage d 'waiting for a closed position signal: selection by the management unit of said safe determined from among the available safes; then.
• the step of calculating the operation d franking also comprises at least one of the following substeps: the display of different types of destinations memorized by the management unit, followed by the selection using the input means of a type of destination and the application of the postage rate corresponding to the calculation of the price d 'postage; the display of different types of destinations memorized by the management unit, followed by the selection using the input means of a type of shipping service and the application of the postage rate corresponding to the calculation of the postage price ' ; providing the management unit with storage means suitable for storing a plurality of predefined shipping companies and a table associating a determined chest with a predefined shipping company, and the franking operation further comprises the next step: the display of different predefined shipping companies, followed by the selection using the input means of a predefined shipping company and the association
• the recovery operation comprises, after the step of recognizing a recovery code, a step of editing at least one postage sticker for the package contained in said at least one safe; the content of several safes is associated with the same shipping company, and the package recovery operation includes, after the step of recognizing a code associated with said shipping company, the following steps: unlocking the door of a first of said safes; waiting for information indicating an open position of the door of the first of the safes; followed by .
• the package recovery operation comprises, after the step of recognizing a code associated with said shipping company, the following steps:. unlocking the door of a first of said safes; . waiting for the transmission by the weight sensor of a substantially zero weight indication for the content of the first of said safes; then unlocking the door of a second trunk of said safes.
• FIG 1 is a schematic front view of a device franking according to the invention
• Figure 2 is a flow diagram schematically showing the means used in the franking device shown in Figure 1.
• identical references have been kept to designate identical or similar elements.
• a franking device comprising a plurality of boxes 2.
• the boxes 2 which may be of variable dimensions, are intended to contain packages or letters.
• Each box 2 has a door 3 which can be held in the closed position by a latch 4.
• the latch 4 is electromechanical and comprises in a known manner a keeper which can be moved by an electromagnetic device, not shown, so that the latch can pass from a locked position for which the door 3 is kept closed, to an unlocked position for which the door 3 is free to be moved manually or automatically to an open position.
• the passage from the locked position to the unlocked position of the latch 4 is electrically controlled by the reception of an opening order which may be in the form of a current pulse.
• Each box 2 also includes a position detector 5 which sends an electrical signal when the corresponding door is in the closed position.
• the detector 5 is also suitable for sending a signal indicating the opening of the door if it is ajar.
• the position detector 5 can be produced simply by an electrical contactor preventing the passage of a current when the door is in the closed position and which is conductive when the door is in the half-open position. But of course the position detector can be produced differently, it can in particular send a first coded message when the door is closed and a second coded message as soon as the door is ajar. It is also possible to use several electrical contactors to carry out the door position detector.
• the door 3 of a trunk can be made in the form of an armored plate pivotally mounted on hinges, but it can also be made in the form of a sliding curtain as described in the French patent application filed under the number FR 0212921 October 17, 2002.
• the plurality of trunks 2 is divided into two columns.
• a weight sensor (9a; 9b) is subjected to the weight of a trunk column.
• each of the boxes with a sensor adapted to indicate the weight of the contents of this box.
• the boxes of each column are removably mounted in a corresponding chassis (6a, 6b), the weight sensors (9a, 9b) being interposed between each of the chassis and a base 7.
• the weight sensors can be produced differently, for example, it can be a strain gauge sensitive to the deformations of a cross member supporting the weight of the boxes, these being slidably mounted between the vertical uprights of the chassis (6a , 6b).
• the deposit device also includes a control panel 10 in which is arranged a management unit 11.
• the management unit 11 can be implemented by a microcontroller or any other data processing means suitably programmed to perform the operations which will be detailed below.
• the management unit 11 is electrically connected to the electromechanical latches 4, and is adapted to control the passage to a locked or unlocked position from one or the other of the latches.
• the management unit 11 is also connected, electrically or otherwise, to the position detectors 5 and to the weight sensors (9a, 9b) so as to be able to process the signals supplied by one of the position detectors (5) or a weight indication transmitted by one of the weight sensors (9a, 9b).
• the processing of the signals supplied by the detectors 5 allows the management unit (11) to deduce information indicating whether one or the other of the doors is in the closed or open position.
• the control panel 10 further comprises a display screen 12, data input means (14, 15), payment means 16 and editing means 18.
• the screen 12 is connected to the management unit 11 so as to display messages sent by the latter, in particular for dialoguing with a user wishing to frank a parcel.
• the data entry means comprise, in the embodiment shown, an alphanumeric keyboard 14 which allows the user to enter information such as, for example, a country of destination, and to carry out choice among different proposals displayed on the screen.
• the data entry means also include a bar code reader 15 which in particular allows a shipping company to quickly and reliably enter a recovery code when it comes to pick up the packages intended for it. It will be clear to a person skilled in the art that the bar code reader 15 can be replaced by any known means of identification, such as for example an electromagnetic loop adapted to establish a dialogue with a carrier owned by the shipping company, or means for recognizing biometric data.
• the data input means (14, 15) are of course connected to the management unit 11 so that the latter can process the data received.
• the means of payment 16 comprise in the embodiment shown a coin changer 16a, a smart card reader 16b and a numeric keyboard 16c which allows the user to enter the identification code linked to his credit card. chip.
• the means of payment may include other devices, such as for example a bank note reader or a magnetic card reader.
• the payment means 16 are connected to the management unit 11 bidirectionally, for the one hand, requesting the payment of a sum previously calculated by the management unit 11, and on the other hand, signaling to the management unit 11 that the payment has been made.
• the editing means 18, controlled by the management unit 11, include a printer, a paper roll and means for advancing and cutting the roll to issue a ticket to the outside of the franking device, such as this is known in ATMs.
• the management unit 11 is adapted to calculate a postage price for a parcel placed in a determined safe and chosen from all of the available safes of the device.
• the calculation of the postage price takes into account the weight indication transmitted by the weight sensor (9a or 9b) and corresponding to the weight of the content of said determined chest.
• this calculation is only carried out by the management unit when the position detector 5 of the corresponding safe door detects a closed position, in order to avoid fraud during the weighing operation. It will be noted that for security reasons, it is preferable to keep all of the doors 3 of the safes in the locked position except, of course, the trunk door in which the user is carrying out a franking operation. .
• the management unit 11 transmits this sum to the payment means 16, the latter sending back to the management unit a signal when the entire amount requested has been paid.
• the management unit orders the locking of the door of the safe in question. The contents of this chest are then considered to be correctly franked by the franking device. Then, the management unit 11 is adapted to keep the door 3 of this safe is locked until the recognition of a recovery code for this package, and possibly other packages, which has been supplied to the unit. management by barcode reading means 15.
• the calculation of the postage rate can take into account other parameters in addition to the weight of the package.
• the management unit 11 includes means for storage 22 containing tables containing different rates of postage, with which different types of destinations are associated, such as for example local destination, national destinations or to such and such a country. It is also possible to associate different types of shipping services with the different postage rates, such as normal shipping, acknowledgment of delivery or express shipping.
• the management unit 11 has storage means 23 adapted to store information relating to a plurality of predefined shipping companies, and containing one or more tables which make it possible to associate the content of a determined safe with one either of the predefined shipping companies. In this case, the management unit is adapted to record the association between a particular safe and one of the predefined shipping companies during the franking operation.
• the different franking parameters can be proposed during the franking operation thanks to the display screen 12 , and selected by the user using the data input means 14.
• the editing means 18 issue the user a ticket confirming the franking of the parcel.
• This ticket may include information relating to payment, destination, type of service, weight of the package, location of the safe containing the package or others.
• the franking device also includes communication means 27 connected to the management unit 11. The communication means are suitable for establishing a link with a remote site 28, either at the request of the management unit, or at the initiative of the remote site.
• the communication means 27 are constituted by a modem suitable for establishing communication via the Internet according to a secure protocol. But of course other means of communications or networks can be implemented.
• the management unit 11 is adapted to transmit information relating to the franking operations carried out. In particular, it communicates to the remote site the number of safes containing a package and the shipping company for which each package is intended, if the remote site 28 is managed by a third company on behalf of several shipping companies, or only the number of boxes containing a package intended for a particular shipping company if the remote site 28 is managed by this particular company. This communication operation is carried out on the initiative of the management unit 11, either following the franking of a parcel, or periodically.
• the management unit 11 is preferably adapted to control the unlocking of the doors of all the safes associated with a predefined shipping company following recognition of a unique recovery code corresponding to the predefined shipping company, in order to limit orders to open safes when an employee of the shipping company comes to collect prepaid parcels.
• the opening of all of the safes can be ordered almost simultaneously, but for security reasons, especially if the device is accessible to the public during the package recovery operation, it is preferable to order the opening of the doors automatically, but successively, according to one or other of the methods which will be detailed below.
• the implementation of the package franking device produced according to the invention comprises three main operations, franking operations, communications operations with a remote site and recovery operations.
• the user wishing to frank a parcel presses one of the keys of the data input means 14 to initiate a franking operation.
• the management unit 11 selects an available trunk from the plurality of trunks of the device and controls the passage into the unlocked position of the lock 4 associated with the trunk that it has selected. It is possible during this initialization step to ask the user for an indication of the size of his package in order to choose a trunk of appropriate dimensions.
• the selected safe 2 can be indicated to the user by the automatic opening of his door 3, it being understood that all of the doors are normally kept locked for security reasons, or by the display of a message allowing to identify the safe.
• the user places the package in the selected safe and manually folds down the door so that the position detector 5 informs the management unit 11 that the safe door 2 is in the closed position. If the door is not folded down in the closed position, the management unit displays a message and prohibits the continuation of the franking procedure. Once the door is closed, the management unit 11 possibly offers, via the display screen 12 different types of destinations, different types of services or different predefined shipping companies, which the user selects using the means of entry 14.
• the management unit calculates the postage rate for the package just dropped off.
• the calculated tariff is transmitted to the means of payment 16 by means of which the user can pay the amount requested by paying by coins or by smart card.
• the payment means 16 send a confirmation message to the management unit 11 which then considers that the franking of the parcel is correctly carried out.
• the management unit orders the passage of the lock 4 in the locked position and thus the package is kept securely inside the safe 2 until it is removed by a shipping company. . It should be noted that the locking of the trunk could occur before the confirmation of payment and even as soon as the door is folded down by the user.
• the management unit 11 receives information from the position detector of the door of the safe concerned, which indicates the opening of the latter, the franking operation is interrupted.
• the user's confidence in the franking device is increased, because he retains the possibility of recovering his parcel until the payment transaction is carried out.
• there is no automatic handling of the package in the device which further increases this confidence.
• the locking of the trunk door is followed, if the user wishes, by the printing of a ticket by the editing means 18.
• the ticket includes an indication attesting to the payment of the postage price by the user and any other useful information to confirm the deposit of a package and carry out the follow-up thereof.
• this other information can include the date and time of deposit, the choice of destination and type of shipment, the numbers of the franking device and the box used and the weight of the package measured by the franking device. .
• the management unit 11 a communication operation to warn the shipping company concerned that a package has just been franked for him. But the communication operation can also be carried out at different fixed times for each of the shipping companies, and at a time early enough that they can cancel the recovery operation if there is no package who intended him.
• the shipping company may interrogate the deposit device from its remote site 28, before the start of its package recovery tour.
• a given shipping company sends an employee with a bar code badge who will be recognized by the management unit using the bar code reader 15.
• the management unit 11 can control the parcel recovery operation according to the following steps: - the management unit 11 opens a first chest among the chests containing a parcel intended for this company shipping; - the management unit awaits information indicating an open position of the door of this first chest, which means that the package is accessible to the employee of the shipping company; followed by - waiting for information indicating a closed position of the door of this first box, which both indicates the removal of the first package and forces the doors of the franking device to be closed; then - unlocking the door of a second safe among the safes containing packages intended for this company, and so on until the last safe.
• the management unit can control the parcel recovery operation by controlling the following steps: - unlocking the door of a first chest among the chests containing a parcel intended for this shipping company; followed by - waiting for the transmission of an indication of substantially zero weight for the content of this box; then - unlocking a second chest among said safes, and so on until the last of the safes. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art, that these two methods of recovering packages can be combined to both ensure that each trunk door is closed and the package placed inside a safe has actually been recovered by the employee of the shipping company.
• the stickers are in the form of self-adhesive labels printed by the publishing means 18.
• Various information may appear on the stickers, for example a reference linked to the package, the postage paid, the company and the service. shipping chosen by the user and the destination indicated by the user at the time of the franking operation.

Landscapes

• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Lock And Its Accessories (AREA)
• Devices For Checking Fares Or Tickets At Control Points (AREA)
• Management, Administration, Business Operations System, And Electronic Commerce (AREA)
• Control And Other Processes For Unpacking Of Materials (AREA)
• Medicines Containing Antibodies Or Antigens For Use As Internal Diagnostic Agents (AREA)
• Coin-Freed Apparatuses For Hiring Articles (AREA)
• Auxiliary Devices For And Details Of Packaging Control (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=34684881

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (6)

Families Citing this family (23)

Family Cites Families (7)

• 2004
  • 2004-01-08 FR FR0400133A patent/FR2865061B1/fr not_active Expired - Fee Related
• 2005
  • 2005-01-03 EP EP05717354A patent/EP1702305B1/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2005-01-03 US US10/578,958 patent/US20090119232A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2005-01-03 AT AT05717354T patent/ATE380375T1/de not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 2005-01-03 DE DE602005003641T patent/DE602005003641T2/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2005-01-03 WO PCT/FR2005/000002 patent/WO2005076236A2/fr not_active Ceased

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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