EP2133845A1 - Frankiersystem, dass die Verarbeitung von Postartikeln nach verschiedenen Zielorten erlaubt - Google Patents

Frankiersystem, dass die Verarbeitung von Postartikeln nach verschiedenen Zielorten erlaubt Download PDF

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Publication number
EP2133845A1
EP2133845A1 EP09162072A EP09162072A EP2133845A1 EP 2133845 A1 EP2133845 A1 EP 2133845A1 EP 09162072 A EP09162072 A EP 09162072A EP 09162072 A EP09162072 A EP 09162072A EP 2133845 A1 EP2133845 A1 EP 2133845A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
destination
mail
franking
postage
database
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP09162072A
Other languages
English (en)
French (fr)
Inventor
Nico Ruben
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Quadient Technologies France SA
Original Assignee
Neopost Technologies SA
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Neopost Technologies SA filed Critical Neopost Technologies SA
Publication of EP2133845A1 publication Critical patent/EP2133845A1/de
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • 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
    • 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
    • G07B17/00185—Details internally of apparatus in a franking system, e.g. franking machine at customer or apparatus at post office
    • G07B17/00435—Details specific to central, non-customer apparatus, e.g. servers at post office or vendor
    • G07B2017/00443—Verification of mailpieces, e.g. by checking databases
    • 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
    • G07B17/00435—Details specific to central, non-customer apparatus, e.g. servers at post office or vendor
    • G07B2017/00451—Address hygiene, i.e. checking and correcting addresses to be printed on mail pieces using address databases
    • 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
    • G07B17/00467—Transporting mailpieces
    • G07B2017/00475—Sorting mailpieces
    • 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
    • G07B17/00467—Transporting mailpieces
    • G07B2017/00483—Batch processing of mailpieces
    • 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
    • G07B2017/00709—Scanning mailpieces
    • G07B2017/00725—Reading symbols, e.g. OCR

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to the field of mail processing and more particularly relates to a method of finding the tariff zone applicable to a mail item according to its destination and possibly postal services requested.
  • the postage amount of a mail item depends on several parameters such as the mail class, the weight and / or dimensions of the mail item and its destination fare zone, specifically its postal code or ZIP code. , and the postal service chosen (letter followed, recommended, recommended with acknowledgment of receipt) when it exists.
  • the weight and / or dimensions of the mailpieces are obtained automatically by mechanical or optical sensors arranged in the feeder of the machine or in the machine itself, along the transport path of the mail item.
  • the mail class and the destination fare zone are still entered manually by the operator at the user interface of the franking machine, as indeed the chosen postal service.
  • This entry is not in itself penalizing as the mail items are treated in batches because, in this case, the lots are classified by classes and tariff zones of destinations, which allows the operator to perform only one only entry of information prior to processing a complete batch.
  • this batch processing and more particularly the sorting by destination tariff zone (sorting by class is indeed very simple because it concerns not more than two or three classes and will continue to require a preliminary selection of the class), requires a long and therefore expensive preparation. And to refrain from it, ie to treat non-homogeneous lots in terms of the destination tariff zone is very penalizing for the franking rate, because then the operator must constantly stop the machine to enter the appropriate destination tariff zone for the processed mail item.
  • the subject of the present invention is therefore a method of searching for destination fare zones in a franking machine for mail items that authorizes the processing of non-homogeneous batches of mail items in terms of destination fare zones and postal service areas. without any stop of the machine.
  • An object of the invention is to provide this treatment without implementation of complex equipment other than those existing in current franking systems.
  • the process of transporting mail items is not interrupted and the print rate is not reduced when the destination tariff zone (in practice the postal code or ZIP code) can not be used. to be recognized.
  • the suspension of printing in the event of non-recognition or late recognition makes it possible to avoid financial losses resulting from the printing of a postal imprint on a mail item whose destination is incorrect or can not be determined. in proper time.
  • said at least one predetermined reason for non-postage is at least one of the following reasons: treatment not completed, illegible or incomplete characters, unknown addressee at the indicated address or non-existent address.
  • the method of the invention further comprises a step of reloading said unpaid postage items followed by a manual search step at the user interface of said franking system of a valid destination fare zone.
  • said unpaid postage items are directed to a reject bin.
  • Said specific marking preferably comprises a bar code or an identification number.
  • the method of the invention further comprises a step of extracting a service data item from said image by means of said optical character recognition unit to determine a characteristic code of the service concerned and a number of associated tracking, if it can be noted a membership of said extracted destination data to at least one of said destination tariff zones stored in said database.
  • It may further comprise a step of automatically filling a recognized service form with a recipient name, a postal code and said tracking number and a step of transmitting said form to a remote server.
  • this machine comprises means for printing a specific marking on each of said mail items whose said destination data could not be found in said database or means for printing a sequential number on each of said mail items. . It may further include a rejection tray to which are directed said unpaid postal items.
  • said specific marking comprises a bar code or an identification number.
  • the figure 1 schematically illustrates a closed type franking machine according to the invention for a search of the destination fare zones applicable to a batch of mail items having different destinations from each other and a treatment of mail items that may present an incorrect recipient address (known as UAA for undeliverable-as-addressed).
  • UAA undeliverable-as-addressed
  • a franking machine of mail items closed type 10 comprises, as is known and arranged upstream downstream in the direction of advancement of mail items: a module 12 for supply of mail items for receiving a stack of mail items typically in bulk (ie of different sizes and weights) each having a destination address; optionally a module 14 for selection and transport one by one of these mail items when the power supply module does not directly perform this individual selection; preferably a dynamic weighing module 16 for determining the weight and possibly the dimensions of each selected mailpiece, a postage module 18 for printing a postal fingerprint on each of the mail items thus selected one by one and weighed and a receiving tray 20 franked mail items.
  • the franking module which furthermore comprises an improved user interface 18A which makes it possible, in particular, to select the mail class and can integrate a touch screen 18B, is preferably, as is also known, connected to a remote server 26. a dealer of the franking machine itself connected to a server of a postal administration or a private carrier delivering the mail (not shown).
  • the closed-type franking machine also comprises an independent optical reading module 22 comprising an advantageously linear sensor 22A of the "contact" type, preferably arranged upstream of the dynamic weighing module 16, for acquiring a digital image of all or part of the mail article and, associated with optical character recognition (OCR) software, extracting at least one destination data from the destination address and / or service data carried on the mail article.
  • OCR optical character recognition
  • the franking machine also comprises database type of storage means 24 allowing a verification of the recipient addresses (and the correspondence thereof with destination tariff zones) and the different postal services (letter followed, recommended, recommended). with acknowledgment of receipt), shown on mail items. Depending on their size and configuration, these databases may or may not be integrated directly into the franking system.
  • OCR optical character recognition
  • This destination datum (postal code or ZIP) extracted from the image of the recipient address is then compared, in a step 104, with destination tariff zones previously stored in a database 22 to determine a possible membership of this destination data extracted from the image of the mail article to one of the tariff zones stored in the database. If the printed destination data is recognized (answer yes to the test of step 106), it may be proceeded, in a step 108, from the initial image, to an extraction of the service data possibly present on the screen. article of mail to determine the characteristic code of the service concerned and that of the following figures to determine a tracking number associated with the recognized service code.
  • a step 110 performed an automatic filling of a form related to the recognized service with the name of the recipient, the zip code or ZIP and the tracking number before the automatic calculation of the postage amount is performed.
  • the article of mail arrived at the franking module 18 having in the meantime been weighed by the dynamic weighing module 16 when it is present in a step 112, prior to the affixing of the postal imprint on the mail item, in a previous step 114 itself a possible final step 116 if a service data has been previously recognized and consisting of a transmission of the previously completed form to the remote server of the franking system dealer or postal administration for later use in the distribution of the mail item.
  • the impression of the postal impression is inhibited during the passage of the article of mail in front of the franking means prohibiting any franking of the article of mail and it is, in replacement, proceeded to the printing of a specific marking on the article of mail, in a step 120, to unless a sequential number has been printed on each of the mail items in a step 124 before it is directed, in a terminal step 126, to the receiving tray 20 or to an additional reject tray (step no illust when the machine has one.
  • a rejection counter 28 totaling the number of rejects and differentiating the possible rejection patterns is incremented to enable the operator, once the batch of mail has been processed, to know, by displaying on the 18B screen, the number of rejected mail items present in the receiving tray 20 according to the reason for rejection.
  • the operator can anticipate the treatment of these rejected mail items, such as it will be indicated further.
  • the process of transporting mail items through the franking system is never interrupted and the rate of processing of mail items can be maintained at its highest level.
  • the specific marking associated with only mail items whose destination data could not be recognized may consist of a 2-dimensional bar code or an identification number printed successively on each of these mail items, for example at most near the recipient address (13 of the figure 1 ) or the area of the postage stamp. It allows for further manual processing by video coding of these mail items that have not been franked during this first phase of processing.
  • mail items whose destination data could not be recognized are subject, in a second phase, to additional processing to assign them a valid destination tariff zone or to return them to their sender ( in practice the service or the person of the sending company at the origin of the shipment possibly after opening by the mail service).
  • This allocation of a new destination rate zone is carried out directly to the user interface 18A of the franking module where the images 30 of the destination addresses of the mail items corresponding to the unrecognized destination data can be displayed one after the other in their order of rejection or indifferently from their identification number (where it exists) and corrected manually by the operator, if necessary with the help of appropriate correction tools using the above-mentioned database or any other information base such as a phone book or a business directory.
  • the correct postage amount can then be automatically calculated and the postal imprint printed immediately on the mail piece.
  • rejection counter that allows the operator to decide whether, during this second phase of processing, he must simply iron the rejected mail items in the system (calculation completed after printing ) or consider operation according to the mode of video coding via the interface 18A (in the case where the address is illegible or non-existent).
  • the use of the specific marking makes it possible, during the complementary processing of the mail items whose destination data could not be recognized during their initial processing, to associate the printing of the mail piece carrying an incorrect address, printing a label with a new address corrected.
  • the scanning of the specific marking, bar code or identification number, of each of the postage-free mail items makes it possible to associate a new address with the article of mail whose address is incorrect (the postal code is for example incompatible with the indicated city) and to proceed to its franking before directing it to the receiving tray 20 and then proceed immediately to print the label with this new address, which In turn, it will be directed to the receiving tray and will be immediately above the mail item with the wrong address to correct.
  • each of the mail items present in the receiving tray 20 will be franked and further covered with a label bearing the corrected address and will therefore no longer remain with the operator. that to stick each of the labels on each of the associated mail items (that is to say the one immediately below) to form a new pile of mail items ready to be distributed.

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  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mathematical Physics (AREA)
  • Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Character Discrimination (AREA)
  • Sorting Of Articles (AREA)
  • Devices For Checking Fares Or Tickets At Control Points (AREA)
  • Management, Administration, Business Operations System, And Electronic Commerce (AREA)
EP09162072A 2008-06-10 2009-06-05 Frankiersystem, dass die Verarbeitung von Postartikeln nach verschiedenen Zielorten erlaubt Withdrawn EP2133845A1 (de)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
FR0853831A FR2932301A1 (fr) 2008-06-10 2008-06-10 Systeme d'affranchissement permettant le traitement d'articles de courrier ayant differentes destinations

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP2133845A1 true EP2133845A1 (de) 2009-12-16

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Family Applications (1)

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EP09162072A Withdrawn EP2133845A1 (de) 2008-06-10 2009-06-05 Frankiersystem, dass die Verarbeitung von Postartikeln nach verschiedenen Zielorten erlaubt

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Country Link
US (1) US20090307155A1 (de)
EP (1) EP2133845A1 (de)
FR (1) FR2932301A1 (de)

Families Citing this family (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP2016159245A (ja) * 2015-03-03 2016-09-05 株式会社東芝 配達物処理装置、および配達物処理プログラム
US11662965B1 (en) * 2022-02-21 2023-05-30 Ricoh Company, Ltd. Address verification coordination for mail pieces

Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP1260280A2 (de) * 2001-03-23 2002-11-27 Opex Corporation Verfahren und Vorrichtung zur Verarbeitung von ausgehender Massenpost
EP1276078A2 (de) 2001-07-13 2003-01-15 Opex Corporation Verfahren und Vorrichtung zur Bearbeitung von grossen Mengen von Poststücken
EP1300808A1 (de) * 2001-10-05 2003-04-09 Neopost Industrie System zur Vorbereitung von Poststücken
US20050160054A1 (en) * 2004-01-16 2005-07-21 Pitney Bowes Incorporated System and method for determining postal rates
EP1912177A1 (de) * 2006-10-13 2008-04-16 Bowe Bell + Howell Company Validierung eines Lieferortes für eine physische Lieferung zur Verbesserung der Poststrom-Zusammensetzung

Family Cites Families (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US8126822B1 (en) * 1999-05-21 2012-02-28 Pitney Bowes Inc. Virtual post office box
US6796433B2 (en) * 2001-11-07 2004-09-28 Pitney Bowes Inc. Method of post processing OCR information obtained from mailpieces using a customer specific keyword database and a mailpiece sorting apparatus
US7104451B1 (en) * 2003-07-01 2006-09-12 Mccartney James I System and method of bar code error detection in large volume mailing
US20080110810A1 (en) * 2006-11-01 2008-05-15 Raf Technology, Inc. Mailpiece reject processing and labeling

Patent Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP1260280A2 (de) * 2001-03-23 2002-11-27 Opex Corporation Verfahren und Vorrichtung zur Verarbeitung von ausgehender Massenpost
EP1276078A2 (de) 2001-07-13 2003-01-15 Opex Corporation Verfahren und Vorrichtung zur Bearbeitung von grossen Mengen von Poststücken
EP1300808A1 (de) * 2001-10-05 2003-04-09 Neopost Industrie System zur Vorbereitung von Poststücken
US20050160054A1 (en) * 2004-01-16 2005-07-21 Pitney Bowes Incorporated System and method for determining postal rates
EP1912177A1 (de) * 2006-10-13 2008-04-16 Bowe Bell + Howell Company Validierung eines Lieferortes für eine physische Lieferung zur Verbesserung der Poststrom-Zusammensetzung

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Publication number Publication date
US20090307155A1 (en) 2009-12-10
FR2932301A1 (fr) 2009-12-11

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