Mail processing system including off-line verification

Abstract

 The method for verifying mailpieces includes the steps of creating a mailpiece image having a set of data included in a postal revenue block and storing the images in a verification image file. The data from the postal revenue blocks in the verification image file are converted into corresponding data representative of the characters in the postal revenue block of the image of the mailpiece, preferably as ASCII data. The ASCII data is stored in a verification file which may be transmitted as desired. Verification of the mailpiece data can be performed at any time off-line using the corresponding data in the verification file. The conversion may be made by keying in the data or using bar code or OCR where the data is machine readable.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to mail processing systems and more particularly to postage metering systems which provide meter indicias including encryption data.

[0002] In mail distribution operations at the various post offices worldwide, mail carrying value-bearing meter impressions is received in enormous volumes. In order to cope with the increasing volumes of mail in these mail distribution centers, the mailpieces are now automatically processed by sorters to sort the mail according to its destination. With these volumes of mail, it has become extremely important to the Post Office that nothing interrupts the mail stream processing so as to reduce the efficiency of mail delivery.

[0003] From the mailer's point of view, recent advances in digital printing technology have made it possible to implement digital, i.e. bit map addressable, printing for the purpose of evidencing payment of postage by a postage-meter-like device. In order to distinguish such postage-meter-like devices from the typical postage meter, such devices will be named herein Postage Evidencing Devices or PED's. The computer driven printer can print the postal indicia in a desired location on the face of a mail piece. As used herein the postal indicia will be defined as the Postal Revenue Block or PRB. The PRB typically contains data such as the postage value, a unique PED identification number, the date and in some applications the name of the place where the mail is originating.

[0004] From the Post Office's point of view again, it will be appreciated that the digital printing makes it fairly easy to counterfeit the PRB since any suitable computer may be used to generate multiple images.

[0005] It is known to prevent such counterfeiting by including certain information in the block in both plaintext and ciphertext. For example the postage amount, date and sequential piece count can be encrypted using either a secret or public key encryption algorithm and printed along with the plaintext counterpart in the PRB. When the address information is also included in the ciphertext, the mailpiece is authenticated.

[0006] To authenticate the mailpiece, the verifying Authority again generates the encryption from the plaintext using the identical key used by the purported mailer. If the printed ciphertext matches, the mailpiece is verified. If there is no match then appropriate action may be initiated. The process may be automated using a device with scanning capabilities as described in U.S. Patent Number 5,308,932, assigned to the Assignee of the present application. In any case, either manually or automated, the verification process causes an interference in the post office which in turn may produce undesirable delays.

[0007] U.S. Patent Number 4,205,780 describes a video camera/raster scan television monitor and OCR reader for capturing and storing both an image of a document as well as machine readable data of the same document in order to allow visual comparison of the machine readable data with the data of the video image.

[0008] It would be desirable if there was available a method for verification of the printing of a Postal Revenue Block on a mailpiece which will interfere only minimally, if not at all, with the mail processing stream.

[0009] In accordance with the invention there is provided a method for verifying mailpieces comprising the steps of creating a mailpiece image of a mailpiece having a set of data included in a postal revenue block, said mailpiece image being stored in a verification image file; thereafter converting the data from the postal revenue block in the verification image file into corresponding data representative of at least some of the characters in the postal revenue block of the image of the mailpiece; storing the corresponding data in a verification file; and thereafter performing verification of the mailpiece using the corresponding data in the verification file.

[0010] It has been found that the verification can be provided without delaying the mail stream by utilizing a video camera or scanner to capture the data in the Postal Revenue Block for verification at a later time by creating from the video images a verification file and performing the verification off-line.

[0011] The invention will be better understood from the following non-limiting description of an example thereof given with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:-

[0012] Fig. 1. is a schematic view of a system which may be used in accordance with one example of the invention.

[0013] Fig. 2 illustrates typical postal revenue blocks which may be printed by a postage evidencing device (PED).

[0014] Fig. 3 is a flow chart of the operation of the off-line verification in accordance with said example of the invention.

[0015] In Fig. 1, there is shown generally at 10 a system in accordance with one example of the invention. Mailpieces 12, 14 and 16, which are selected from the mailstream in any desired manner, are shown in a sequence being transported in conventional manner past a video camera or scanner 18, the output of which is stored as a video image in a verification image file which is directed to a representative terminal 20. The image of each mailpiece in the verification image file includes data from the postal revenue block seen best in Fig. 2. The typical operator, illustrated at 22, keys in the characters from the data of the postal revenue block of each mailpiece into an ASCII verification file as further described in connection with Fig. 3 below.

[0016] The system may be advantageously designed to use the remote video image lifting already being performed by the Post Office. This system employs a unique ID number assigned to each mailpiece being processed. This unique ID number is printed on the back side of every mailpiece being processed and can be recorded together with the video image. This number provides a one-to-one link between the video image and the physical mailpiece. This link allows the retrieval of mailpieces which are suspect.

[0017] Alternatively, the video portion of the system may use, for example, the video camera illustrated in U.S. Patent Number 4,205,780 to capture the image of the postal revenue block of each mailpiece.

[0018] It will be appreciated that in another alternative, the image may be scanned as described in conjunction with U.S. Patent Number 5,308,932 which is assigned to the assignee of the instant application, to obtain the individual postal revenue blocks of data in the image file.

[0019] The output of the converted data at the terminal 20 is a verification data file which suitably may be contained, for example, on discs as illustrated at 24. The verification data file is preferably an ASCII data file of the desired characters in each postal revenue block. The ASCII data file consists of verification records containing, for illustrative purposes only and not as a limitation, the PED Identification Number, Date/Piece Count, Postage Amount and their encrypted value. It will be appreciated that the conversion may also be accomplished using standard OCR procedures where there is machine readable data in the revenue block.

[0020] It also will be understood that the ASCII verification files thus generated may be transferred to a verification center either on magnetic discs as illustrated or by magnetic tape or via EDI as is well known in the art for transmission of ASCII data. The verification center may of course be the Post Office itself if desired.

[0021] Fig. 2 illustrates two typical Postal Revenue Blocks 26 and 28 which are printed on mailpieces printed by a PED having the same I.D. Number 01234567. The data in the block may also include a sequential day number shown at 30, piece count illustrated at 32, and a number shown at 34 corresponding to an encryption of some or all of these numbers.
Fig. 3 is a flow chart of the operation of the off-line verification in accordance with the invention. As illustrated, the mailpieces to be verified are selected in some predetermined manner, for example, random selection of one mailpiece out of every 100 processed through the mailstream, block 40, and the verification image file is created at block 42. From this image file, an ASCII verification file is created, block 44, either by operation of a Key Entry or by suitable OCR scans of this data. From this data file, verification is performed off-line, as illustrated at block 46. The verification procedures are well known and will not be described further. Records that cannot be validated (plain and cipher texts do not match) are inspected and corresponding PED Identification Numbers are recorded for further investigation.

[0022] It will be appreciated that the EDI transfer option allows for almost complete automation of the process including the transfer of suspect PED Identification Numbers to field operations and to the Post Office authorities.

[0023] Machine readability may also be accomplished by bar-coding the data in the postal revenue block. The bar code symbology may be chosen from Postnet, Four-state bar code, or any other suitable symbology. The use of such bar codes or OCR technology will minimize the expense associated with scanning and conversion to the ASCII format.

Claims

1. A method for verifying mailpieces comprising the steps of creating a mailpiece image of a mailpiece having a set of data included in a postal revenue block, said mailpiece image being stored as one of a plurality of mailpiece images in a verification image file; thereafter converting the data from each of the postal revenue blocks in the verification image file into corresponding data representative of at least some of the characters in the postal revenue block of the image of the mailpiece; storing the corresponding data in a verification file; and thereafter performing verification of each of the mailpieces using the corresponding data of each mailpiece image in the verification file.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of creating the mailpiece image utilizes a video camera for obtaining the image of the mailpiece.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of creating the mailpiece image utilizes a scanner for obtaining the image of the mailpiece.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of converting the data is obtained by keying in the data read from the image of the mailpiece in the verification image file.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the data in the postal revenue block is machine readable data.

6. A method for verifying mailpieces comprising the steps of creating mailpiece images of a plurality of mailpieces each having a set of data included in a postal revenue block; storing each said mailpiece image as one of a plurality of mailpiece images in a verification image file: thereafter converting the data from the postal revenue blocks stored as mailpiece images in the verification image file into corresponding ASCII data representative of at least some of the characters in the postal revenue blocks of the images of the mailpieces; storing the corresponding ASCII data in a verification file; and thereafter performing verification of the mailpiece using the corresponding ASCII data in the verification file.

7. The method of claim 6 further comprising the step of recording a unique number associated with a mailpiece for later retrieval of the mailpiece in the event that the postal revenue block cannot be validated.

Drawing