Encoded Delivery Point Routing for Privacy-Protected Item Delivery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Distribution systems face challenges in delivering items when senders do not have access to or desire to avoid using recipient's physical address information, necessitating systems and methods for anonymizing and encrypting delivery point information.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that assign unique internal control values to delivery points, encrypt and anonymize these values, and use them to route items without revealing the physical address, utilizing a profile database and item processing equipment to deliver items to the correct location.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If physical address delivery point information is provided to the distribution system, then item delivery can be accurately routed, but recipient privacy and security are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism where the distribution system acts as a mediator between the sender and the recipient's physical address. The system receives anonymized delivery point information from senders, maintains a secure mapping between anonymized identifiers and physical addresses in its internal database, and routes items accordingly without exposing actual addresses to senders or third parties.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and separates the delivery routing function from the physical address information. By using anonymized delivery point identifiers that can be independently processed and routed, the system removes the need for senders to access or store actual physical addresses, thereby protecting privacy while maintaining accurate delivery capability through the distribution system's internal mapping mechanisms.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If anonymized delivery point information is used, then recipient privacy is protected, but the distribution system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal anonymized delivery point identifier format that can be processed across multiple system components. The distribution system's processing equipment is designed to universally recognize and handle these anonymized identifiers through standardized scanning and routing mechanisms, allowing the same infrastructure to serve both privacy protection and efficient routing functions without requiring separate specialized systems.
3Productivity
If internal control values with specific character lengths are assigned, then data consistency and processing efficiency are improved, but the flexibility for custom delivery points is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs parameter changes by defining internal control values with specific character length constraints (e.g., 11 characters matching ZIP+4 format) to optimize processing efficiency. The system maintains flexibility by allowing these standardized parameters to be dynamically mapped to various physical delivery points through the distribution system's database, enabling efficient processing while adapting to different delivery locations through configuration rather than structural changes.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for delivering items are disclosed. The systems and methods comprise assigning a unique internal control value to each profile having an identified physical address delivery point. They also receive a request for delivery point information for each of a plurality of items to be distributed and providing a response comprising a list of internal control values thereto. They further receive a plurality of items, each item having printed thereon one of the internal control values on the list. For each of the plurality of items, they scan, by item processing equipment, the item to read the internal control value printed thereon, identifying, in the profile database, the physical address delivery point corresponding to the assigned internal control value, routing, by the item processing equipment, the item according to the identified physical address delivery point, and delivering the item to the identified physical address delivery point.