Mail Item Tracking via Image Reader and IMB Association
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mail owners lack the ability to effectively track mail items intended for specific targets once they have outsourced mail processing to a service provider, as they do not have access to the Intelligent Mail Barcode (IMB) tracking code or submission details.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that associate a unique mail item identifier with the intended mail target during processing, using an image reader to capture the identifier from the address block, generating a postal authority delivery point barcode, and printing it on the mail item, allowing event data from the mail delivery network to be stored and reported to the mail owner.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If mail processing is outsourced to a service provider, then processing efficiency and capacity are improved, but tracking capability and visibility of mail items are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary tracking system that bridges the mail owner and the postal authority. The system captures images of mail items at the mail processing facility, extracts tracking information, and maintains a database that links mail items to their delivery status. This intermediary layer allows the mail owner to track items without interfering with the outsourced processing operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms by continuously monitoring mail item status through the postal authority's tracking systems and providing real-time updates to the mail owner. The database stores delivery status information and makes it accessible to the mail owner, enabling ongoing visibility into the processing and delivery of mail items despite outsourcing.
2Adaptability or versatility
If mail items are processed through multiple destination entries, then delivery coverage and network utilization are improved, but tracking complexity and data management burden increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal tracking database that serves multiple functions: it stores mail item information, tracks delivery status across different destination entries, and provides access to both the mail owner and the mail processing facility. This single database system handles the complexity of tracking items through multiple destinations without requiring separate tracking mechanisms for each destination entry.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a digital copy of the mail item's tracking information at each destination entry through image capture and data extraction. These digital copies are stored in the database and linked together, creating a complete tracking history without requiring physical tracking mechanisms at each location. The digital copies enable comprehensive tracking while simplifying the physical processing operations.
Data Source
AI summary
The present application relates to the ability to track mail items through a postal authority network with reference to a specific mail target. More particularly, the present application relates to a system and method for enabling tracking of event data by a mail owner of one or more mail items specifically by mail target through a mail delivery network's mail stream.