Mail Sorting Image Transmission System
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing systems for mail sorting face challenges in efficiently managing fluctuations in mail volume, leading to unnecessary over-capacity and high operational costs due to the difficulty in predicting processing demands, especially with video coding systems that require significant effort and imprecise volume predictions.
Innovation Solution
A system that allows for the outsourcing of reading tasks between mail distribution centers using a standard interface for image transfer and control, enabling the use of reading devices from one center for processing images from another, without the need for complex adaptations, thus optimizing resource utilization and reducing costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a sufficient number of reading devices are available to process the maximum volume of mail, then the processing capacity is sufficient even with particularly high mail volume, but it is economically very disadvantageous to have the maximum necessary processing capacity available since it is only used infrequently
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges reading devices from multiple mail distribution centers into a shared pool that can be dynamically allocated. Instead of each center maintaining its own maximum capacity, the system combines resources across centers and allocates them based on actual demand, reducing total operational costs while maintaining sufficient processing capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements dynamic allocation of reading devices based on fluctuating mail volumes. The control component can adjust which reading devices are assigned to which centers in real-time, allowing the system to adapt to changing demands rather than maintaining static maximum capacity at each location.
2Productivity
If video coding system capacity is increased to handle fluctuating mail volumes, then sufficient processing capacity is available, but the operation is associated with a particularly high level of effort and imprecise predictions about mail volume
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes reading devices universal by enabling them to serve multiple mail distribution centers rather than being dedicated to a single center. A reading device can be allocated to different centers based on demand, making the video coding system more versatile and reducing the need for specialized high-capacity infrastructure at each location.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses digital copying and transmission of mail images between centers. Instead of requiring physical presence of mail items at each center with dedicated reading capacity, images can be copied and processed remotely by shared reading devices, reducing the complexity of local video coding systems.
3Adaptability or versatility
If reading devices are outsourced from one mail distribution center to another, then more efficient deployment planning is possible, but complex adaptations are required in the infrastructure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent standardizes the interface and control mechanisms across different mail distribution centers. By making the system homogeneous in terms of communication protocols and control structures, reading devices can be moved between centers without requiring complex adaptations, as all centers operate with compatible systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The control component acts as an intermediary that manages the allocation and coordination of reading devices between different mail distribution centers. This mediator handles the complexity of resource management, allowing individual centers to outsource reading capacity without needing to directly adapt their infrastructure, as the control component abstracts these complexities.
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The invention relates to system for determining sorting information for mail, comprising a control device (105) disposed in a first postal center (101), designed for transmitting reading instructions to a reading device (103; 104) on the basis of received transmission images, in which the sorting information can be determined, the control device comprising a first standard interface (116) for inputting transmission images. The system is characterized in that a transmission device (113) is designed for receiving a transmission image of the mail in a second postal center (108) and transmitting the same to the control device (105) via the first standard interface (116), so that the control device (105) generates a reading instruction for the reading device (103; 104) regarding the transmission image. The invention further relates to a further system, in which the transmission device (113) can receive transmission images in the second postal center (108) via a standard interface (117).