EP1640903A1 - Verfahren für die Verarbeitung der Antwortenumschläge - Google Patents

Verfahren für die Verarbeitung der Antwortenumschläge Download PDF

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Publication number
EP1640903A1
EP1640903A1 EP05291939A EP05291939A EP1640903A1 EP 1640903 A1 EP1640903 A1 EP 1640903A1 EP 05291939 A EP05291939 A EP 05291939A EP 05291939 A EP05291939 A EP 05291939A EP 1640903 A1 EP1640903 A1 EP 1640903A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
envelope
address
response
sender
mail
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.)
Ceased
Application number
EP05291939A
Other languages
English (en)
French (fr)
Inventor
Dennis Gilham
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 EP1640903A1 publication Critical patent/EP1640903A1/de
Ceased 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
    • G07B17/00459—Details relating to mailpieces in a franking system
    • G07B17/00661—Sensing or measuring 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
    • G07B2017/00717—Reading barcodes
    • 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 stimulating and tracking envelopes responses returned to their senders by their recipients.
  • the present invention therefore aims to overcome the aforementioned drawbacks by proposing a method that allows the sender / creditor to know precisely if the recipient / debtor has sent his reply envelope within the time limit which has been fixed and therefore d avoid unnecessary stimulus.
  • An object of the invention is also to provide a method that is simple to implement whatever the mailing network, public or private, on which it applies.
  • the sender is informed of the sending or not of the envelope response by the recipient and can therefore the next day a relaunch without risking unjustified remarks from this recipient.
  • the invention therefore also relates to a method of automatically restarting a recipient of a mail item by a sender of this mail item, the recipient having to return a response envelope (ERF) before a given deadline, characterized in that it includes the operation of sending a reminder letter to the recipient address only if a unique response code affixed to said reply envelope and read by automatic entry means at a receiving office / distribution of a postal routing network, is not received at a specified e-mail address by that given deadline.
  • ERP response envelope
  • said determined e-mail address can be stored in a database of said receiving / dispatching office of the postal routing network or printed on said reply envelope, preferably in the form of a message code. bars.
  • the unique response code may also include said determined e-mail address.
  • the specified e-mail address may be the address of the sender or the address of a third party authorized by the sender.
  • said unique response code is a sequence of alphanumeric characters, preferably of the OCR type, or a one or two-dimensional bar code.
  • the read operation may comprise an OCR scan of said alphanumeric characters or a reading / recognition of said barcode or an RFID read / write of said unique response code written in an RFID indicator pasted on said response envelope.
  • said response envelope can be formed from an empty response envelope (ERV) received in said mail item addressed to the addressee by the sender or from a simple envelope (E ) on which is pasted a reply label (LR) received in said mail article addressed to the addressee by the sender.
  • ERP empty response envelope
  • E simple envelope
  • LR reply label
  • It also relates to the method of automatically restarting a recipient of a aforementioned mail item in which the sending operation of the reminder letter to the address of the recipient only if the unique response code is not received. to an e-mail address determined at the latest on that given deadline is replaced by a sending operation of the reminder letter to the address of the recipient only if the unique reply code is not recovered by the sender in a database where it was stored prior to the given deadline at the latest.
  • FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a computer network architecture that can exist between a sender and a recipient of a mail item, in which the method according to the invention for processing envelope responses can be implemented.
  • the sender has a computer system organized around a local area network 10 to which are connected among others, without this enumeration being limiting, one or more computer terminals, such as a personal computer 12, for example, one or more databases 14, a mail processing device 16 for enveloping and postage mail articles to be sent and a modem / router 18 to allow access to or from the Internet network 20.
  • a computer terminal such as a personal computer 12, for example, one or more databases 14, a mail processing device 16 for enveloping and postage mail articles to be sent and a modem / router 18 to allow access to or from the Internet network 20.
  • the module 16 conventionally comprises a tray 16A for receiving empty envelopes EV, a tray 16B for receiving empty envelope envelopes ERV, preferably pre-printed at the address of the sender and possibly pre-stamped, a bin 16C for receiving blank documents to be printed, a folding module for inserting the documents and / or the empty response envelope into the empty envelope EV and a printing module for printing both the document and / or the envelopes and a postage stamp.
  • the empty response envelope ERV at the address of the sender or the printed document D bearing a label LR, preferably self-adhesive and at the address of the sender, is introduced into the envelope empty EV before his postage.
  • the document D is advantageously edited on one of the computers 12 by the sender of the mail item and transferred electronically to the module 16 through the local network 10 to be put in an envelope with one or not the empty response envelope to deliver a closed envelope EF.
  • the presence of this mail processing module is not essential to the implementation of the method of the invention, the printing of this document can be carried out locally and both its packaging and postage made thereafter manually.
  • the document to be sent D or the empty response envelope ERV is provided with a unique response code (Code) which makes it possible to link this document with a recording. determined from the database 14, that is to say with a file specific to a specific application of the sender in relation to the contents of this document.
  • Code unique response code
  • the reply envelope is intended to receive a payment from the addressee, by check or any other equivalent means of payment, which recipient is debtor of a sum of money towards the sender his creditor. Therefore, the specific file is usually the creditor's customer accounting file, which contains the amount to be paid by the debtor but also a customer reference, a number and an invoice date, for example.
  • the unique code is advantageously in the form of a bar code (mono or preferably two-dimensional for its ability to correct errors) or alphanumeric characters printed in or as close to the address area of the sender appearing on the ERV empty response envelope or the LR response label of the printed document D.
  • this unique code may also be recorded in an RFID tag (RFID tag) pasted on the response envelope or on the response label.
  • the enclosed envelope EF enclosing the reply envelope (or the document bearing the reply label) to be sent can then be sent to its addressee through a postal routing network 22 of a private carrier or the carrier.
  • postal administration It is first received, in the city of departure, at a first reception / distribution office 24 of the carrier or of the administration where it is sorted before its dispatch to the city of arrival, in a second office of reception / distribution 26 of this carrier or administration, from where it is finally routed to its final recipient.
  • the envelope is then opened by it and its envelope ERV response or his document D extracted.
  • Each reception / distribution office conventionally comprises an incoming mail sorting module 26A in conjunction with a computer system 26B and a database 26C.
  • a router / modem 26D allows access to these data through the Internet network 20 to which it is connected.
  • the recipient will enter his payment OP, for example a check, a direct debit order or any other equivalent means of payment, either in the empty response envelope ERV or in any envelope E on which he will have previously glued the label reply LR attached to the document D.
  • the envelope thus constituted ERF is then ready to be forwarded to its original sender by a private carrier or the postal administration through their own network of postal routing.
  • the incoming mail sorting module 26A of the reception / distribution office 26 of the private carrier or the postal administration to a reading of the unique response code carried on the envelope closed response ERF, by means of a conventional automatic entry device such as a digitizer, a digital camera, a barcode reader, an OCR reader or an RFID reader (depending on the nature of the unique code), and its transmission to the sender the same day, via the Internet network 20.
  • a conventional automatic entry device such as a digitizer, a digital camera, a barcode reader, an OCR reader or an RFID reader (depending on the nature of the unique code)
  • the electronic coordinates of the sender will have been previously recorded in the database 26C.
  • these coordinates are present directly at the level of the unique response code or are present next to it in a separate barcode, such as the one known under the name of "Postnet code” or "4-state code ". It can also be envisaged that this transmission is made to a third party specifically loaded by the sender of the customer recovery which, for example, could be made via the Internet if the recipient has an e-mail address known to this third party.
  • the sender (or the aforementioned third party) is informed of the dispatch of the reply envelope by the recipient well before his arrival, and he can therefore abstain from sending him a useless raise.
  • he knows from the expiry date whether the recipients have sent or not their envelope response and it can therefore the day after this deadline, without waiting for any grace period, proceed to reminders recipients negligent or voluntarily late without risk of disapproval from them.
  • the method of processing the response envelopes thus comprises both a method for automatically tracking these response envelopes and a method for automatically restarting the recipient from this monitoring, the steps of which are summarized in the flowchart of FIG. 2. .
  • the automatic tracking method assumes that the reply envelope has been received by the recipient and therefore that the sender has previously sent it in an envelope to the address of the recipient, the sending via a postal routing network itself being preceded by printing on a response envelope or an answer label attached to a document of the unique response code in the form of a bar code (mono or preferably two-dimensional) or alphanumeric characters.
  • This unique code which may advantageously include the e-mail address of the sender may also be written in an RFID indicator stuck on the response envelope or the aforementioned reply label.
  • the first step 50 consists, for the recipient, to return the envelope envelope to which was attached a means of payment to a reception / distribution office of the postal routing network to allow forwarding to the sender.
  • step 52 reading by means of automatic entry of the unique response code affixed to this envelope response, then in a step 54 to the sending of this unique response code to a specific e-mail address of the sender or a third party mandated by the latter through the Internet network to which their computer is connected.
  • step 54 it may be envisaged that the operation of sending the unique response code to the abovementioned e-mail address is replaced by a step 56 of storing the response code. unique in any database of the postal routing network accessible through the Internet, and a step 58 of recovery by the sender, so through this Internet, of this unique response code stored in the database of data.
  • This tracking then allows the implementation of the process of automatic recovery of the recipient depending on whether the unique response code is received or not to the e-mail address of the sender or a third party mandated by the latter at the latest at the deadline set by the sender (step 60).
  • the unique response code is not retrieved by the sender in a database where it was stored before at the latest at said given deadline that the reminder letter is sent.

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  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Management, Administration, Business Operations System, And Electronic Commerce (AREA)
EP05291939A 2004-09-23 2005-09-20 Verfahren für die Verarbeitung der Antwortenumschläge Ceased EP1640903A1 (de)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
FR0410049A FR2875618B1 (fr) 2004-09-23 2004-09-23 Procede de traitement d'enveloppes reponses

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP1640903A1 true EP1640903A1 (de) 2006-03-29

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Family Applications (1)

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EP05291939A Ceased EP1640903A1 (de) 2004-09-23 2005-09-20 Verfahren für die Verarbeitung der Antwortenumschläge

Country Status (3)

Country Link
US (1) US20060074706A1 (de)
EP (1) EP1640903A1 (de)
FR (1) FR2875618B1 (de)

Families Citing this family (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6253061B1 (en) 1997-09-19 2001-06-26 Richard J. Helferich Systems and methods for delivering information to a transmitting and receiving device
US6826407B1 (en) 1999-03-29 2004-11-30 Richard J. Helferich System and method for integrating audio and visual messaging
US6636733B1 (en) 1997-09-19 2003-10-21 Thompson Trust Wireless messaging method
US7003304B1 (en) 1997-09-19 2006-02-21 Thompson Investment Group, Llc Paging transceivers and methods for selectively retrieving messages
US6983138B1 (en) 1997-12-12 2006-01-03 Richard J. Helferich User interface for message access
GB2443213A (en) * 2006-10-16 2008-04-30 Royal Mail Group Plc Coded indicia for postal item
FR2952459B1 (fr) * 2009-11-10 2011-12-16 Neopost Technologies Procede de securisation des affranchissements au travers d'un reseau de telecommunication

Citations (4)

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EP1063602A1 (de) * 1999-06-24 2000-12-27 Pitney Bowes Inc. System und Verfahren zur automatischen Benachrichtigung von bevorstehender Ablieferung von einem Versandstück
EP1244029A1 (de) * 2001-03-16 2002-09-25 Hsu Yung-Nan Verfahren zum Zugreifen auf das Internet durch das Abtasten von identifizierenden Kodes
EP1246134A1 (de) * 2001-03-27 2002-10-02 Pitney Bowes Inc. Nachrichtendienst für eindeutig identifizierbare Sendungen
US20040031846A1 (en) * 2002-08-14 2004-02-19 Lockheed Martin Corporation System and method for narrowcasting item tracking

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EP1063602A1 (de) * 1999-06-24 2000-12-27 Pitney Bowes Inc. System und Verfahren zur automatischen Benachrichtigung von bevorstehender Ablieferung von einem Versandstück
EP1244029A1 (de) * 2001-03-16 2002-09-25 Hsu Yung-Nan Verfahren zum Zugreifen auf das Internet durch das Abtasten von identifizierenden Kodes
EP1246134A1 (de) * 2001-03-27 2002-10-02 Pitney Bowes Inc. Nachrichtendienst für eindeutig identifizierbare Sendungen
US20040031846A1 (en) * 2002-08-14 2004-02-19 Lockheed Martin Corporation System and method for narrowcasting item tracking

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
FR2875618B1 (fr) 2006-12-29
FR2875618A1 (fr) 2006-03-24
US20060074706A1 (en) 2006-04-06

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