GB2364097A

GB2364097A - Lockable mail box

Info

Publication number: GB2364097A
Application number: GB0021805A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Michael Charles Conway
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2000-06-29
Filing date: 2000-09-06
Publication date: 2002-01-16
Also published as: GB0021805D0; GB0015886D0

Abstract

A mail box has a door 2 for access by a delivery person to deposit parcels in the box, the door being lockable by means of a code - operated lock mechanism on the box. The lock may be a mechanical lock with push buttons as shown, or may be operated by an electronic key pad, or a bar code reader, and these may be linked to a computer within the building. For E - commerce, the customer may agree with the sender a key code to unlock the box. The box may also include a conventional letter slot.

Description

2364097 IMPROVEMENTS TO MAIL BOXES

Field of the Invention

The present invention concerns improvements in and relating to mail boxes and especially mail boxes suited for receiving parcel mail.

Backcround to the Invention Mail boxes for receiving parcel mail are commonplace in the United States and Australia but relatively uncommon in the United Kingdom They generally comprise a box structure of metal or wood having a door in the front face that may be opened and closed to enable the postal delivery person to insert the parcel mail.

The mail box may further have a trap to receive the mail in a way that renders it largely inaccessible from the point of entry and may also have a simple slot for receipt of letters or very slim parcels Conventionally at least in the United States, the mail boxes will generally be mounted atop a post that is set at a curbside for ease of access by the delivery person Alternatively, and more commonly in the United Kingdom, where mail boxes are provided these are generally secured to the external fabric of the dwelling or office to, possibly within a porch, masonry or timbers, for example by bolts which may be of the expanding type.

Although the precise location of the mail box and the fixtures used to install it may vary, all mailbox installations are external to the main locked entrance to the dwelling or office, having an external opening door for access by the mail man to place the parcel mail in the box.

Although measures such as the provision of traps within mail boxes do provide a level of security against theft, they are undesirable because they must be more than twice the size of the parcel mail to be received and must have two points of access, one for the mailman and one for the mail box's recipient.

I Attempts have been made to render mail boxes more secure by use of keyoperated locks where the postal operators are provided with generic keys These systems, however are not highly secure and may easily be abused.

The drawbacks of existing parcel mail boxes are highly pertinent in the modern era of business-to-consumer e-commerce since inherently direct to door delivery of goods is a key element of this e-commerce The major problem that faces the industry is ensuring security of the delivered goods if delivered when the recipient is absent from the dwelling or office Mail boxes for parcel post become an extremely valuable facility but their existing level of security leaves much to be desired.

To the best of the applicants knowledge, although the industry has been aware of this problem for many years, it has yet failed to come up with a satisfactory solution It is the general objective of the present invention to provide a simple but workable efficient solution to the problem.

Summarv of the Invention In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention there is provided an improved mail box for parcel mail having a front opening door for access by the mail person to deposit the parcel mail in the mail box, the door being lockable shut by means of a code-operated (eg digital/numerical/alphanumerical) combination lock mechanism on the mail box.

In a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a mail box installation comprising a mail box of the first aspect installed out doors on the exterior of a building or within a porch outside of a building, or on a post or other structure spaced from the building.

In common with mail boxes generally, the mail box may have a roof that projects at least partially over the upper edge of the door to shelter the opening for the door from rainfall Alternatively or additionally it suitably has a slot to receive letters without having to open the door.

Preferably the coded combination lock is a purely mechanical lock, being operated by mechanical key code push buttons and/or a dial or other mechanical actuating means.

In a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, the coded combination lock has an electronic signal processor means (eg microprocessor) and is operated by an electronic key code that is, for example, entered to the lock to operate the lock by means of an electronic keypad or a digital data code sensor such as a bar code reader or other means.

Use of a bar code reader to enter the digital key code data has particular advantages It is fast, efficient and reliable and makes no noticeable impact on the mail service operator The digital code number for unlocking the mail box can be supplied on the mail parcel and if the key code is in the form of a bar code all that the mail service is required to do is for the post person to hold the parcel with its bar code oriented in the direction of the bar code reader in order to open the mail box.

As a measure to operate the system efficiently, where the digital combination lock is adapted to be operated electronically by an electronic digital key code it may be particularly efficiently re-programmed to operate in response to a new code by electronic re-programming signals from a computer terminal within the building with which the mail box is associated In the context of e-commerce this enables the customer to conclude a contract for purchase of a product over the internet by transmitting a product-associated key code to his/her mailbox so that the mail box can only subsequently be opened (assuming that the code has not changed again) when the mail parcel accommodating the product reaches the mail box and the key code on that mail parcel is entered into the digital combination lock.

In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of managing an e-commerce system which comprises the customer having an improved mail box of the first aspect of the present invention and notifying the e-commerce retailer of this and agreeing with the e-commerce retailer upon a digital key code number to unlock the mail box and the retailer then associating that number with the mail parcel that contains the product when sending it to the customer so that the mail service will be able to unlock the mail box by use of the number associated with the mail parcel As noted above the number is particularly preferably marked on the parcel and, more preferably still, is marked as a bar code on the parcel.

As the system is developed, the E-commerce retailer may use a consistent bar code for retailing a given product or range of products and notify the customer of this who then is able to re-set his/her lock on the mail box accordingly to enable receipt of the mail parcel containing the product.

Brief Description of the Drawings

A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be more particularly described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a front elevation view of a mail box embodying the invention; Figure 2 is a side elevation view of the same; Figure 3 is a top plan view; and Figure 4 is a part sectional view along the line A-A from Figure 1.

Description of the Preferred Embodiment

A simple embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in the accompanying Figures It comprises a strong box constructed of a material such as mild sheet steel of a gauge of the order of 1 5 mm thick Example dimensions are given on the drawings in mm.

The mail box 1 has a front opening door 2 built into its front face beneath a protective sheltering overhang 3.

The periphery of the door 2 is securely nested within the front of the box 1 so that it cannot easily be jemmied loose and it is locked in the shut position by a combination lock mechanism 4 that is mounted to the front of the door 2 adjacent the leading edge of the door 2 and the lock bolt 5 of which lockingly engages with a keep mounted on the inside edge of the box 1 that faces the leading edge of the door 2 when the door is shut.

A letter box style slot 6 may be provided in the door 2 for letter mail to be posted into the mail box 1 without having to gain access through unlocking and opening the door 2.

The illustrated combination lock is of a conventional purely mechanical and push button-operated type as is commonly used on internal office doors, for example The lock is settable to a chosen code and is re-settable thereafter It is opened by punching the numerical code onto the various buttons, each of which is marked with a different number or letter and when pushed re-aligns a further element of the lock mechanism By turning the rotary knob at the top of the mechanism once all of the button-linked elements have been re-aligned the bolt of the lock is disengaged from the key.

Whereas such a purely mechanical lock is cheap, readily available and simple to install, the alternative of using an electromechanical lock mechanism having, for example, a solenoid-operated locking bar is also feasible and is especially practical where the code is generated or read in electronic form.

By using a coded lock having a code key rather than a mechanical key, but regardless of whether the lock itself is mechanical or electromechanical, it is possible to directly associate the key code with the mail parcel from the retailer by, for example, printing it on the parcel or on an attached tag so that when it arrives at the recipients mailbox 1 the mail delivery person may use the key code on the parcel to open the mailbox 1 by keying in the key code into the numerical combination lock.

The code of the lock mechanism is re-settable The recipient/proprietor of the mail box has the ability to re-set the code that is required to unlock the code- operated combination lock mechanism.

This arrangement avoids any of the security risks and complications of mechanical key operated lock mechanisms The mail delivery person is the only party to have access to the key for the mail box when delivering the parcel since a new key code can be used for each different delivery and each different supplier and each different recipient There is no need for the mail delivery service to have any generic mechanical keys.

Furthermore, with the more developed embodiment using bar coding, the mail delivery person does not even need to know the number/code for the lock and needs only to simply present the parcel in the right orientation to a bar code reader on the mail box in order to open it.

The merits of the present invention are readily appreciable from the foregoing and numerous alternative embodiments may be conceived of within the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Claims

1 An improved mail box for parcel mail having a front opening door for access by the mail person to deposit the parcel mail in the mail box, the door being lockable shut by means of a code-operated combination lock mechanism on the mail box.

2 A mail box as claimed in claim 1, wherein the mail box has a roof that projects at least partially over the upper edge of the door to shelter the opening for the door from rain fall and/or which has a slot to receive letters without having to open the door.

3 A mail box as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the coded combination lock is a purely mechanical lock, being actuated by Xmechanical key code push buttons and/or a dial or other mechanical actuating means.

4 A mail box as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the coded combination lock has an electronic signal processor means such as, for example, a microprocessor, and is operated by an electronic key code that is, for example, entered to the lock to operate the lock, by means of an electronic key pad or a digital data code sensor such as a bar code reader or other means.

A mail box as claimed in claim 4, wherein the electronic processor means is linked to a computer terminal within the building with which the mail box is associated and may be re-programmed to operate in response to a new code by electronic re-programming signals from the computer terminal.

6 A mail box installation comprising a mail box as claimed in any preceding claim installed outdoors on the exterior of a building or within a porch outside of a building, or on a post of other structure spaced from the building.

7 An E-commerce system in which the customer has an improved mail box of any of claims 1 to 6 and notifies the E-commerce retailer of this and agrees with the E-commerce retailer upon a digital key code number to unlock the mail box and the retailer then associates that number with the mail parcel that contains the product when sending it to the customer so that the mail service will be able to unlock the mail box by use of the number associated with the mail parcel.

8 An improved mail box for parcel mail substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.