GB2463793A

GB2463793A - Twenty-four hour mailing facility

Info

Publication number: GB2463793A
Application number: GB0916872A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Peter Ryan
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2008-09-29
Filing date: 2009-09-25
Publication date: 2010-03-31
Also published as: IE20080783A1; GB0916872D0

Abstract

A mailing facility is accessible twenty-four hours a day throughout the year, or substantially so, to enable customers to send and receive letters and packages at any time, especially outside normal working hours. The mailing facility may be in a convenience store. The mailing facility comprises private mailboxes that may be rented for regular usage, virtual mailboxes for infrequent usage, and collection and drop off boxes. A point of sale unit may also be included in the mailing facility. The customer may be provided with a personal authentication code, preferably on a swipe card. The mailing facility may have a database to record the receipt of letters and packages, and the customer may be informed that letters of packages have been received, by phone, facsimile or e-mail.

Description

IMPROVEMENTS [N OR RELATING TO A MAILBOX SYSTEM The present invention is concerned with improvements in or relating to a mailbox system and is particularly concerned with a mailbox system that facilitates the deposit andlor receipt of items twenty-four hours a day throughout the year or substantially so' Systems for the deposit and receipt of items, for example letters and packages, are well known and generally provide a service to customers who might not be present during the day when conventional postal services deliver, or attempt to deliver a letter or a package. In the UK alone, the Royal Mail postal service has to contend with hundreds of thousands of in-hours, non-deliveries during any one year. Such happenstances cause great inconvenience to the addressee, who may be out shopping or at work. In addition, the postal service has to provide recordal and storage of any non-delivery until the addressee collects their letter or package.

The only redress for the addressee is to visit a local mail office, or depot if the courier is a private concern, in normal working hours in order to take delivery of the letter or package. This is most inconvenient and may be inordinately expensive if the mail office or depot is several miles from their normal delivery address. The addressee could call the mail office or depot to request redelivery the next day which is expensive for the carrier and causes more inconvenience for the addressee if they have to take time off from work.

It is, therefore, one of the objects of the present invention to overcome or at least mitigate the drawbacks of current, in-hours mailing services whether by the public or private service providers.

Thus, the present invention conveniently provides a mailing facility for letters and packages as hereinbefore defined, the mailing facility comprising storage and retrieval means whereby an authenticated customer may access the facility twenty-four hours a day throughout the whole year or substantially so.

Preferably, the mailing facility is provided in a convenience store that opens for business twenty-four hours a day throughout the whole year or substantially so.

In one convenient arrangement provided by the present invention the convenience store provides a first depository for storage of letters or packages, the first depository being readily accessed by an authenticated customer in order to take delivery of the letter or package.

In addition, the convenience store preferably provides a second depository that may be used by an authenticated customer to mail letters or packages via public or private mail services.

In a further convenient arrangement the authenticated customer is provided with a personal authentication code by the mailing facility in order to enable them to access the mailing facility.

Preferably, the personal authentication code may be encrypted on a swipe card or the like means.

In another convenient arrangement provided by the present invention, the mailing facility is connected to a data base for the recordal of letters and packages that are received from the public or private mail service providers, the authenticated customers being informed by phone, facsimile or e-mail that a letter or package has been received at the mailing facility.

The present invention also conveniently provides a method of operating a mailing facility according to any one of the last seven preceding paragraphs characterised in that the mailing facility, which is available twenty-four hours a day throughout the year, or substantially so: a) provides a depository for letters and packages received from public and private mail service providers; b) issues authenticated customers with depository numbers; c) takes delivery of letters and packages from the public and private mail service providers; d) records details of letters and packages received from the public and private mail service providers; e) notifies authenticated customer by telephone, facsimile or e-mail that a letter or package is in the numbered depository; f) facilitates identification of authenticated customer upon arrival to retrieve a letter or package; g) upon payment of a service fee or confirmation of a paid subscription, the mailing facility provides an authenticated customer with an access code for the numbered depository; and, h) enables authenticated customer to retrieve letters or packages from the numbered depository upon inputting the access code.

By way of example, there now follows a detailed description of the invention, which description is to be read with reference to the accompanying drawing.

The mailing facility 1 of the present invention is provided in a convenience store that is open for business twenty-four hours a day throughout the year with the exception of closure on especial days, for example, Christmas day and on one or two other special days of specific religious significance.

It will be readily appreciated that the provision of a mailing facility 1 within such a convenience store would allow an authenticated customer to make use of the facility for the retrieval of letters and packages that have been received by the mailing facility from one or other of public and private postal service providers.

The mailing facility 1 also enables an authenticated customer to use the facility for mailing out letters and packages via the public and private mail service providers.

Generally, the mailing facility I comprises the following units as shown in the accompanying drawing:-a) a point of sale unit 2; b) a private mailbox unit 3; c) a virtual mailbox 4; and, d) a collection and drop mailbox unit 5.

The point of sale unit 2 is linked to electronically controlled mailboxes through a LAN andlor the Internet connections in order to facilitate the delivery of letters and packages as requested by an authenticated customer.

The private mailbox unit 3 may be configured to comprise an amount of numbered mailboxes, not shown, according to local demand and each such numbered mailbox would be utilised by an authenticated customer who receives large quantities of incoming letters and packages. Like the point of sale unit 2, the mailbox 3 may be connected to a LAN and/or the Internet for notifying the authenticated customer of incoming mail; however, this connection is not absolutely necessary.

An authenticated customer with large flow of incoming mail would be allocated a numbered mailbox within the private mailbox unit 3 and they would enter into a rental arrangement upon payment of the requisite rental. Thereafter, the authenticated customer may access their numbered mailbox at their own convenience for the retrieval of the incoming mail.

The virtual mailbox 4 is for authenticated customers who only receive letters and packages on an infrequent basis and therefore do not have a dedicated numbered mailbox; however, the virtual mailbox 4 is connected to a LAN and/or the Internet for notification purposes.

The usage of a virtual mailbox is by authenticated customer subscription who is given a virtual mailbox address of a host location, for example, Suite 1234, 123 Any Street, Any Town. The authenticated customer then gives the address of the host location to all parties that they wish to receive mailed items from. The authenticated customer will visit the host location upon receiving notification that a letter or package has been received and upon proving that they are the owners of a virtual mailbox, they will pay a service fee before being given a mailbox number and the appropriate code to open the mailbox. The authenticated customer may then access the numbered mailbox in order to retrieve the delivered letter(s) or package(s).

The collection and drop off mailbox 5 is available to authenticated customers who subscribe to the service that enables them to use the facility to sendlreceive letters and packages between themselves and their customers. This facility is of great benefit to businesses and their employees. -In order to enable an authenticated customer to access a mailbox, the mailing facility: a) provides a depository, that is a numbered mailbox, for letters and packages received from public and private mail service providers; b) issues an authenticated customer with the mailbox number; c) takes delivery of letters and packages from the public and private mail service providers; d) records details of letters and packages received from the public and private mail service providers; e) notifies the authenticated customer by telephone, facsimile or e-mail that a letter or package has been received and is available for collection from the numbered mailbox; f) facilitates identification of an authenticated customer upon arrival to retrieve a letter or package; g) upon payment of a service fee or confirmation of a paid subscription, the mailing facility provides an authenticated customer with an access code for the numbered mailbox; and, h) enables the authenticated customer to retrieve letters or packages from the numbered mailbox upon inputting the access code.

It is envisaged that the mailbox facility will be modular and formatted as: 1. a point of sale incorporated within a stand alone mailbox facility; or, 2. a point of sale located within an existing convenience store that is open twenty-four hours a day throughout the year or substantially so.

3. a point of sale may also be shared or interface with other services provided by the convenience store, It is further envisaged that connection of the novel mailing facility to a database, off-site or otherwise, will enhance the capability of the facility and overcome the many drawbacks characteristic of non-delivery of mail from the in-hours delivery patterns of the public and private mail service providers.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A mailing facility for letters and packages as hereinbefore defined, the mailing facility comprising storage and retrieval means whereby an authenticated customer may access the facility twenty-four hours a day throughout the whole year or substantially so.
2. A mailing facility according to Claim 1, characterised in that the mailing facility is provided in a convenience store or convenient location that opens for business twenty-four hours a day throughout the whole year or substantially so.
3. A mailing facility according to Claim 2, characterised in that the convenience store provides a first depository for storage of letters or packages, the first depository being readily accessed by an authenticated customer in order to take delivery of the letter or package.
4. A mailing facility according to either one of Claims 2 and 3, characterised in that the convenience store provides a second depository that may be used by an authenticated customer to mail letters or packages via public or private mail services.
5. A mailing facility according to any one of Claims I to 4, characterised in that the authenticated customer is provided with a personal authentication code by the mailing facility in order to enable them to access the mailing facility.
6. A mailing facility according to Claim 5, characterised in that the personal authentication code may be encrypted on a swipe card or the like means.
7. A mailing facility according to any one of Claims 1 to 6, characterised in that the mailing facility is connected to a data base for the recordal of letters and packages that are received from the public or private mailing service
8. providers, the authenticated customers being informed by phone, facsimile or e-mail that a letter or package has been received at the mailing facility.
9. A method of operating a mailing facility according to any one of Claims 1 to 7, characterised in that the mailing facility: a) provides a depository for letters and packages received from public, business and private mail service providers; b) issues authenticated customers with depository numbers; c) takes delivery of letters and packages from the public, businesses and private mail service providers; d) records details of letters and packages received from the public, businesses and private mail service providers; e) notifies authenticated customer by telephone, facsimile or e-mail that a letter or package is in the numbered depository; facilitates identification of authenticated customer upon arrival to retrieve a letter or package; g) upon payment of a service fee or confirmation of a paid subscription, the mailing facility provides an authenticated customer with an access code for the numbered depository; and, h) enables authenticated customer to retrieve letters or packages from the numbered depository upon inputting the access code.