WO1994004287A1

WO1994004287A1 - Method and system for postal matter delivery and accessory for delivery

Info

Publication number: WO1994004287A1
Application number: PCT/FI1992/000229
Authority: WO
Inventors: Mauno Savolainen
Original assignee: Mauno Savolainen
Priority date: 1992-08-25
Filing date: 1992-08-25
Publication date: 1994-03-03
Also published as: AU2486092A

Abstract

The invention concerns a method and system for mail delivery and a delivery box (10) suited to implement the system. According to the method mail is collected and mail is then sorted in sorting centers. According to the invention mail collected from several different senders is sealed into receiver-assigned delivery boxes (10) and the delivery boxes (10) are transported to delivery points to be fetched by the receiver. The invention achieves significant reduction in delivery costs.

Description

Method and system for postal matter delivery and accessory for delivery

The present invention relates to a method according to the preamble of claim 1 for postal matter delivery.

The invention also concerns a system for postal matter delivery and accessory for delivery.

According to the prior-art method, postal matter is collected from mailboxes, conveyed to sorting centers for sorting and delivered after sorting to receiver mailboxes or mail drops.

The conventional method has several drawbacks. Maintaining postal matter privacy is difficult particularly in delivery to mailboxes. Such mailboxes are rarely lockable, and after delivery of large quantities of postal matter, the boxes frequently remain open. Then, the delivered postal matter is also subjected to rain. Delivery to dispersed mailboxes, and moreover in mail drops, is an operation requiring plenty of time and personnel.

It is an object of the present invention to overcome the drawbacks of the above- described prior-art technology and to achieve an entirely novel method and system for postal matter delivery as well as a means for implementing the system.

The invention is based on the concept of directly sorting the postal matter into delivery boxes having standardized dimensions, after which the boxes are sealed at the post office and conveyed to centralized delivery points, wherefrom the receiver can fetch the postal matter.

More specifically, the method in accordance with the invention is principally characterized by what is stated in the characterizing part of claim 1. Furthermore, the system according to the invention is characterized by what is stated in the characterizing part of claim 4.

Furthermore, the delivery box according to the invention is characterized by what is stated in the characterizing part of claim 7.

The invention offers significant benefits.

Postal matter privacy is effectively retained by virtue of the sealed delivery box. The weather-proof construction of the delivery box prevents damage to postal matter by precipitation. Packaging of postal matter already at the sorting point achieves a significant easement of the postman's job and allows a single postman to cover a wider delivery route. The delivery box is easy to lock to permanent structures of the delivery point for assurance of postal matter secrecy. The system according to the invention also permits full address coding, because each delivery box is assigned a unique code corresponding to the receiver's delivery point. This further contributes to improved postal matter privacy and facilitates flexible mailing address change from, e.g., a home address delivery point to a delivery point close to the job address. In the system according to the invention this needs only a change of the delivery code assigned to a certain receiver into a new delivery code, and the postal matter is immediately receivable from the new delivery point.

The invention is next examined in greater detail by reference to embodiments illustrated in the annexed drawings, in which

Fig. 1 shows a block diagram of the different phases of the method according to the invention,

Fig. 2 shows a perspective view of the delivery box according to the invention and fixing mechanisms thereof. Fig. 3 shows a perspective view of the mounting/locking mechanism of the delivery box according to the invention,

Fig. 4 shows a side view of an alternative mounting mechanism according to the invention,

Fig. 5 shows a locking mechanism for the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 shows a side view of an alternative locking mechanism for the delivery boxes according to the invention.

Fig. 7 shows a detail of the locking mechanism illustrated in Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 shows a perspective view of a third alternative embodiment of the mounting mechanism according to the invention,

In accordance with Figure 1 the postal matter -delivery system according to the invention can handle the collection and sorting of postal matter and other items of value in a conventional manner. In the sorting phase according to the invention, however, postal matter collected from several different senders is directly inserted in a delivery box which is sealed. Postal matter is delivered in these delivery boxes to delivery points, wherefrom the mail receivers each fetch their dedicated delivery box(es). After emptying, the delivery boxes are returned to circulation. To encourage the return activity of the delivery boxes, a deposit refunded at return of the boxes can be requested. The delivery box according to the invention can also be employed for collection of postal matter. The systepi according to the invention also permits full freedom from traditional mailing addresses by name and location. An assigned numeric code of the delivery box can be arranged to uniquely correspond to a certain delivery point, and in detail, a certain location at said delivery point, whereby address coding becomes superfluous. A change in address coding can be simply implemented by assigning a new delivery point for the postal matter. As shown in Fig. 2, a delivery box 10 according to the invention externally re¬ sembles a conventional mailbox with the exception that this novel form of the mailbox is removable and portable. Prior to postal matter fetching by the receiver, however, the delivery box 10 has is permanently locked in place by means of a T-slot 18 at the real wall 16 of the box matching with a T-rail 14 mounted on a wall 12 of a building. Simply, the box 10 is fixed to the rail 14 by insertion at the end of the rail.

Alternatively, the box 10 can be fixed by inserting the box at holes 28 onto a lockable bar or tube (not shown). The rear wall 16 of the box 10 can be provided with a sticking area that adheres to a counter sticking area on the building wall 12. The sticking material employed can be, e.g., such as the velchro material conventionally known from sporting shoes.

The box 10 is filled in the mail sorting center from above, and after the insertion of the postal matter, the box 10 is closed with a top lid 20 by threading the lid 20 from the side of the box into horizontal grooves of the front wall 27 and the rear wall 16; due to drafting technique reasons the grooves are not visible in diagram. To facilitate the threading of the top lid 20, one of the side walls 25 or 23 must be correspondingly shorter at its top edge. The top lid 20 is sealed in place using, e.g. , a suitable self-adhesive material, thereby making unauthorized opening of the delivery box 10 at least detectable if not fully tamper-proof. When necessary, each of the delivery boxes 10 can be provided with a separate lock attached to the box.

The mounting of the top lid 20 can also be implemented by threading the lid side- wise into a groove of excess depth fabricated to either the front wall 27 or the rear wall 16. This deepened groove is provided with a spring that pushes an inserted top lid 20 into a groove of conventional depth in the opposite wall. Opening the box in this embodiment takes place after breaking the (self-adhesive) seal by pushing the lid 20 back into the springed groove and thereafter lifting the lid 20 away at the edge removed from the opposite groove. When necessary, also the side walls 25 and 23 as well as the front wall 27 can be provided with T-slots 15, 13 and 24, respectively. These slots are intended for connecting several separate delivery boxes adjacently by means of a H-rail 26. Such a connection can be made either for the purpose of simplified transportation or connection of several delivery boxes addressed to a single receiver at one loca¬ tion. In the latter case the boxes 10 must obviously be locked to each other using, e.g., conventional padlocks, which are hooked to holes (not shown) fabricated to both ends of the rail 26. In this manner the boxes 10 can be assembled and bundled in desired number in both the depth and width directions. By virtue of the rail 26 the boxes 10 can be easily grouped by district already at the sorting point, which simplifies the transportation of the boxes to the delivery points.

Obviously, the delivery box 10 can be provided with a name sticker 22, which can be permanently mounted or a self-adhesive sticker. In the latter case the boxes are stored unnamed and the name sticker is attached at the sorting point to a box 10 of desired size after the amount of postal matter to be delivered is known.

The size of the box 10 can be always selected to match to the amount of postal matter to be delivered. In its smallest size the box can have a thickness dimension sufficient to accommodate a few cards with the other dimensions also matching those of a card, and the largest sizes corresponding to the volume of several conventional mailboxes, thus permitting adaptation to the typical postal matter volume of the receiver. The largest delivery boxes can even be provided with casters to ease transfer from the delivery point to the home address of the receiver. The sorting point can be equipped with delivery boxes of, e.g., ten standard sizes. Advantageously, the boxes are dimensioned so that they can be nestled one inside the other for transportation and bunching of delivery boxes to be delivered to a single receiver.

Obviously, the polarity of the T-slot and T-profile rails can be reversed: a slot on the building wall and a profiled extension on the box. In accordance with Fig. 3, the T-profile rail 30 incorporates a tongue 34 springed with a spring 32 that permits pushing the delivery box in place but prevents detachment thereof. The locking against detachment can be implemented by, e.g., machining to the groove of the delivery box such a recess that accepts the insertion of the tongue 34 by a short length (a few centimeters), and making the recess to have a sharp edge with the rest of the groove having a normal shape. Then, any unauthorized attempt to remove the delivery box via the tongue is checked by tongue locking into the groove, and it becomes extremely difficult to push the tongue down. Alternatively, the postman can, e.g., lock the tongue to its upper position with a special key, thus preventing unauthorized removal of the delivery box from the rail 30. The other end of the rail is provided with a lock 36, which can be a conventional padlock. The key to this lock 36 is held only by the receiver of the postal matter. Then, each mail receiver has a dedicated rail. If the lockable springed tongue 34 is not desirable, it can be replaced with a mere lockable peg, whereby also the postman is given a key to the lock 36.

In accordance with Fig. 4, the rail-groove combination can be replaced with a more flexible four-part combination. It comprises a male part 40 permanently fixed on the building wall and sticking female part 42 with a sticking surface 44. Respectively, the delivery box is provided with a fixed female part 48, and con¬ nected to the female part, a sticking male part 46 which by its sticking part 47 adheres to the sticking female part 42. Such a combination permits a nonlocking fixing of the delivery box. The receiver can then place the sticking female part 42 onto his/her rail 40, thus signalling the postman his/her desire to receive the delivery box without locking. The postman correspondingly places a sticking male part 46 to the female part 48 of the delivery box, and thus makes it possible for the receiver to fetch the delivery box unlocked to the rail. The embodiment illus¬ trated in Fig. 4 can obviously be fully reversed, that is, the male part 40 of the building wall can as well be adapted for fixing onto the delivery box. Such an in- verted combination is also conceivable with the omission of the part 46, whereby the part 48 with the exception of the groove is provided with a sticking surface. Then, such a three-part combination can be used with or without the part 42. If the locking option is desired to be retained, both sticking parts can be made slightly longer than the width of the delivery box and provided with holes at both ends, whereby the box can locked with locks 50 placed through such holes in accordance with Fig. 5.

In accordance with Fig. 6, the rear walls of the delivery boxes 10 can be provided with holes for lock pegs 60. Advantageously, each box can have 3 or 4 pcs. of the pegs 60. The boxes can be made in two versions: one with pegs, permitting stacking of the boxes to unlimited heights, and the other without pegs, offering easy transportation but lacking the facility of stacking over one another. When desired, the delivery box 10 can be provided with a separate lock 62 for each box.

In accordance with Fig. 7, a tongue 70 of the lock 62 protrudes into a slot 72 of the lock peg 60 when the box 10 is pushed in place. When desired, the lock 62 can be left in a nonlocking position, whereby the box 10 is freely removable.

In accordance with Fig. 8, the delivery boxes 10 can be placed at the delivery point onto a bar 80 which further is fixed with a V-steel 81 to a permanent structure. The delivery boxes 10 are inserted through their holes 28 onto the bar. The box 10 incorporates a springed lock 83 whose tongue 84 protrudes into a recess 82 of the bar 80, thus permitting only the pushing motion of the box toward the mounting steel 81. To remove the box, the mail receiver releases with his/her key the tongue 84 of the lock to the upper nonlocking position, whereby the box 10 can be removed by pulling.

Alternatively, the box 10 is inserted through its holes 28 onto a bar mounted on the building wall, whereby the bar end is provided with a lock. This embodiment requires both the receiver and the postman to have a key for the lock.

The delivery box according to the invention can be fabricated from, e.g., plastic or paper/board. To assure postal matter privacy, a rigid structure is preferable. The basic requirement for the delivery box is, however, good outdoor durability, which further necessitates at least a splashwater-tight construction.

During the transitional phase to the new system from conventional postal matter delivery, the delivery box can also be used for deliveries to home addresses.

According to the invention the delivery box 10 can be designed for insertion of postal matter also via the bottom, sides or even front and rear walls if hinged.

Claims

Claims:

1. A method for mail delivery, in which method

— mail is collected and

— mail is sorted in sorting centers,

characterized in that

— mail collected from different senders is sealed in the sorting centers into receiver-assigned delivery boxes (10) and

- the delivery boxes (10) are delivered to delivery points for fetching by the receiver.

2. A method as defined in claim 1, characterized in that the delivery boxes (10) are locked in place at the delivery point.

3. A method as defined in claim 1, characterized in that the delivery boxes (10) are transported to the delivery points coded only by a numeric mail code.

4. A system for mail delivery, characterized by comprising

— a delivery box (10) into which mail collected from several senders can be sorted and sealed at the sorting center, said box (10) incorporating mounting elements (18, 28) with which the box (10) can be fixed in place at the delivery point and

— fixed mounting elements (14) for fixing the delivery box (10) to a permanent structure (12) at the delivery point.

5. A system as defined in claim 4, characterized in that the delivery box (10) is reusable.

6. A system as defined in claim 4, characterized in that said fixed mounting elements (30) incorporate a locking means (36) capable of locking the delivery box (10) in place at the delivery point.

7. A delivery box (10) for delivering mail collected from several senders to a receiver, characterized in that the weather-proof box (10) comprises

- a sealable top lid (20) and

— mounting elements (18) suited to fixing the box (10) to a permanent structure (12) at the delivery point.

8. A delivery box (10) as defined in claim 7, characterized in that the box (10) has a rigid construction.

9. A delivery box as defined in claim 7, characterized in that said mounting element (18) is a slot (18) on the side of the box (10).

10. A delivery box as defined in claim 7, characterized in that said mounting element (18) is a T-slot (18) on the side of the box (10).

11. A delivery box as defined in claim 7, characterized in that said mounting element is a profile rail on the side of the box (10).

12. A delivery box as defined in claim 7, characterized in that said mounting element is a T-profile rail on the side of the box (10).

13. A delivery box as defined in claim 7, characterized in that said mounting element is a sticking area on the side of the box (10).

14. A delivery box as defined in claim 7, characterized in that said mounting element is comprised of holes on the sides of the box (10).

15. A delivery box as defined in claim 7, characterized in that said box (10) incorporates auxiliary fixing elements (24, 15, 13) suited for connecting a plurality of the boxes (10) together for easement of sorting, transportation and delivery.

16. A delivery box as defined in claim 7, characterized in that said mounting element (18) is formed by holes at the rear wall of the box (10) suited to accommodate insertion on pegs (60) fixed to said permanent structure.

17. A delivery box as defined in claim 7, characterized in that said delivery boxes (10) are dimensioned according to such a standard that permits transportation of the boxes nestled one inside the other.

18. A delivery box as defined in claim 7, characterized in that said box is provided with a mere numeric delivery code (22).