Abstract:
A method to create secure postal indicia that is fixed in two or more different mediums, i.e., printed on a mail piece with normal ink and/or invisible ink and recorded in a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag. The security feature is enhanced by recording a number in a memory of a radio frequency identification tag that is linked to a dual meter user before the tag is delivered to the user of the dual meter; processing by the dual meter the number recorded in the radio frequency identification tag memory when the dual postal indicia is being composed; storing the processed number in the radio frequency tag memory; affixing a postal indicia portion of a dual postal indicia and a radio frequency identification tag portion of a dual postal indicia to a mail piece; and uploading the number recoded in the radio frequency identification tag memory and the processed number stored in the radio frequency tag memory to a data center.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The invention relates generally to the field of mailing systems and, more particularly, to mail security systems.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    Governments have created postal services for collecting, sorting and distributing the mail. The postal service typically charges mailers for delivering the mail. Mailers may pay the postal service for this service by purchasing a stamp, i.e., a printed adhesive label or tape, issued by the postal service at specified prices, that is affixed to all letters, parcels or other mail matter to show prepayment of postage. Another means of payment accepted by the postal service is mail that is metered by a postage meter. Postage meters are approved by the Postal Service and licensed to the meter user by the meter manufacturer. A postage meter is an electromechanical device that maintains, through “electronic registers” or “postal security devices,” an account of all postage printed, and the remaining balance of prepaid postage; and prints postage postmarks (indicia) or provides postage postmarks (indicia) information to a printer, that are then printed and accepted by the postal service as evidence of the prepayment of postage.  
           [0003]    Currently, mailers are able to use their desktop computer, a postal security device, and a printer to apply postage directly onto envelopes or labels while applying an address. The postage is applied in the form of an Information Based Indicia (IBI). The IBI consists of a two-dimensional bar code containing hundreds of bytes of information about the mail piece and certain human-readable information. The indicia include a digital signature to preclude the forgery of indicia by unauthorized parties. The postal security device is a unique security device that provides a cryptographic digital signature to the indicia and performs the function of postage meter registers.  
           [0004]    In postage meters and computer postage systems, the need for security is absolute, because postage meters and computer postage systems are printing value; and, unless security measures are taken, one would be able to print unauthorized postage, i.e., postage for which no payment is made, thereby defrauding the postal service.  
           [0005]    Although postage meters and computer postage systems have performed satisfactorily in the past and continue to perform satisfactorily, with the advancement of technology, it is becoming easier to print fraudulent indicia.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0006]    This invention overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art by utilizing a method to create secure postal indicia that is fixed in two or more different mediums, i.e., printed on a mail piece with normal ink and/or invisible ink, and recorded in a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag. The security feature is enhanced by having a meter perform some function to a number that is stored in the RFID tag memory, i.e., add an increasing value to the number, store the number that has the increased value in the RFID memory, and then upload the number that was originally stored in the RFID memory and the new increased value number to a data center, where the number that is currently stored in the RFID memory is matched with the uploaded numbers. When the mail piece, flat or package (hereinafter called “mail piece”) is processed by the postal service, the postal service will read the new number that has the increased value and search the new number data base for the number currently being processed to determine if the new increased value number was uploaded with the number originally stored in the RFID memory. Then the number is checked to determine whether or not the number was previously used. If the number was previously used, the indicia is invalid. If the number was not previously used, the indicia is valid, and the number is marked used in the database.  
           [0007]    An advantage of this invention is that it will be more difficult to produce a fraudulent indicia, because a security feature that appears in the indicia has been modified. Thus, if one copied the indicia, i.e., the number currently stored in the RFID memory will not be found in the data center records or the number currently stored in the RFID memory will be found in the data center records as a used number; hence, the indicia may be fraudulent.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0008]    [0008]FIG. 1A is a drawing of a mail piece having a prior art digital postal indicia affixed thereto;  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 1B is a drawing of a mail piece having a prior art information based indicia affixed thereto;  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 2 is a drawing of a mail piece having a label with a postal meter indicia printed on the label and a radio frequency identification tag device embedded in the label that is affixed to the mail piece;  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 3 is a drawing showing the information that is being processed by radio frequency identification tag  15 ;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a dual meter that contains an electronic postage meter and a radio frequency identification reader/writer;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 5 is a drawing showing how mail pieces are processed from mail entry office  18  of a carrier to a recipient and how data is captured and distributed; and  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 6 is a drawing of indicia tag usage data center  78 .  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0015]    Referring now to the drawings in detail and more particularly to FIG. 1A, the reference character  11  represents a mail piece, i.e., letter, flat, parcel, etc., that has a sender address field  12 , a recipient address field  13 , and a prior art digital postal indicia  14 .  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 1B is a drawing of a mail piece  11  having a prior art information based indicia  10  affixed thereto. Mail piece  11  has a sender address field  12  and a recipient address field  13 .  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 2 is a drawing of a mail piece having a label  17  with a postal meter indicia  10  printed on label  17  and an electronic device, i.e., radio frequency identification tag device  15  embedded in the label that is affixed to the mail piece. Mail piece  11  has a sender address field  12 , a recipient address field  13 , and a radio frequency identification tag  15  that contains specified information. Postal indicia  14  may be a digital postal indicia or a permit indicia. Information based indicia  10  may be substituted for indicia  14 . It would be obvious to one skilled in the art that indicia  10  or  14  may be directly printed on mail piece  11  and tag  15  affixed to mail piece  11  by an adhesive. An invisible ink that may be viewed with an ultraviolet light source, such as a red fluorescent or blue fluorescent ink, etc., may be used to print indicia  10  or indicia  14 . Radio frequency identification (RFID) tag  15  may be the 4×6 RFID Smart Label Philips manufactured by RAFEC USA of 999 Oakmont Plaza Drive, Suite 200, Westmont, Ill. 60559. The information contained in tag  15  is a unique sequenced identification number that is placed in tag  15  in the factory during the manufacture of tag  15  and a number generated by the dual meter using the unique sequenced identification number.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 3 is drawing showing the information that is being processed by radio frequency identification tag  15 . Box  110  illustrates that during the manufacture of tag  15 , a unique sequenced identification number is stored in each memory of tag  15 . Then in box  111  when tag  15  is sold, the identification numbers stored in the memories of tag  15  are read and linked to the buyer&#39;s meter number and archived in the meter provider&#39;s database  90 . The unique sequenced identification number may be 00000012345678922, which is written into the memory of tag  15  of label  17 .  
         [0019]    Now in box  112 , during usage of the dual meter, a “new” meter based encryption/write process replaces the unique sequenced identification number by combining it mathematically with a unique resident internal dual meter numeric parameter, storing it in the memory of tag  15  of label  17  during the ink based indicia printing sequence of the dual meter. A number, i.e., 1, may be added to the unique sequenced identification number to obtain a processed unique sequenced identification number. Thus, the processed unique sequenced identification number will be 00000012345678923. It would be obvious to one skilled in the art that a unique sequenced identification number may be changed to a processed unique sequenced identification number by performing some mathematical function on the unique sequenced identification number, i.e., addition, subtraction, division, multiplication, etc. The data center may also control the changing of a unique sequenced identification number to a processed unique sequenced identification number by encrypting a unique sequenced identification number using a downloaded and updateable encryption key.  
         [0020]    Next, in box  113  upon request by the postal service, the processed unique sequenced identification number may be received, decrypted by the meter data center, and the recovered unique sequenced identification number, may be obtained and verified in database  90 .  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a dual meter  49  that contains electronic postage meter  50 , a radio frequency identification reader/writer  51 , tape feed module  48  and a tape attach module  9 . Postage meter  50  may be the B700 Post Perfect postage meter manufactured by Pitney Bowes Inc. of Stamford, Conn.  
         [0022]    Metering controller  52  functions as a meter controller for postage meter  50  and a controller for radio frequency identification reader/writer  51 . Controller  52  is coupled to last tag identification value buffer  57 , comparator  58 , current read tag buffer  59 , radio frequency identification read non-volatile memory buffer  60 , radio frequency identification data encode/decode routines  61 , radio frequency identification read, erase and record routine  2 , and issued tag data registers non-volatile memory  140 . Comparator  58  is coupled to last tag identification value buffer  57  and current tag read buffer  59 . Buffer  59  is coupled to radio frequency identification data read module  76 , and radio frequency identification encode/decode routines  61  is coupled to radio frequency identification read, erase and record routine  2 . Routines  2  are also coupled to radio frequency identification read/erase/record module  77 .  
         [0023]    Electronic meter  50  includes meter routines  53 , modem  54 , indicia image routines read only memory  55 , clock calendar non-volatile memory registers and battery  56 , I/O routines  7 , I/O ports keyboard and display  8 , buffer memory  9  and compose and print indicia image and data fields  65 . Controller  52  is coupled to modem  54 , I/O routines  7 , meter routines  53 , I/O port keyboard and display  8 . Compose and print indicia  65  is coupled to meter indicia print module  73  and controller  52 .  
         [0024]    Meter  50  begins to function when a user  70  sets the postage dollar amount by weighing mail piece  11  (FIG. 1) on scale  71  and enters the type of service for mail piece  11  into I/O ports, keyboard and display  8  of meter  50 . The weight and amount of postage for mail piece  11  are displayed by display  8 . Controller  52  will compose an image of indicia  10 ,  14  (FIGS. 1, 2) using the fixed graphic indicia images from indicia images ROM  55  and compose and print indicia images and data field  65 . The above image will be stored in buffer memory  9 . Buffer memory  9  will provide the above image to meter controller  52 .  
         [0025]    Meter routines  53  will handle the accounting functions of meter  50 . Routines  53  are not being described, because one skilled in the art is aware of their operation and function. Clock calendar non-volatile memory registers and battery  56  will transmit the date and time to controller  52 .  
         [0026]    Modem  54  may communicate with meter data upload data center  72  during a refill of postage meter  50  by exchanging funds. User  70  of dual meter  49  communicates with I/O ports keyboard display  8 . Postal scale  71  is coupled to I/O ports keyboard display  58  and is used to determine the weight of mail piece  11 . Meter data upload data center  72  is coupled to usage data center  78 . Office  18  receives mail that has been processed by dual meter  49 . Mail flows from office  18  to destination delivery office  85  (currently the USPS has approximately 35,000 mail entry and destination offices). Data center  78  is coupled to mail entry office  18 . The images and data fields of indicias  10  and  14  will be transmitted from compose and print indicia  65  to meter indicia print module  73 .  
         [0027]    Comparator  58  will compare the last tag identification value stored in buffer  57  with the value read by module  76 . If comparator  58  determines that the above values are not the same, then tag  15  is a new tag.  
         [0028]    Radio frequency identification read buffer  60  is a nonvolatile memory that is used to store the information that is read from tag  15  in case of a power failure, and radio frequency identification data encode/decode routines  61  are used to decode the information read from tag  15  and encode data that is going to be recorded in tag  15 . Radio frequency identification read, erase and record routines  2  are used to read, erase and record information into tag  15 . Issued tag data registers nonvolatile memory  140  stores the information recorded in tag  15 , which is uploaded to data center  78  via data center  72 .  
         [0029]    Tape and feed module  48  contains a stack of labels  105  that include tag  15 . Label  17  is transported past radio frequency identification read module  76 . Module  76  is positioned in a manner that it will be able to read the information recorded in tags  15  so that module  76  will be able to determine whether or not information has been previously recorded into tag  15 . Then label  17  will be transported to module  77  where information will be read, erased and recorded on tag  15 . Then label  17  will be transported to paper tape attach module  49 . After information is recorded or re-recorded on tag  15 , label  17  will be positioned adjacent module  73  so that indicias  10  or  14  may be printed on label  17 . Module  9  will affix label  17  to mail piece  11  (FIGS. 1, 2).  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 5 is a drawing showing how mail is processed from mail entry office  18  of a carrier to a recipient&#39;s mail box  84  and how data is captured and distributed. Mail piece 11  that is produced by dual meter  49  enters mail entry office  18  where it is sorted by mail sorter  30 . The processed unique sequenced identification number is transmitted to data center  78 . The unique sequenced identification number stored in tag  15  at the factory may also be transmitted to data center  78 . Data center  78  receives information from mail entry office  18  and meter data center  72 , which receives indicia tag  15  data, i.e., processed unique sequenced identification numbers, from meter  49  and/or unique sequenced identification numbers and processed unique sequenced identification numbers from meter  49 .  
         [0031]    Data center  78  will be more fully described in the description of FIG. 6. Postal inspection service data center  80  is coupled to data center  78  and postal destination office  85 . Data center  78  prepares reports that indicate the usage of tags  15 .  
         [0032]    Data center  80  may inform postal destination office  85  of the mail pieces  11  that they want to hold in bin  83 . Data center  80  may investigate and/or arrest people who are generating and/or copying fraudulent tags  15 . Mail sorter  82  sorts the mail to allow mail piece  11  to be delivered to mail box  84 . Data center  80  accepts reports from postal destination office  85 , and postal destination office  85  receives mail pieces from mail entry office  18 .  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 6 is a drawing of indicia tag usage data center  78 . Data center  78  includes master meter tag stock archive database  90 , which is coupled to search engine  93  which is coupled to exception database  94  which is coupled to search engine  93  and report engine  96 , which is coupled to postal inspection service data center  80 . Indicia usage database  91  is coupled to search engine  93 , meter data center  72  and to entry indicia data  92 , which is coupled to mail entry office  18 . Postal inspection service data center  80  is coupled to search engine  93 , report engine  96  and mail entry office  18 . Mail entry office  18  is coupled to entry indicia data  92 .  
         [0034]    Master meter tag stock archive database  90  contains an archived list of the unique sequenced identification numbers stored in the memory of each tag  15 , that is linked to the tag buyers meter number. Indicia usage database  91  receives the identity of dual meter  49 , the activity of dual meter  49  from data center  72  (FIG. 5). Entry indicia data  92  receives the information read from tag  15  (FIGS. 1, 2) from mail entry office  18 . When search engine  93  is activated, engine  93  reads databases  91  and  92  for mail pieces  11  and examines database  90  for matches, i.e., the information stored in archive  90  should match the information buffered in indicia usage data  91  and entry indicia data  92 . In other words, are the unique sequenced identification numbers and the processed unique sequenced identification numbers stored in the memory of tags  15  archived in database  90 . When a match is found, the records of archive database  90  record this fact. If a match is not found, an exception is created, which is stored in exception database  94 . If more than one match is detected, one or more copies have been detected, and the exceptions are stored in database  94 .  
         [0035]    Reports engine  96  sends reports to data center  80 . The aforementioned reports may contain information regarding the suspicious usage of tags  15 , i.e., the tags  15  that have the same processed unique sequenced identification numbers and/or the tags  15  that do not have a processed unique sequenced identification number or unique sequenced identification number stored in archived database  90  and tags  15  that have identification numbers that are not associated with a dual meter  49 .  
         [0036]    The above specification describes a new and improved method for increasing the security of mail. It is realized that the above description may indicate to those skilled in the art additional ways in which the principles of this invention may be used without departing from the spirit. Therefore, it is intended that this invention be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.