Postal automated labeling system

A system is shown and described wherein a portable printer is used to produce tags for attachment to mail trays. The printer is uploaded with plans that are the same as sort plans stored in the memory of a sorting machine with which the printer is to be used. The same sort plan that is selected for operation of the sorting machine will be input into the printer so that tags can be printed and attached to mail trays on an as needed basis. These tags can be colored coded so that the targeted day of delivery of the mail can be indicated. Act tags can be printed by scanning the mail tray tags.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The U.S. postal service has implemented a bar coding system for automating 
the processing of mail from its point of receipt to the destination letter 
carrier. In the process of implementing this bar coding system, the postal 
service relies on pre-printed labels and tags for the identification of 
the trays of mail that are moved through its system. As mail is received 
in a post office, it is sorted in a number of steps. There are two sources 
of mail that are processed by a post office: mail that is collected 
locally and mail that is received from another postal facility for a finer 
sortation. The mail that is received locally will be sorted in a three 
phase sortation in accordance with geographical distribution. In the first 
sortation, local mail will be separated from regional and state mail, with 
the local mail remaining at that post office or forwarded to another local 
post office for ultimate receipt by the letter carriers. The out of town 
mail is sorted geographically and sent to distribution centers for the 
mail furthest away and to other post offices in other states for further 
sortation. The mail that is received by a post office from a distribution 
center will be further sorted for the local delivery. 
In any of these sortation schemes, there is generally a sortation plan 
which is basically a table which designates where specific mail pieces are 
to be channeled or forwarded. 
In order for the mail to be further identified, the postal clerk will place 
a tag on a tray that indicates the destination of the mail contained in 
the tray. As now practiced, each post office is provided with a case that 
holds a large number of pre-printed tags that are segregated in accordance 
to distinctions of mail pieces and have a color code. The color code is 
provided so that a different colored tag can be used for different 
designated delivery days for those mail pieces that are to be sent out of 
town and a white label for local mail. The colored tag scheme allows a 
receiving clerk at a downstream operation to determine the targeted 
delivery day of that tray so as to give preference to more time sensitive 
mail. As one can imagine, a large number of tags are required to process 
the mail from day to day. 
The present pre-printed tags have certain drawbacks. A clerk will often run 
out of tags and must order the same from a centralized location. The lead 
time to order such tags normally is from 4-6 weeks. The use of so many 
tags requires stock rooms and clerks to administer the stock rooms. The 
cost of the tags is high and there is a great deal of waste because 
obsolete tags are discarded. 
Obviously, it would be beneficial to provide a system for tagging trays, 
sacks, and the like in a more efficient and economic manner. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The tray labeling system of the instant invention utilizes a device such as 
a thermal printing electronic labeler, as for example a PATHFINDER.RTM. 
6080.TM. Labeler, available from Monarch Marking Systems. The bar code 
sort plan is downloaded from a personal computer and maintained in the 
memory of the labeler. This sort plan number is consistent with the 
predetermined sort plans which are used to separate mail on a bar code 
sorter. 
At the beginning of a sorting operation, the operator selects the correct 
sort plan and inputs that sort plan into both the sorting machine and the 
labeler. After the sort plan is selected, the operator initiates a 
sequence to produce an initial tag for each of the trays. Sorting is 
started and as mail trays become full, a new tag will be printed by 
scanning a bar coded label on the associated bin, the new tags will be 
attached to a replacement tray and the full tray will be removed and 
replaced with the newly tagged tray. 
As the operation continues, those mail pieces that are to be sent to 
distribution centers, as opposed to local mail, are forwarded to what is 
know as an air contract transportations (ACT) station where the mail is 
prepared for shipment to an airport. In such preparation, trays are placed 
in sleeves and the sleeved mail is given a second label by scanning the 
tray tag with a wand or laser scanner which is connected to a printer that 
is programmed to print an ACT tag (label).

DETAIL DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
With reference to the FIG. 1, a sorting system is partially shown generally 
at 10 and includes a sorting machine 11. Although any type of sorting 
machine can be used, as a generally rule the sorter will be one capable of 
reading the address block of mail pieces or a bar code on the mail pieces 
and, as a result of the reading placing the mail pieces in bins according 
to their respective destinations. An example of such a sorting machine are 
a Pitney Bowes OCR/CS sorter or a bar code sorter (BCS) presently used by 
the postal service for sorting mail. The sorting machine 11 will have a 
multiplicity of bins 12, as for example 96, but only a few are shown for 
purposes of clarity. The bins 12 will receive the mail pieces 14 that are 
sorted according to the sort plan selected for the sorting machine 11. The 
bin label 16, see FIG. 2a, has a bar code that will identify the bin 
number. (The bar code may be one of any number of conventional bar codes. 
Again referring to FIG. 1, a platform 28 is located adjacent to the bins 12 
and support trays 30 into which mail pieces 14 from the respective bins 12 
are placed. It will be appreciated that it is the normal practice in the 
post office that the mail pieces 14 are placed into the trays 30 and 
stacked by a postal clerk. The postal clerk will also assure there are no 
jams in the sorting machine 11. There will be as many trays 30 supported 
by the platform 28 adjacent to the bins 12 as there are bins. Each of the 
trays 30 will have a tag holder 32 for the receipt of a tag 34. Located 
below the platform are a plurality of empty trays 30 that are maintained 
for the purpose of replacing trays 30 on the platform as the original 
trays are filled with mail. 
With reference to FIG. 2b, the tag 34 that will be placed within a tray 
location 32 can contain a variety of information in accordance with the 
programming and key selection of the labeller 64. The tag in this case is 
shown with the destination of the mail 36 in the tray and the first 3 
digits of the zip code 38. In addition, the information relative to origin 
of the mail is shown including the processing post office 37, bin number 
41 and originating city 43. The tray tag 34 also has a bar code 42 thereon 
that repeats the destination information on the tag in bar code form. 
Non-local mail that has been sorted and trayed is sent to an air contract 
transportation (ACT) station for routing. Each tray is placed in a sleeve 
which has a label attached thereto for the purpose of identifying the 
contents of the sleeve. An ACT tag (label) that would be attached to a 
sleeve is shown in FIG. 2c. The label 52 contains the destination 54 of 
the mail, the carrier in abbreviated form 56 and the class of mail is 
indicated 58. The ACT tag 52 also contains a bar code 60 that repeats this 
information in bar code form. 
A hand held labeler 64 that can be used in the invention is shown in FIG. 
1. This labeler 64 will have a light source 68 that is part of a scanning 
device and a keyboard 70 for input of data. Such hand held electronic 
labelers are known, see for example U.S. Pat. No. 4,652,317 and are also 
commercially available, as for example a Monarch PATHFINDER.RTM. Labeler, 
with a model number 098 scanner interface attached thereto. Such a labeler 
64 will be used at the sorting machine 11. The ACT tag 52 preferably will 
be printed by a table top printer, such as Model no. 9445 Printer 
available from Monarch Marking Systems, because of the size of the ACT 
label. 
With reference to FIG. 3, the operation will be described. The operation is 
started 74 by the bar code sorter 11 and labeler 64 being uploaded 76 by 
the postal clerk with a sort plans that will control the operation of the 
sorting machine 11 and the printing of tags by the labeler 64. More 
specifically, the sorter 11 is capable of sorting mail to a number of 
locations and the particular run to be made by the sorter will depend upon 
the mail that is loaded on the feeding station thereof. Mail is generally 
sorted in three passes through entry machines. The first pass will 
separate local mail, the second mail that is to be delivered about the 
local area and the third mail that is to be delivered at a further 
distance. The mail that is received by the sorting machine 11 may have 
been sorted in a previous pass by one of the post office sort plans. All 
the mail that is placed at the feed station of the sorting machine may be 
mail that is destined for western states. The sort plan that is specified 
for sorting of mail designated for the western states will then be 
uploaded to the processor of the sorter. The sorter will then process the 
mail in accordance with that sort plan. Thereafter, the postal clerk will 
select the same sort plan in the labeler 64 that has been uploaded to the 
sorter 11 by inputting the sort plan number through the keyboard 70. 
With the sort plan keyed in 76 both the sorter 11 and labeler 64, the 
operator will either generate a complete initial set of labels by input 
through the keyboard 70 or the operator will scan the bar labels 16 in 
each of the bins 12. The bar code bin number plus the sort plan number 
will yield the information contained on the label 16 as discussed 
previously, which printing may be actuated by the labeler operator. For 
example, one bin may receive mail to be delivered to a distribution center 
in Boise, Id., another bin could receive mail destined for Denver, Colo., 
another bin could receive mail destined for a distribution center in 
Portland, Oreg., and so forth. Labels 16, such as that shown in FIG. 2b, 
will be inserted in the holder 32 of each tray 30 located in front of a 
respective bin 12. Upon completing the initial tagging of the tray 80, the 
sorting machine is started so as to sort the mail 82. When a tray 30 
becomes full, the operator will scan 86 the bin label of the bin 
associated with the full tray to produce a new tag 88 and will place that 
tag on an empty tray 90. The full tray will be replaced with the newly 
tagged empty tray 92. In this way, a tag is produced quickly without the 
need of going to a centralized tag case to select the appropriate 
pre-printed tag. 
The operator will determine 94 if a full tray contains mail for local 
delivery 94. Is so, he will forward the mail to another internal station 
96 for the third pass of sorting but if not, he will forward the mail to 
the ACT station 100. 
The tags 34 will be part of a web, or sequences of blank tags on a carrier, 
that is originally loaded into the labeler 64. These tags 34 are of 
different colors so that on each day the labeler will be supplying label 
of a distinct color with the exception of tags for local mail which are 
always white. The reason the post office uses labels of different colors, 
is so that a postal clerk will recognize the targeted day of delivery. The 
post office makes an effort to assure that mail is delivered within a 
prescribed period in different parts of the country. For example, within a 
given locality the mail is to be delivered overnight. If a postal clerk at 
a receiving post office sees a label indicating that the mail has to be 
delivered by a particular day, he will give that mail expedited service so 
that the mail is delivered as quickly as possible. 
The tray 30 with non-local mail is forwarded to the ACT station 98 where 
the tray tag 34 will be scanned 100 as by a hand held scanner attached to 
a table top printer. The ACT tag will then be printed 102, the tray placed 
in a sleeve 104 and banded, and the ACT tag will be attached to the sleeve 
106. The sleeve containing the tray 30 of mail will then be forwarded for 
air delivery. It will be appreciated this activity eliminates the need of 
an inventory of ACT tags (labels) as was described with reference to tray 
tags. 
Thus, what has been shown and described is a system whereby the need of 
keeping an inventory of tags and labels is obviated. With the system shown 
and described the post office is relieved of the burden of having a large 
number of tags and labels on hand, there is no need for ordering 
preprinted tags with the delays accompanying therewith, and accuracy and 
productivity of tray tagging are increased.