Patent ID: 7775431

Claim:
A method of shipping, tracking, and delivering a shipment of packages over an Internet-based shipping, tracking, and delivery network including (i) a digital image capture and processing device with memory storage provided at a point of shipment pickup, (ii) at least a first scanning point capable of scanning packages in said shipment and routing said packages to a point of destination, (iii) sorting and routing hubs located along routes leading to said point of destination, and (iv) a central processing station having a network application server and a database management system (DBMS) operably connected to the infrastructure of the Internet, and wherein said shipment of packages has an original shipping document assigned an original shipment tracking number, and each package in said shipment has an original shipping label containing said original shipment tracking number, said method comprising the steps: (A) at said point of shipment pickup, (i) using said digital image capture and processing device to automatically capture a digital image of said original shipping document in connection with said shipment of packages, and then buffering said digital image in the memory storage of said digital image capture and processing device: (ii) automatically processing said buffered digital image so as to read machine-readable information graphically represented in said digital image of said original shipping document, and produce data representative of said machine-readable information and a digital image file for said digital image of the original shipping document; (iii) automatically encoding said data into said digital image file; and (iv) transmitting said digital image file over said Internet to said network application server, and storing said digital image file in said DBMS; and (B) while said shipment is being transported from said point of shipment pickup to said first scanning point, (i) recognition processing said stored digital image file to read shipping information graphically represented in said digital image file, (ii) storing said extracted shipping information in said DBMS, and (iii) using said shipping information stored in said DBMS to facilitate the start of early customs clearance processing so as to thereby shorten the delivery time of said shipment of packages to said point of destination.