Patent ID: 7933846

Claim:
A method for determining a rate for delivery of a mail piece using a mail processing system, the mail processing system having a path of travel along which mail pieces are transported for processing, the method comprising: determining, by a control unit of the mail processing system, a first dimension of a mail piece, the first dimension being parallel to the path of travel; determining, by the control unit of the mail processing system, a second dimension of the mail piece by determining a range of values in which the second dimension is located and assigning a value based on the range of values, the second dimension being transverse to the path of travel; determining, by the control unit of the mail processing system, a greater of the first and second dimension by comparing the first dimension with the assigned value for the second dimension; assigning, by the control unit of the mail processing system, the greater of the first and second dimension to be a length of the mail piece, and assigning a lesser of the first and second dimension to be a width of the mail piece; comparing, by the control unit of the mail processing system, the assigned length and the assigned width of the mail piece to rating information provided by a carrier to determine a format for the mail piece, the rating information including maximum dimensions for length and width of mail pieces for different formats; and using, by the control unit of the mail processing system, the determined format to determine a rate for delivery of the mail piece.