Alcatel Business Systems

Neopost Inc.

Roneo Alcatel Limited

F.m.e. Corporation

Dennis T Gilham

Raymond John Herbert

Thomas D Williams

Cyrus Abumehdi

Chandrakant J Shah

David Anthony Gawler

William James Herring

Manickam Ananthan

Peter P Page

Rodney F Jude

Methods and apparatus for authentication of postage indicia are disclosed. A secret key is read from store and modified in dependence upon postage data to be printed in a postage indicium. The modified key is then utilized to generate an authentication code dependent upon the postage data to be printed. Authentication of the indicium is effected by reading the authentication code and postage data from the printed indicium and repeating the process of generating an authentication code. The generated authentication code is compared with the authentication code read from the indicium. A control code based on a value in an accounting register may be included in the indicium. The value may be a value of postage dispensed in a determined expired period.

Method of and apparatus for generating and authenticating postal indicia

Apparatus and method for authentication of postage accounting reports. Postage accounting report data is authenticated by first assembling authentication mark data from the postage accounting report data and encrypting the resultant information to form an authentication mark. A physical representation of that authentication mark is then affixed to a postage accounting report generated by a postage accounting report system. The postage accounting report may subsequently be authenticated by communicating the authentication mark to a responsible party (for example, a postal authority or manufacturer) for purposes of decrypting the authentication mark and authenticating the postage accounting report data using the decrypted information.

Method and apparatus for authentication of postage accounting reports

Methods of verifying use of postage charges in respect of mail items are disclosed. An authentication code is derived from a secret identification of a sender and a part of the destination address of the item. The code is printed on the mail item together with a sender account reference. On receipt of the mail item, the postal authority is able to use the account reference to access the secret identification and thereby determine if the destination address derived corresponds to that printed on the mail to verify the payment for the postage charge. In a modification, each time a postage meter effects a transaction with a remote center, the remote center generates and transmits to the meter a transaction number. The meter utilises a unique key to generate an encrypted code based on an item count and the transaction number. The code and a meter identification are printed on the mail. The postal authority reads the meter identification to access the unique key to decrypt the code and then compares the current transaction number with the transaction number derived from the code in order to verify the postage charges used by the sender.

Postage meter system and verification of postage charges

A franking machine stores first data relating to a first impression second data relating to a second impression. Printing of both impressions or omission of the first impression and printing of only the second impression may be selected by a user. When both impressions are to be printed, the printing means is controlled to print the first impression in a first location on a mail item and to print the second impression in a second location on the mail item adjacent said first location. When omission of printing the first impression is selected the printing means is controlled to print the second impression in the first location.

Franking machine

A machine for printing a postage stamp for application to a mail item includes a a thermal printer to print the stamp on a tape of thermally sensitive paper. The speed of feeding of the tape is controlled to be uniform to synchronize with the operation of the printer. The printer is non-secure and accounting for the value of postage charge printed on the stamps is accomplished by machine reading of the stamps by the Postal Authority. The stamp printing machine generates an accumulated value of postage charge for a series of stamps printed and then prints, on the same tape, a label including an indication of user account and accumulated value, the value preferably being in encoded form.

A franking machine system is disclosed in which a master controller is provided to communicate with a postal authority resetting center and with a plurality of franking machines. The controller includes registers for storing the value of credit available for distribution to the franking machines and registers for storing data relating to usage of the individual franking machines. Credit is obtained from the resetting center by the controller and is distributed to the franking machines as required by each machine.

Franking machine system

A method of forming a franking impression on a mail item and apparatus for forming the franking impression is disclosed. Material which is switchable from one stable state to another stable state by exposure to light of predetermined wavelength is deposited on the mail item while in one state and a selected region of the deposited material is exposed to light of the predetermined wavelength to effect switching of the selected region to the other state and thereby to represent franking or other secure information.

Franking machine and method of forming franking impression

A mail processing system includes user terminals which communicate via the telephone network with a postal authority computer. When a batch of mail is to be processed, the postage charge for the batch of mail is transmitted to the computer which checks the credit status of the user and if satisfactory returns a transaction identification signal which enables the user terminal to print postage permits on the mail items and batch data on a batch label in machine readable form. For security the permit and batch label include a random number contained in the transaction identification signal. At a postal receiving location, the permits on the mail items and the batch label are machine read and compared with data relating to the batch held in the computer. If these items of data are consistent, the mail is accepted for delivery by the postal authority.

Mail item processing system

A franking machine is disclosed which comprises an electronic accounting and control device with registers for storing accounting data such as credit available and a printer connected to and controlled by the accounting and control device. The machine has an input/output connection for receipt of franking and addressing data from a computer to control the franking machine to print a franking impression and destination address on a mail item.

A franking machine is disclosed which has a microprocessor for carrying out accounting and control functions and in which printing of a franking impression is effected by ejecting droplets of ink from ink filled nozzles by means of selectively heatable elements which vaporize the ink or a constituent thereof to the rear of the nozzles and thereby eject the ink droplets. The nozzles may be stationary and be supplied with ink through a common pipe connected to a reservoir or the nozzles may be constituted by pores in a belt which is driven through an ink reservoir and then past the heatable elements.

A franking machine module is provided with one or more selectively operated mail item feed modules to feed items such as envelopes or labels from hoppers in the feed modules to the franking module. The modules are constructed with common interfaces whereby a number of feed modules may be arranged side by side such that mechanical and electrical drive is transmitted from one module to its adjacent module and feed paths of the modules are co-planar to permit items to be fed into and along a common feed path.

A postage stamp dispenser receives a cassette of postage tape which has marks along its length representing postage value. When a stamp is to be dispensed, the dispenser feeds a length of tape corresponding to the required postage value and prints information such as the postage value and date on the tape. The dispenser may mark the tape with a fuorescent stripe to assist cancellation equipment to locate the stamp. The tape is provided in lengths of known value and the dispenser may provide an indication of thhe value of tape remaining unused in the cassette.

Postage stamp and dispensing system therefor

A franking machine is disclosed in which the accounting and control circuits of the meter are housed in a secure housing and a printing device for printing a franking impression is located exterior to the secure housing and is connected to the accounting and control circuits. Strings of print data sent to the printing device are returned in a succeeding print cycle to a check circuit in the housing to check integrity of the print data received by the printing device. If desired the print data strings may include a security code. In order to detect if the printing device has been disconnected from the meter, the meter includes a circuit to send a pulse train to the printing device via the connection for print data and to receive a pulse train from the printing device. The circuit compares the pulse trains and if the comparison is unsuccessful inhibits further franking operations.

Franking machine, with printing device external to secure housing

A stamp printing machine has print drum carrying print wheels which are settable by push buttons to print a selected value of postage charge. The drum is driven by a mechanical device such as tensator spring motor. The motor is manually primed and a trip lever operated by insertion of mail item releases the print drum to rotate through one revolution to print the stamp on the mail item. The stamp machine may include a calculator on which the postage value may be manually entered. Electrical contacts operated by the rotation of the drum are connected across the M+ button of the calculator to add the postage amount to its memory.

Growing community of inventors

Brentwood, United Kingdom

Dennis T Gilham