Ascom Hasler Mailing Systems, Inc.

Ascom Autelca Ag

Micro General Corp.

Rockaway Corporation

John J Horbal

James S Emmett

William J Casey

Hans-Peter Liechti

A postage meter includes a keyboard for inputting postage information, a memory for storing the input postage information, a programmable read-only memory for storing standard postage indicia information, a dot matrix printer, the dot matrix printer comprising a staggered arrangement of a plurality of dot matrix printheads, and a controller which 1) retrieves the input postage information and the standard postage indicia, 2) combines the input postage information and the standard postage indicia information to form a postage indicia to be printed, 3) divides the formed postage indicia into equal portions wherein the formed postage indicia is divided by a number of the dot matrix printheads in the dot matrix printer, 4) routes divided portions to each of a plurality of dot matrix printheads, and 5) instructs each of the dot matrix printheads to print its portion of the divided postage indicia at a specific time such that upon completing the printing of the divided portion, a complete postage indicia is printed.

Postage meter having a dot matrix printer

A postage meter resetting apparatus includes a stepper motor as a first motive arrangement for turning the resetting shaft of a mechanical postage meter, another stepper motor as a second motive mechanism to enable or disable resetting by the first stepper motor. A lead screw, lead nut and linkage, driven by the second stepper motor, when resetting is authorized, moves an axially movable part of a coupling between the second stepper motor and the meter's axially movable resetting shaft, to bring the resetting gear on the shaft into engagement with a gear of the meter's descending register. An input to the first stepper motor, representing a variable amount of postage, effects turning of the resetting shaft and the engaged gears by amounts corresponding to the desired variable amount of postage to be added to the meter's descending register. An encoder coupled to the shaft of the first stepper motor provides an output indication of the amount that the shaft has turned. A CPU routine assures that the gear on the meter's resetting shaft has cleared a blocking pin and engaged the descending register gear prior to resetting by the first stepper motor. Another CPU routine clears jams when it is detected that the shaft has not been turned the amount desired.

Mechanical postage meter resetting device and method

A system for remotely resetting a postage meter, by adding a variable amount of postage, includes a computerized central facility or 'host', in telephone communication with the meter, which host verifies the meter's identity and ascertains the availability of funds, then sends to the meter an authorizing, unique, one-time-only combination, independent of the value of postage requested, and having a predetermined relation to a unique, one-time-only combination that the meter has generated and retained. The meter then compares the combination that it has generated with the combination received from the host. If the relationship is correct, for example, if the combination is the same, the meter introduces the additional postage requested.

Remote resetting postage meter

Apparatus for automatically actuating manually operable selector elements, such as the type which normally are found on a manually operable postage meter. A carriage is provided and is movable between an initial, start position and an end position. Plural actuator elements are coupled to and movable with the carriage. These actuator elements are positioned in operable relation with the selector elements and are selectively energized while the carriage moves between its start and end positions to correspondingly activate the selector elements. When used in the environment of a postage meter, the selective energization of the actuator elements thereby conditions the postage meter to provide a corresponding indication of postage. Reset apparatus resets the carriage following the selective energization of the actuator elements. With minor changes in the structure of the actuator elements, the automatic actuator can be used in conjunction with, for example, postage meters of the type having movable levers selectively positioned to establish corresponding monetary units of postage, or an array of columns of depressible keys, each key corresponding to any one of the possible monetary units of postage.

Growing community of inventors

Beacon Falls, CT, United States of America

John J Horbal