The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 13, 2010
Filed:
Oct. 30, 2007
Ole-petter Skaaksrud, Lakeland, TN (US);
Cameron Dee Dryden, West Roxbury, MA (US);
Jeffrey Robert Smith, Westwood, MA (US);
Robert Russell Rhodes, Jr., Hingham, MA (US);
Wayne Luke Gordon, Boston, MA (US);
Xiaoxun Zhu, Marlton, NJ (US);
Ole-Petter Skaaksrud, Lakeland, TN (US);
Cameron Dee Dryden, West Roxbury, MA (US);
Jeffrey Robert Smith, Westwood, MA (US);
Robert Russell Rhodes, Jr., Hingham, MA (US);
Wayne Luke Gordon, Boston, MA (US);
Xiaoxun Zhu, Marlton, NJ (US);
Metrologic Instruments, Inc., Blackwood, NJ (US);
Fedex Corporate Services, Inc., Collierville, TN (US);
Abstract
A method of and apparatus for an Internet-based network configured for facilitating rapid re-labeling of a shipment of packages at the first scanning point in the Internet-based network. The network employs the capture of shipping document images and recognition-processing thereof initiated from the point of shipment pickup and completed while the shipment is being transported to the first scanning point. Shipping information extracted from the original shipping document is extracted from the shipping document images and stored in a DBMS. At the first scanning point, the shipping tracking number encoded within the original shipping document or original shipping label on the package in the shipment is used to access shipping information stored in the DBMS, and this shipping information is used to generate a new shipping label for each package in the shipment. The new shipping label can include a unique network-assigned machine-readable (NAMR) shipping label including either a 1D bar code label or an RFID tag encoded with a unique network-assigned shipment tracking number, which at each subsequent sorting and routing hub is read to access the unique network-assigned shipment tracking number, for accessing shipping information from the DBMS to deliver the package to its intended point of destination. Alternatively, the new shipping label can include a unique network-assigned machine-readable (NAMR) shipping label including either an intelligent 2D bar code label or an intelligent RFID tag encoded with a unique network-assigned shipment tracking number and shipping information extracted from the original shipping document, which at each subsequent sorting and routing hub is read to access shipment information to facilitate routing and delivery of the package to its intended point of destination.