Mail preparation system

[54] MAIL PREPARATION SYSTEM

[75] Inventors: Barry H. Axelrod, Newtown; Robert T. Durst, Jr., Monroe; Kevin D. Hunter, Stratford; Leon A. Pintsov, West Hartford; William G. Hart, Stamford; Morton Silverberg, Westport, all of Conn.

Assignee: Pitney Bowes Inc., Stamford, Conn.

Appl.No.: 25,418

Filed: Mar. 13,1987

Int. O* G06F 15/20; B65H 39/02

U.S. a 364/478; 209/3.3;

209/584; 270/58; 270/1.1; 235/375; 364/464.03

Field of Search 364/464, 466, 478;

209/900, 569, 583, 584, 3.1-3.3; 270/1.1, 4, 5, 54, 58; 53/266 A; 235/375, 432

References Cited

U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS

[73]

[21]

[22]

[51] [52]

[58]

[56]

4,194,685 3/1980 Hill et al 270/58 X

4,384,196 5/1983 McCumber et al 270/58 X

4,527,468 7/1985 Piotroski 270/58

4,576,370 3/1986 Jackson 270/58 X

4,582,312 4/1986 Abrams et al 270/54 X

Primary Examiner—Joseph Ruggiero

Attorney, Agent, or Firm—Donald P. Walker; David E.

Pitchenik; Melvin J. Scolnick

A system for the preparation of items to be mailed, preparation of each item varying in accordance with selected values of pre-determined parameters. The system includes apparatus for marking each item with selected identification code values; apparatus for preparing each item to be mailed in accordance with stored parameters, the preparing apparatus having a detector for detecting and outputting identification values from the items; a data base system for storing selected values of the parameters in associated with the identification codes, a control system responsive to the output identification codes to access the associated selected values for output to the preparation apparatus. The preparation apparatus of the subject system includes an inserted system and the pre-determined parameters include parameters defining the inserts to be assembled with an item. The preparation apparatus also includes a printer which is controlled to print information on the items in accordance with other pre-determined parameters. The identification codes are printed on control documents for each item by a data processing system which includes a post-processing subsystem for removing conventional dash codes and substituting identification codes, and transmitting records of the values of the pre-determined parameters to the data base system together with associated identification codes.

19 Claims, 3 Drawing Sheets