System and method for tracking a mail item through a document processing system

An article of manufacture, comprising:

• at least one machine readable storage medium;
• and
• program instructions embodied in said storage medium, wherein execution of the program instructions by at least one programmable computer running in association with a document processing system causes the programmable computer to perform functions for tracking mail items processed by the document processing system, the functions comprising:
• during processing of each respective one of the mail items by the document processing system, determining whether or not each respective mail item includes thereon a machine readable postal code containing a representation of a unique mail item identifier for the respective mail item;
• from the determining step, identifying at least one of the respective mail items as not including such a machine readable postal code;
• generating a unique mail item identifier for each respective identified mail item;
• initiating an application of a postal code to each identified mail item containing a representation of the generated unique mail item identifier for the respective identified mail item,
• wherein each unique mail item identifier and each postal code conform to a postal authority standard;
• and
• storing metadata associated with each respective mail item in association with the unique mail item identifier of the respective mail item to form a database of information regarding the mail items processed through the document processing system.

A document processing system comprising:

• a reader device adapted to capture data as marked upon each respective mail item;
• a processor/controller adapted to:
• (a) obtain a data for a unique mail item identifier from a postal code read by the reader device from each respective mail item already having a postal code conforming to a postal authority standard thereon;
• and
• (b) generate and assign a unique mail item identifier conforming to postal authority standard to each respective mail item read by the reader device that does not already having a postal code conforming to postal authority standard thereon;
• and
• a sorter associated with the processor/controller adapted to sort each respective mail item into one of a plurality of sort groups;
• and
• memory associated with the processor/controller, for storing metadata and identification of the sort group to which each respective mail item is sorted in association with the unique mail item identifier for the respective mail item.

A method of generating postal authority documentation for mail items processed by a document processing system, the method comprising steps of:

• associating a unique mail item identifier conforming to a postal authority standard, comprising a mailer identifier identifying a mailer sending the mail items and a number which is maintained as unique with respect to mail items from the identified mailer for a specified period of time, with each respective one of the processed mail items;
• applying a barcode conforming to a postal authority standard to each respective mail item for which a barcode was not already present, the barcode containing at least the unique mail item identifier associated with the respective mail item for which a barcode was not already present;
• storing in a database identification of a respective sort group to which each respective mail item is sorted, from among a plurality of sort groups, in association with the mail item identifier associated with the respective mail item;
• and
• generating a report from the database, including association of one of the sort groups with mail item identifiers associated with mail items sorted into the one sort group.

An article of manufacture, comprising:

• at least one machine readable storage medium;
• and
• program instructions embodied in said storage medium, wherein execution of the program instructions by at least one programmable computer associated with a document processing system causes the programmable computer to control the document processing system to perform functions comprising:
• associating a unique mail item identifier conforming to a postal authority standard, comprising a mailer identifier identifying a mailer sending the mail items and a number which is maintained as unique with respect to mail items from the identified mailer for a specified period of time, with each respective one of the processed mail items;
• applying a barcode conforming to postal authority standard to each respective mail item for which a barcode was not already present, the barcode containing at least the unique mail item identifier associated with the respective mail item for which a barcode was not already present;
• storing in a database identification of a respective sort group to which each respective mail item is sorted, from among a plurality of sort groups, in association with the mail item identifier associated with the respective mail item;
• and
• generating a report from the database, including association of one of the sort groups with mail item identifiers associated with mail items sorted into the one sort group.