Postage system having telephone answering and message retrieval capability
AssigneePitney Bowes Inc.
InventorJoseph L. Gargiulo
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A postage system includes a data center, a population of postage metering systems and a control system that is in operative communication with the data center and the population of postage metering systems. The population of postage metering systems are located remote from the data center and are geographically distributed. The control system receives an incoming telephone call at one postage metering system of the population of postage metering system, stores a voice message associated with the telephone call and retrieves the voice message from another postage metering system of the population of postage metering systems.
Claims16
A method of operating a data center for processing messages, the method comprising the step(s) of:
- receiving a message associated with an incoming telephone call, the message accepted by one postage metering system of a population of postage metering systems, the population being remotely located and geographically distributed from the data center;
- receiving a request from another postage metering system of the population of postage metering systems to retrieve the message;
- and
- transmitting the message to the another postage metering system.
A method of operating a postage system for receiving and retrieving a message, the method comprising the step(s) of:
- distributing a population of postage metering systems that are in operative communication with a data center, the population of postage metering systems being located remote from and in operative communication with the data center;
- receiving an incoming telephone call at one postage metering system of the population of postage metering systems;
- storing a voice message associated with the telephone call;
- and
- retrieving the voice message from another postage metering system of the population of postage metering systems.
A postage system for dispensing postage, receiving messages and retrieving messages, the system comprising:
- a data center;
- a population of postage metering systems that are in operative communication with the data center, the population of postage metering systems being located remote from the data center and geographically distributed;
- and
- a control system in operative communication with the data center and the population, the control system for;
- receiving an incoming telephone call at one postage metering system of the population of postage metering systems;
- storing a voice message associated with the telephone call;
- and
- retrieving the voice message from another postage metering system of the population of postage metering systems.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.