System and method for fast weighing of items such as mailpieces

A system for determining a weight for an item with at least sufficient accuracy to assure that said weight is within one of a plurality of ranges, said ranges being bounded by break weights, said system comprising:

• a) a critically damped or overdamped scale system for generating a digital output signal, said scale system comprising:
• a1) a support for supporting said item;
• and
• a2) a transducer for generating said digital output signal, said signal being representative of an instantaneous response of said support and having a general waveform of a damped sinusoid;
• and
• b) a data processing system for, in response to said digital output signal:
• b1) determining if a first peak in said damped sinusoid is less than a lowest of said break weights and, if so, determining said weight to be in a lowest of said ranges;
• otherwise
• b2) determining if a second peak to second valley difference in said damped sinusoid is less than a predetermined value;
• and, if so
• b3) determining said weight to be equal to a median of said second peak and second valley.

A method for processing an output signal, generated by a scale system and having a general waveform of a damped sinusoid, to determine a weight for an item on said scale system, said method comprising the steps of:

• a) determining if a first peak of said damped sinusoid is greater than a threshold value, said threshold value corresponding to a weight break between a lowest range of weight values and a second range of weight values;
• b) if said first peak of said damped sinusoid is not greater than said threshold value, determining said weight to be in said lowest range of weight values;
• c) if said first peak of said damped sinusoid is greater than said threshold value, determining a next peak and subsequent valley of said damped sinusoid;
• d) determining if a difference between said next peak and subsequent valley of said damped sinusoid is less than a predetermined value;
• and
• e) determining said weight to be equal to a median of said next peak and said subsequent valley if said difference between said next peak and said subsequent valley is less than said predetermined value.

A method for processing an output signal, generated by a scale system and having a general waveform of a damped sinusoid, to determine a weight for an item on said scale system is within one of a plurality of ranges, said ranges being bounded by break weights, said method comprising the steps of:

• a) determining if a first peak in said damped sinusoid is less than a lowest of said break weights and, if so, determining said weight to be in a lowest of said ranges;
• otherwise
• b) determining if a second peak to second valley difference in said damped sinusoid is less than a predetermined value;
• and, if so
• c) determining said weight to be equal to a median of said second peak and second valley.

A system for calculating postage for a mail piece comprising:

• a scale having a support for supporting said mail piece and a transducer for generating an output signal representative of an instantaneous response of said support and having a general waveform of a damped sinusoid;
• and
• a data processing system coupled to the scale, said data processing system, in response to said output signal from said scale, determining if a first peak of said damped sinusoid is greater than a threshold value, said threshold value corresponding to a weight break between a lowest range of weight values associated with a first postage amount and a second range of weight values associated with a second postage amount;
• wherein if said first peak of said damped sinusoid is not greater than said threshold value, said data processing system determines said weight to be in said lowest range of weight values and calculates said postage for said mail piece as said first postage amount.

A method for calculating postage for a mail piece comprising:

• supporting said mail piece on a support of a scale;
• generating an output signal representative of an instantaneous response of said support, said output signal having a general waveform of a damped sinusoid;
• determining, in response to said output signal, if a first peak of said damped sinusoid is greater than a threshold value, said threshold value corresponding to a weight break between a lowest range of weight values associated with a first postage amount and a second range of weight values associated with a second postage amount;
• determining said weight to be in said lowest range of weight values if said first peak of said damped sinusoid is not greater than said threshold value;
• and
• if said weight is determined to be in said lowest range of weight values, calculating said postage for said mail piece as said first postage amount.