Method for postage payment
AssigneeNeopost Technologies
InventorJames Edward Brunsmann
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A postage funds credit system in which the customer pays for postage funds after they are used in franking mailpieces. A postal device is initialized with postage funds advanced to the customer by a third party. The value of a descending register of the postal device is read a first time and a second subsequent time. The later value is subtracted from the earlier value to obtain an amount of postage funds used by the customer between the two readings. The customer is billed for the amount of postage used after such use. The postal device can be replenished with additional postage funds advanced by the third party.
Claims15
A method of accounting for a replenishment of postage funds from a remote server to a postal device having a descending register, the method comprising, in the order recited:
- establishing a first communication link between the postal device and the remote server, the postal device storing the postage funds which total amount is reflected in the descending register;
- obtaining, through the first communication link, a first value of the descending register;
- sending a postage funds replenishment value to be added to a current value of the descending register at the postal device;
- establishing a subsequent communication link between the postal device and the remote server after the postal device has dispensed at least some of the postage funds and decremented the descending register for a plurality of postal transactions;
- obtaining, through the subsequent communication link, a second value of the descending register;
- calculating, by the remote server, a difference between the second value and the first value;
- and
- determining, by the remote server, an amount owed for postage used by adding the postage funds replenishment value to the calculated difference to obtain the amount owed.
A postage funds credit system, comprising:
- a computer system comprising:
- a processor;
- and
- a memory communicatively coupled to the processor;
- said computer system configured to perform a method comprising, in the order recited:
- obtaining a first value of a descending register of a postal device;
- adding a postage funds replenishment value to a current value of the descending register at the postal device;
- obtaining a second value of the descending register after the postal device has dispensed at least some postage funds and decremented the descending register for a plurality of postal transactions;
- calculating the difference between the first value and the second value;
- determining an amount owed for postage used by adding the postage funds replenishment value to the calculated difference to obtain the amount owed;
- and
- causing an account of a customer associated with the postal device to be debited an amount based upon the calculated difference.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.