PC postage label usable for envelopes with facing identification marks

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6461063
  • Patent Number
    6,461,063
  • Date Filed
    Friday, March 31, 2000
    24 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, October 8, 2002
    22 years ago
Abstract
A sheet having at least one self-adhesive special purpose label arrangement set having a postage indicia label, and preferably a sender label and also preferably an addressee label, and a process for printing these special purpose label arrangement sets. The postage indicia label printed by the process is sized and shaped so that it can be applied to a variety of mail pieces, including mail pieces that have FIM patterns, and the printed postage indicia label can be applied to an upper right hand corner of a mail piece without encroaching on the FIM pattern. The invention also provides a process for printing the self-adhesive special purpose label arrangement set with postage indicia, sender information, and addressee information.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




This invention is in the field of labels, and more particularly is a special purpose label arrangement set for use in PC postage that can be used with envelopes bearing facing identification marks, and a method for printing this special purpose label arrangement with the necessary information.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




The United States Postal Service (USPS) has responded to recent technological developments in the telecommunication and computer field by developing its Information Based Indicia Program (IBIP.) The IBIP involves the development of new technology to produce new forms of postage. In so-called PC Postage, a user can purchase postage credit, and print the postage in the form of PC Postage onto a label or directly onto the mail piece. The PC Postage includes a human readable portion and a 2-dimensional barcode portion. The human readable portion includes the postage value, mail class, the date, the meter number, optionally a logo, and optionally also the destination zip code (required for business courtesy mail pieces.) The barcode portion is intended to help thwart fraud, and includes information about the mail piece including the destination ZIP code, the amount of postage applied, the date and time the postage was applied, and a digital signature so that the USPS can validate the authenticity of the postage.




In one preferred embodiment of PC Postage, a user will subscribe to a third party central server location, such as Stamps.com (of Santa Monica, Calif.), and by using postage software made available by the central server location, postage value can be downloaded to the user's computer. The user can then print the postage indicia, by an ordinary laser or ink jet printer, directly onto the mail piece itself (onto a standard business envelope), or onto a label to be applied to the mail piece. This postage software works in conjunction with other software programs, such as word processing, accounting, database, and contact management software to allow a user to conveniently print out PC Postage at the same time that addressee and bar code information is printed (and also the sender's return address.)




In order to permit the sophisticated mail handling and optical reading equipment at the USPS to properly interpret the PC Postage and addressee information, it is critical that the postage indicia be applied properly. Indeed, the USPS has established strict guidelines directed to the margins, label sizes, and placement of the Postage Indicia, and the size, placement, and other characteristics of the POSTNET (POStal Numeric Encoding Technique) bar codes, and any facing identification mark (FIM) on mail pieces. These guidelines are contained in the Domestic Mail Manual (DMM) and Title 39, Code of Federal Register (CFR), Part 111, and UPSP Publication No. 25 “Designing Letter Mail”.




The various typically available laser and ink jet printers differ in their ability to print close to the edge of sheets of self-adhesive labels fed into the printer, and typically cannot print closer than 0.635 cm (0.25 inch) of each edge of the sheet, although depending on the printer, it can be as much as 1.27 cm (0.5 inch) of each edge of the sheet. In their most common embodiment, these home, office and small laser and ink jet printers are designed to accept sheets having a maximum width of 21.59 cm (8.5 inches), or in the case of wide format printers, about 27.94 cm (11 inches.) However, the majority of the home and office printers are of the 21.59 cm (8.5 inches) variety, and accordingly most self-adhesive labels sheets have a width of 21.59 cm (8.5 inches) or less. To accommodate a variety of printers (and their different print-free margin requirements), most self-adhesive labels are provided on sheets that have relatively wide margins. Unfortunately, formatting self-adhesive labels with overly wide margins reduces the footprint available for the labels and therefore reduces the number and/or size labels that can be provided per sheet.




E-Stamp.com's Internet Postage starter kit includes samples of self-adhesive labels from Avery® identified as Postage & Address Labels #2869 and #2866, and labels for template #2859. These label sheets include the words “Patent Pending”. The #2866 labels consist of single enlarged labels with fluorescent strips on the top and right side edges. The #2866 label design is stated as being large enough to print postage and addresses on labels for packages. The #2859 and #2869 labels consist of two labels per set, with fluorescent strips on the top and right side edges of the upper and larger label in each of the two labels per set. The larger upper label in these sets is for the postage indicia, and the smaller label is for the addressee. There is no provision for printing of the sender's address along with the postage indicia label and addressee label. As noted above, the postage indicia includes such information as the destination ZIP code.




A facing identification mark (FIM) is a pattern of vertical bars printed in the upper right area of a mail piece, to the left of the indicia space for a stamp, metering or PC postage. A FIM pattern is essentially a nine-bit code consisting of bars and no-bar place holders (in which the bars corresponding to a binary 1 and no bars correspond to a binary 0.) FIM patterns serves two major purposes. They allow letter that do not contain luminescent stamps of meter imprints (such as business reply mail and official government mail) to be faced (oriented) and canceled (postmarked) by USPS machinery. FIM patterns also permit business reply mail and courtesy reply mail to be separated from other letters and cards for direct processing by optical character readers (OCRs) or barcode sorters (BCSs). This helps in achieving faster processing times.




There are presently four different FIM markings. FIM A is used for courtesy reply mail. FIM B is used for business reply mail, penalty mail, or franked mail without a POSTNET barcode. FIM C is used for business reply mail, penalty mail, or franked mail with a POSTNET barcode. In addition, FIM D is typically used for IBIP mailings, except that a FIM A is required when the FIM is preprinted onto a business courtesy envelope. Notwithstanding which particular FIM pattern is applied, under USPS regulations, there are strict regulations concerning the size and placement of the FIM pattern.




The FIM pattern must be printed in a FIM clear zone, in which no other printing must appear. The FIM clear zone is a rectangular sized zone extending from downwardly 0.625 inches from the upper edge of the mail piece and is located between 3 inches and 1.750 inches from the right side edge. The FIM bars must be 0.625 inch±0.125 inch high and 0.03125 inch±0.008 inch wide. The rightmost bar of the FIM must be 2 inches±0.125 inch from the right edge of the mail piece. The tops of the FIM bars must be no lower than 0.125 inch from the top of mail piece and the bottoms of the FIM bars should touch the bottom edge of the FIM clear zone but must not be more than 0.125 inch above or below that edge.




In view of the presence of FIM patterns on business courtesy mail pieces, which can comprise a relatively large percentage of PC postage users' mailing needs, it would be very useful to have a PC postage label that is designed for use with mail pieces with FIM patterns.




It would be highly useful to have a special purpose Label arrangement that has a label portion for the postage indicia, an addressee label portion, and a sender label portion, so that during the printing of postage indicia onto a self-adhesive label, additional labels for the addressee and sender can also be simultaneously printed by the user, as a set, thereby eliminating the need to print sender labels in a separate step. Furthermore, since some users include additional unique identifying information along with mail pieces, (such as account numbers), which can be placed in the vicinity of the sender's address on the mail piece, it would be beneficial to print all three labels in a single step.




It would also be highly beneficial to have a special purpose label arrangement designed for use with mail pieces that may or may not have a FIM pattern, and that as a minimum has a label portion for the postage indicia, and preferably also an addressee label portion and a sender label portion, so that only a single style of sheets of self-adhesive labels will serve a user's needs during the printing of postage indicia on any mail piece.




It would be convenient to provide a method to permit printing of a special purpose label arrangement that has a label portion for the postage indicia, an addressee label portion, and a sender label portion in a single step, and alternately a special purpose label arrangement that has a label portion for the postage indicia designed for all types of mail pieces, including mail pieces with FIM patterns and preferably also a sender label portion and an addressee label portion.











DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

is a plan view of a first embodiment of a sheet of a plurality of sets of self-adhesive label arrangements of the invention, each set having a label portion for the postage indicia, an addressee label portion, and a sender label portion.




FIG.


2


. is a plan view of a second embodiment of a sheet of self-adhesive labels of the invention.





FIG. 3

is a plan view of a third embodiment of a sheet of self-adhesive labels of the invention.




FIG.


4


A. is a diagrammatic view showing a first embodiment of a method of the invention wherein a sheet of self-adhesive labels of the invention is being fed into a printer for printing with the postage indicia, addressee, and sender information.





FIG. 4B

is a diagrammatic view showing a second embodiment of a method of the invention wherein a sheet of self-adhesive labels of the invention is being fed into a printer for printing with the postage indicia, addressee, and sender information.




FIG.


5


. is a top plan view showing a sheet of self-adhesive labels of the invention after one set of the three labels in the set is printed with the postage indicia. addressee, and sender information.





FIG. 6

is a plan view of a fourth embodiment of a sheet of self-adhesive labels of the invention.





FIG. 7

is a plan view of a fifth embodiment of a sheet of self-adhesive labels of the invention.





FIG. 8

is a plan view showing the postage indicia label portion printed with indicia and applied to a mail piece with a FIM pattern.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION




Referring first to

FIG. 1

, there is shown a plan view of a first embodiment of a single sheet


10


of self-adhesive labels of the invention. In sheet


10


, a plurality of label arrangement set


12


are provided. Each label arrangement set


12


has a postage indicia label


14


, an addressee label


16


, and a sender label


18


, arranged to abut each other at their top and bottom edges. These sets are arranged in a portrait orientation on the sheet


10


with the widths of the labels


14


,


16


and


18


being parallel to the shorter dimension of sheet


10


. Postage indicia label


14


has a fluorescent strip


20


on a right hand edge. The construction of sheet


10


of self-adhesive labels is conventional in that sheet


10


includes a backing sheet (not shown) with low adhesion from which labels


14


,


16


and


18


can be detached and then permanently attached to a mailing piece (not shown). Sizing of label arrangement set


12


for an 21.59 cm×cm 27.94 (8.5 inches×11 inches) sheet


10


can preferably be made as follows:




Postage indicia label


14


is about 8.89 cm (3.5 inches) wide and 4.45 cm (1.75 inches) high. Addressee label


16


is about 8.89 cm (3.5 inches) wide and 2.54 cm (1 inch) high. Sender label


18


is about 5.72 cm (2.25 inches) wide and about 1.43 cm (0.5625 inches) high. In

FIG. 1

, at least one left side edges of labels


14


,


16


and


18


are in line, but since addressee label


18


is narrower than postage indicia label


14


and addressee label


16


, its position could be shifted (e.g. to be aligned with a right edge of postage indicia label


14


and addressee label


16


.) Also, the relative ordering of labels


14


,


16


and


18


in set


12


can be shifted (e.g. sender label


18


could be positioned between postage indicia label


14


and addressee label


16


) with minor modifications to the software. With the above-noted sizing of labels


14


,


16


and


18


in set


12


, six sets


12


can be arranged on an 21.54 cm×27.94 cm (8.5 inches×11 inches) sheet, with three label sets


12


on a left hand side and three sets


12


on a right hand side, leaving about a 1.27 cm (0.5 inch) print-free margins


26


on the left, right, top and bottom edges of sheet


10


, and optionally with a 1.27 cm (0.5 inch) print-free central dividing area


22


between side-by-side sets


12


on sheet


10


. The area on the single sheet


10


excluding the print-free margins


26


comprises a printable footprint areas of the sheet. If desired, a weakened line


24


(e.g. as by a line of micro-perforations) can be formed through central dividing area


22


of sheet


10


and its backing layer that separates side-by-side sets of labels


12


on sheet


10


. This feature will allow sheet


10


to be separated into left and right sheet halves if desired, and the separate halves can be separately feed into a printer. As can be seen, the sum of the heights of labels


14


,


16


and


18


of the plurality of sets


12


on the left side and right side of the sheet


10


is equal the long dimension of the printable footprint area, and the sum of side-by-side postage indicia labels


14


(and addressee labels


16


) plus the width of the optional print-free central dividing area


22


is equal to the shorter dimension of the printable footprint, thereby maximizing the area of the sheet


10


available for the labels


14


,


16


and


18


.




FIG.


2


. is a plan view of a second embodiment of a single sheet of self-adhesive labels


40


of the invention which is adapted for non-envelope applications, such as for bulky packages and the like. In sheet


40


, a plurality of label arrangement sets


42


are provided and as shown, are in a portrait orientation on sheet with the widths of the labels


44


,


46


and


48


being parallel to the shorter dimension of sheet


40


. Each set


42


has a postage indicia label


44


, an addressee label portion


46


, and a sender label


48


, arranged to abut each other at their top and bottom edges. Unlike the first embodiment of label sheets


10


, under postal regulations, no fluorescent strip need be provided on the postage indicia labels


44


. The construction of sheet


40


of self-adhesive labels is conventional in that sheet


40


provides a backing sheet (not shown) with low adhesion from which labels


44


,


46


and


48


can be peeled and then permanently attached to a mail piece. Sizing of labels for an 21.54 cm×27.94 cm (8.5 inches×11 inches) sheet can preferably be made as follows:




Postage indicia label


44


is about 8.89 cm (3.5 inches) wide and 4.45 cm (1.75 inches) high. Addressee label


46


is about 8.89 cm (3.5 inches) wide and 5.08 cm (2 inches) high. Sender label


48


is about 8.89 cm (3.5 inches) wide and about 3.81 cm (1.5 inches) high inches high. All labels


44


,


46


and


48


have the same width and preferably are aligned with their side edges in line. The relative ordering of labels


44


,


46


and


48


in set


42


can be shifted as desired (e.g. label


48


could be positioned between labels


44


and


46


.) Sized as noted above, six sets


62


can be arranged on an 21.59 cm×27.94 cm (8.5 inches×11 inches) sheet, with three label sets


42


on a left hand side and three sets


42


on a right hand side, leaving about a 1.27 cm (0.5 inch) wide margins


50


on the left, right, top and bottom edges of sheet


40


, and with a 1.27 cm (0.5 inch) central dividing space


52


between side-by-side sets


42


on sheet


40


. The area on the single sheet


40


excluding the print-free perimeter margins


50


comprises a printable footprint area of the sheet. If desired, a weakened line


54


(e.g. as by a line of micro-perforations) can be formed through a central dividing area


52


of sheet


10


and its backing layer that separates side-by-side sets of labels


42


on sheet


40


. Central dividing area


52


can be about 1.27 cm (0.5 inches) wide (with about 0.635 cm (0.25 inch) of central dividing area


52


on each side of weakened line


54


.) This feature will allow sheet


40


to be separated into two halves if desired, and the separate halves can be separately feed into a printer. As can be seen, the sum of the heights of all labels


44


,


46


and


48


of the plurality of sets


42


on the left side and right side of single sheet


40


is equal to the longer dimension of the printable footprint area, and the sum of any of the side-by-side postage indicia labels


44


(or addressee labels


46


) plus the width optional print-free central dividing area


52


is equal to the shorter dimension of the printable footprint, thereby maximizing the area of sheet


40


available for labels


44


,


46


and


48


.





FIG. 3

is a plan view of a third embodiment of a since sheet of self-adhesive labels


60


of the invention. In sheet


60


, a plurality (viz. two) label arrangement sets


62


are provided. However, a half-size sheet could also be configured to carry a single label arrangement set if desired (not shown). As shown, the sheet is preferably a standard sized sheet, such as 21.59 cm×29.94 cm (8.5 inches×11 inches), but could be other sizes as well. Label sets


62


are well-suitable for use on large packages and parcels. Each set


62


has a postage indicia label


64


, an addressee label


66


, and a sender label


68


. Unlike the embodiment of

FIGS. 1 and 2

, each set


62


is arranged on sheet


60


in a landscape orientation, wherein the longer widths of label


64


,


66


and


68


are aligned with the longer dimension of sheet


60


. In this embodiment, labels


64


,


66


and


68


are shown with addressee label


66


on a left hand side of sheet


60


, and sender label


68


and postage indicia label


64


on a right hand side of sheet


60


.




Sizing of label sets


62


for an 21.59 cm×27.94 cm (8.5 inches×11 inches) sheet can preferably be made as follows: Addressee label portion


66


is about 12.70 cm (5 inches) wide and 8.89 cm (3.5 inches) high. Postage indicia label portion


64


is about 10.16 cm (4 inches) wide and 5.08 cm (2 inches, high. Sender label portion


68


is about 10.16 cm (4 inches) wide and 3.81 cm (1.5 inches) high. The print-free margins


70


around the two set


62


of labels on sheet


60


are preferably a minimum of 1.27 cm (0.5 inches) on the top, bottom, left and right sides. The area on the single sheet


60


excluding the print-free margins


70


comprises a printable footprint area of the single sheet. A central dividing area


72


optionally can run down the center of sheet


60


between labels


66


and


64


, or labels


66


and


64


can be positioned to abut each other on a long edge. The relative arrangement of labels


64


,


66


and


68


on sheet


60


can be rearranged if desired, (e.g. putting addressee label


66


on a right hand side and labels


64


and


68


on a left hand side, and/or flipping relative positions of labels


64


and


68


) so long as the minimum print-free margins of perimeter of sheet


60


are preserved. The sum of the widths of the two side-by-side addressee labels


66


is equal to the longer dimension of the printable footprint area of sheet


60


. The sum of the heights of the labels


64


,


66


and


68


, plus the width of the central dividing area


72


is equal to the shorter dimension of the footprint area.




The above dimensions are all for standard 21.59 cm×27.94 cm (8.5 inches×11 inches) sheets. Other size sheets can be used as well, such as A


4


size (21.0 cm×29.7 cm), legal size (21.59 cm×35.6 cm), or smaller sized sheets can be used, with necessary changes being made to the label set sizes, arrangements, and print free margins (so long as minimum required print-free borders are maintained.) Print free margins of about 1.27 cm (0.5 inch) have been found to accommodate the majority of modern computer printers, but other dimensions could be used as well.




The invention also provides a process for printing a special purpose label arrangement set with a postage indicia label, an addressee label and a sender label in a single step.




Referring to

FIG. 4A

, there is depicted a first embodiment of the method, wherein a user will provide a computer system


80


and a printer


82


, and computer system


80


is to be connected to the a computer network, such as the Internet


84


. A sheet of adhesive labels


86


is provided. Each sheet of labels


86


includes at least one, and preferably a plurality of special purpose label arrangement sets, each set having a postage indicia label, an addressee label, and a sender label. A United States Postal Service Server


88


(or other national postal server for use of the method in foreign countries) is connected to the Internet Postage Server


90


, both of which are connected to the Internet


84


.




Specialized computer software for printing the postage indicia on the postage indicia label will be provided. For example, computer software such as described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/163,993, filed on Sep. 29, 1998, by Mohan Ananda, entitled “On Line Postage System”, assigned to Stamps.com, the assignee of the present invention, is incorporated by reference as if appearing as full herein. This specialized postage computer software program will preferably integrate with other computer software such as word processing, contact management, calendaring database, and accounting programs, to name a few, and will thus allow sharing of information, such as addressee information and account information. Postal value is obtained (e.g. from the Internet.)




This postage value can be obtained in blocks and stored on the user's computer or a device attached to the computer, or can be downloaded as needed (e.g. 33¢ at a time). The user will indicate the style of label sheet being used (e.g. that of

FIGS. 1

,


2


,


3


, or some other style of label sheet) and the set number (e.g. top right set) be printed. In another step, the user will input the addresses information (e.g. from a document being typed, from information directly entered into the postage software, from the address book or database of another program, or in some other manner.) The correct postage value for the postage indicia label takes into consideration the sender's address, the destination address, the type of mail service to be used, and the weight and/or size of the postal piece being mailed. An optional electronic scale


92


connected to the computer system


80


can be used to automatically provide the mailing piece's weight. The user may wish to print a return address label, which may be the sender's primary return address or some other address (e.g. an address for billing purposes, an address for customer service, etc.) Other information can also be printed onto the sender's label including, for example, a billing or account code. Some parts of the return address information, or other information identifying the user, such as origin zip code and origin city can be contained on the postage indicia label. Accordingly, there is a considerable amount of coordination required between the different data, the different software, and the label attributes in order to properly print the label sets. The specialized computer program will then direct the printer to print the postage indicia label, the addressee label, and the sender label of the correct set (e.g. the middle left set) of the special purpose label arrangement set, preferably in a single pass through the printer. The ordering of the above described steps is not critical, and could be varied.




Referring now to

FIG. 4B

, there is depicted a second embodiment of the method, whereas means other than the Internet can be used for obtaining postal value. In this second embodiment, the user will provide a computer system


100


and a printer


102


. For example, a local area network or wide area network might be used. Each sheet of labels


104


includes at least one, and preferably a plurality of special purpose label arrangement sets, each set having a postage indicia label, an addressee label, and a sender label.




The postage value can be obtained in blocks and stored on the user's computer or a device attached to the computer, or can be obtained as needed. The user will indicate the style of label sheet being used (e.g. that of

FIGS. 1

,


2


,


3


, or some other style of label sheet) and the set number (e.g. top right set) be printed. In another step, the user will input the addresses information (e.g. from a document being typed, from information directly entered into the postage software, from the address book or database of another program, or in some other manner.) The correct postage value for the postage indicia label takes into consideration the sender's address, the destination address, the type of mail service to be used, and the weight and/or size of the postal piece being mailed. An optional electronic scale connected to the computer system


106


can be used to automatically provide the mailing piece's weight. The user may wish to print a return address label, which may be the sender's primary return address or some other address (e.g. an address for billing purposes, an address for customer service, etc.) Other information can also be printed onto the sender's label including, for example, a billing or account code. Some parts of the return address information, or other information identifying the user, such as origin zip code and origin city can be contained on the postage indicia label. Accordingly, there is a considerable amount of coordination required between the different data, the different software, and the label attributes in order to properly print the label sets. The computer program will then direct the printer to print the postage indicia label, the addressee label, and the sender label of the correct set (e.g. the middle left set) of the special purpose label arrangement set to form completed label set


108


, which may preferably occur in a single pass through printer


102


. The ordering of the above described steps is not critical, and could be varied.




FIG.


5


. is a top plan view showing a sheet of self-adhesive labels


40


of the invention after one set


42


of the three labels


44


,


46


and


48


is printed with the postage indicia


94


, addressee information


96


, and sender information


98


. Since set


42


is printed in a single pass through printer


82


, the method provides an ideal method to print all labels necessary to send a mail piece with the postage indicia.





FIG. 6

is a plan view of a fourth embodiment of a sheet: of self-adhesive labels


120


of the invention. In sheet


120


, a plurality of label arrangement set


122


are provided. Each label arrangement set


122


has a non-rectangular postage indicia label


124


and a sender label


126


. The fourth embodiment of the sheet of self-adhesive labels


120


is well-suited to windowed mail pieces (through which the return address will show) or mail pieces that are pre-addressed to the addressee. Unlike the rectangular shapes of the first through third embodiments of postage indicia label, in the fourth embodiment, the postage indicia label


124


has a wider lower rectangular section


124


L and a narrower upper rectangular section


124


U, with the upper rectangular section


124


U extending above the lower rectangular section


124


L on the right hand side, with the result that a relief portion


128


is formed on its upper left hand side of postage indicia label


124


.




The sizing of label arrangement set


122


for an 21.59 cm×cm 27.94 (8.5 inches×11 inches) sheet


120


can preferably be made as follows to maximize the number of labels on a sheet, yet provide sufficient printing area.




Postage indicia label


124


has a total width W


T


of about 8.89 cm (3.5 inches) and a total height H


T


of 4.45 cm (1.75 inches). The wider lower rectangular section


124


L is about 8.89 cm (3.5 inches) wide W


L


and about 2.54 cm (1.00 inches). high H


L


, and the narrower upper rectangular section


124


U is about 4.45 cm (1.75 inches) wide W


U


and about 1.91 cm (0.75 inches) high H


U


, again with the total height H


T


being about 4.45 cm (1.75 inches). The sender label


126


is about 4.45 cm. (1.75 inches) wide S


W


and about 1.27 cm (0.5 inch) high S


H


, and can be positioned in relief portion


128


with the right edge of sender label


126


contacting the left edge of the upper rectangular section


124


U.




The fourth embodiment of a sheet of self-adhesive labels


120


shows ten sets of label arrangement set


122


, with five sets on a left hand side and five sets on a right hand side of a sheet. A central dividing area


130


is about 1.27 cm (0.5 inch) wide with the postage indicia label


124


and the sender label


126


each positioned about 0.635 cm (0.25 inch) away from a center line


132


. Print-free margin regions


134


adjacent to the edges


136


of the sheet


120


are provided, and are preferably sized to be about 0.635 cm to 1.27 cm (0.025 to 0.5 inch) wide, and surround the label sets


122


. The area on the sheet


120


excluding the print-free margins


134


comprises a printable footprint areas of the sheet


120


.




Turning now to

FIG. 7

, there is shown a fifth embodiment of a sheet of self-adhesive labels


150


of the invention. In the fifth embodiment of a sheet of self-adhesive labels


150


, a plurality of label arrangement set


152


are provided. Each label arrangement set


152


has a non-rectangular postage indicia label


154


, a sender label


156


, and an address label portion


158


. As with the fourth embodiment, the postage indicia label


154


has a wider lower rectangular section


154


L and a narrower upper rectangular section


154


U, with the upper rectangular section


154


U extending above the lower rectangular section


154


L on the right hand side, with the result that a relief portion


160


is formed on its upper left hand side of postage indicia label


154


.




The sizing of label arrangement set


152


for an 21.59 cm×cm 27.94 (8.5 inches×11 inches) sheet


150


can preferably be made as follows.




Postage indicia label


154


has a total width W


T


of about 8.89 cm (3.5 inches) and a total height H


T


of 4.45 cm (1.75 inches). The wider lower rectangular section


154


L is about 8.89 cm (3.5 inches) wide W


L


and about 2.54 cm (1.00 inches). high H


L


, and the smaller upper rectangular section


154


U is about 4.45 cm (1.75 inches) wide W


U


and about 1.91 cm (0.75 inches) high H


U


, again with the total height H


T


being about 4.45 cm (1.75 inches). The sender label


156


is about 4.45 cm (1.75 inches) wide S


W


and about 1.27 cm (0.5 inch) high S


H


, and can be positioned directly below and adjacent to addressee label portion


158


. The addressee label portion


158


is about 4.45 cm (1.75 inches) wide A


W


and 2.54 cm (1.00 inch) high A


H


. Address label portion


158


is preferably positioned on sheet


150


between indicia label portion


154


and sender label portion


156


with its upper edge adjacent to a lower edge of indicia label portion


154


and with a portion of its lower edge adjacent to an upper edge of sender label portion


156


.




The fifth embodiment of a sheet of self-adhesive labels


150


shows six sets of label arrangement set


152


, with three sets on a left hand side and three sets on a right hand side of a sheet. A central dividing area


162


is about 1.27 cm (0.5 inch) wide with side edge of the postage indicia label


154


, the sender label


156


, and the addressee label


158


each being Positioned about 0.635 cm (0.25 inch) away from a center line


164


. Print-free margin regions


166


adjacent to the edges


168


of the sheet


150


are provided, and are preferably sized Lo be about 0.635 cm to 1.27 cm (0.25 inch to 0.5 inch) wide, and surround the label sets


152


. The area on the sheet


150


excluding the print-free margins


1166


comprises a printable footprint area of the sheet


150


. Optionally, an upper strip


168


of upper rectangular section


154


U and a right side strip


170


of the entire postage indicia label


154


can be printed with phosphorescent or fluorescent ink to further indicate that the mail piece is for automatic processing. Hereinafter, the term “fluorescent” shall be used to refer to both phosphorescent or fluorescent inks. The phosphorescent or fluorescent ink strips


168


and


170


are preferably about 0.79 cm (0.313 inch) wide. For purposes of illustration only, the sheet of self-adhesive labels


150


is shown with a single postage indicia label


154


printed with fluorescent ink strips


168


and


170


.




Turning now to

FIG. 8

, there is shown a plan view of the postage Indicia label portion (


124


or


154


) printed with indicia and applied to a mail piece


180


with a FIM pattern


182


. As shown, the postage indicia label portion (


124


or


154


) does not impinge on the FIM pattern


182


or the FIM clear zone


184


, yet it provides an adequate footprint for printing the postage indicia label portion (


124


or


154


) with the indicia.




While the fourth and fifth embodiments of the label arrangements sets are shown as including a sender label portion (and an addressee label portion in the case of the fifth embodiment) in addition to the postage indicia label portion, in practice it is possible to produce sheets carrying just the postage indicia label portion. However, without the sender label portion and/or the addressee label portion, a user cannot print each of the postage indicia, the sender's address and the addressee's address in a single pass through the printer. In cases where the fourth or fifth embodiment of the label arrangements label sets are used for non-FIM pastern bearing mailings and/or where a user wishes to have the sender address and the addressee information printed in a single pass, this would mean that all of the user's needs would not be meet with the single label set. Accordingly, the fifth embodiment of a sheet of self-adhesive labels


150


provides the greatest versatility to the user.




The fourth and fifth embodiments of the label sets are printable in a like manner as with the other noted sets of label arrangements, except in cases where no address label is provided, no information concerning the addressee need be accessed (except perhaps for calculation of the postage rates), and in cases where the label sets comprise just a postage indicia label, not all information for the sender label need be retried and printed.




The drawings and the foregoing description are not intended to represent the only form of the invention in regard to the details of this construction and manner of operation. In fact, it will be evident to one skilled in the art Shag modifications and variations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Although specific terms have been employed, they are intended in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for the purpose of limitation.



Claims
  • 1. A single sheet bearing at least one computer printer printable self-adhesive special purpose label arrangement set for use with a computer system and printer for printing the special purpose label arrangement sets with postage indices and adapted for use on mail pieces including mail pieces bearing FIM patterns, the single sheet comprising:at least one special purpose label arrangement set, the at least one special purpose label arrangement set having a postage indicia label having a wider lower region and a narrower upper region, the lower and upper regions being continuous, with the upper region and being oriented to a right side of the postage indicia label leaving a relief area on an upper left side area of the postage indicia label, wherein the at least one special purpose label arrangement set is located on a printable footprint area of the single sheet; wherein the postage indicia label of the special purpose label arrangement set is adapted to be printed with postage indicia and is sized and shaped for attachment to an upper right hand corner of a mail piece bearing FIM patterns and having a FIM clear zone in such a manner so as not to encroach on the FIM pattern.
  • 2. The sheet of claim 1, wherein the single sheet of at least one computer printer printable self-adhesive special purpose label arrangement sets further comprises a sender label.
  • 3. The sheet of claim 2, wherein the sender label is located on the sheet in the relief area.
  • 4. The sheet of claim 2, wherein the single sheet of at least one computer printer printable self-adhesive special purpose label arrangement set further comprises an addressee label.
  • 5. The sheet of claim 4, wherein in each special purpose label arrangement set, the sender label is positioned between the postage indicia label and the addressee label.
  • 6. The sheet of claim 1, wherein the single sheet has a shorter dimension and a longer dimension and a plurality of special purpose label arrangement sets are provided and arranged in a portrait orientation on the single sheet with a plurality of the special purpose label arrangement sets being arranged in a side-by-side orientation on a left side and on a right side of the single sheet.
  • 7. The sheet of claim 4, wherein right side edges of the postage indicia label portion, the addressee label portion, and the sender label portion in each set are aligned.
  • 8. The sheet of claim 1, wherein a top region and a right side region of the postage indicia label of the at least one special purpose label arrangement set are provided pre-printed with phosphorescent ink strips.
  • 9. The single sheet of claim 1, wherein the single sheet is between about 21.0 cm and 21.6 cm wide and between about 27.9 cm and 29.7 cm long, and wherein the print-free areas comprises about at least a 0.635 cm perimeter area around edges of the single sheet, the printable footprint area lying within the print-free areas.
  • 10. A single sheet bearing a least one computer printer printable self-adhesive special purpose label arrangement set for use with a computer system and printer for printing the special purpose label arrangement sets with postage indicia and sender information and adapted for use on mail pieces including mail pieces bearing FIM patterns, the single sheet comprising:at least one special purpose label arrangement set, the at least one special purpose label arrangement set having a postage indicia label and a sender label, the postage Indicia label having a wider lower region and a narrower upper region, the lower and upper being continuous, with the upper region being oriented to a right side of the postage indicia label leaving a relief area on an upper left side area of the postage indicia label, wherein the at least one special purpose label arrangement set is located on a printable footprint area of the single sheet; wherein the postage indicia label of the special purpose label arrangement set is adapted to be printed with postage indicia and is sized and shaped for attachment to an upper right hand corner of a mail piece bearing FIM patterns and having a FIM clear zone in such a manner so as not to encroach on the FIM pattern.
  • 11. The sheet of claim 10, wherein the sender label is located on the sheet in the relief area.
  • 12. The sheet of claim 10, wherein the single sheet of at least one computer printer printable self-adhesive special purpose label arrangement set further comprises an addressee label.
  • 13. The sheet of claim 12, wherein in each special purpose label arrangement set, the addressee label is positioned between the postage indicia label and the sender label.
  • 14. The sheet of claim 10, wherein the single sheet has a shorter dimension and a longer dimension and a plurality of special purpose label arrangement sets are provided and arranged in a portrait orientation on the single sheet with a plurality of the special purpose label arrangement sets being arranged in a side-by-side orientation on a left side and on a right side of the single sheet.
  • 15. The sheet of claim 12, wherein right side edges of the postage indicia label portion, the addressee label portion, and the sender label portion in each set are aligned.
  • 16. The sheet of claim 12, wherein a top region and a right side region of the postage indicia label of the at least one special purpose label arrangement set are provided pre-printed with fluorescent ink strips.
  • 17. The single sheet of claim 10, wherein the single sheet is between about 21.0 cm and 21.6 cm wide and between about 27.9 cm and 29.7 cm long, and wherein the print-free areas comprises about at least a 0.635 cm perimeter area around edges of the single sheet, the printable footprint area lying within the print-free areas.
  • 18. A process for printing, in a single step, postage indicia and sender information onto a single sheet containing a plurality of special purpose label arrangement sets, the process comprising:providing a computer system and a printer; providing a single sheet of a plurality of computer printable self-adhesive special purpose label arrangement sets, each special purpose label arrangement set having a postage indicia label, an addressee label, and a sender label, the postage indicia label having a wider lower region and a narrower upper region, the lower and upper being continuous, with the upper region being oriented to a right side of the postage indicia label, wherein the special purpose label arrangement sets are located on a printable footprint area of the single sheet; providing a postage computer program adapted for use by the computer system and printer for preparing and printing postage indicia, addressee information, and sender information onto the postage indicia label, the addressee label, and sender label, respectively, of one of the plurality of the special purpose label arrangement sets; inputting into the postage computer program information concerning the addressee, the sender, and a mail piece to be mailed; and directing the postage computer program to print the postage indicia, addressee information, and sender information onto the postage indicia label, the addressee label, and the sender label, respectively, of one the special purpose label arrangement sets.
  • 19. The process of claim 18, further comprising the step of obtaining postage value from a postage server.
  • 20. The process of claim 18, wherein the computer system is connected to the postage server through a computer network.
  • 21. The process of claim 18, wherein the step of inputting into the postage computer program information concerning the addressee, the sender, and the mail piece to be mailed is accomplished by at least partially accessing and coordinating data from at least one other computer software program, selected from word processing software, contact management software, database software, and accounting software, and processing this data along with data in the postage computer program.
  • 22. The process of claim 18, wherein the postage indicia, addressee information, and sender information are printed onto the postage indicia label, the addressee label, and the sender label, respectively, of one of the special purpose label arrangement sets in a single pass through the printer.
  • 23. The process of claim 18, wherein the single sheet has a shorter dimension and a longer dimension and the plurality of special purpose label arrangement sets are arranged in a portrait orientation on the single sheet with a plurality of the special purpose label arrangement sets being arranged in a side-by-side orientation on a left side and on a right side of the single sheet.
  • 24. The process of claim 18, wherein in each special purpose label arrangement set, the addressee label is positioned between the postage indicia label and the sender label.
  • 25. The process of claim 18, wherein right side edges other postage indicia label portion, the addressee label portion, and the sender label portion in each set are aligned.
  • 26. The process of claim 18, wherein postage indicia labels printed by the process are adapted for attachment to a mail piece bearing FIM patterns and having a FIM clear zone in such a manner so as not to cover the FIM pattern and not encroach on the FIM clear zone.
  • 27. The process of claim 18, wherein the right side edges of the postage indicia label portion, the addressee label portion, and the sender label portion in each set are aligned, leaving a relief on an upper left side area of the postage indicia label.
  • 28. The process of claim 18, wherein a top region and a right side region of the postage indices label of the sets of the special purpose label arrangement sets are provided pre-printed with fluorescent ink strips.
  • 29. A process for printing, in a single step, postage indicia onto a single sheet containing at east one special purpose label arrangement set with a postage indicia label, the process comprising:providing a computer system and a printer; providing a single sheet of a plurality of computer printer printable self-adhesive special purpose label arrangement sets, each special purpose label arrangement set having a postage indicia label having a wider lower region an a narrower upper region, the lower and upper being continuous with the upper region being oriented to a right side of the postage indicia label leaving a relief area on an upper left side area of the postage indicia label, wherein the special purpose label arrangement sets are located on a printable footprint area of the single sheet; providing a postage computer program adapted for use by the computer system and printer for preparing and printing postage indicia onto the postage indicia label of the special purpose label arrangement set; and inputting into the postage computer program information concerning the mail piece to be mailed; and directing the postage computer program to printing the postage indicia onto the postage indicia label of the special purpose label arrangement set in a single pass through the printer.
  • 30. The process of claim 29, further comprising the step of obtaining postage value from a postage server.
  • 31. The process of claim 30, wherein the computer system is connected to the postage server through a computer network.
  • 32. The process of claim 29, wherein the single sheet of at least one computer printer printable self-adhesive special purpose label arrangement sets further comprises a sender label which is printed with sender information in the same single pass along with the postage indicia label.
  • 33. The process of claim 21, wherein the single sheet of at least one computer printer printable self-adhesive special purpose label arrangement sets further comprises an addressee label which is printed with addressee information in the same single pass along with the postage indicia label and the sender label information.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This is a continuation-in-part application of application Ser. No. 09/439,531, filed on Nov. 12, 1999 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,244,763 which is incorporated by reference herein.

US Referenced Citations (3)
Number Name Date Kind
5413037 Auslander et al. May 1995 A
6010156 Block Jan 2000 A
6209920 Fabel Apr 2001 B1
Non-Patent Literature Citations (1)
Entry
E-Stamp.com's Internet Postage Starter Kit which includes samples of self-adhesive labels from Avery identified as Postage and Address Labels #2869 and #2866, and labels for template #2859, available around 1999, exact date uncertain.
Continuation in Parts (1)
Number Date Country
Parent 09/439531 Nov 1999 US
Child 09/540112 US