Patent Application
20080156862
The invention disclosed herein relates generally to vote by mail systems, and more particularly to an envelope that protects the privacy of signatures on ballots sent through the mail.
In democratic countries, governmental officials are chosen by the citizens in an election. Conducting an election and voting for candidates for public office in the United States can be performed in several different ways. One such way utilizes mechanical voting machines at predetermined polling places. When potential voters enter the predetermined polling place, voting personnel verify that each voter is properly registered in that voting district and that they have not already voted in that election. Thus, for a voter to cast his vote, he must go to the polling place at which he is registered, based on the voter's residence. Another method for conducting an election and voting utilizes paper ballots that are mailed to the voter who marks the ballot and returns the ballot through the mail. Mailed ballots have been historically reserved for absentee voting. In the usual absentee voting process, the voter marks the ballot to cast his/her vote and then inserts the ballot in a return envelope which is typically pre-addressed to the voter registrar office in the corresponding county, town or locality in which the voter is registered. The voter typically appends his/her signature on the back of the envelope adjacent his/her human or machine readable identification.
When the return envelope is received at the registrar's office, a voting official compares the voter signature on the envelope with the voter signature retrieved from the registration file to make a determination as to whether or not the identification information and signature are authentic and valid, and therefore the vote included in the envelope should be counted. If the identification and signature are deemed to be authentic and valid, the identifying information and signature are separated from the sealed ballot before it is handed to the ballot counter for tabulation. In this manner, the privacy of the voter's selections is maintained and thus the ballot remains a “secret ballot”.
One general problem with vote by mail envelopes is the signature is in the open and exposed for all to see throughout the process for determining whether or not the vote is authentic. This leads to potential privacy issues and concerns, e.g., fraudulent usage of a voter's signature. Some jurisdictions have required that such signatures be hidden from plain sight while the envelope is en route from the voter to the registrar's office. This will protect against easy imaging of the signature, such as, for example, with a hand scanner or digital camera, for later impersonation or other fraudulent purposes, e.g., identity theft. To comply with such requirements, envelopes have been proposed that hide the signature with a flap which is removed when the envelope is received at the registrar's office. These solutions, however, require some mechanical manipulation of the envelopes, which is both expensive and increases the risk of accidental tears of the envelope, potentially leading to damage to the ballots contained in the envelopes, exposing the marked ballot before the conclusion of the authentication process (which in some states require the ballot to be counted, regardless of the outcome of the authentication process), or the ability to link the voter with his/her ballot, thereby removing the secret ballot.
Voting by mail is becoming more prevalent, apart from the usual absentee voting, and in some jurisdictions, entire elections are being conducted exclusively by mail. As the voting by mail becomes more prevalent, the privacy concerns are also more prevalent. Thus, there exists a need for efficient methods and systems that can protect the privacy of signatures on ballots sent through the mail while also reducing the risk of damage to the ballots when the signatures are revealed.
According to an aspect of the invention, a vote-by-mail envelope includes a pouch for receiving a ballot. The pouch is formed from a front sheet and a rear sheet. The envelope also includes a signature space on one of the front sheet and the rear sheet. The signature space is to be signed by the voter. The envelope further includes an adhesion region at which the front sheet is adhered to the rear sheet to define a boundary of the pouch. The adhesion region separates the signature space from the pouch. In addition the envelope includes a flap to be attached to one or both of the rear sheet and the front sheet to cover the signature space.
The signature space may be on a rear surface of the front sheet, with the front sheet extending beyond the rear sheet to expose the signature space. Alternatively the signature space may be on the rear sheet of the envelope.
The front and rear sheets and the flap may all be formed by folding one or more sheets of paper that have been cut into appropriate shapes and have adhesive applied to them at suitable locations.
The envelope may also include a barcode adjacent the signature space. The barcode may contain data to identify the voter. The barcode may, but need not, be a two-dimensional barcode.
The boundary of the pouch defined by the adhesion region may be at the bottom of the pouch, in which case the signature space is below the pouch. Alternatively, the adhesion region may be at a side of the pouch other than the bottom side. In such a case, the signature space is to the side of the pouch. The flap may close the pouch in addition to covering the signature space.
The envelope may further include a printed pattern adjacent to the signature space. The printed pattern may correspond to a locus at which adhesive on the flap is to contact one of the front and rear sheets adjacent the signature space upon sealing the envelope. This printed pattern may prompt the voter to place his/her signature in the signature space in a location such that the signature will not be marred by adhesive from the flap.
The envelope may be substantially completely opaque at the pouch, and thus transmit substantially no light at the locus of the pouch, while transmitting a substantial amount of light at the locus of the signature space.
According to another aspect of the invention, a method of processing a vote-by-mail return envelope is provided. As in the previous aspect, the envelope includes a pouch formed from a front sheet and a rear sheet. The pouch is for holding a ballot. The envelope also includes a flap which covers the voter's signature on the envelope. The envelope may carry a barcode which identifies the voter and a barcode which identifies the election. These barcodes may be combined in a single barcode containing both sets of data. In addition or alternatively, this information may be represented by machine-readable textual and/or numeric information, such as alphanumeric characters. The method includes reading the barcode on the envelope to identify the voter whose signature is on the envelope. The method further includes shining light through the flap and through at least one of the front and rear sheets to form an image of the signature. The method also includes using the image of the signature to compare the signature with a sample signature that is on record for the identified voter.
The method may further include detaching the signature and the barcode from the pouch. The pouch may remain sealed after the detaching of the signature and the barcode from the pouch. The method may also include opening the sealed pouch and extracting the ballot from the opened pouch.
The reading of the textual information or barcode(s) may occur simultaneously with shining the light through the flap.
According to still another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of creating a vote-by-mail package to be mailed to a voter. The method includes providing an outbound envelope. The outbound envelope has at least one window formed therein. The method further includes inserting a ballot in the outbound envelope and inserting a return envelope in the outbound envelope. In addition, the method includes printing at least one of a barcode and the name of the voter and a voter identifier (text and/or numerals) on the return envelope while the return envelope is in the outbound envelope. The printing is done through the at least one window in the outbound envelope.
The return envelope may have the characteristics described with reference to the first aspect of the invention set forth above. The barcode and/or the voter's name may be printed on the return envelope at an opposite side of the adhesion region from the above mentioned pouch, and adjacent the above-mentioned signature space. An election-identifying barcode or machine readable textual/numerical information may be printed on the outside of the envelope to facilitate grouping of mixed ballots into the appropriate election groups for subsequent counting and tabulation (if ballots for multiple elections come to a single processing point).
The outbound envelope includes a front panel in which a window or windows may be formed. The barcode and the voter's name may be printed on the return envelope preferably in the same printing operation and preferably with the same print head used to print the voter's name and address on the front panel of the outbound envelope.
According to still another aspect of the invention, a vote-by-mail envelope includes a pouch for receiving a ballot. The pouch is formed from a front sheet and a rear sheet. At least one of the front and rear sheets extends beyond the pouch to form an extension portion. The envelope also includes an adhesion region at which the front sheet is adhered to the rear sheet to define a boundary of the pouch. The adhesion region separates the extension portion from the pouch. The envelope further includes a flap attached on and/or over the extension portion. The flap has a surface which faces the extension portion. The surface of the flap carries a voter's signature. The voter's signature is covered by the extension portion.
Therefore, it should now be apparent that the invention substantially achieves all the above aspects and advantages. Additional aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description that follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. Various features and embodiments are further described in the following figures, description and claims.
The accompanying drawings illustrate presently preferred embodiments of the invention, and together with the general description given above and the detailed description given below, serve to explain the principles of the invention. As shown throughout the drawings, like reference numerals designate like or corresponding parts.
The present invention, in certain of its aspects, allows a voter's signature on a vote-by-mail return envelope to be covered with a flap in transit and once received by the registrar, read by a machine without having to tear off or mechanically uncover any flap. The part of the envelope containing the signature and the identity of the voter can easily be cut off without opening the envelope or exposing the ballot, thereby maintaining the secrecy of the ballot. The envelope of the present invention is designed to provide a signature area on an extreme part of the envelope, e.g., the far left (as viewed from the front, although the signature may be on the back) or at the extreme bottom, located where there is nothing written on the front of the envelope, and where there is no obstruction by the ballot contained in the envelope. The signature space is covered with the flap of the envelope, thereby concealing the signature. A high intensity lamp can be used to shine through the signature area and flap, thereby revealing the image of the signature which can then be read. After reading the signature, the entire signature space can be removed from the envelope, without having to open the envelope, thereby removing the link between the voter and the ballot contained in the envelope.
The extension portion 110 of the envelope 100 may be formed in a number of ways. For example, the front sheet 106 alone may extend laterally past the adhesion region 118, or the rear sheet 108 alone may extend laterally past the adhesion region 118, or both of the front and rear sheets may extend laterally past the adhesion region. In the first of these three possibilities, the signature space 114 and the barcode 116 may be carried on the rear surface of the front sheet 106. In the latter two of these three possibilities, the signature space and the barcode may be carried on the rear surface of the rear sheet 108. (It may also be the case, even if both sheets extend laterally past the adhesion region 118, that one of the sheets extends further than the other.) If both sheets extend past the adhesion region 118, there may be another adhesion region, which is not separately indicated, to join the sheets together, for example, at the outer edge of the extension portion 110.
The envelope 100 further includes a flap 120 which is sized so as to substantially completely cover the rear surface of the envelope 100 (including the rear surface of the extension portion 110). The flap 120 is located so as to close the pouch 104 of the envelope 100 when the flap/envelope are sealed.
Example dimensions of the envelope 100 will now be described with reference to
Further possible features of the return envelope 100 will now be described with reference to
In some embodiments, the envelope 100 may be substantially opaque at the locus of the pouch 104 and may transmit a substantial amount of light (at least under suitable conditions) at the locus of the extension portion 110. This may be accomplished, for example, by varying the thickness and/or the composition of a sheet or sheets from which the envelope is formed. More preferably, however, the selective opacity of the envelope 100 may be accomplished by printing a security pattern (which may be a solid pattern) at the locus of the pouch 104 but not at the locus of the extension portion 110. For example, the pattern to opaque the pouch may be printed on any available surface in the light path through the finished envelope and ballot. These surfaces include (a) the rear surface of the rear sheet, (b) the front surface of the rear sheet, (c) the rear surface of the front sheet, (d) the front surface of the flap, (e) the rear surface of the flap, or (f) the rear surface of the ballot. In any case the printed opaque pattern may appear only at the pouch and not at the extension portion. The printing of the pattern may be done before or after folding a sheet to form the pouch. The printing of the pattern may be done at the same time as printing of the address (not shown) of the registrar's office to which the voter will mail the return envelope 100. (It will be appreciated that the address (not shown) of the registrar's office will be present on the front surface (not shown) of the return envelope 100. Of course, the front surface of the envelope 100 is opposite the rear surface that is visible in
In some embodiments, the return envelope 100, including the front and rear sheets 106, 108 and the flap 120, may all be formed by folding and gluing a single suitable cut sheet (not shown except in folded and glued form).
In the embodiment of the return envelope shown in
In using the return envelope 100 to vote by mail, the voter may simply mark his/her ballot 102, place it in the pouch 104 of the envelope 100, inscribe his/her signature in the signature space 114 and seal the envelope 100 by adhering the flap 120 to the rear surface of the envelope 100.
The length dimension (indicated at 602) of the envelope 100a, which is also the length dimension of the pouch 104a, may be about 9¼ inches in some embodiments. The height dimension (indicated at 604) of the pouch 104a may be 4¾ inches in some embodiments. (In other words, the pouch 104a may have the same dimensions as the pouch 104 shown in
Considering again the envelope 100 described above with reference to
As illustrated in
As suggested by
In another embodiment, not illustrated in
An advantage that may be offered by the two flap envelope 100b is that it may avoid bringing any adhesive from a flap close to the signature space on the extension portion.
In still another embodiment, the return envelope 100b of
At 1302 in
Assuming that the lamp is on at the time of step 1304, step 1304 results in light shining (step 1306) through the signature space of the extension portion and also through the locus of the barcode or text/numerals which identify the voter. Consequently, if the voter has signed the signature space, an image of the voter's signature is formed by the light shining through the signature space. Similarly, an image of the barcode/text/numerals is formed. By using suitable imaging apparatus, the barcode image may be captured, allowing the barcode to be read (step 1308) to identify the voter who sent in the envelope, and the signature image may also be captured (step 1310). The voter's signature that is on record with the registrar may then be called up, to allow comparison of the record signature and the signature represented by the signature image from the envelope. As a result of this comparison (which may be by human operator and/or by machine image analysis), the voter's signature on the envelope may be verified (step 1312). At this point, the validity of the ballot may be considered to have been determined (at least in regard to examination of the return envelope), and the identifying information (i.e., the signature, barcode and voter's name) may now be detached from the pouch/ballot, by cutting off the extension portion (step 1314).
From this point onward, as indicated at 1316, the ballot may be processed in a conventional manner, including storing the sealed envelope with other sealed valid ballot return envelopes, subsequently opening the envelope, and counting the ballot.
As an alternative, or as a preliminary, to reading the barcode at step 1308 via light shining through the envelope, a barcode printed on the outside of the return envelope (or visible through a window in the envelope flap), or identifying information in the form of alphanumeric characters may be directly read (i.e., by light shining on the outside of the envelope but not therethrough) to identify one or more of the voter who sent in the return envelope or the election to which it pertains. This may be done, for example, between steps 1302 and 1304, and would allow for sorting of envelopes by election, in the case where ballots for more than one election are returned to a central location.
At 1402, the outbound envelope 804 is made available to have the other items inserted therein. At 1404, the ballot 102 is inserted in the outbound envelope 804. At 1406, the return envelope 100 is inserted in the outbound envelope 804. (It should be understood that the order of steps 1404 and 1406 may be reversed, or the steps may be combined, so long as the suitable parts of the extension portion 110 of the return envelope 100 end up exposed to the windows 806, 808 of the outbound envelope 804.)
At 1408, the voter's name and address are printed on the front panel 810 of the outbound envelope 804; preferably as part of the same printing operation, and by the same printhead, the barcode is printed through the window 806 on the extension portion of the return envelope, and the voter's name is printed through the window 808 on the extension portion of the return envelope. At 1410 the outbound envelope and its contents are mailed or otherwise delivered to the voter.
The above description, and the flow charts herein, are not meant to imply a fixed order of the enumerated process steps. Rather, the process steps may be performed in any order that is practicable and/or various of the steps may be combined with each other or performed partly or entirely simultaneously with each other.
According to another alternative embodiment of the return envelope, a window may be provided in the flap of the return envelope at the locus of the barcode or voter-identifying text/numerals to allow the barcode/text/numerals to be read directly rather than by shining a light through the envelope. In addition or alternatively voter identifying text/numerals and/or a barcode may be printed on the outside of the return envelope for reading with direct light. In either case, direct reading of the barcode or identifying text/numeral may be more convenient than reading an image of such information formed by shining light through the envelope.
In some embodiments, the front of the return envelope may be treated at the locus of the extension portion, to prevent ink smudges or dirt, etc., from adhering at that locus so as to interfere with subsequent reading of the signature and/or the barcode. The treatment may be with polymer, wax, Teflon or the like. In addition or alternatively, a like treatment may be made to the outer surface of the flap at the locus of the extension portion.
In some embodiments, the flap may be formed of a tamper-indicating paper, of a known type, to prevent undetected tampering with the return envelope, the signature or the ballot.
In some embodiments, the voter may be instructed to apply a self-adhesive layer of transparent plastic over his/her signature, to protect the signature in the event that it is necessary to remove the flap to forensically examine the signature. In some embodiments, the plastic layer may be incorporated with the flap.
A number of embodiments of the present invention have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Other variations relating to implementation of the functions described herein can also be implemented. Accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims.
