DESCRIPTION Field of the invention The present invention relates to data and tele- communication networks and particularly to a method and system for rapidly notifying the addressees of any mail delivered into their real/virtual mailboxes.

Background of the invention To this date, mail notification exists only for registered mail or parcels, but not for regular mail sent to MailBoxes. It is also targeting the sender, for him to know whether his mail/parcel has arrived to its destination.

This method eliminates several disadvantages that exist in the current mail notification methods : Mail notification needs today a special registration in order for the parcel/mail to be tracked. Therefore, non- registered mail cannot be tracked. Such registration is done today by placing special additional information on top of the mail/parcels that contains appropriate information for the mail service to know how to notify the sender. That means that additional work from the sender or mail-service

is needed to identify this mail as a registered'one.

This new notification method does not need the sender or the postal operator to add anything to the mail/parcel. It is thus applicable to ALL mail sent to the addressee.

All notification services are initiated by the sender.

Addressees do not have automatic access to this information. They have access to this service only if the sender communicates the registration reference. This is a reactive, and not proactive, process limited only to some of the mail they receive, not all of it. This new notification method is unique in providing this service to the addressees, and not the sender-for ALL their mail, and not only to the registered mail.

Mail/parcel delivery and its notification can only be done today to real (physical) addresses. Mail is delivered either to a real mailbox, or to a real address (Street/City/Country, etc...). There are no means today to deliver mail/parcels to post/mail offices where no real mailboxes are available. Mailbox availability is therefore limited to the physical constraints of the mail/post office. This new notification method creates the ability to offer additional Mailbox addresses to users, independent of the number of available physical mailboxes at the ma'1/post offices.

Current mail/parcel delivery services do not provide easy and secure means to have temporary private addresses for mail and parcels. For example, while travelling, the only address available is a non-private, non-secure address such as a hotel. This new notification method gives the

addressees the ability to choose temporary private and secure virtual mailboxes for single deliveries, anywhere the mail/post operators supports our notification services.

This new method is uniquely positioned at solving these disadvantages, by providing the mailbox owners with an electronic, easily accessible, secure and rapid notification when mail/parcels have been distributed into their real and/or virtual mailboxes. Figures 1 and 2 show flowcharts of the method.

Detailed description of the method The method consists of the following phases : 1 Mail sent : Sender sends mail/parcels through regular mail s rvices (registered and/or non-registered) Step 1-Fig 1 2 Mail arrives at destination : Mail sorted before distribution into mailboxes. Step 2- Fig 1 3 Data-capture-or input phrase : In this phase, the mailbox numbers (Real and/or Virtual) of delivered mail are encoded into the system. Step 3-Fig 1 The encoding can be done in several manners : A Manually :

By the postal/mail worker, through appropriate data-entry devices.

An example of such a device consists of a closed metal or plastic box that. contains the following elements : -A personal data assistant (PDA), ruggedized -A communication and recharging base for the PrE -A mobile/cellular phone with an integrated data modem -The power supplies for the PDA and the GSM -A power cord into which the power supplies mains connect.

-A power'Light Emitting Diode, that informs the user that the device is connected to an electric'source.

-A locking device to secure the access to the elements within the box The box is built such that one can set the PDA unto its base for transmission and recharging through an open slit at the top of the box without having to open the box. The software on the PDA consists of the following blocks : 1 Configuration-where one can configure the software to fit the existing mailbox number series, and to define which mailbox numbers would represent Virtual MailBoxes.

2 Operation-where one can rapidly locate through scrolling or a search command mailboxes within the predefined series, and SET'them by touching the screen on their appropriate numbers.

3 Registration-where one can initialize mailboxes as active, and choose the service level that has been assigned for them (voice, SMS, email, etc...). An active mailbox is one for which an end user has requested to be notified when

mail arrives. into it.

4 Transmission-where the software communicates with the integrated modem, dials a predefined number, and transmits a data stream that contains all the SET' mailboxes. This activity is preconfigured to happen automatically based on time, or data criteria. (Step 4- Fig 1) Examples of other devices for the manual encoding are : Personal Data Assistants (PDA) Micro computers (as tablets for example) Handheld Point of Sale input devices Handheld Bar code Scanners...

These devices can all generate the data required for a central system to identify a SET'mailbox ås described in Operation and Transmission above. However, a data-entry device may still need to be used for Registration.

B Automatically : The process allows also for the possibility of retrieving this information from the existing and future electronic mail-sorting machines such as the ones that use Multiple Line Optical Character Readers. This data is appropriate for this process only when these machines are located at the delivery (and not routing) nodes of the postal services. These machines can transmit all their data to the central processing servers, either directly over phone lines, or through mobile phones such as the data-entry device described in the example above. The central processing server will extrapolate the appropriate data from the raw'data generated by the mail-sorting machines, by identifying mailboxes addresses at the delivery node location.

4 Processing phase : (Step 5-Fig 1) In the processing phase, the data transmitted from te data capture devices is stored and analyzed. A matrix of user identification numbers (which includes mail box number, location, first date of service, service termination date, etc...), and the level of service they are entitled to (voice mail, SMS, email, paging), is compared. Out of that comparison, vocal, e-mail, SMS (Short Messaging Service) and beeper servers are fed with the appropriate addresses that need to be notified.

5 Notification Phase-output : (Step 6-Fig 1) The notification phase follows the processing phase. The data that has been processed in the databases and directories of the processing servers is transferred to the appropriate notification servers through a local area network (LAN). Most of the notification servers will be local next to the processing ones. All notification servers may also be distributed, and accessed through a wide-area- network.

The specific notification servers used in this process are For Proactive notification (server calls users) (Step 7- Fig 8) -An electronic mail (e-mail) server to the end-user pre-designated e-mail. addresses.

-A SMS (Short message service) server to send messages to the end-users mobile phones.

-A paging server, to send messages to the end-users pagers.

For Reactive notification (user calls servers) (S : ep 8- Fig 1) -An HTML (HyperText Markup Language) page on an Internet (WEB, WAP) server the user can access through a personal password and pin code.

-Voice mail in a specific voice mailbox the user can access through a personal password and pin code.

The notification messages sent indicate if the user has received mail.

The notification messages can also contain : -When was the mail delivered -The number of mail items that are delivered -The senders information -Future additional service-sender's messages, postal communications, advertisement, etc...

-Virtual mailbox number and access code 6 Registration : Figure 2 The user for a mailbox notification service by fining an application form at the postal operator office or on an Internet site.

In the registration phase several types of information are recorded : 1. The user's Mailbox number 2. The user's starting date of service 3. The service period length 4. The type of notification service (Real, Virtual) and notification media (Voice mail E-mail, SMS, paging, Internet) that has been chosen

5. Appropriate information related to the type of service chosen-email address, mobile phone number, and pager number.

Once this information is recorded, the user can enable his mailbox number, and choose his password through an Internet site, or by calling a phone number that leads him through these steps. (Fig 2 Step 1) In the case of Transactional Mailbox notification, as claimed in claim 6, the user will self register himself through an Internet/WAP site developed for that purpose. On this site, the user first chooses the location of the post/mail office where he wants the mail to be delivered, and then the method of notification he prefers to be notified through. User also provides, according to the method chosen, his appropriate contact information. The user is then assigned instantly a unique temporary mailbox number at the chosen mail/post office. User saves and/or prints this number to be able to retrieve mail/parcel after being notified.

When the information has been entered, this information is automatically sent to the central processing servers (Fig 2 Step 2), where the central database is updated with the new mailbox number and the services associated to it. (Fig 2 Step 3) The implementation of this process can be done through several types of existing and future technologies : Existing data capture devices : -Bar code readers-to read the mailbox numbers on mailboxes and/or on mail/parcels, such as the barcodes that

are printed on mail/parcels by some of the new Multi-Line Optical Character Reader machines.

-Electronic tablets/Personal Data Assistants (PDAs)- for manual input of mailbox numbers.

-Voice recognition devices-for voice input of mailbox numbers.

Optical Character Readers-for optical recognition of mailbox numbers on mail/parcels.

-Radio sensitive handheld registration devices registering minute imbedded radio transmitters in each mailbox.

-Collection of addressees data from existing mail sorting equipment such as MLOCRs (Multi Line Optical Character Readers)