초록 ▼

At the shipping department of a company, contracted outlets or outlets of delivery companies, information concerning the shipper and receiver are written into a label having a memory, but no controller or energy source. The label has a transmitter and the label makes use of power supplied by RF quer

At the shipping department of a company, contracted outlets or outlets of delivery companies, information concerning the shipper and receiver are written into a label having a memory, but no controller or energy source. The label has a transmitter and the label makes use of power supplied by RF query signals to fetch the information stored and transmits such information to a label reader located either in a portable recorder or at sorting locations. After the information is written into the label, the label is attached to the package. Upon being picked up, the label on the package is read by a portable recorder which transmits the information to a main computer. The packages are then delivered to local hubs of the receiving outlets where information in the labels of the packages are read and the packages sorted according to the information in the labels on the packages and the packages are then delivered to either a central hub and/or local distribution centers of the destinations, where the labels of the packages are then read and the packages sorted accordingly for ultimate delivery to the receiver. Tracking numbers and other delivery information may be retrieved at any point along the way either by portable recorder or at the sorting centers and transmitted to the main computer for tracking and response to inquiries.

대표청구항 ▼

[ What is claimed is:] [21.] A method for tracking items in a package delivery system, comprising:writing into a plurality of storage labels at one or more receiving outlets, said labels having transmitters, each of the labels associated with an item, information concerning delivery of the items, sa

[ What is claimed is:] [21.] A method for tracking items in a package delivery system, comprising:writing into a plurality of storage labels at one or more receiving outlets, said labels having transmitters, each of the labels associated with an item, information concerning delivery of the items, said information useful for automated sorting and tracking the items along their passage to destinations;transporting the items and their associated labels to a local distribution center or central hub;applying query signals to the labels to retrieve the information at the local distribution center or central hub and to cause said labels to provide said information through their transmitters, wherein said transmitters are caused to be powered by means of energy of the query signals received by the labels in transmitting said information;sorting the items by means of the information retrieved; anddelivering the sorted items to destinations.