Remote Bar Coding System
Encyclopedia
Remote Bar Coding System (RBCS), also called Remote Video Encoding (RVE) is a method used by the United States Postal Service
to encode the address of letter-sized mailpieces that are not decipherable by a Multiline Optical Character Reader
(MLOCR). When an MLOCR does not recognize a valid address on a letter, (usually due to hand-written addressing) it sends an image of the mailpiece to a central RBCS (RVE) site where more sophisticated optical character recognition software is able to interpret many hand-written addresses using neural net and fuzzy logic algorithms. If this does not succeed, human operators visually examine the image and enter the address. In both cases, the data is sent back to the originating mail facility where mailpieces are then automatically matched back up with data through the use of a unique fluorescent barcode printed on the back during initial MLOCR attempt, and receive a POSTNET
barcode representing the full address.
The Remote Bar Coding System consists of hundreds of MLOCR machines, which capture an image of mailpieces throughout the USPS network, the communications hardware and software that transmit this data to the "remote" site, the specialized hardware and software that initially attempt to interpret the image, and the terminals and human operators that encode the most difficult images.
The algorithms in this system are continually improved by incorporating the results of human operators. Furthermore, successive generations of MLOCR hardware and software would incorporate some of the advances made in computer-based Remote Encoding, in order to minimize the number of mailpieces that need to go through this extra step.http://www.usps.com/strategicplanning/cs05/chp2_009.html#c2sE
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
to encode the address of letter-sized mailpieces that are not decipherable by a Multiline Optical Character Reader
Multiline Optical Character Reader
A Multiline Optical Character Reader, or MLOCR, is a type of mail sorting machine that uses Optical Character Recognition technology to determine how to route mail through the postal system....
(MLOCR). When an MLOCR does not recognize a valid address on a letter, (usually due to hand-written addressing) it sends an image of the mailpiece to a central RBCS (RVE) site where more sophisticated optical character recognition software is able to interpret many hand-written addresses using neural net and fuzzy logic algorithms. If this does not succeed, human operators visually examine the image and enter the address. In both cases, the data is sent back to the originating mail facility where mailpieces are then automatically matched back up with data through the use of a unique fluorescent barcode printed on the back during initial MLOCR attempt, and receive a POSTNET
POSTNET
POSTNET is a barcode symbology that was used by the United States Postal Service to assist in directing mail. The ZIP Code or ZIP+4 code is encoded in half- and full-height bars...
barcode representing the full address.
The Remote Bar Coding System consists of hundreds of MLOCR machines, which capture an image of mailpieces throughout the USPS network, the communications hardware and software that transmit this data to the "remote" site, the specialized hardware and software that initially attempt to interpret the image, and the terminals and human operators that encode the most difficult images.
The algorithms in this system are continually improved by incorporating the results of human operators. Furthermore, successive generations of MLOCR hardware and software would incorporate some of the advances made in computer-based Remote Encoding, in order to minimize the number of mailpieces that need to go through this extra step.http://www.usps.com/strategicplanning/cs05/chp2_009.html#c2sE