Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The exemplary repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartment spaces. Access to each of the enclosed compartment spaces is controlled by respective door which is in operative connection with the respective lock. Central control circuitry in operative connection with the repositories is operative to control access to the compartment spaces and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein or removed therefrom. Exemplary arrangements provide for the pickup of parcels at initial pickup addresses at which shipments originate and deliveries to final delivery addresses of parcel recipients.

Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The exemplary repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartment spaces. Access to each of the enclosed compartment spaces is controlled by a respective door which is in operative connection with the respective lock. Central control circuitry in operative connection with the repositories is operative to control access to the compartment spaces and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein or removed therefrom. Exemplary arrangements provide for the pickup of parcels at initial pickup addresses at which shipments originate and deliveries to final delivery addresses of parcel recipients.

Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The exemplary repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartments. Access to each of the enclosed compartments is controlled by a respective door which is in operative connection with a respective lock. Central system circuitry is in operative connection with the repositories and is operative to control access to the compartments and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein or removed therefrom by authorized item handlers.

Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The exemplary repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartments. Access to each of the enclosed compartments is controlled by a respective door which is in operative connection with a respective lock. Central system circuitry is in operative connection with the repositories and is operative to control access to the compartments and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein or removed therefrom by authorized item handlers. The exemplary central system circuitry is further operative to make determinations concerning handling of a plurality of parcels together in respective bundles to facilitate the timely and cost-effective transport of the parcels between repositories.

Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The exemplary repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartment spaces. Access to each of the enclosed compartment spaces is controlled by a respective door which is in operative connection with a respective lock of the repository. Central system circuitry in operative connection with the repositories is operative to control access to the compartment spaces and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein or removed therefrom. At least one data store in operative connection with the central system circuitry includes record data concerning repositories and customer pickup and delivery locations. Such record data is accessible and communicable to portable wireless devices of item carriers to facilitate the pickup and delivery of parcels at repositories, customer locations and other delivery locations.

Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records, includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartment spaces. Access to each of the enclosed compartment spaces is controlled by a respective door which is in operative connection with the respective lock. Control circuitry in operative connection with the repositories is operative to control access to the compartment spaces and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein. The control circuitry is operative to maintain records concerning compartments including the available compartment volume in each compartment. In making compartments accessible the control circuitry is operative to determine if a particular parcel should fit within a compartment before making such compartment space accessible for parcel placement therein.

Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The exemplary repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartment spaces. Access to each of the enclosed compartment spaces is controlled by respective door which is in operative connection with the respective lock. Central control circuitry in operative connection with the repositories is operative to control access to the compartment spaces and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein or removed therefrom. Exemplary arrangements provide for the pickup of parcels at initial pickup addresses at which shipments originate and deliveries to final delivery addresses of parcel recipients.

Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The exemplary repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartment spaces. Access to each of the enclosed compartment spaces is controlled by a respective door which is in operative connection with the respective lock. Central control circuitry in operative connection with the repositories is operative to control access to the compartment spaces and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein or removed therefrom. Exemplary arrangements provide for the pickup of parcels at initial pickup addresses at which shipments originate and deliveries to final delivery addresses of parcel recipients.

Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The exemplary repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartments. Access to each of the enclosed compartments is controlled by a respective door which is in operative connection with a respective lock. Central system circuitry is in operative connection with the repositories and is operative to control access to the compartments and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein or removed therefrom by authorized item handlers.

Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The exemplary repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartments. Access to each of the enclosed compartments is controlled by a respective door which is in operative connection with a respective lock. Central system circuitry is in operative connection with the repositories and is operative to control access to the compartments and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein or removed therefrom by authorized item handlers. The exemplary central system circuitry is further operative to make determinations concerning handling of a plurality of parcels together in respective bundles to facilitate the timely and cost-effective transport of the parcels between repositories.

Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The exemplary repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartment spaces. Access to each of the enclosed compartment spaces is controlled by a respective door which is in operative connection with a respective lock of the repository. Central system circuitry in operative connection with the repositories is operative to control access to the compartment spaces and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein or removed therefrom. At least one data store in operative connection with the central system circuitry includes record data concerning repositories and customer pickup and delivery locations. Such record data is accessible and communicable to portable wireless devices of item carriers to facilitate the pickup and delivery of parcels at repositories, customer locations and other delivery locations.

Abstract: A system for parcel transport and tracking that operates responsive to data bearing records, includes a plurality of geographically spaced repositories. The repositories include a plurality of enclosed compartment spaces. Access to each of the enclosed compartment spaces is controlled by a respective door which is in operative connection with the respective lock. Control circuitry in operative connection with the repositories is operative to control access to the compartment spaces and to cause compartments to be selectively accessible so that selected parcels may be placed therein. The control circuitry is operative to maintain records concerning compartments including the available compartment volume in each compartment. In making compartments accessible the control circuitry is operative to determine if a particular parcel should fit within a compartment before making such compartment space accessible for parcel placement therein.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method for generating a style sheet containing transformation rules for transforming a body of text, includes: generating a user list including a hierarchy of user permissions associated with a plurality of users; receiving transformations from at least one of the plurality of users; assigning a hierarchical level to each of the received transformations based at least in part on the user list; validating each of the received transformations at each hierarchical level above the assigned hierarchical level for that received transformation; upon validation of the received transformations, implementing the transformations as transformation rules in the style sheet; and revising the style sheet based at least in part on tracked execution of the transformation rules.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method for transforming comprehensibility of text, includes: receiving a body of text; partitioning the body of text into hierarchical syntactic and semantic segments; determining an initial comprehensibility level of the body of text, based on one or more metrics such as vocabulary, grammatical structure, voice, verb usage and formatting of the body of text; receiving a target comprehensibility level for the metrics; for each measure of complexity, including semantics and syntax, generating at least one transformation of that measure of complexity for a segment of the body of the text, based at least in part on the initial comprehensibility level and the target comprehensibility level; upon a confidence level for the transformation being greater than a predetermined threshold, performing the transformation on the segment of the body of text to generate a revised body of text; and determining a revised comprehensibility level.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method and apparatus for facilitating comprehension of user queries during interactions include receiving a query input provided by the user. The one or more query terms in the query input are compared with a plurality of content records stored in a database for at least a partial match in relevancy and each content record is associated with a respective comparison result. A score is generated for each content record based on the respective comparison result and a measure of comprehension between the query input and the plurality of content records. The generation of score for each content record configures a set of scores. A confidence state is determined corresponding to the set of scores and a reply is provided to the user in response to the query input based on the confidence state.

Abstract: Methods, software and devices for indexing responses for later providing to users in response to queries are disclosed. For each stored response, representative queries are stored in association with that response, where each representative query represents a possible query for searching for information addressed by that response. Representative queries are selectively modified by substituting terms by corresponding chosen substitute expressions, where a substitute expression is chosen for a particular term in one of the representative queries based on past substitutions in others of said representative queries. For each response, a Boolean expression is formed from those representative queries associated with that response, as selectively modified, where the Boolean expression is satisfied by each of those representative queries.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method and system of generating a list of substrings that are common to at least two strings in a plurality of strings is disclosed. Each of the plurality of strings comprises a sequence of terms, and each of the substrings comprises a sequence of one or more of these terms. The method includes forming a reverse index of the terms in the plurality of strings. The reverse index identifies, for each of the terms, the one or more strings containing that term and position therein. The method includes arranging the plurality of strings in an order; and for each one of the strings in the order determining, using the reverse index, substrings common to that one of the strings and subsequent ones of the strings in the order; and for each one of those common substrings, saving an indication associating that common substring with the one of the strings and the subsequent ones of the strings in which that substring is found.

Abstract: Methods, software and devices for responding to a user query are disclosed. A user query received from a user is matched to stored responses to obtain initial matched responses. A confidence metric indicating the likelihood of the initial matched responses satisfying the user query is calculated. Upon determining the confidence metric to be below a specified threshold, the user query is supplemented with contextual data. The user query, supplemented by contextual data, is further matched to stored responses by applying disparate matching techniques to obtain further matched responses, where at least one of the disparate matching techniques differs from techniques used to obtain the initial matched responses. Degree-of-match metrics are calculated taking into account the contextual data, where each degree-of-match metric indicates a quality of match between the user query and a matched response. At least one of the matched responses is presented to the user.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method and apparatus for facilitating comprehension of user queries during interactions include receiving a query input provided by the user. The one or more query terms in the query input are compared with a plurality of content records stored in a database for at least a partial match in relevancy and each content record is associated with a respective comparison result. A score is generated for each content record based on the respective comparison result and a measure of comprehension between the query input and the plurality of content records. The generation of score for each content record configures a set of scores. A confidence state is determined corresponding to the set of scores and a reply is provided to the user in response to the query input based on the confidence state.

Abstract: Methods, software and devices for responding to a user query are disclosed. A user query received from a user is matched to stored responses to obtain initial matched responses. A confidence metric indicating the likelihood of the initial matched responses satisfying the user query is calculated. Upon determining the confidence metric to be below a specified threshold, the user query is supplemented with contextual data. The user query, supplemented by contextual data, is further matched to stored responses by applying disparate matching techniques to obtain further matched responses, where at least one of the disparate matching techniques differs from techniques used to obtain the initial matched responses. Degree-of-match metrics are calculated taking into account the contextual data, where each degree-of-match metric indicates a quality of match between the user query and a matched response. At least one of the matched responses is presented to the user.