Mail Sorting Tech

Mail Sorting Tech explores the surprising role of postal services in driving technological advancements in automation and artificial intelligence. It highlights how the need to efficiently process ever-increasing mail volumes led to innovations like automated sorting machines and optical character recognition (OCR). Did you know that early OCR systems used simple pattern-matching before evolving into AI-powered tools capable of deciphering handwriting? The book argues that the postal service has been a surprisingly fertile ground for advancements that influenced broader applications in robotics, computer vision, and machine learning.

The book starts by establishing the historical context and the challenges faced by postal services. It then introduces the mechanics of automated sorting machines and delves into the evolution of OCR technology, explaining the algorithms and computational techniques behind these systems. Mail Sorting Tech also explores pilot innovations that pushed the boundaries of mail sorting, drawing valuable lessons from both successes and failures. It adopts a fact-based approach, focusing on the technology while connecting it to fields like robotics and computer science.