Prototype circuit seized by USPS

You know, I'm a tad suspicious of the "video documentation". Does your cl ient so record opening every package upon receipt?

Have you done other business with this client? Know anyone else who has? Talk to them and see if they've had similar issues- as others here have spe culated, client may just be stalling for time to reverse-engineer or whatev er.

Did your contract with them cover non-disclosure?

Did you copyright/patent your product?

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Notice that where the box "was opened" is where it's designed to open; th at's its weak point. Yes, the machinery can pop it open exactly like that i f it gets stuck in e.g. a diverter.

As has been suggested elsethread, don't trust the box alone, invest in so me packaging tape.

It almost certainly is your original box and label.

I still think it's the same box, accidentally opened as it passed through the machinery, contents lost, apology note blah blah blah. Shit *does* hap pen.

Consider the alternatives:

First, your board was mistaken to be a bomb part by an automated x-ray/ot her scanner and they pulled the board for analysis by Homeland Severity but delivered the empty box? No, you and client would have had simultaneous vi sits by two or three extremely polite, extremely persistent, well-dressed p ersons with badges, warrants, and an invitation for a SUV ride downtown, or if they were real suspicious, SWAT-equivalents with flash-bangs.

Second, a USPS employee opened *your box* at random, stole the contents, and sent the empty box on its way *as evidence of the theft*? It's now poss ible to get fingerprints from cardboard boxes (not as easily as on TV but s till doable), Postal Inspectors have no problem investigating charges of em ployee theft, and penalties for that are severe.

Third, your client is trying to screw you. Why would they do that though? Is this the first time you've done business with them? Don't they have a r eputation to lose, or want to build one if they're a startup? What do you k now about them, who put you in contact with them, and similar questions are worth considering.

Mark L. Fergerson

Oh, yes. Postal inspectors come down hard on provable employee theft.

The catch is "provable".

Mark L. Fergerson

Here's one:

Thats the work of the NSA, notice the clean razor cuts on the tape ;)

Cheers

Damaged in the same way?

Centerfolds missing?

As someone else mentioned, it's possible that whomever knew that it wasn't anything that was any sort of massive "national security threat", but simply to send a message that the shipping of items that "look like that" is to be discouraged.

It does seem unlikely. If they had stolen it you'd think they'd have just disappeared the whole thing.

I've never met him in person, but I've corresponded with him online for the better part of 15 years. I also am friends with several people he knows that are local to me that I do know in person. I suppose anything is possible, but it would be truly shocking.

For theft, yes. Probably for murder too. But for incompetence or slacking, probably not.

--sp

Perhaps you should consider how *he* is viewing this exchange (assuming he is an innocent victim). While you've invested time (money?), he has undoubtedly also made an investment -- and now has an empty box to show for it.

I'm sorry I wasn't clear..he didn't record the opening itself, but made a video of him presenting the package after he'd already opened the external plastic bag and discovering that the shipment was empty, to sort of "document his outrage."

He's a guy I've known for many years and I consider to be a friend.

He's not an engineer and has little electronics skill. I'm not sure how something like that would benefit him...the board I shipped him is essentially a generic textbook design that's not really sale-able in its current form, or patentable.

Yes, I've been in contact with him to discuss this.

This was more of a "luxury item" than a business necessity, so he seems more dismayed at the effort I put into designing and constructing it that went to waste, than his desire to have a new toy.

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Per your other reply, I'd be similarly annoyed.

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Per your other other post, never mind.

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I very strongly doubt this possibility- we're talking about the USPS, not the TSA. If you did something some three-letter agency had an issue with, as I said you're receive a very personal visit since they're not big on sub tle hints.

Also, last I knew the USPS does not regularly x-ray or otherwise scan pac kages or letters randomly, but occasionally mail is put through portable Ge iger or scintillation detectors when the Terrorism stoplight turns red.

The threat that drives them crazy is the "white powder/Anthrax" thing- th ere's really no way to test for that without opening each and every envelop e that goes through the letter-sorting process.

I'm sure there's a buck or two to be made solving that one.

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Conspiracy theory bullshit.

More politely, I'd discount that completely. They just aren't that subtle .

If you're that attached to the idea, well, you could take it as a hint to do neater work. ;>)

nts,

Exactly. The USPS also trashes packages they deem incapable of making it through the process after they're sufficiently squashed but that's rare. Th ey are willing to put a surprising amount of tape on a nearly-completely-sh redded crappy box and even to rebox it without charge to at least try to ge t it through. Failing that they trash it and tell the sender and there's al l sorts of other paperwork, but there's this big trash bin one could easily chuck the box into if they really wanted to steal the contents. One other thing though- was the board-with-dangling-pots small enough to conveniently stuff into a pocket for the remainder of a shift?

Theft just doesn't seem reasonable.

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Then we're back to random shit happened and you have to decide whether yo u want to do another board and try again. If you do, I'd use more tape...

Mark L. Fergerson

Yes, aside from the dangly bits the board was only slightly larger than an average cell phone..around 4 by 6 inches.

I'm just going to get a PCB made, the improved "version 2" is already designed. Once I have a couple boards in hand it would only take 20 minutes to solder in the parts.

On Monday, June 6, 2016 at 3:45:22 PM UTC-7, Lasse Langwadt Christensen wro te:

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My bad, I should have said "Never, no wait NEVER EVER use *standard lette r-size* envelopes for any kind of hardware"

Yeah, notice that's the Canadian postal system- I never saw belts used ex cept in an antique Burroughs(!) letter-sorting machine- the front end of th e apparatus at about 3:00 closely resembled it, except it was squatter and made mostly of cast iron.

Also, at 0:45 or so a guy is putting standard letter-sized envelopes into bins that go to the sorter feed. At 1:34 you see a stack of tall envelopes preceding a stack of shorter envelopes, all going into the same feedpoint; the system can't handle the really big stuff which the guy at 0:45 puts in to a separate bin for hand-sorting. That's where you want your hardware-con taining envelopes to go if you're going to use envelopes.

At 2:36 you see one of the cushier jobs- zip code keying. The keyer sits and reads the address on envelopes (the few that the OCR autosorters can't quite make out) and pushes buttons that tell the bar code printer what zip code to apply to each envelopeall day, and in at least Texas they tend to c ome to work decked out like they're going clubbing, the women drenched in p erfume and wearing high frigging heels.

OTOH, unlike in the video, USPS keyers have ~1 second per envelope quota to meet. It would drive me crazy, but I guess a job is a job.

Mark L. Fergerson

gambling addiction perhaps.

That "flimsy" sheet of paper can witstand a 10 ton force pressing between two flat plates and pass around 5mm radius bend radius and remain unmarked, how tough is your prototype? (see also: rock-paper-scissors)

Say the box encounterd a sharp edge and the tape burst and popped open and the gizmo fell out, by the time the gizmo reached the reject bin at the end of the sorting conveyer the box had already be routed.

Geeze, Robert, for a smart person you sure are clueless (stupid, dense, etc).

envelopes *will* be bent and squeezed by the letter-handling machinery whi ch roughly speaking comprises guide rails that hold envelopes vertically an d spaced powered rollers to move the envelopes.

tra work. I make a label with the to and from addesses and tape that to th e hardware. Do not know if that makes a difference, but the idea is if the hardware and package get separated, the post office will still know where the hardware goes. Label the envelope " Do Not Bend ". I think I have ad ded " Will not Bend. Will break sorting machine." And give it to the nic e lady at the Yorklyn Postoffice. There is only a nice lady at the postoff ice. The post office closes for lunch.

I've sent small stuff in envelopes... a few diodes, leds, to-220 pacs.. stu ff like that.

George H.