Rolls of image-customized value-bearing items and systems and methods for providing rolls of image-customized value-bearing items

1. A method of producing a roll of image-customized postage labels, said method comprising:

A) 1) receiving a user input of a user-provided image, user instructions for formatting the user-provided image, and a user-specified postage amount,

2) generating a label-specific machine-readable representation of date-independent, recipient-address-independent, computer-based postage indicia comprising the user-specified postage amount for each image-customized postage label on each sheet to be formatted, and

3) formatting a plurality of sheet images of a plurality of image-customized postage labels, wherein each sheet image of the plurality of image-customized postage labels comprises a first plurality of rows of image-customized postage labels and a second plurality of columns of image-customized postage labels, wherein each image-customized postage label comprises a customized image of the user-provided image according to said user instructions and a set of postage indicia comprising a particular label-specific machine-readable representation of date-independent, recipient-address-independent, computer-based postage indicia comprising the user-specified postage amount;

B) rendering each sheet image of the plurality of image-customized postage labels on liner-backed adhesive label stock;

C) slicing the liner-backed adhesive label stock in between each column of the second plurality of columns of image-customized postage labels, and

D) disposing the second plurality of columns of image-customized postage labels in a roll, wherein mounting said roll on a label applicator device facilitates label application of said image-customized postage labels on to mail items.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein rendering each sheet image in B) comprises rendering each sheet image of the plurality of image-customized postage labels on a respective portion of a roll of liner-backed adhesive label stock; and wherein slicing the liner-backed adhesive label stock in C) comprises slicing the roll of liner-backed adhesive label stock through each respective portion of the roll of liner-backed adhesive label stock in between each column of the second plurality of columns of image-customized postage labels.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein rendering each sheet image in B) comprises rendering each sheet image on a sheet of liner-backed adhesive label stock; and wherein slicing the liner-backed adhesive label stock in C) comprises slicing each sheet of liner-backed adhesive label stock.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein disposing the second plurality of columns of image-customized postage labels in a roll comprises rolling a first end of a first column of the second plurality of columns of image-customized postage labels around a label roll core.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein disposing the second plurality of columns of image-customized postage labels in a roll comprises:

D-1) splicing a tail end of a second column to a head end of a first column; and

D-2) rolling a tail end of the first column around a label roll core.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the liner-backed adhesive label stock comprises a label liner comprising an upper liner surface and wherein the liner-backed adhesive label stock further comprises an adhesive-backed label means separably adhered to the upper liner surface, said method further comprising, after performing B) and prior to performing C):

B-1) kiss-cutting a border around each image-customized postage label on each sheet image so that the kiss-cut pierces the adhesive-backed label means but does not pierce the label liner, leaving residual adhesive-backed label means in between the borders; and

B-2) removing the residual adhesive-backed label means.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein each column of the second plurality of columns comprises a respective tail end and a respective head end, wherein said customized image comprises a left side and a right side, and wherein each said sheet image comprises said plurality of image-customized postage labels such that each said image-customized postage label is oriented in a landscape orientation with respect to a landscape orientation of said sheet image such that the left side of said customized image of each particular image-customized postage label is oriented toward the tail end of a particular respective column in which the particular image-customized postage label is disposed, wherein mounting said roll on a label applicator device facilitates horizontal, side-to-side label application of said landscape-oriented, image-customized postage labels on to mail items.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein disposing the second plurality of columns of image-customized postage labels in a roll comprises:

D-1) splicing a tail end of a second column to a head end of a first column; and

D-2) rolling a tail end of the first column around a label roll core.

9. The method of claim 7 , wherein the liner-backed adhesive label stock comprises a label liner comprising an upper liner surface and wherein the liner-backed adhesive label stock further comprises an adhesive-backed label means separably adhered to the upper liner surface, said method further comprising, after performing B) and prior to performing C):

B-1) kiss-cutting a border around each image-customized postage label on each sheet image so that the kiss-cut pierces the adhesive-backed label means but does not pierce the label liner, leaving residual adhesive-backed label means in between the borders; and

B-2) removing the residual adhesive-backed label means.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein disposing the second plurality of columns of image-customized postage labels in a roll comprises:

D-1) splicing a tail end of a second column to a head end of a first column; and

D-2) rolling a tail end of the first column around a label roll core.

11. A method of producing a roll of landscape-oriented image-customized postage labels, said method comprising:

A) 1) receiving a user input of a user-provided image, user instructions for formatting the user-provided image, and a user-specified postage amount,

2) generating a label-specific machine-readable representation of date-independent, recipient-address-independent, computer-based postage indicia comprising the user-specified postage amount for each image-customized postage label on each sheet to be formatted, and

3) formatting a plurality of landscape-oriented sheet images of a plurality of landscape-oriented, image-customized postage labels, wherein each landscape-oriented sheet image of the plurality of landscape-oriented, image-customized postage labels comprises a first plurality of rows of image-customized postage labels and a second plurality of columns of landscape-oriented image-customized postage labels, wherein each landscape-oriented, image-customized postage label comprises a customized image of the user-provided image according to said user instructions and a set of postage indicia comprising a particular label-specific set of machine-readable representation of date-independent, recipient-address-independent, computer-based postage indicia comprising the user-specified postage amount, wherein each column comprises a tail end and a head end, wherein said customized image for each particular image-customized postage label comprises a left side and a right side, and wherein each said landscape-oriented image-customized postage label is provided in a landscape orientation with respect to a landscape orientation of a respective landscape-oriented sheet image of said plurality of landscape-oriented sheet images, such that the left side of said customized image of each particular landscape-oriented, image-customized postage label is oriented toward the tail end of a particular respective column in which the particular landscape-oriented image-customized postage label is disposed;

B) rendering each landscape-oriented sheet image of the plurality of landscape-oriented image-customized postage labels on liner-backed adhesive label stock;

C) slicing the liner-backed adhesive label stock in between each column of the second plurality of columns of landscape-oriented image-customized postage labels;

D) splicing a tail end of a second column to a head end of a first column; and

E) rolling a tail end of the first column around a label roll core to form a roll comprising the first column and second column, wherein mounting said roll on a label applicator device facilitates horizontal, side-to-side label application of said landscape-oriented, image-customized postage labels on to mail items.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the liner-backed adhesive label stock comprises a label liner comprising an upper liner surface and wherein the liner-backed adhesive label stock further comprises an adhesive-backed label means separably adhered to the upper liner surface, said method further comprising, after performing B) and prior to performing C):

B-1) kiss-cutting a border around each landscape-oriented image-customized postage label on each landscape-oriented sheet image so that the kiss-cut pierces the adhesive-backed label means but does not pierce the label liner, leaving residual adhesive-backed label means in between the borders; and

B-2) removing the residual adhesive-backed label means.

13. The method of claim 11 , said method further comprising:

determining a particular label stock type for use as the liner-backed adhesive label stock, said particular label stock type determined according to a user-indication of operational characteristics for a particular postage label applicator.

14. The method of claim 1 , said method further comprising:

determining dimensions for rolling the plurality of image-customized postage labels, said dimensions for rolling determined according to a user-indication of operational characteristics for a particular postage label applicator.

15. The method of claim 11 , wherein said machine-readable representation of computer-based postage indicia is oriented toward the head end of the particular respective column in which the particular landscape-oriented, image-customized postage label is disposed.