I have 3 people living in my home, and if I check the mail when I come home, my dad has no way of knowing I've checked it, and so he checks it anyways. Therefore, being an amateur game theorist, I never check the mail, since he's committed to the strategy of checking it every day.
If mailboxes were to come with an auxiliary flag (in the US we have one to indicate to the postal agent that there's mail to be picked up) which says the mail's been checked, this informational problem would be solved and things would be more convenient. I suppose pasting either a red or blue stip to the front depending on its status would also do.
I could leave the mailbox open to indicate it's emptiness, but that seems a remedial solution, and maybe people would tamper with my box then (or close it in a percieved act of being nice).
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This has been around forever in rural New Zealand - the rural post delivers the mail and lifts the flag to indicate delivery, and when you check your mail, you put the flag down again... (useful because a lot of farms have very long driveways...) I'm sure it could be easily automated with a pressure pad attached to the flag..
We had a similar issue with regard to a burglar alarm. With three different families living in one house, no one knew if they werthe lastone to set the alarm before leaving. The trick was a set of three in/out slides. Each person learnd to set their indicator to in when coming home. If your leaving made all the flags to out, then turn on the alarm.
Why not have a simple sensor that indicates the door has been opened. It could transmit to you home (like those outdoor thermometers or using x.10) so you could see if the mailman had opened and put in mail. When you open to get mail, it resets. It could have a small LED so you could also see it from up close if you are just coming home. A small solar panel or batteries could power it. Sure, it is high-tech overkill, but plenty of people are will to toss money at more useless things.
Anything electronic would be "overengineering".
Yes, IF you are in a place where the primary flag is used only to indicate the presence of outgoing mail, a secondary flag might be a good answer, or a ratchet mechanism (hooked tot he door)to alternately indicate the box has beed used. Ideally it would be alternately opened by the mail-person, and the mail getter. although putting mail in the box, or non postal deliveries will upset the counter.
BTW here, the flag (or in our case, the box turned against the street), indicates the presence of something in the box, be it outgoing mail, incoming mail, or flyers.
been done. google "mail box alert". I found the high-tech wireless transmitter/reciever version for $49.99 and the low-tech, extra flag that fits on top and springs up when the door is opened version for $6.99 (on sale now for $4.99).
As we get older going to the mail box or newspaper box may be a chore for some. Having an indicator light that can be seen from the house would be a great help to those that need canes or wheel chairs to get around. The mail box or paper box has a beam on the inside when the mail or paper is delivered the item breaks the beam and a red or green light shows in the back of the box letting the person in the house see if there is anything in the box. This save a lot of trips to the box. It can be set up with a solar battery so there will be little or no energy consumption.