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1st in MICR Toner
A Brief History of MICR
Technology
Prior to
computers and MICR, the banking industry
had two manual methods for
processing large batches of
checks. These two processes were
known as Sort-A-Matic and Top
Tab Key Sort. The Sort-A-Matic
method utilized one hundred
dividers, numbered 00 to 99. The
first two digits of the account
number were used to sort checks
into dividers. By repeating this
sorting process for each two
digits of the account, all
checks were finally grouped by
account number.
The Top Tab Key
Sort method used small holes at
the top of the check to indicate
each specific digit of the
account number. A metal rod was
used to separate checks with the
same digit in the first
position. It then repeated this
process for each digit of the
account number until all checks
were grouped by account number.
MICR
Technology
These were slow, painstaking
and expensive processes. With
the advent of computers,
Stanford University and Bank of
America were the first to
successfully develop a computer
technology that would sort and
match checks quickly and
accurately. This computer
technology became know as
Magnetic Ink Character
Recognition or MICR for short.
The American Banking Association
approved this computer
technology and the rest is
history.
One of the key
elements of this technology was
the development of the MICR
font. This font is often
referred to as the E-13B font.
It consists of ten numbers (0-9)
and four special symbols. The E
refers to the fifth version of
the font. The number 13 refers
to the 0.013-inch design of the
font. All horizontal and
vertical widths are multiples of
0.013 inches. They range from
0.052 to 0.091 inches. The B
refers to the second revision
(of the fifth version).
There are two
types of magnetic readers used
to read these MICR font
characters: Single track and
multiple track magnetic readers.
The MICR fonts are printed with
toner that contains iron oxide.
These readers pass the check
number past a magnet, which
magnetizes the iron oxide
particles. This magnetizing
process creates patterns, which
can then be decoded by the MICR
magnetic reader to sort and
batch the checks by account
number.
A third machine,
called an Optical Character
Recognition (OCR) reader can
also be used to read the MICR
fonts. These machines do not use
any magnetic properties, but use
a scanner light technology to
decode the MICR fonts and sort
them into batches by check
account number.
MICR Printing
and Toner
MICR printers must include a
unique MICR font, which has been
designed with the specific
printer in mind. These MICR
printers must also be able to
match the magnetic toner at the
pixel level to insure proper
decoding. Finally, the MICR font
for each printer must meet the
ABA-X9 standards established by
the banking industry.
Original
Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)
MICR toner cartridges will
provide the
MICR printing you
need, but at a much higher cost.
Today, you can purchase
compatible
MICR toner cartridges
that will provide quality
printing, but at a reduced cost.
The key to successfully
purchasing quality
compatible
MICR toner cartridges is to only deal with
reputable toner cartridge
companies. These companies will
provide the high quality, low
abrasive MICR toner. Their toner
cartridges will meet or exceed
the U.S. check printing
standards.
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