What are those funny-looking characters, and what are they supposed to do?
There are two magnetic fonts used throughout the world for processing, sorting and posting checks and similar documents. The E-13B font we have already discussed in the MICR overview. The other font is called CMC-7; it was developed in France and has been the official French standard since 1964. The other countries which use this font are in Europe and South America.
In addition to these two magnetic MICR fonts, some European countries use optically read check processing fonts, OCR-A and OCR-B.
Because the specifications for MICR characters are for the printed characters (not the on-screen, or bitmapped, dimensions of the MICR font) each MICR laser printer must use a custom MICR font tailored to the characteristics of that particular printer. There is not one universal MICR font set that will work in every MICR laser printer. A MICR font is optimized for a specific printer only after months of stringent research and testing.
Even when the same MICR font is used, there are different syntaxes that are used in different countries. Detailed information on specific sytaxes is provided in an individual bank's MICR Printing Specification form. Here are a few general guidelines:
The E-13B (U.S.) MICR Standard Font
The E-13B font consists of ten numeric characters (0-9) and also contains four symbols that control the interpretation of the MICR line. They are:
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The E-13B font size falls somewhere between the standard 8- and 9-point type size. Each character is designed within a matrix of .013-inch squares. This matrix is 9 squares high by 7 squares wide. The minimum character width is four squares; all characters, except the On-Us and Dash symbols, are 9 squares (.117 inch) tall.
The MICR line (which appears at the bottom of the check) is separated into several distinct units, called code line fields. The special symbols are situated at the beginning and end of each field. Some fields have a fixed format, while others can be modified to suit the individual requirements of various banks.
Reader/sorters read checks from right to left. The amount symbol signals the first field. The numbers following the On-Us symbol can signify several items, including the account number, the bank branch that the check is drawn on, and probably the check number (usually to the right of the On-Us symbol). Larger business checks may include an auxiliary On-Us field at the left end of the check.
The Transit symbol always appears twice in a MICR line, signifying the opening and close of the transit field. The numbers between these symbols tell the bank's reader/sorter where the check should be sent for processing.
Some banks use the Dash symbol to separate the bank branch number from the account number in the On-Us field; however, most reader/sorter manufacturers discourage its use. The Amount field is usually blank, because the amount is usually added later, by the bank itself. There are, however, some applications that add the amount field numbers while printing the checks.
Please remember, these standards are for E-13B font usage only (and even within the U.S. there are significant variations from bank to bank; hence the importance of consulting the bank's MICR printing Specifications form for each account).
The CMC-7 (European) MICR Standard Font
The CMC-7 MICR font includes ten numeric characters (0-9), five control symbols, and 26 alphabetic characters (A-Z). CMC-7 control symbols roughly parallel E-13B control symbols in their usage. However, significant differences exist.
The five special symbols are:
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The S-1 symbol identifies the start of the bank's internal information, including the account number, thereby performing a function similar to the E-13B On-Us symbol. However, this symbol is not used to terminate this field - it terminates automatically when the reader/sorter detects the appropriate number of digits (a minimum of 10 or a maximum of 12, followed by a blank).
The S-3 symbol is the terminator for the bank routing information and also for the check number field.
The S-5 symbol is similar to the E-13B transit symbol, except that again, it is only used to signal, and not terminate, the bank routing identification.
The S-4 symbol is not used in the MICR line structure.
The CMC-7 characters are different in height and width from the E-3B characters. All numeric characters are 2.85 mm (or .112 inch) high; the height for special symbols is 2.70 mm (.106 inch). All CMC-7 characters have the same width. Each character is rendered using seven vertical strokes separated by six spaces of either 0.5 mm or 0.3 mm (called "long intervals" and "short intervals"). Each character includes two long intervals and four short intervals. Various arrangements of the long and short intervals identify each character to the reader/sorter.
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