Could you please explain how MICR characters work?
The Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) characters on a check are printed with ink that has magnetic characteristics. Each character is designed to be legible to the eye and to carry a unique magnetic profile, so that it can be read at high speeds by electronic machinery.
Since the 1950s, when MICR was first developed, other high-speed machines that can read the MICR characters optically have been introduced, so that slight imperfections in printing don't cause misreads of the characters any longer. The characters encoded at the bottom of checks identify the bank on which the check is drawn, through which it will be paid, the account number on which the check is drawn, and the dollar amount if the check is to be routed physically between banks. Most checks are also encoded with the check serial number.
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The Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) characters on a 