DataCard CR805 - Magnetic Stripe Design; Magnetic Stripe Data Formats; Three-Track Option (ISO;IAT)

CR805 Retransfer Card Printer Installation and Administrator’s Guide 53
Magnetic Stripe Design
The printer’s magnetic stripe module allows the printer to process magnetic stripe data. There
are two magnetic stripe configuration options: ISO and JIS. Use the printer configuration labels
(described in the printer’s User’s Guide) to determine the type of module installed.
Magnetic Stripe Data Formats
The module format (ISO or JIS) defines the type and format of the
information to encode. The standard ISO format (also known as IAT)
is a three-track option. The JIS format is a single-track option. Both
formats include default data settings that determine how many
characters can be encoded on each track, and which characters can
be encoded.
Your cards can use the default format for each track, or can use a
different combination of tracks and data formats.
Three-Track Option (ISO/IAT)
The default data formats for a three-track magnetic stripe option are:
 Track 1 — IATA
 Track 2 — ABA
 Track 3 — TTS
This combination is often abbreviated IAT. This format is also called ISO format.
IATA (International Air Transport Association)
The maximum number of characters for IATA format data is 76 characters. These characters can
include spaces, uppercase alphabetic characters (A–Z), numeric characters (0–9), and the
following special characters:
! # $ % ' ( ) * + , - . / ; : < @ > = ^ ] \ [ " & _
ABA (American Bankers Association)
The maximum number of characters for ABA format is 37 characters. Numeric characters (0–9)
and the following special characters are allowed:
: ; < = >
TTS (Thrift Third Standard)
The maximum number of characters for TTS format is 104 characters. Numeric characters (0–9)
and the following special characters are allowed:
: ; < = >
ISO three tracks
JIS single track