Magnetic stripe is a storage medium with a limited amount of memory. The strip can be fabricated for various magnetic field strengths.
Therefore, there is a difference in the parameter: LoCo (Low Coercitive = 300 oersted) and HiCo (High Coercitive = 2750 oersted) magnetic stripes. The difference between LoCo and HiCo magnetic stripes lies in the amperage used when magnetizing. In order to write information on the LoCo magnetic stripe, a current of 300 oersted is used. For the HiCo strip, a current of 2750 Oersteds is used.
Plastic cards with HiCo magnetic stripes are more reliable and durable, since information on HiCo magnetic stripes is less susceptible to demagnetization by external magnetic fields than on LoCo strips.
HiCo magnetic stripe is used in cases when it is required to protect information on a magnetic card from possible demagnetization, as well as to increase the security of cards from possible counterfeiting.
HiCo magnetic stripe cards are more expensive than LoCo magnetic stripe cards.
For example, for a discount system (when the card is used relatively rarely), the LoCo magnetic stripe is chosen.
For an industrial enterprise, where a magnetic card is used by workers every day to pass through a checkpoint, the HiCo magnetic stripe is chosen.
The magnetic stripe is machine readable. For standard readers, the magnetic stripe is 12.7 mm (0.5 in) wide and 4 mm from the edge of the card.
There are three tracks on the magnetic stripe, along which one or another information can be applied. All three tracks of the magnetic stripe are used, as a rule, in large bank payment systems (for example, VISA).
In discount systems, in local payment systems, as well as in access systems, only one lane is used more often (usually the second).
ATTENTION! Only Latin letters can be recorded on magnetic tracks, Cyrillic letters cause an error in the operation of the recording device.
1-track - alphanumeric information: up to 76 familiarity QWERTYUIOPASDFGHJKLZXCVBNM1234567890:; = + () - '- (key “' E)! @ # ^ & * <>
The information will be surrounded by service characters:
"%" at the beginning of the line, "?" At the end of the line
Service character "?" is added at the end of each line of the database and means the end of the recording on the magnetic stripe and is not displayed when read. (by this encoder the 1st track is not encoded)
2nd track - only numbers: 1234567890 and the "=" sign, up to 37 characters the space is displayed on the magnetic stripe with the "=" sign, the "?" means the end of recording on the magnetic stripe and is not displayed when reading.
The information will be surrounded by service symbols:
";" at the beginning of the line, "?" At the end of the line
3-track - only numbers: 1234567890 and the "=" sign, up to 104 characters, the space is displayed on the magnetic tape with the "=" sign, the "?" means the end of recording on a magnetic card and is not displayed when reading.
The information will be surrounded by service symbols:
"_" at the beginning of the line, "?" At the end of the line
Therefore, there is a difference in the parameter: LoCo (Low Coercitive = 300 oersted) and HiCo (High Coercitive = 2750 oersted) magnetic stripes. The difference between LoCo and HiCo magnetic stripes lies in the amperage used when magnetizing. In order to write information on the LoCo magnetic stripe, a current of 300 oersted is used. For the HiCo strip, a current of 2750 Oersteds is used.
Plastic cards with HiCo magnetic stripes are more reliable and durable, since information on HiCo magnetic stripes is less susceptible to demagnetization by external magnetic fields than on LoCo strips.
HiCo magnetic stripe is used in cases when it is required to protect information on a magnetic card from possible demagnetization, as well as to increase the security of cards from possible counterfeiting.
HiCo magnetic stripe cards are more expensive than LoCo magnetic stripe cards.
For example, for a discount system (when the card is used relatively rarely), the LoCo magnetic stripe is chosen.
For an industrial enterprise, where a magnetic card is used by workers every day to pass through a checkpoint, the HiCo magnetic stripe is chosen.
The magnetic stripe is machine readable. For standard readers, the magnetic stripe is 12.7 mm (0.5 in) wide and 4 mm from the edge of the card.
There are three tracks on the magnetic stripe, along which one or another information can be applied. All three tracks of the magnetic stripe are used, as a rule, in large bank payment systems (for example, VISA).
In discount systems, in local payment systems, as well as in access systems, only one lane is used more often (usually the second).
ATTENTION! Only Latin letters can be recorded on magnetic tracks, Cyrillic letters cause an error in the operation of the recording device.
1-track - alphanumeric information: up to 76 familiarity QWERTYUIOPASDFGHJKLZXCVBNM1234567890:; = + () - '- (key “' E)! @ # ^ & * <>
The information will be surrounded by service characters:
"%" at the beginning of the line, "?" At the end of the line
Service character "?" is added at the end of each line of the database and means the end of the recording on the magnetic stripe and is not displayed when read. (by this encoder the 1st track is not encoded)
2nd track - only numbers: 1234567890 and the "=" sign, up to 37 characters the space is displayed on the magnetic stripe with the "=" sign, the "?" means the end of recording on the magnetic stripe and is not displayed when reading.
The information will be surrounded by service symbols:
";" at the beginning of the line, "?" At the end of the line
3-track - only numbers: 1234567890 and the "=" sign, up to 104 characters, the space is displayed on the magnetic tape with the "=" sign, the "?" means the end of recording on a magnetic card and is not displayed when reading.
The information will be surrounded by service symbols:
"_" at the beginning of the line, "?" At the end of the line
