MICR or Magnetic Ink Character Recognition is the standard identification that is located at the bottom of a check for a bank to identify the source of the funds.  This is printed in a special MICR font, and usually with a magnetic ink or toner as well.

There are three main points of identification:
* The [CHECK_NUMBER] which is also printed higher on the face of the check in a more "human readable" form
* The [BANK_TRANSIT_CODE] which identifies which bank holds the funds to be paid
* The [BANK_ACCOUNT] which identifies the account within the bank from which the funds are taken

There are also four special characters which seperate the data for the bank's automated systems:
* ON-US
* TRANSIT
* HYPHEN 

Although there is a standard for how the MICR format is to be printed, there are several variations on the standard.