Microcom 438 - Manual (Page 138)

Chapter 8 Bar Codes
438 Operator’s Manual - 880052-0100 8-21
Barcode Identifier
The Barcode Identifier field is a 2-digit field reserved for future use to encode
the presort identification that is currently printed in human-readable form on
the optional endorsement line.
Special Services
The Special Services field is a 3-digit field that identifies the type of service.
Customer Identifier
The Customer Identifier field is a 6-digit number identifying the mailer.
Sequence Number
The Sequence Number is a 9-digit field. For Destination Confirm, this field
holds the existing Mailing ID field, which is a 4- or 6-digit field. The Mailing
ID field can be expanded to 9 digits if so desired. Otherwise, leading zeros
should be used to fill the field completely. When using Origin Confirm, the
Customer Identifier field and the Sequence Number field may be combined
into a 15-digit field to hold the existing 9- or 11- digit Customer field plus
additional digits. If these fields are not expanded to 15 digits, leading zeros
should be used to fill the field completely.
Routing ZIP Code
The Routing ZIP Code field will accommodate 0, 5, 9 or 11 digit ZIP Code
information. Confirm requires a 9- or 11-digit Routing ZIP to serves as
"Subscriber ID" for Origin Confirm users. The routing ZIP Code inserted into
the 4CB must be registered in the Confirm account.
8.1.22 Planet Code, TCI 49
The Planet (Postal Alpha Numeric Encoding Technique) Code is designed to track both
inbound and outbound letter mail for the United States Postal Service. The Planet barcode
was required by the USPS to use their Confirm service but has since been replaced by the
Intelligent Mail Barcode.
The Confirm is a 12 digit barcode with the following structure:
- The first two digits represent the service (21 = Origin Confirm or 22 = Destination
Confirm)
- The next nine digits identify the mail
- The 12
th digit is a check sum that helps USPS detect errors.
The D176 command is used to receive and process the USPS planet code. After the
^D176 is issued, it must be followed by a 2 sets of ASCII digits terminated by
. The first set consists of a single digit field used to select barcode rotation with
the following values:
0 = 0 degree rotation
1 = 180 degree counter clockwise rotation.
2 = 90 degree counter clockwise rotation.
3 = 270 degree counter clockwise rotation.
The second set of ASCII digits contains a valid planet code string with a as a