Method and apparatus for any which way check acceptance

• US 7,747,061 B2
• Filed: 12/08/2006
• Issued: 06/29/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wells Fargo Bank NA (Wells Fargo & Company)
• Original Assignee: Wells Fargo Bank NA (Wells Fargo & Company)
• Inventors: Hatzirallis, Steve, Wang, Jimmy, Schrag, Elizabeth Ann, Velline, Jonathan
• Primary Examiner(s): AZARIAN, SEYED H
• Application Number:
  US11/608,730
• Publication Number:
  US 20080137939A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,299 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/101, 382/102, 382112-116, 382/119, 382/135, 382/136, 382/137, 382/138, 382/139, 382/140, 382/156, 382/168, 382175-178, 382181-189, 382/199, 382/209, 382/214, 382/232, 382/254, 382/274, 382/276, 382286-292, 382/305, 382/312, 382/321, 235/380, 235/379, 463/42, 705/40
• US Class Current: 382/137
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/10 Character recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/1463 Orientation detection or correction, e.g. rotation of multiples of 90 degrees
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/2253 Recognition of characters printed with magnetic ink G06V30/2247 takes precedence

Abstract

An Any Which Way Check Acceptance method and apparatus is provided, which allow a set of checks to be deposited in a stack, where each check can be oriented in any of sixteen different ways. In one embodiment of the invention, the ATM check reader has an MICR and OCR scanner/reader. When a set of checks is deposited, each check is subjected to a MICR scan and an OCR scan. If the check is aligned correctly and right side up, then the check is processed based on the MICR scan information. If the check is not aligned correctly or is upside down, then the MICR read fails because the magnetic stripe on the check is not where it is expected to be. Rather than rejecting the check at this point, the invention uses the OCR scan information from both the front and back of the check to process the check.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for processing a stack of one or more checks regardless of orientation, comprising the steps of:

depositing a stack of one or more checks into an automated banking machine,

each check having a magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) line, regardless of orientation with respect to said MICR line of any of said checks, such that each check can be deposited in sixteen different orientations, based on positioning of the MICR line; and

performing the following steps for each check;

scanning said check using a MICR scanner;

scanning both sides of said check using an OCR scanner;

determining if said step of scanning using said MICR scanner failed;

processing said check using scanned data obtained from said MICR scan if said MICR scanning did not fail and going to step of ending process if no more checks;

processing said check using scanned data obtained from said OCR scan if said MICR scanning failed and going to step of ending process if no more checks;

and ending process if no more checks.

2. A system on a computer network for processing a stack of one or more checks regardless of orientation, comprising:

means for depositing a stack of one or more checks into an automated banking machine, each check having a magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) line, regardless of orientation with respect to said MICR line of any of said checks, such that each check can be deposited in sixteen different orientations, based on positioning of the MICR line; and

means for performing a process algorithm for each check comprising the following;

means for scanning said check using a MICR scanner;

means for scanning both sides of said check using an OCR scanner;

means for determining if means for scanning using said MICR scanner failed;

means for processing said check using scanned data obtained from said MICR scan if said MICR scanning did not fail and going to control to means for ending process if no more checks;

means for processing said check using scanned data obtained from said OCR scan if said MICR scanning failed and going to control to means for ending process if no more checks; and

Means for ending process if no more checks.