Under the Hood

An Understanding of the Process

Backend Workflows - Front Check Image Submission

When using the POST /Scanner or POST /Mobile endpoint to submit a front check image, the following major steps are taken:

1. The image is rotated in small iterations until the check MICR line is vertically aligned.
2. The image is cropped, leaving only the check image present.
3. The MICR data is extracted, parsed, and mapped by the 1st tier OCR engine.
4. All other data is extracted, parsed, and mapped by the 2nd tier OCR engine.
5. IQA and Usability testing is performed by the 2nd tier OCR engine, skipping only rear check endorsement testing.
6. A temporary ID, linked to the resolution of the front image is stored with an expiration time of 10 minutes.

Backend Workflows - Rear Check Image Submission

When using the POST /Scanner or POST /Mobile endpoint to submit a rear check image, the following major steps are taken:

1. The image is rotated in small iterations until the check MICR line is vertically aligned.
2. The image is cropped using the resolution data stored during the front image submission, leaving only the check image present.

Backend Workflows - OCR Endpoint Submission

When using the POST /OCR endpoint to submit both the cropped front and rear check image, the following major steps are taken:

1. All data is extracted, parsed, and mapped by the 2nd tier OCR engine.
2. IQA and Usability testing is performed by the 2nd tier OCR engine including rear check endorsement testing.

Important Notes

The use of and response from the Scanner and Mobile endpoints are identical. The key difference is how the image is identified for cropping, with the theory of course, that an image captured via a flatbed scanner will be surrounded by an all-white background. In contrast, the Mobile endpoint cropping process assumes that the image is surrounded by bold backgrounds (tables, chairs, beds, etc.), at times easing the identification processing time.

Global Workflow

The diagram below is indicative of the global steps taken upon submission of a front check image to both the POST /Mobile and POST /Scanner endpoints.

Next Steps

Before implementation/integration of the Mobile Check Capture API, the team of Check21.com asks you to take a few moments to view our section labeled Best Practice. This section will provide our recommendations on how you may be able to better response times, while simultaneously offering your mobile check capture users a seamless user experience.