How do we know this? Well, two specifications from 19 defined the standards.
In fact, the 2D barcode encodes all of the remainder of the list (#3-7), in addition to other data fields and a cryptographic signature. Obviously the USPS isn’t relying on gobbledygook. If you simply tried to scan the barcode with a standard smartphone app, you’d get seemingly unreadable gobbledygook. I’m not the first person to try decoding these barcodes by hand - some folks over at Stack Overflow have apparently tried. Apparently, some sort of customer ID (0017056389) - this line has remained the same across all of the postage I’ve printed.Fluorescent strip, at top see previous section for discussion.The label contains several important elements: (Please don’t try to use this - it won’t be valid postage if you reprint it, and it is a federal crime to counterfeit postage…) Here’s an example 1-cent postage label I printed, which we can analyze. What information is encoded in the 2D Data Matrix barcodes? Peeking into the barcode
#Usps barcode scanner Pc#
Imprint from a Pitney Bowes postage meter, containing a barcodeīecause PC postage, printed at home, is usually done by a thermal label printer - or, in some cases, by laser or inkjet printer - the fluorescence has to be in the label supplies, either in the label paper or the pink/orange strip, for the automated machinery to recognize these mailpieces as bearing postage.īut fluorescence only seems to be enough to detect the presence of postage. Meter imprints, used by business mailrooms, are printed in fluorescent ink, and include 2D barcodes, too. That’s how those machines can very quickly detect counterfeit stamps that might otherwise look real to the untrained eye.
Retail stamps are “tagged” with some kind of fluorescence - phosphors in the paper, ink, or coating - that allow them to be recognized and validated by high-speed Facer Canceler machines. Ordinarily, the USPS equipment “look for special ink in the stamp or postage area” to validate the postage. The pink strip on this label is part of what allows the USPS to validate this kind of postage at high speed, automatically. It does not apply to the narrower, rectangular IBI Lite barcodes found on kiosk stamps, some PC postage, and some business postage meters. The rest of the information in this blog post is about the older IBI standard, which is still in use as of December 2020.
#Usps barcode scanner update#
Update (December 9, 2020): The USPS is phasing out IBI by Decemfor a newer standard called Intelligent Mail Indicia (IMI). They contain unique 2D barcodes, which the USPS calls “information-based indicia” (IBI), that validate the postage. Printed postage labels aren’t just graphics like preprinted stamps. Each of these companies operates under contract with the USPS. The United States Postal Service only allows you to do so through authorized vendors, including pbSmartPostage, /DYMO Stamps, and. Sometimes I just want to prepare my mail at home, you know?
#Usps barcode scanner how to#
$4.155 for certified 2-ounce First Class lettermail) instead of figuring out how to stick eight-and-a-half stamps to one envelope or waiting in line at the post office.
But if you ever send certified mail, send letters in large envelopes or heavier than 1 ounce, ship packages, or send mail internationally - and I have done all of the above in the last few months alone - it’s quite convenient to be able to print just the right amount (e.g. Given the cost of consumables, even without monthly fees, most people would not benefit from PC postage. This post ties together some of my favourite things: 2D barcodes, high speed automation, printers, cryptographic signatures (!), postal mail and postage, fraud prevention, and even a little bit about patents!ĭid you know that you can literally print your own postage? You have to pay for the value of the postage, of course, but with the right thermal printer and USPS-approved labels, you can use a “PC postage” service like pbSmartPostage SendPro (by Pitney Bowes, the same company that makes commercial postage meters and mailroom equipment for big businesses) and that will let you do so without monthly fees. Counterfeiting postage is a federal crime. Do not attempt to use this information for any illegitimate purpose. I am publishing this post as a hobbyist, because I find barcodes cool (as demonstrated by a prior open source project using 2D barcodes that I worked on).
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