Which Typeface to Use? There are a variety of fonts the Customer can use, though we would recommend using one from the list opposite wherever possible. We would also recommend the Customer regularly check the quality of your print output for clarity. If you have any doubts on either of these requirements, please contact your Whistl Account Manager. • Arial 10-12pt regular • Avant Garde 11-15pt regular • Century Schoolbook 10-11pt roman and bold • Courier 10-15pt regular and bold • Courier New 10-15pt • Frankfurt Gothic 10-12pt • Franklin Gothic 11-14pt book • Geneva 10-12pt regular • Helvetica 12-14pt regular and bold • News Gothic MT 10-12pt regular and bold • Universe 10-15pt regular and bold Here is the list of recommend typefaces:
OCR machines can read anything up to 32 characters per line (including spaces). OCR cannot recognise computer zero (Ø) and ampersand (&). Script type or italic typefaces also cannot be read. Things to avoid The following are typical problems, which can prevent your mail from being processed by an OCR machine. • Characters with incorrect proportions e.g. Stretched or condensed typefaces. Overlarge or small characters. • Quality of characters – which are poorly printed or defined, either because they have been printed by low quality printers or low resolution dot matrix printers, or because the Printer needs maintenance (worn ribbon, low on toner etc.). • Characters with poor outlines – fuzzy or blurred, or strokes which are incomplete, broken or smeared, for any of the above reasons.
• Verdana 10-12pt regular • Letter Gothic 12pt regular • Lucinda Console 12 pt regular • Lucinda Sans Typewriter 12 pt regular • Monaco 12pt regular • OCR B 12pt
Typefaces with the following characteristics are also suitable: • Size – Height: 2mm min; 7mm max.Width: 7mm max. • Dimension – minimum ratio of lower case height (b) to upper case height (a) of between 2:3 and 3:4. A ratio of width (c) to height (a) of approximately 2:3.
• Close character spacing – characters which touch adjacent characters, whether on the same line or those from above or below. • Proportionally or unevenly spaced text – characters or words which have too much space between them (more than four character widths or 10mm in size). • Typeface styles – italic, inclined graphic, pseudo- script or handwriting limitations. Typefaces with excessive serifs which touch or overlap adjacent characters or serifs. Generally, sans-serif fonts are preferable to serif fonts. • Print contrast – printing white type on a black background or similar, or combinations of colours such as black print on a strong red background. 6.0 Sealing All items must be securely sealed on all sides, taking care to avoid too much gum. Envelope flaps may fold either to the back or front of the mail piece. If the flap folds to the front (address side) of the mailpiece, the edge of the flap must not fall within the clear zones required for route and tag codes. • You must not use metal clips or staples • The items must be sealed on all sides securely and continuously One piece mailers are permitted, please contact your access account manager for the full specification.
• Consistency – each line of the address should be in the same typeface and size. • Quality – characters must be complete, clear, uniform and of high resolution, with individual stroke thickness of between 8% and 16%of the height of the character. • Contrast – there should be a contrast between the characters and the background on which they are printed of at least 50% (55% if it is to be read through a window). • Character spacing – there should be a fixed pitch of between 10 and 12 characters per inch (or between 15 and 8 point size), with clear vertical gaps of at least 0.25mm between the extremities of adjacent characters. If you are using proportionally spaced text, please ensure you keep spacing of at least +0.75, as this significantly improves the rate at which addresses can be read. • Line spacing – allow uniform spacing between all lines of the address, of at least 1mm (5 points). Please note
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