The Technograph

One of the first things new students do once they arrive on campus is get their i-card. Everyone has one. It’s your bus pass, your gym membership, your access key to certain buildings, your

library card. If you’re in the dorms, it’s your meal ticket, and if you so choose, it can be your debit card too. The goal is to be able to use one card for multiple purposes, which makes our lives a lot easier.

“It’s our one card philosophy,” says John Ealy, Interim Director of i-card Programs.

The key to how i-cards work is their three-track magnetic stripe, or magstripe for short. Each i-card is assigned a unique 16-digit code (printed on the front of the card) which is encoded on

the magstripe, a plastic-like film with tiny iron-based magnetic particles in it that act as tiny bar magnets. Information is encoded onto the magstripe through those magnets.

When you swipe your i-card, the motion allows the scanner to read the information on the magstripe, your 16-digit code. A web application reads the card number and checks the i-card database to ensure it is a valid card. The card is then verified through a series of checks which determine who you are and your eligibility. At the ARC for example, some of the checks are

as follows: is the cardholder a student? If yes, have they paid their fees? If no, are they faculty or staff? If yes, do they have a current membership? If the answer is no, the card is rejected.

“All of these checks have to occur within a couple seconds,” Ealy said.

The web applications and databases used were created specifically for U of I’s i-card program. Depending how you use the card and where you swipe it, it reacts differently. At places like the

ARC or CRCE, cards are verified against the i-card database. University Housing has another system in place as well; the ‘New Horizons’ system deals with meal plans and building access based on where you live. If and when you use it as a debit card, purchases go directly against your TCF checking account and you can use it anywhere PIN based debit cards are accepted, no signature required. All of these systems and functions are integrated but separate.

The i-card database is also updated frequently just in case you lose your card. When a replacement i-card is issued, the 16-digit card number is changed, and the old i-card becomes obsolete.

So the next time you look at your i-card, try to forget how terrible your picture is and take a moment to appreciate all the things that little piece of plastic can do for you.

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