What is a Format?
Every card HID makes contains a card format. This applies to:

  • Wiegand swipe cards
  • 125 kHz Prox cards
  • MIFARE cards
  • 13.56 MHz iCLASS cards
  • Magnetic stripe cards

The term format describes the organization of the binary data on the card based on how it will be seen by the access control panel. The card itself is completely oblivious regarding the organization of data that makes up the format. Even the reader is unaware of the format; it just receives the data from the card and sends it to the controller.

Card data formats usually range from 26 to 40 bits in length. There are hundreds of different formats. Some of them, like 26- bit, are public domain and may be purchased by anyone. Others are proprietary for specific customers and may be purchased only with the permission of that customer. Please refer to HID’s “Card Format White Paper” for more details.

Corporate 1000 Formats
The unique feature of the Corporate 1000 format is its ownership rights:

  • HID will work through a dealer/integrator to establish a unique format for a specific end-user.
  • The end-user has complete control over the use of their individual format
  • The end-user must provide written authorization for an HID direct customer (OEM,integrator,distributor,etc.) to purchase the Corporate 1000 cards. The end-user may add or remove resellers at any time.
  • HID will ONLY sell Corporate 1000 cards to user-authorized resellers
  • Each Corporate 1000 customer is guaranteed that its format is unique
  • Each customer is guaranteed a minimum of one million cards available in their format
  • Each customer is provided with strict confidential protection

Access Control System Compatibility
Any access control panel and/or host software must be capable of supporting the 35-bit Corporate 1000 format. The HID card and reader are both completely unaware of the characteristics of the format. Only the controller is capable of breaking the 35-bit binary string into its component parts and making access control decisions accordingly.

Some access control equipment can only handle one format in memory. This contraint must also be considered if an end- user is going to convert from an existing, older format to a new Corporate 1000 format.

Note: Read HID’s “How a Card Is Read White Paper” for more detail about how formats are managed by access control equipment.

For a more detailed explanation of Corporate 1000, please click here to visit our website.