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Barcodes
UPC-A
The UPC-A barcode uses 12 digits (including one check digit)
and is the most common and well-known barcode in the United States. It
is used on practically all consumer goods in stores, including food items,
books, magazines, and newspapers.
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UPC-E
The UPC-E is a 6 digit-shorter version of UPC-A. This barcode is about
half the size of the UPC-A for the same product number. Only a subset
of the numbers that can be encoded with UPC-A can be encoded with UPC-E.
It is used on products with small packaging.
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Code 39
Code 39, also known as 3 of 9 Code and USD-3, is an alpha-numeric variable
length symbology widely used- in non-retail environments. It is the standard
bar code used by the United States Department of Defense and the Health
Industry Bar Code Council (HIBCC). Code 39 may use a check digit, but
often is used without a check digit. Code 39 is normally used to encode
digits, upper case letters, and a few special characters. Representing
lower case letters and most of the special characters is done using “full
ASCII” mode. This requires twice as many bar code characters and
consequently twice as much space on the paper.
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Code 93
Compressed form of Code 39
Code 93 is a continuous, variable-length compressed form of Code 39. Code
93 produces denser code. It also encodes 47 characters compared to Code
39's 43 characters. With Code 39, four of the characters can either be
used to specify specific special characters or they can be used as escape
characters. With Code 93 the additional four characters are used so that
there is no ambiguity.
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Code 128
Code 128 is high-density symbology used throughout the world which permits
the encoding of alphanumeric data. The barcode uses a checksum digit for
verification, and can also be verified character-by-character. The calculation
of the check digit typically gives programmers an interesting problem
to solve. It is used when a large amount of data needs to be placed into
a small space.
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UCC/EAN-128
UCC/EAN-128 is used worldwide and is primarily used for encoding shipping
and product information. It is gaining in popularity. UCC/EAN-128 uses
Code 128 as its symbology. It uses 2 digit Application Identifiers (AIs)
that specify the meaning of the data that follows. For example, if the
AI is 00 it means that this is a 20 digit SSCC (Serial Shipping Container
Code). This symbology can be expanded, which makes it more adaptable to
the changing needs of business.
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United States Postal Service Zip
The United States Postal Service (USPS) postal code was developed to allow
faster sorting and routing of mail.
This barcode encodes data in the height of the bars, not in the width
of the spaces like conventional barcodes. It is capable of encoding a
standard 5-digit Zip Code, a Zip+4 code, or a full 11-point delivery point
code. Each USPS zip also requires a mod-10 check digit.
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Interleaved 2 of 5
Interleaved 2 of 5 is a higher-density numeric barcode based on the Standard
2 of 5 symbology. Interleaved 2 of 5 can only represent numeric data.
With the Standard 2 of 5, the white spaces are all the same width while
the width of the black bars is used to convey the information. There are
5 black bars and 2 of them are wide, hence the 2 of 5. In the Interleaved
2 of 5 symbology both the white spaces and the black bars convey information.
Of the white spaces, 2 of the 5 are wide. A single character (5 black
bars and 5 white spaces) represent two digits. The total number of digits
represented must always be an even number. It is widely used in warehouse
and industrial applications.
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EAN-13
EAN-13 is a 13 character symbology and is based upon the UPC-A standard.
EAN 13 was first implemented by the International Article Numbering Association
(EAN) in Europe and is widely used internationally. EAN-13 is a superset
of UPC-A. It uses 13 digits (including one check digit) instead of the
12 digits (including one check digit) used by UPC-A.
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PDF 417
PDF 417 is a two dimensional barcode which allows large amounts of text
and data to be stored securely and inexpensively into a small space. The
PDF 417 symbology can also withstand damage without causing loss of data.
Error correction is more advanced in the PDF 417 than one dimensional
barcodes. More than one thousands characters of information can be encoded
into this type of barcode.
RSS-14
RSS-14® is a linear symbology that facilitates omnidirectional scanning.
RSS-14 is smaller than EAN-13 or UPC-A. and designed to used where conventional
barcodes will not work because of space restrictions.
14 digits of numerical data are encoded to identify Global Trade Item
Numbers™ (GTINs™) for scanning. More information can be encoded
by adding and linking to a Composite Component that can contain up to
2,361 data characters.
RSS-14® can be scanned and decoded in four segments and then reconstructed.
This facilitates omnidirectional scanning.
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