Microcom 322M - Manual (Page 75)

322M Operator’s Manual
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Chapter 9: Bar Codes
The purpose of this chapter is to provide information pertaining to the unique requirements
of the individual symbologies that are resident in the printer. Bar codes are accessed by
selecting the appropriate TCI number.
9.1 Types of Bar Codes
This section provides information regarding the different requirements of the available
resident bar codes. Unless stated otherwise in the descriptions below, the printer will
automatically generate the necessary check digits when required. The following
symbologys are described in numerical order based on the TCI number.
9.1.1 Universal Product Code
– Version A (UPC-A), TCI 12
The Uniform Product Code version A or UPC-A symbology is used in the retail industry. It is
capable of encoding numerical characters 0 through 9 and consists of eleven data digits
followed by a check digit that the printer calculates. The first six data digits consist of a
number system digit followed by manufacturer’s identification digits that are assigned by the
Uniform Code Council (UCC). The next five data digits are assigned by the manufacturers
and typically represent product identification. The 12
th
digit is the checksum and should be
omitted because the printer will automatically insert the correct value if a checksum is not
included with the data. The printer will accept and print an invalid check digit if an incorrect
check digit is provided. UPC-A bar codes do not use inter-character spacing and therefore
the character spacing (CS) element must be defaulted. The UPC symbology defaults to an
X dimension of 40% or 5.2 mils. To produce a symbology that is within the specification, a
minimum multiplier of 2 should be entered in the appropriate multiplier parameters (CMX or
CMY depending on the field orientation) to produce an 80% or 10.4 mils symbology.
9.1.2 Universal Product Code
– Version E (UPC-E), TCI 13
The UPC-E symbology is used in the retail industry and is capable of encoding numerical
characters 0 through 9 and consists of eleven data digits followed by a check digit that the
printer calculates. The first six data digits consist of a number system digit followed by
manufacturer’s identification digits that are assigned by the Uniform Code Council (UCC).
The next five data digits are assigned by the manufacturers and typically represent product
identification. This bar code applies the “zero suppression” compression method to reduce
certain 11 digit UPC-A bar codes to only 6 numeric digits and a conversion type numeric
digit. Certain rules apply for this type of compression method to function properly. These
rules may be obtained from the Uniform Code Counsel (UCC). The digits must be valid
data for the proper bar code to print. Failure to use valid data may result in an incorrect bar
code. The UPC symbology defaults to an X dimension of 40% or 5.2 mils. To produce a
symbology that is within the specification, a minimum multiplier of 2 should be entered in the
appropriate multiplier parameters (CMX or CMY depending on the field orientation) to
produce an 80% or 10.4 mil symbology. When using the TCI 13 (UPC-E), the printer
requires the unconverted
11 digits and the Manufacture’s ID number must begin with “0” for
proper use. UPC-E bar codes do not use inter-character spacing, therefore the character
spacing (CS) element must be defaulted. The chart listed in Table 14 illustrates how the 11
digits are reduced to only 6 using the “zero suppression” compression.