Scanners: Bar code specifications receive comments in Chinese? New scanners
By Control Engineering Staff -- Control Engineering, 9/2/2008
Warrendale, PA and Minneapolis, MN – Two bar codes specifications (Grid Matrix and DotCode) are out for public review draft via AIM Global, as Sick launches two lines of high-performance bar code scanners. Grid matrix is designed to include Chinese characters. See bar code and scanner images below, along with resource guides to part marking.
The Public Review Draft of the International Symbology Specification – Grid Matrix, developed by AIM Global's Technical Symbology Committee (TSC), is available for a 30-day public review. Grid Matrix is designed to encode the entire GB 2312-1980 Chinese character set efficiently. It also can encode 7-bit ASCII, numeric, and binary data and is intended for broad use in printed symbols and mobile phone display applications.
| International Symbology Specification – Grid Matrix, developed by AIM Global |
The variable size, dimensionally square, two-dimensional matrix symbology with dark- and light-framed "macromodules" creates a grid design that provides a robust finder pattern, which ensures "finding" of the symbol even with significant symbol damage. User-selectable levels of Reed-Solomon error correction are incorporated for correct reading of data.
AIM Global president Dan Mullen praised the public review of Grid Matrix, "the first proposed international symbology specification from China." Strong future growth is expected there; Mullen thanked the active involvement of the symbology sponsors from China and dedication of the TSC members, which moved the document from initial submission to public review in less than 18 months.
Public Review Draft of the International Symbology Specification – DotCode was also announced, developed by the AIM Global Technical Symbology Committee (TSC), available for a 30-day public review.
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| International Symbology Specification – DotCode, developed by AIM Global |
DotCode is a variable size, variable shape, matrix symbology designed for high-speed marking applications where alignment or connection of individual dots is problematic. It uses discrete printed elements with at least one nominal element space between them as a non-printed area, to offer a practical method to provide item identification at full production line speeds. It uses a number of features to make marking and reading tolerant of distortion that may occur during the marking process. Reed-Solomon error correction enables correct reading despite symbol damage.
AIM Global’s Mullen said, "With increasing attention being placed on being able to uniquely identify items – from food items to pharmaceuticals to critical machine parts – DotCode... offers a real solution for applications where traditional bar code printing cannot provide mass serialization without slowing down the production or packaging process."
The Public Review process ends Sept. 30, 2008. Interested reviewers can download the documents for a fee (AIM Global members may download free of charge with login), from the Website. Reviewers should send comments to editor@aimglobal.org. Comments must be submitted on Form 13-B, included in the download zip file.
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| New Sick CLV620 and CLV630 line of bar code scanners (CLV620 shown) |
New bar code scanners: New Sick CLV620 and CLV630 line of bar code scanners address a range of logistics applications. Features include speed, power, flexibility, and ease of use. Connectivity options have become a driving factor in bar code applications and all scanners in the CLV 6XX family have onboard serial and Ethernet communication versions. Other advanced features, such as tracking packages with encoder input and an IP65 enclosure rating, give the scanner platform the performance usually expected in scanners that are two to three times the cost.
The scanners offer greater reading performance via SMART (Sick Modular Advanced Recognition Technology) and added functionality that enables the reading of poor, partially hidden, or damaged bar codes. The CLV620 and CLV630 have higher processing capabilities (between 10 – 20 x higher), for real-time 1,200 Hz scanning. Scanners allow users to easily program complex sorting, filtering and output functionality. Products are easy to set up using SICK’s SOPAS engineering tool (Sick Open Portal for Applications and Systems), an intelligent software program with a universal platform for user-friendly data management.
Related reading from Sick includes: Competence Guide Direct Part Marking, knowing what matters.
And from Control Engineering, see:
10 Considerations for Direct Part Mark Identification
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– Control Engineering News Desk
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