Bar Codes

Bar codes are widely used on consumer items. The Uniform Code Council Inc. (Lawrenceville, New Jersey, U.S.A.) manages the Universal Product Code (U.P.C.) system in the U.S.A. and Canada, while EAN International (Brussels, Belgium), through its Numbering Organizations (NOs), manages the International Article Numbering (EAN) system in over 90 other countries. The U.P.C. numbering system was the original system, from which the EAN system evolved.

In the early days, EAN signified European Article Numbering Association. Since countries from other continents joined the Association, the name was changed to International Article Numbering Association, currently the EAN International. The EAN acronym was, however, retained to refer to the numbering system and to the symbology.

The purpose of U.P.C. and EAN symbols (codes) is to facilitate automatic scanning of item numbers and associated price look-up at the point of sale (POS)---the checkout counter. The symbols can be scanned in an omnidirectional fashion---in any package orientation provided the symbol faces the scanner---at the POS.

When a customer buys groceries at the supermarket or consumer items at department store, discount store or other type of chain store, the cashier scans the bar code on each product with an infra-red gun or moves each product over a window where an invisible infra-red laser beam scans the bar code. The number goes into the computer which instantly shows the price of the product on the checkout display and adds up the bill. The computer keeps a record of all products sold and calculates stock levels. It can also be used to tell the retailer when to reorder items or work out which products are hot sellers and which are not moving at all.

Universal Product Code (U.P.C.)

The Universal Product Code is a 12-digit, all numeric machine-readable code that identifies the consumer package. The structure of the U.P.C. number is: N MMMMM IIIII C where:

Structure of the U.P.C. Number

N = Number system character (NSC)

MMMMM = Manufacturer's number assigned by Uniform Code Council Inc. (UCC) in New Jersey, U.S.A., or Electronic Commerce Council of Canada in Ontario, Canada

IIIII = Item number assigned by company (unique for each consumer package)

C = Check digit (the check character or modulo check character)

U.P.C. Symbol Specifications

For complete details of the U.P.C. specifications including the size of symbols, printing and packaging, please refer to the U.P.C. Symbol Specifications manual, published by the Uniform Code Council Inc., Prince Pike Corporate Center, 1009 Lenox Drive, Suite 202, Lawrenceville, NJ 08648, U.S.A..

Number System Character

The number system character (NSC)---the first position in the U.P.C. code---serves to 'key' the other numbers as to meaning, as well as category. The categories of NSC are:

Number System Character (NSC)

0, 6, 7 : Regular U.P.C. code (i.e., could be food, some health and beauty items, and general merchandise)

2 : Random weight items such as meat and produce

3 : Drugs and health related items (only those companies who are using their National Drug Code and National Health Related Items Code as their U.P.C. number are to use number system '3')

4 : In-store use without code format restriction

5 : Use on coupons

1, 8, 9 : Reserved for uses unidentified at this time

U.P.C. Manufacturer's Number

A single 5-digit U.P.C. manufacturer's number enables the owner to assign up to 100,000 unique item numbers. Manufacturers or agents may apply for a manufacturer's number with payment of a registration fee. Send the applications to:

Uniform Code Council Inc. Prince Pike Corporate Center 1009 Lenox Drive, Suite 202 Lawrenceville, NJ 08648 U.S.A. Tel: 1-609-620-0200 Fax: 1-609-620-1200

Electronic Commerce Council of Canada 885 Don Mills Road, Suite 301 Don Mills, Ontario M3C 1V9 Canada Tel: 1-416-510-8039 Fax: 1-416-510-8043

Item Number

A 5-digit item number---product number or article number---is assigned to each product for inventory and store pricing. For example, different numbers would be given to instant chocolate in a 500 gm. or 1 kg. package, or to the same brand of yogurt in blueberry and strawberry flavors. Duplication of item numbers can create chaos for suppliers and customers.

U.P.C. Check Digit Calculation

The check digit---check character or modulo check character---enables the scanner system to immediately verify the accurate data translation of the symbol as it is scanned. It is calculated for each U.P.C. number by using the first 11 digits of the number. Please see U.P.C.-A Check Digit Calculation for the sample calculation.

Truncation of Symbol on Packages

The truncation---shortening of the bar height---beyond that specified in the U.P.C. Symbol Specifications is not permitted.

The U.P.C. symbols, like EAN symbols, can only be truncated in exceptional cases, such as when there is insufficient space to print the symbol in standard size. Truncation leads to degradation of scanning ability and possible de-listing of the product by the retailer.

Trademarks

U.P.C. and UCC are trademarks of Uniform Code Council Inc.

International Article Numbering (EAN) --- European Article Numbering (EAN)

The users of EAN system whose point of sale (POS) files are of 13-digit field length can equally accommodate U.P.C. numbers in those files without ambiguity. Users of U.P.C. numbers who have organized their files to a field of 12 digits only, will not be able to accommodate EAN numbers without increasing their field length.

The first two or three characters in the EAN symbol represent the EAN prefix, i.e., the prefix assigned by EAN International (Brussels, Belgium) to a Numbering Organization (N.O.) administering the EAN system in a country or economic region.

The actual structure of the EAN number is left to the discretion of each Numbering Organization. The general structure is: PPP MMMM IIIII C where:

Structure of the EAN Number

PPP = EAN prefix

MMMM = Manufacturer's number assigned by EAN Numbering Organization

IIIII = Item number assigned by company (unique for each consumer package)

C = Check digit

Other structures are used by some Numbering Organizations. A key principle is that an EAN number has to be considered as a complete non-significant identification number, without any pre-defined structure.

General EAN Specifications

For complete details of the EAN specifications including the size of symbols, printing and packaging, please refer to the General EAN Specifications manual, published by EAN International, 145 rue Royale, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium.

EAN Manufacturer's Number

The EAN manufacturer's number, like the U.P.C. manufacturer's number, allows the identification of 100,000 different articles. Export-manufacturers may apply for a manufacturer's number with the EAN Numbering Organization (EAN N.O.) located in its territory.

In case no EAN Numbering Organization exists in its territory, a solution would be: if the company has organizational links with a company in an EAN member country (e.g. a production plant, a parent company, an agent, ...) it may contact this company and request to share its EAN product number capacity. If such a solution does not apply, the EAN International can allocate a manufacturer's number to the company with payment of an annual fee. Send the applications to:

EAN International 145 rue Royale B-1000 Brussels Belgium Tel: 32-2-227-1020 Fax: 32-2-227-1021

EAN Check Digit Calculation

The check digit---check character or modulo check character---enables the scanner system to immediately verify the accurate data translation of the symbol as it is scanned. Please see EAN-13 Check Digit Calculation for the sample calculation.

Copyright © 2005 pdih.com                   Powered by Engineer Partner the one stop outsource