Posted: February 12 2005 at 2:14pm | IP Logged

I am building a software for the eyeglass frames that needs to print UPC barcode labels on very small tags.

My question is: what barcode font should I use in order to print on a small tag (small width) that could be easily read by a barcode reader.

I was thinking of going with EAN-13 or UPC-A but I am not sure..

The barcode digits they have are 12 characters in length. plus they want to support EAN-8 and EAN-13.

WHAT BARCODE FONT WOULD BE BEST TO MEET THESE NEEDS?

Here is what they are asking:

Since the introduction of the 12-digit Universal Product Code (U.P.C.) more than 30 years ago, the use of the EAN.UCC System has expanded rapidly to facilitate global commerce. To meet the need for improving commerce efficiency, the Uniform Code Council, Inc. (UCC) has announced that by January 1, 2005 all U.S. and Canadian companies must be capable of scanning and processing EAN-8 and EAN-13 symbols, in addition to 12-digit U.P.C. symbols, at point-of-sale.

Posted: February 12 2005 at 10:28pm | IP Logged

The product you are looking for is Moroiva UPC/EAN/Bookland Fontware: http://www.morovia.com/font/ueb.asp

This font package allows you to print UPC-A, UPC-E, EAN-8, EAN-13 and UPC/EAN supplements.

You can convert a UPC-A number to EAN 13 by adding 0 at the beginning . The checksum digit remains the same.

The UCC regulation basically requires that all retail stores must be able to scan EAN-13 barcodes in addition to the UPC-A by Jan 2005. For historic reasons the POS systems in US supermarkets are built on 12-digit UPC-A and they have diffculty handling a 13-digit input. Some scanner may not even read EAN-13 barcodes.

Posted: February 15 2005 at 9:18am | IP Logged

Thanks for your prompt reply.

Here is what I am thinking to implement:

Since the application is designed to be used in Europe, US and Canada it seems like I should use EAN barcode and make all US & Canadian customers upgrade to scanners that support EAN-13.

Most barcode numbers are 12 digits so all I have to do is add 0 in the front.

Will EAN-13 fit in small label tags and able to be read by scanners? .they are really small that go on Spectacle Frames.

Looking forward to your reply.

Thanks in advance.

Posted: February 15 2005 at 9:57am | IP Logged

One more question:

The UPCs that the manufacturer provided are all 12 digits (assuming last digit is check digit) ..

The DLL function to encode UPC-A only takes 11 digits. What do I do with the last one..will it be the same as the one generated by the function?

If I go EAN-13, its function takes 12 digits so should I pass two 0s followed by 11 digits (ignoring the last one assuming it is the check-digit)

Thanks for your prompt reply