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What Can You Do With A Barcode Scanner
What Can You Do With A Barcode Scanner
Scanlogic CS-800 Barcode Scanner is a good product of barcode scanner which is handheld so it can be perfect for you. This kind of product becomes popular today because it is designed to give many good features that will make you amazed. This article will review more about this unit so it can be an important consideration for you. In fact, purchasing this unit means that you do a good investment because it will help you in running the business of market.
This kind of scanner is made to decode all standard 1D bar codes so it can make easy the process of decoding in your business. It features the best programming setting so you can get the best help for you. This product is also able to provide you the user-replaceable cable so you will be able to get user friendly programming manual.
This scanner has good specifications that you need to check out if you are interested to purchase it. This unit it compact, strong and durable so it will be worthy for your money so you do not need be afraid about the strength of this product. It is able to do 100 scan per second. Also, it is designed with giving the best design that will make you interested so it is better for you to consider about this product.
This unit is able to scan in the depth of 30mm – 90mm for 4mil barcode. Also, it has decode capability auto-discriminates all standard which are great for you. It has some indicator lamps you need to know. If it lights green, it means that this unit is ready to use. If it lights red, it can be said that you have already done the right scan.
By Emil S Andrews
Article Source: ezinearticles.com
Medical Barcode Scanner
Medical Barcode Scanner
One of the prominent industries to use barcodes to improve efficiency of operations and procedures is the healthcare industry. They are used to dealing with many vital facets of healthcare like maintaining reports and case papers of patients, automating receptions, keeping record and automating delivery of medical items, examining condition of equipments and managing data promptly and accurately.
Barcode scanners can lessen human mistakes in data entry process and offer safe access to locate medical deliveries and case papers of patients. Barcodes are useful in all divisions like laboratory, hospital, medical supervision and even blood transfusion
Ensured Accuracy:
Barcodes are applied in all sections of the healthcare industry for accurate tracking, authenticating, documenting and billing of data. They offer 99.9% accuracy, making it error-free during data entry process. Order of requisition, case papers, test and other medical reports of patients are tracked correctly and precisely by them. To implement this process, these documents have to be allotted with a barcode containing the necessary details. A patient’s safety is guaranteed by abolishing potential blunders with error-free documentation and treatment.
Integrity of Data:
Reliability and soundness of data is very essential in this industry as even a minute error can be critical for a patient. Inaccurate infusion of medicines is a frequent mistake in healthcare. It can be corrected using barcode scanners which helps healthcare professionals to give the prescribed drug to the right patient in correct dose. Medical deliveries and case papers of patients can be tracked and accessed using them. They also help to get rid of replicated or expired medicines.
Quick and Effective Execution:
Barcodes are very quick, simple to operate and effective to execute. They can be used to obtain significant data in a fast and effective way. Barcodes offer feedback instantly from the captured data which allows doctors to take correct decisions and treat patients, thus reducing risks of their lives.
Cost Effectiveness
Barcode technology is uncomplicated and cost effective. Barcodes reduces workforce which in turn lessen chances of manual errors and also rectification expenses to control damages in future. They also cut down administration and inventory expenses by enhancing the supply of medical items to patients, abolishing treatment mistakes and keeping record of expiry dates of drugs.
Thus, barcodes are important and useful in all sections of healthcare industry, where a patients’ life is given topmost priority. So, it is essential for you to understand the functions of barcode and apply them in the healthcare industry to save a patient’s life.
By Robert T Jones
Article Source: ezinearticles.com
Inventory Barcode Scanner
Inventory Barcode Scanner
In recent decades, barcode scanning has become a cost-effective data capture technology for enhancing processes in virtually every industry and market. Low-cost scanning solutions improve performance and reliability in a wide range of enterprise activities and deliver benefits such as increased productivity, improved task efficiency, and reduced operational costs.
Barcode Technology Integrated With Information Systems Can Reduce the Effort of Managing Physical Items
When integrated into an information system, barcoding allows businesses to track merchandise and perform inventory management, asset tracking and field data collection. Inventory can be reconciled in a fraction of the time required for that of manual procedures. Key assets can be tracked by the location where they have been transferred to or by the personnel that have checked them out. Data collection can be performed with fewer errors and barcoding provides more accurate data while saving both time and costs.
Combined with data-collection technology, bar codes provide a rapid, accurate, and efficient means to collect, process, transmit, record and manage data in a variety of industries including retail, warehouse management, medical equipment tracking, construction site equipment tracking, heavy equipment inspections (cranes, forklift), fire extinguisher inspections and fire alarm testing and inspections.
Tracking inventory manually is a laborious process. With barcodes applied to each item in inventory, portable scanners can be used. Barcode inventory control provides accurate, real-time inventory updates. This allows a company the opportunity to reduce stock levels and thereby reduce carrying costs. It also reduces the time taken to collect data for purposes such as annual inventories. With improved efficiency, operating costs are lower.
Reduced cost is the most obvious benefit of barcode data collection. In many cases, this cost savings alone is enough justification for implementing such a system. Reduced revenue losses resulting from data collection errors can however surpass the savings in labor costs.
Although hard to measure, improved management and better decision making due to automated data collection technology could be the best benefit of a barcode system. A barcode system can easily gather information that would be difficult or impossible to gather in other ways. This allows managers to make fully informed decisions that can affect the direction of a department or company. Faster access to information goes hand in hand with better decision-making.
A Broad Range of Barcode Types Exist to Meet the Needs of Many Industries
A barcode is an optical machine-readable representation of data. The mapping between barcodes and the data that the barcode represents is called a symbology. The three primary categories of symbologies are linear (1D), stacked and matrix (2D). The most common barcodes represent data in the widths and the spacings of parallel lines, and are referred to as linear or 1D (1 dimensional) barcodes or symbologies. Linear barcodes are one dimensional, meaning that the unique information is in the horizontal plane and the same information is repeated vertically. The heights of the bars can be truncated without any lose of information. This allows a symbol with printing defects, such as spots or voids, to still be read. The higher the bar heights, the more probability that at least one path along the bar code will be readable.
There are a number of 1D symbologies: UPC (numeric codes found on retail merchandise), Code 39 (numeric, uppercase letters and 7 special characters) and Code 128 (all 128 ASCII characters) are three of the more popular.
Stacked barcodes are a set of linear bar codes stacked on top of each other. An example of a stacked symbology is the PDF417 format used on airline boarding passes.
2D barcodes come in patterns of squares, dots, hexagons and other geometric patterns within images termed matrix codes or symbologies. Although 2D systems use symbols other than bars, they are also generally referred to as barcodes as well. Examples of 2D codes include semacodes which are optimized for use by cell phones and the similar QR codes originating out of Japan.
A 1D barcode can only encode a number or string of characters which can be entered into a database, while a 2D barcode can actually hold the entire database. For example, you can embed an Excel spreadsheet into a 2D barcode, to use as a portable database. Most 2D symbologies can hold at least 2,000 characters per bar code. The typical 1D bar code contains about 10-20 characters.
Not all Barcode Readers Can Read All Barcode Types
Barcode scanners are available with basically four types of readers:
(1) Laser,
(2) linear imagers/CCD,
(3) area imagers and
(4) two-dimensional CCD.
The reader type, and software included, will determine what type of barcode symbologies can be read.
A laser scanner sweeps a beam of light across the barcode in a straight line, reading a slice of the barcode light-dark patterns. Laser scanners can project a beam of light a long distance without diverging, or spreading out, as light from other sources do, enabling them to decode high density bar codes over wide ranges. This proves advantageous in applications that require scanning range flexibility, such as forklift operations where packages are often located on high shelves or hard-to-reach areas.
Stacked linear symbologies are also optimized for laser scanning, with the laser making multiple passes across the barcode. 2-D symbologies cannot be read by a laser as there is typically no sweep pattern that can encompass the entire symbol. Laser scanning is the preferred technology in high-throughput areas that require motion insensitivity, such as supermarkets, where users can rapidly swipe item after item over a fixed scanner, and the required symbology is limited to 1D linear codes.
Linear Imagers, also known as CCD barcode readers, use an array of LED’s and receptors to decode linear barcodes. Linear imager barcode scanners are better for reading damaged or poorly printed barcodes as well as barcodes under plastic film or covering and are ideal for a variety of applications including retail, shipping, receiving, and inventory. CCD readers can scan 1D and 1D stacked linear barcodes such as PDF417. Linear imagers use sensors to capture only a single row of pixels within the image. This allows linear imagers to decode a 1D bar code, but not entire images or 2D bar codes as an area imager can.
Digital area imagers use LED light that illuminates the target bar code. A lens projects the image of the bar code onto a 2D array, and the light is converted to an electrical signal to construct the digital image. Decoder software in the imager locates the bar code within the image, and processes its data using advanced decoding algorithms. Area imagers use sensors with pixels arranged in a 2-dimensional grid (multiple rows) and can read 1D and 2D symbologies.
Cell phones employ two-dimensional imaging scanners. They use a small video camera to capture an image of a bar code. Sophisticated digital image processing techniques decode the bar code. Video cameras use the same CCD technology as in a CCD bar code reader except that instead of having a single row of sensors, a video camera has hundreds of rows of sensors arranged in a two dimensional array so that they can generate an image.
Most smart phone barcode readers can read 2D codes but not all of them can read and decode 1D codes. The factors for consideration here are whether the smartphone camera supports autofocus and whether it has a macro lens. The Android smart phone and some versions of Blackberry’s (the Tour, Storm and the 9700 but this may not be an exhaustive list) meet this criteria. As of the writing of this article, the iPhone does not have a camera lens with auto-focus but there is an app that is optimized to read the numeric UPC and EAN codes of retail products.
There are some special purpose Windows Mobile/Pocket PC and to a lesser extent Palm OS devices that have barcode scanning capability. These are typically high-end rugged devices that cost in the $1500-$4000 price range. One of the companies in this space, Trimble, offers an Android version of their Trimble Nomad rugged handheld.
Smartphones with Barcode Reading Capability Links Physical Assets to Wide Area Communication and Information Networks
Smart phones are well recognized as consumer electronic devices with a number of personal productivity applications and the Blackberry is vital for many to stay in contact with the office and with clients. Smartphones can also be a game changing tool for savvy businesses to optimize core operations. Smart phones communication capabilities with voice, text and email are obvious uses, however they can also function as data collection devices. Their ability to operate with the physical world via barcode scanning and image and voice capture, along with their ability to operate with the virtual world via web-enabled applications that can communicate with software services that exist in the “cloud”, offer some unique capability to securely create, update, disseminate and manage business information from anywhere and at anytime.
Three functional areas that have broad applicability are inventory management, asset tracking and field data collection. Most businesses leverages one of these capabilities and many can benefit from all three. Most businesses have some form of inventory with retail and warehouse management being markets that can obviously benefit from an inventory management system. Most businesses have some form of assets and industries as diverse as health care and construction can benefit from an asset tracking system. Many businesses have the need to collect data from a location that is not tethered to a desk. This includes inspectors, field service personnel, home inspectors and installers. In many cases, the field data impacts safety and compliance. Electronic capture increases productivity, reduces errors and reduces oversights.
Inventory Management is Concerned with What You Have, What You Need to Order and What You Cannot Account For
Inventory management is concerned with maintaining optimal inventory levels to ensure that items are available when needed (for purchase by external customers or consumption by internal organizations). This includes knowing current stock levels, knowing which items (colors and sizes) are selling well and how much is unaccounted for.
Inventory Control software lets you see what you sold, what you need to order and what should be left in stock. Barcode technology can be used to track stock accurately and update current stock levels. As shipments come in, warehouse workers scan bar code labels on items, cartons, or pallets. The scanned information is verified against purchase orders and sent to the inventory software for update.
Retail Inventory Management Tracks Counts of Individual Items at the Point of Sale
Retail inventory management is the process and methods used to keep track of the stock in a retail business. These methods control everything from ordering, shipping, receiving, tracking inventory, retail turn-over, and storage. The objective is to see what is selling and what is not. Products that spend more time on the shelf should be re-evaluated or discounted to get rid of them. Barcode inventory management allows retail businesses to know what they have and where it is. You’ll be able to receive, put away, move and ship out (to internal or external users) all the items you have in inventory. Barcodes represent a time efficient means to managing retail inventory, making sure that products are always removed from the system as soon as they are sold. The same is true for receiving shipments of new stock and performing audits regularly to make sure the computerized system is accurate with what is actually in stock. Smartphone technology and inventory management software can provide every business an affordable means to perform inventory management. Even part-time eBay businesses can benefit cost-effectively.
Warehouse Management Tracks the In-flow, Inspection and Out-Flow of Palettes of Items
A warehouse inventory management system handles all aspects of inventory movement, from receipt to shipping platform. The software tracks inventory based on each SKU (stock keeping unit) and its location within the warehouse. The system will also track all inventory changes, sales and receipts of each SKU.
The inaccuracies of manual data recording and data entry are magnified as the number of transactions grows. Errors that are in your favor result in customer or vendor complaints and errors that are not in your favor may go unreported.
A warehouse management system incorporates an inventory control application designed for routine cycle counting. This software will determine which inventory to count, track these counts, and report any inventory irregularities.
A barcode warehouse management system offers efficiencies over manually accomplishing these tasks. Smartphones as part of a warehouse management system allows a single device to track inventory with the barcode capability, reorder stock using the web capability, and reconcile discrepancies with employees, suppliers and customers using the communication capabilities.
Asset Tracking is Concerned with Knowing Where Your Equipment (Tools, Computers) Is
Asset tracking refers to the ability to locate, identify, and assign assets to an organization, location or person. Assets are different than Inventory in that assets are re-used, and have a useful life of 12 months or more. Examples of assets would be things like torque wrenches, computers, copiers and forklifts. Their value is depreciated over time. Inventory items are consumed by the organization in the course of doing business.
An asset tracking system provides the ability to know the location and status of the assets in the organization, and allows you to do analysis of those assets to determine current status, total utilization, depreciation levels and maintenance requirements.
A barcode system can provide an efficient asset tracking means. Assets can be tracked by location or personnel. Tracking assets by location involves assigning assets to physical places like a room, a building, or a department or GPS coordinates.
Both locations (rooms, construction sites) and personnel badges can be barcoded. Personnel badges can be scanned at checkout and check-in and locations can be scanned when an item is moved from location to another.
Rapidly Tracking Medical Equipment in a Hospital Can Have Life-Saving Consequences
Hospitals routinely need to identify the location of medical equipment for inspections, repairs and for use in clinical procedures. Radio frequency identification (RFID) is touted as one means to accomplish this. A number of hospitals are evaluating this technology though to date there have been a limited number of deployments as there are a number of implementation considerations. The first step in such an implementation is to ensure that all equipment is identified in an asset tracking database. At this step alone, barcode and smartphone technology can be utilized with no further organizational disruption.
Hospital employees can scan medical tools and equipment as they are used, immediately updating inventory and ensuring critical items are replaced as necessary to guarantee they are always on hand for urgent situations. This also accounts for tools after a procedure and prevents loss of expensive equipment. Doctors and nurses can scan patients’ wristbands to access information quickly, right at the point of care. This provides immediate visibility into test results, blood type, and other vital health data, so medical personnel can make informed decisions at bedside, reducing treatment and medication errors based on faulty information.
An Inability to Track Tools at Multiple Construction Sites Can Be Costly
Controlling expensive tools, heavy equipment, and material at a construction site is critical to a successful and profitable project. Managing the tools, equipment and materials at a site can be quite difficult and challenging. With an asset tracking system, tools can be tracked in and out of the tool crib, tool room or from site to site. Tools can be assigned to a location or site manager and critical tool maintenance dates can be managed all in one tool tracking system.
Barcode technology coupled with asset management software allows construction material coming into a site to be tagged and the tag ID used to locate where on the site the material has to be stored. This technology has the potential to speed up delivery of material to the point of use. Using smartphone technology, this can be accomplished with a simple series of barcode scans, from a device that you already use in your everyday business. In some cases, a rugged device will be most appropriate for construction environments.
Field Inspections and Data Collection
Field data collection includes everything from collecting bridge, levee and offshore drilling rig inspection data across a region of a state, to performing food, drug and fire extinguisher inspections in a city, or servicing patients or medical equipment in a health care facility. A lot of field data collection, including safety inspections is captured using clipboard, pen and paper. In some cases the paper forms are later transcribed into a computer and in other cases this critical data is just archived as paper forms. In both cases, this manual process can be error-prone and it is laborious to generate reports and track trends. Barcode technology can be used to rapidly recall that portion of data that rarely changes and ensure that no items are missed when visiting a remote site. Electronic capture of field data introduces a tremendous amount of efficiency to the process and opens up a wealth of opportunity to use collected data to create safer better functioning environments.
Inspecting Every Fire Extinguisher in Every Public Facility Every Month Can Be Daunting
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) permits electronic record keeping for fire extinguisher inspection data as an alternative to paper logs. The electronic capture of inspection data reduces the time to perform inspections, reduces time preparing reports, and ensures compliance by identifying units that were overlooked, tracks annual and multi-year maintenance schedules. Each piece of equipment is labeled with a barcode. Each location is also labeled with barcodes, so the user can scan the location, and then scan all the pieces of equipment that need inspection at that location. A smartphone application can issue simple prompts to assist with the inspection. Barcode scanners represent an efficient means to rapidly record data such as unit serial numbers and location identifiers. Smartphones with the appropriate software can be an excellent means to capture fire extinguisher inspection data electronically as well as fire alarm test and inspection data.
Ensuring Heavy Equipment, Rig and Crane Inspections is Critical to Public Safety
Equipment deployed in the field may require interval based inspections and scheduled maintenance. This will include heavy equipment such as cranes. When inspectors go on site, they normally read the crane’s serial number, find its record and then carry out the inspection and make manual notes. Then they send a copy back to the customer. With barcode technology, the inspector’s smartphone can automatically register the crane, so they can start to immediately go through the inspection criteria. Once they press save, the record transmits to the web site, where they can download appropriate certificates and send reports.
Summary
Barcode scanning can deliver benefits such as increased productivity, reduced errors and reduced operational costs. Smartphone technology has the potential to deliver these benefits to budget constrained small businesses and to departments in larger organizations that are concerned about disruptions to enterprise-wide procedures. When coupled with the appropriate software, inventory management, asset tracking and field data collection can be performed efficiently.
Retail inventory and warehouse management are areas that can benefit from efficient inventory capability. Asset tracking of equipment at construction sites where multiple companies are working in the same location, or with critical medical equipment where rapid determination of its location can save lives are important factors for some organizations. Rapid identification and recall of past results is important for mandated fire extinguisher inspections. Scanning asset identification tags on widely distributed heavy equipment such as cranes can help ensure that that the correct equipment was inspected / maintained by scheduled due dates.
These are just a few examples to get you started thinking about what you can do with bar codes. Barcode systems routinely save companies money while improving quality, on-time performance, and other key business factors. Smartphones with barcode reading capability, voice capability and video capture capability represent a convergence of the virtual/information world, communications and the physical world.
By Antonio Ransom
Article Source: ezinearticles.com
Intelligent Mail Barcode Scanner
Intelligent Mail Barcode Scanner
In order for them to be useful, barcode scanners often have to be connected to computers. We will recall that in virtually all cases, the data which gives meaning to the barcodes they read is stored in databases, which are in turn hosted on computers. What the barcode scanners are meant to do, then, is to transmit the data they scan to the computer, with the computer checking that data against the database in order to assign meaning to it. In most cases, then, scanners without computers will tend to be quite useless. For a scanner to be useful, it has to be connected to the computer. And what we are interested in, for this discussion, is gaining an understanding of the ways through which barcode scanners connect to computers (at the simple, physical, external level).
As it turns out, there are four main ways through which barcode scanners connect to the computers which host the databases upon which they depend:
1. Serial port connection: this is where the scanner comes with a pin which you simply hook onto the serial port of your computer (like where you would hook an extra mouse), and thence connect the barcode scanner to computer. It was, arguably, the first method for connecting barcode scanners to computers to be developed. Its disadvantage is that it is not a plug and play approach. You have to go through quite a lengthy installation process for the barcode scanner, when you go this way. Furthermore, should the scanner ‘hang’ somewhere in the middle of a computing session, you don’t have the option of just unplugging it and then plugging it in again to see whether it will work. Instead, you have to restart the whole machine again, and this can be very disruptive, for instance in the midst of a shopping checkout for a hurried customer. In this system, a scanner would also need specialized software to connect to various computers, meaning that there was no universality in scanner usage.
2. Keyboard wedge connection: this is a connection method where the barcode scanners are put in somewhere between the keyboard and the computer as a ‘wedge.’ It is something of an improvement on the serial port connection.
3. USB connection: this is what is to be found on most scanners, today. It is where you connect the scanner to the computer using any USB port. A scanner made in this way can, therefore, be used with pretty much any computer. Should it stall midcourse, you have the opportunity to just unplug it, and plug it again, to see if that solves the problem (which it often does). It is also convenient, because in this approach, connecting the scanner to the computer becomes as easy as connecting a USB flash disk to the machine.
4. Wireless connection: this is the emerging technology in ultra-modern scanners, where using systems such as Bluetooth, they are able to connect to the associated databases wirelessly.
By Heckman Thelma
Article Source: ezinearticles.com
Home Inventory Barcode Scanner
Home Inventory Barcode Scanner
A barcode scanner or reader is a computer peripheral that reads barcodes printed on various items. It will consist of a light source, lens, and a photo conductor, which will translate optical impulses into electrical ones. Practically all barcode scanners are produced containing decoder circuitry analyzing the image of the barcode, provide a photo conductor, and send the barcode’s message to the scanner’s output port. For grocery stores this would be the receipt that you receive for your purchase.
The different types of barcode scanners are by light source or by housing. A light source will either be an LED Scanner, Laser Scanner, or an Imager Scanner. An LED scanner is like a CCD scanner. Laser is definitely more expensive then LED scanners, but they are cable of longer scanning distances. As for the imager, it scans an image of a linear barcode and are more rugged because the have no moving parts. Housing is simple handheld. It is held in the hands and you will need to push the trigger button for a light source.
Want scanner is just pen shaped and is scanned and swiped almost practically at the same times. You will also notice a stationary scanner that is simply mounted and the barcode is passed under or beside. This is what you would find at a retail store or supermarket. Fixed position scanner is just an industrial barcode reader that will identify products while being processed. This is often used to identify the different pallets or cartons of items. Finally, a PDA is a scanner that has a built in barcode reader that will help you when it comes to looking at inventory and deciding what to purchase so that your inventory doesn’t go down passed the need of demand.
Barcodes are used throughout our lives. They have become so important when it comes to tracking inventory and goods. It is also necessary when it comes to knowing information about the product. By scanning the barcode you will know the price, the year it was manufactured and other information.
Barcodes play a major role and purpose in most transactions. A barcode scanner is simply just something that will read a hidden message. The message could be anything from price to history of the product. The code is formed by white spaces and black bars. All the information that is decoded is vital. Practically everything will scan into a computer because we live in a world that needs to collect as much data as quickly as possible. We live in a technologically advanced world that expects to know everything about a product in a split second. Barcodes and Barcode scanners have made our world as simple as possible.
By K. Nielsen
Article Source: ezinearticles.com
Inventory Software Barcode Scanner
Inventory Software Barcode Scanner
Managing inventory in accordance with the overall company strategy is paramount for warehouse management. Warehouse employees spend a lot of time fretting over the optimal time to order inventory and how often inventory should be counted. An additional concern is maintaining the inventory safe from theft or damage. It takes sharp minds and dedicated employees to make this happen, but inventory management software definitely helps.
Where Inventory Software Fits Into the Equation
Most companies nowadays are using barcodes to track their inventory. A barcode system consists of the barcodes themselves, a barcode printer, a barcode scanner, and of course software to manage all of the information. When the warehouse employees scan an item with the reader, the software should automatically pick this up and organize the information accordingly. This means that the warehouse manager can simply log into the company computer and see inventory levels. This makes it easier to know the optimal reorder point. This software also allows managers to see new orders coming in from the sales department. Having all of this information at their fingertips, helps the warehouse team be prepared.
One popular solution for small to medium sized businesses is FishBowl Inventory. Companies like FishBowl because of its ERP like qualities. ERP stands for enterprise resource planning. The basic idea is that instead of having one software solution for the warehouse department, another software solution for accounting, and yet another software package for marketing you have one system that all three can use. This works by having a centralized database where access rights are assigned to the individual departments.
One advantage of a centralized system like FishBowl is efficiency. Instead of warehouse petitioning accounting for information on the day’s sales, they can simply look it up themselves. Instead of marketing having to head out to the warehouse to check out inventory levels they can just login to their computers and query the database for themselves. Senior management can control which information is allowed by which departments.
Note that FishBowl isn’t a true ERP system; however, it does integrate with the most popular accounting software available, QuickBooks.
Warehouse inventory software like FishBowl not only improves efficiency, but it also improves accuracy. Accuracy is improved because the departments can enter in the information themselves. Traditionally information has been compiled in several spreadsheets, which are prone to errors, and then sent to a data-entry team. Data that is passed along several times and then combined is more likely to have errors in it then data that is entered directly from the source.
If your company is worried about having sufficient inventory on hand or if it’s just worried about controlling its inventory against theft or abuse, it might be time to invest in a warehouse software package.
By James Wallace
Article Source: ezinearticles.com
Scanners laser
Scanners laser
It is essential for businesses to organize their inventories, monitor the movement of goods, and ensure security on their premises. Accurate and efficient automatic identification of products is part of a successful business process. Barcode readers having high efficiency serve these purposes.
These days, barcode scanners (readers) are seen at many places. They are found at retail stores, libraries, warehouses, hospitals, and almost at every other place. As they improve the speed of data retrieval and processing, they are beneficial for any business. On the basis of technology used, they are classified into various types among which laser and CCD barcode scanners have a wide range of applications.
Laser barcode scanners
These readers use laser beam as a source of illumination for reading barcodes. They usually have a rotating prism or an oscillating mirror. It moves the laser beam forward and backward across the barcode. A photodiode in this reader measures the intensity of light reflected from the barcode.
Laser scanners have high precision and accuracy. They are considered to have a good performance because of their scanning range. They have the ability to read barcodes from greater distances and are preferred for non-contact applications.
CCD barcode scanners
Barcode readers using CCD (Charge Coupled Device) technology are termed as CCD scanners. They are also called as linear imager barcode readers. A series of small light sensors are arranged in a single row in a CCD barcode scanner. They measure the ambient light emitted by the barcode. They are designed in such a way that they can withstand harsh working conditions.
Both laser and CCD scanners are preferred by many businesses these days. Though laser and CCD readers are advantageous in their own way, here are some comparative views on their benefits.
Advantages of CCD scanners over laser scanners
CCD barcode scanners are beneficial over laser scanners in many ways. Some of them are mentioned here:
• CCD scanners incorporate use of LED lights for illuminating the barcode. They last for about ten times longer than laser scanners.
• Unlike laser scanners, they do not have any moving parts. So, they are less susceptible to damage or failure. They are resistant to regular wear and tear.
• When you use a laser beam, it is necessary to follow certain safety precautions with respect to direct viewing. As they do not use any laser beams, they are not associated with any safety specifications.
• CCD scanners are inexpensive when compared to laser barcode scanners.
• They have a higher scanning rate than that of laser scanners.
Advantages of laser scanners over CCD scanners
Laser barcode scanners have certain benefits over CCD scanners. Some of them include:
• Laser scanners can read barcodes at a wider range of distances. So, unlike CCD scanners, they can be kept at a distance from the barcode. Hence, they are mostly preferred for long range scanning.
• The other benefit of laser scanners is that they can read barcodes of longer lengths. CCD scanners can only read barcodes of three or four inches in length or smaller.
• Laser scanners are very easy to handle. Even an untrained operator can use it without any issues.
Both laser and CCD scanners are efficient and reduce errors associated with manual checking. They also save your time and effort. Consider the above mentioned benefits of laser and CCD barcode scanners and choose any of them based on the type of barcode and the environment in which you intend to use. You also need to consider the portability factor and average scanning range needed for your business. Selecting a right barcode scanner helps you to maximize business productivity.
By Nate Rodnay
Article Source: ezinearticles.com
Barcoding Systems
Barcoding Systems
With advancements in technology, bar code labels have replaced the traditional manner of pricing products manually. These are a continual series of black stripes and white spaces of varying widths printed on products which help identify and classify items uniquely.
Numerous symbols are incorporated into the coding which can only be read and interpreted appropriately by a scanner and computer software. These systems are used in a myriad of applications for accurate calculations, quick billing with proper product code, and maintaining records of inventory.
A single regulatory board that is responsible for governing bar code usage is the Uniform Code Council (UCC). For a company to use barcode labels commercially, it is necessary for them to contact UCC.
A 12 digit numbering system known as the GTIN (Global Trade Item Number) is encoded into the black stripes that can only be read when scanned through certain types of equipment.
This number is generally comprised of three separate parts:
1. The first being the prefix of company profile.
2. The second set of numbers is the item reference.
3. The last number is referred to as check digit for security and accuracy confirmation measures.
These encoded labels can be printed on a variety of materials, but before printing, it’s important to consider the environmental conditions.
They can range from basic pre-printed paper stickers to special designed, sophisticated ones, but regardless of the material, the benefits of increased accuracy and efficiency provided by barcode label system are unparalleled.
A barcode system provides users with an efficient cost-effective way to enhance the overall speed and timeliness. The recent data gathered by the Data Identification Online website states that the error rate when using a bar code label system is about one in three million.
Benefits of Barcode Labels
A well designed structure provides the users with many benefits for all businesses:
- It classifies each product or an application effectively and uniquely.
- The data capturing rate is much faster with appropriate product code entered in records.
- Mistakes are minimized facilitating quick billing and managing inventory has become much easier than in the past.
- Facilitates quick and easy collection of reliable data with the help of a scanner that records data five to seven times faster than traditional methods.
- Minimizes error rate and increases accuracy: The data entered by the barcode scanner has an average error rate of one error in 300 characters entered.
- The most important benefit provided is that it boosts cost savings with accurate data collection.
- Revenue losses are reduced resulting from data collection errors.
- One of the best means to save on capital costs and keep a track of inventory, these systems help maintain a track record of finances.
- Improved Management: These help in easy collection of customer data and tracks sales efficiently through its automated data collection and management system, thereby allowing managers to make informed decisions that contribute to the growth and development of the company.
- Quicker access to comprehensive information helps management make better decisions, grab opportunities and lead the competition.
Considering the advantages provided by this label system, it’s undoubtedly the most preferred choice by companies and businesses.
Small businesses normally work well with pre-printed bar code labels. Maintaining large inventory records has become possible when every item is indexed and registered in the database with scanning procedures available.
Bar code labels have systematized and standardized the entire process of data collection and management with utmost ease.
By Anna Woodward
Article Source: ezinearticles.com
Barcode Scanner Inventory System
Barcode Scanner Inventory System
As retail margins get squeezed in a tight economy, implementing business systems that improve efficiency and increase profitability can mean the difference between a thriving business and one that fails to survive.
One of the ways a retail business can improve their efficiency and increase profit margins is to significantly improve their inventory accuracy, turnover and reporting. The best way to improve inventory accuracy is to implement a bar coding system that tags every piece of inventory received into a story with a unique barcode that allows you to track each item throughout its lifespan.
A barcode enabled point of sale system that allows for printing and scanning barcodes is a must for today’s retail store owner. By tagging every inventory item with a barcode as it is received, your inventory records become much more accurate.
During the check out process, scanning a barcode virtually eliminates the human error of typing in a wrong product code into your inventory tracking module of your POS system. This ensure the customers are charged the correct price and that the item purchased is in fact what was punched into your system.
During the inventory count process, scanning barcodes makes it faster and more accurate to count inventory more frequently. Scanning a barcode during inventory count can be ten to a hundred times more efficient and accurate than trying to identify the correct item being counted on a printed inventory list such as is often the case with non-bar coded inventory counts.
Until recently, bar coding all of your inventory required a rather sizable investment in infrastructure and peripherals. Fortunately, with today’s technology a fully functional bar coding system with a bar code printer and a barcode scanner can be afforded by almost all retail owners.
By Nelson J. Packard
Article Source: ezinearticles.com
Barcode Scanners Printers
Barcode Scanners Printers
Barcode printers are a crucial part of your barcoding system. Selecting the right printer makes your system operate reliably and efficiently. The wrong printer can slow your operation, decrease efficiency and create massive frustration.
In part 1 of this article, factors such as durability, print volume and speed were discussed. Part 2 will touch upon other important considerations and factors that need to be part of your decision-making process:
Print Resolution
Higher print resolution (dpi) may be required for your specific application(s). For example, barcodes and text on very small labels require higher resolution to be readable. Labels used in the medical, electronics and pharmaceutical industries often fall into this category. As you can imagine, an unreadable label can have disastrous consequences.
Higher resolutions create clear, crisp printing of detailed information without impacting barcode scanner readability.
Print Width
Determining the width of the labels you’ll be printing is another important consideration. If you need to print wide labels, you’ll need a wide-label printer capable of at least 6 inch print width. Labels such as shipping labels, complex invoices, or large package and drum labels may fall into this category.
Also, make sure you determine all of the future applications you may have and consider the issue of label size.
Printer Feature Options
Special features or printer options may also play into your decision making process. Options can make the printer operation more efficient and cost-effective. These options translate into higher ROI on your printer investment.
Examples of useful feature options include:
- Special print modes to cut, peel, tear and rewind
- Clock function for printing time, dates etc.
- Alerts or counter to let operators know when it is time to change print heads, or perform preventative service and maintenance.
- Wired or wireless options
- Memory options such as flash memory or easily upgradeable DRAM.
- Font options for international characters and other specialized fonts sets
The factors described in this article along with those discussed in part 1 provide a solid foundation for your selection process. The bottom-line is you should carefully analyze your operation and your specific barcode printing need. You may identify additional criteria that you need to include.
And remember, a high quality printer may require an additional capital investment initially. However, the long-term return on your investment in the form of increased productivity and efficiency may more than justify the added cost.
By Russell Riggs
Article Source: ezinearticles.com
