Bar Code Printer Validation & Verification Solutions from Newbury Data
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The problem with Un-Readable Bar Codes

Consider the following:

Approximately 200,000 desktop thermal printers are now purchased each year in Europe. Approximately 90% are purchased to print a bar code label, tag or ticket of some description. Thermal printers vary between small desktop range, mid range and performance range. Print volumes also vary based on the range purchased.

Laser or inkjet printers alert you on the printer’s LCD panel and/or on screen software utility that the printer has low toner or ink that will effect print quality.

Thermal printers do not tell you that:

• a print head element has blown
• ribbon wrinkle has occurred
• there is media mis-match
• the print head is dirty causing blemishes or spots etc etc, this list goes on!!

which all effect print quality, and will no doubt print unreadable bar codes.

As these issues occur every day it is plausible to assume that of the total number of labels printed each year that include bar codes, a percentage of them are not readable. Even if the percentage was only 0.1%, the number of unreadable barcodes printed per year would be 1,076,400.

The fact is that probably as many as just 1% of all bar codes labels fail (10,764,000), causing serious and significant bottle necks and manual intervention in automated systems designed to improve processes and gain return on investments by reading bar code data streams.

This volume has been fairly consistent and growing since Y2K and the increased awareness and use of thermal printers with the new systems that were implemented at the time. This means that on average there are approximately over 50 million unreadable barcodes produced each year in Europe alone.

Problem example

A major parcel carrier has approximately 3000 customers, in which a low cost thermal printer is supplied to print the carriers bar coded label. The label contains a bar code which is scanned by the fixed position scanners used in the HUB (central sorting depot) to read and send the parcel to the required delivery vehicle position. When the fixed position scanner can not read the label bar code, the parcel is automatically re-routed to a re-work area to be re-labelled with a good (“readable”) bar code label.

Each night approximately 2000 labels are reprinted. Whilst some are re-printed because they are applied around corners of the parcel or are covered by packing straps making them unreadable, the vast majority are un-readable as the thermal printer printhead has blown elements, meaning that all bar code labels printed by the printer will be un-readable.

The re-work area contains 8 workstations, each workstation contains a PC and thermal printer to re-print un-readable labels. However, on one particular day, 6 (75%) of the 8 printers had printhead errors, meaning that of the 2000 labels that had to be re-printed, 1500 came back to be re-worked. Subsequently 1200 of them came back, and so on until it was soon realised the nature of the problem, including the cost of recovery.

Summary

Providing on-line bar code validators such as Newbury Data’s SecurPrint or Printronix ODV overcomes the end user problem of un-readable bar codes and associated recovery costs.

Value Added Solution: On-Line Bar Code Validation

Bar Code Validation

What comes first for automated systems, the INPUT or the OUTPUT?

• INPUT generally means designing your systems around the data you need to use and run your business models.
• INPUT requires software, servers, networks, desktop and mobile computers etc.
• OUTPUT generally means the printed information used to read system data, write documents, or print labels to identify an object or ship an item once data has been INPUT into the system.
• OUTPUT requires printers, print and apply devices, copiers, faxes etc.
• What if the required system data to gain the business improvement and efficiency identified to justify automated processes is INPUT from OUTPUT such as reading printed bar-coded data.

Therefore, is the importance of OUTPUT any less important than INPUT, or is it more critical as the system designed around INPUT is now less valuable as the system does not read the bar code data that is suffering from mis reads, incorrect or costly manual data entry, with the potential to cause bottle necks in the system or customer related problems. With this mind Newbury Data now provides a range of bar code validation solution to ensure the lowest cost items in the system do not cause the highest number of problems seen in today’s automated identification systems.

JUSTIFICATION

Q. What is the most common application for label printers?
Answer: Bar Codes

Q. What is the most important error condition that a printer can not tell you?
Q. What is the most important error condition not reported by front panel of the printer or via the network?
Q. What could or does stop your expensive automated process or production lines?
Q. Why might you receive compliance fines?
Q. Why might you loose customers?
Answer: “No Read”, “Miss Read”, “Wrong Data”, Wrong Symbology” or “Badly Printed” Bar Codes

What happens to my system when bad bar codes are printed?

The highest level of deemed importance and cost per average system should offer the fewest failures, whilst the lowest deemed important hardware item, I.e.; Label Printer, Labels and/or Ribbons, are seen as the lowest cost items but offer the highest number of points of failure. Incorrect settings of your printer, no knowledge of printhead life, incorrect selection of label and/or ribbon, or badly printed bar code labels offer the highest number of system failures.

Average System Costs
		Potential Points of Failure

Thermal printers and labels are seen as the lowest individual cost items, with the least importance in the whole scheme of the system architecture. But what is the cost per failure at this level?. Is cost based on “cost of recovery”, “cost of recovery and compliance fine” or “cost of recovery and loss of business or customer”?. Is the real cost of “no read barcode” or badly printed “barcode label” failure really identified and addressed correctly? Why expect to pay so little for products that can cause so many failures, whilst still expecting maximum return on investment?.

Reasons why you are not guaranteed a perfect bar code every time

• Are you using the correct media, do you have the correct labels or the correct label/ribbon combination
• The correct media to printer & print head settings in the required operating environment is incorrect
• Print heads are consumables and have a limited life. How will you know when to replace the printhead?
• Print head life is significantly reduced when using UN-coated direct thermal media
• Is the print head cleaned with the correct cleaning solution and in accordance with the manufacturers recommendations?

Available Solutions

1. Bar Code Validation Solution: Newbury Data SecurPrint
2. Bar Code Validation & Verification Solution: Printronix ODV (Online Data Validator)

1. SecurPrint: Identify “No Read” Barcodes and “Reprint” Them!

Newbury Data’s technical expertise in developing thermal printing applications has helped many of the UK’s leading companies create “best of breed” solutions. SecurPrint is another “best of breed” solution and is designed for Citizen & Toshiba TEC and Zebra thermal printers.

If the need to identify and reprint “No Read” bar codes at time of original print is required then SecurPrint is the answer. If printing “unreadable bar codes” is acceptable to you, why spend a fortune installing an automated data capture solution in the first place?

Newbury Data’s SecurPrint System is a cost efficient system designed to ensure that “No Read” bar codes are identified and eliminated before being applied or accepted in to a client’s application, applications that could cause:

• Incorrect identification and picking of parts and/or components
• Incorrect identification of patient (Bar Coded Wristbands)
• Fines within compliance solutions
• Re-worked, Lost or Mis-routed parcels
• Production lines to stop
• Additional and/or expensive reworking via manual data entry.
  

2. Printronix T5000 Online Data Validation System

The T5000r Online Data Validation System (ODV) guarantees that bar codes are scannable, offering a complete bar code compliant solution.

Benefits

• ODV stops bad bar codes from getting into your production or distribution systems – without interruption
• ODV’s unique void-and-reprint technology allows the system to run unattended, minimising cost and allowing almost instantaneous ROI
• Printronix has closed the bar code creation process loop with ODV Data Manager, a solution for fully automated bar code quality control:
• Captures and displays all bar code quality data to ensure enterprise wide remedies for error conditions
• ODV with Data Manager ensures bar code compliance while helping eliminate compliance fines, internal reworks or charge backs.

Features

• ODV guarantees 100% inspection of linear bar codes and confirms basic PDF417 bar code integrity. (Code 39, CODBAR, interleaved 2 of 5, Code 93, Code 128 and UPC/EAN plus add-ons).
• Scan width from 4.5” to 8.5”, X-Dimension (min) of 6.6 mil to 13 mil, minimum code height .13” to .20”.
• Users selectable of Overstrike/Reprint, Overstrike or Stop with defect bar codes.
• Data Manager combined with ODV and PrintNet Enterprise fully captures and displays all bar code quality data by label and by bar code.
• Captures and display detailed validation information and actual data within the bar code.
• Views all data online and stores it in a file or exports it to a database in real time.

Professional Services

In addition to Bar Code Validation Solutions, Newbury Data is also able to offer our partners the following professional services:

• Loan Equipment
• On-Site Technical Support Engineers
• Label Application Design (including Alternative Printer Programming Solutions / Code Conversions
• Installation & User Training
• On-Site Maintenance
• Internal Technical Support
• Bespoke Mobile Computer Software
• WLAN Site Surveys
• WLAN Installation & Commissioning