What Is Mark Orientation And What Determines It; Why Do Some Barcodes Have Numbers Next To Them; Purpose - Pitney Bowes FastPac DI900 Manuallines

2 • DI900/DI950 Scan Code Concepts
Scan Codes
and Integrity
Theory
✍
TIP: Details on scan-
ning integrity levels
and scanning kits
are can be found
in Chapter 4, Scan
Code Specifications.
2-6

What Is Mark Orientation and What Determines it?

OMR marks are generally created in a ladder orientation (one line on top of
another), while barcodes can be generated in either ladder or picket fence
orientation (one line next to another). See samples below.
OMR Marks
(in ladder orientation)
Factors affecting orientation include:
• Scanning Integrity Level Purchased. For the DI900/DI950, all scanning in-
tegrity levels (except the highest called "Barcode") support ladder orienta-
tion only.
• Scanning Hardware Purchased. For the DI900/DI950, the standard scan-
ning kits support OMR/BCR ladder orientation only. Picket fence orientation
is supported with the moving beam scanner kit used on the High Capacity
Sheet Feeder (HCSF), and can only be used if the "Barcode" level of scan-
ning integrity levels was purchased and you are scanning 3 of 9 barcode
on the documents.
• Space Available on Page vs. Size of Scan Codes. If you have the ap-
propriate integrity level and scanning hardware on the DI900/DI950, then
the space available on your page vs. size of scan codes can enter in your
decision as to the orientation of your barcodes. In general, barcodes require
less space than OMR marks for the same control functions and integrity.

Why Do Some Barcodes Have Numbers Next to Them?

Depending on the font used, some barcodes may print the digits/symbols rep-
resented by the barcode right next to it (see samples below). This version of
barcode is called human readable barcode.
A very popular human readable barcode is the UPC code we see on almost
all products we purchase (this is a form of I 2 of 5). Human readable barcode
is used in situations where you want the reader to see the number the bar-
code represents, such as product identification for warehousing and retailing.
NOTE: If customers do not use the human readable barcode fonts, it is impor-
tant to print the code data somewhere on the page for debugging purposes.
Non-Human Readable
Code 3 of 9
*20001*
Code 3 of 9 representing
*20001* (no characters visible)
Barcode Code 3 of 9 (in Picket Fence Orientation)
Human-Readable Code 3 of 9
*20001*
Readable and decodable.
The designated characters are
shown and can be understood.
*20AE1*
Readable and decodable as long
as you realize that the characters
"A" and "E" represent numbers in
a base code higher than 10.
SV61314 Rev. A