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Mobile Printing Systems
CPCL Programming Manual
Section 6
Two
Dimensional
Barcodes
pg. 6-1
TWO DIMENSIONAL BARCODES
Introduction
A two dimensional bar code can be regarded as a “portable database.” For example, if a package has a
serial number encoded with a linear bar code, you could scan the serial number, look up the number in a
computer system, and gather the information about that package. If the computer system was unavailable
for any reason the information you were looking for would also be unavailable A 2-D bar code, however,
can contain several different fields of information in them, essentially a database attached to a package.
The first 2-D bar code was just an extension of a one-dimensional bar code. The user could stack
several Code 39 bar codes on top of another. These types of codes are called “stacked symbology” or
“multi-row codes”. Development of scanners capable of 2-D scanning allowed use of more compact and
useful symbologies like PDF417 from Symbol and MaxiCode from the United Parcel Service.
Zebra mobile printers have capabilities to print PDF417, MaxiCode and QR symbologies. If your
application requires the use of 2-D barcodes, we highly recommend acquiring the universal symbol
specification to assist your programming. The specifications include suggestions on how to structure your
data in the code to make it easier to use.
Older QL series printers need a special application loaded in order to print 2-D barcodes. Consult your
re-seller or Zebra Technical Support for more information.
PDF417
The PDF417 bar code is a 2-D bar code that can contain a very large amount of data in a small space. If
you look at a PDF417 bar code carefully, it is actually a stack of smaller bar codes. The number and height
of the stacks are controllable by the user. The bar code can contain the entire ASCII 255 set of characters,
and has the capability to use different encoding schemes and different levels of security to correct errors.
The largest amount of data that can be encoded is 2725 characters
MaxiCode
MaxiCode was originally designed by the United Parcel Service to help them automate package delivery
and sort packages coming down a quick conveyor belt. It consists of a bulls eye to help the imaging
system “target” the bar code and an array of hexagons to represent the data stored in the bar code. It
can contain a maximum of 93 alphanumeric characters or 138 numeric characters, has two different error
continued
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