IDAutomation UPC/EAN Font Advantage Package

NOTE: To create proper UPC and EAN barcode types, the characters printed must be selected from the tables defined in the Implementation Guidelines. To provide for easy integration into applications, IDAutomation provides several Font Tools that are free to use with IDAutomation fonts. The font tools automatically format the characters to the barcode font. When it is only necessary to create a single barcode, IDAutomation recommends using the Online Font Encoder.

INDEX:

• Purchase Now
• Symbology Overview
• Font Advantage Package Features
• Font Installation Instructions
• Font Specifications
• Implementation Guidelines
• Barcode Font Printing and Character Mapping
• Font Technical Support
• More Information
• It is important to have the ability to test the barcodes with a barcode scanner.
  If scanner is needed, consider IDAutomation's easy to use USB Barcode Scanner.
• Other Barcode Software Products

IDAutomation's UPC/EAN Font Advantage Package is an advanced font product with tools, macros and source code that uses a single font file to create UCC-12, UPCA, UPCE, EAN8, EAN13, JAN, ISBN and Bookland barcodes. The font meets current ANSI, ISO and IEC 2000 specifications (ISO 15420:2000).

To create proper UPC and EAN barcode types, the characters printed must be selected from the tables defined in the font data sheet. To provide for easy integration into applications, IDAutomation provides several Font Tools that are free to use with IDAutomation fonts. The font tools automatically format the characters to the barcode font. When it is only necessary to create a single barcode, IDAutomation recommends using the Online Font Encoder.

If the Font Tools cannot be utilized and the font data sheet causes confusion, consider using the Image Generator or IDAutomation’s Barcode Label Software. IDAutomation also provides many barcode components for development environments.

UPC, UCC, EAN, JAN, ISBN and Bookland barcodes may all be created from IDAutomation's UPC/EAN Font Advantage Package with the exception of EAN-14, UCC-128 and EAN-128; these are created with the Code 128 Barcode Fonts. The primary purpose for these barcodes is to uniquely identify a product and manufacturer for retail checkout and tracking purposes. Below is a summary of the different bar code standards:

• UPC - The Universal Product Code (UPC) barcode has been used in the retail industry in the US and Canada since 1973. UPC-A consists of 12 numbers and UPC-E consists of 12 numbers that are compressed into 8 numbers for small packages.
• UCC - The Universal Code Council creates standards for multi-industry product identification. UCC12 is another name for the UPC-A standard.
• EAN - The European Article Numbering System (EAN) is a superset of U.P.C. EAN-13 consists of 13 numbers and EAN-8 consists of 8 digits for small packages.
• ISBN and Bookland - The EAN-13 barcode for a book or periodical is generated from the ISBN number assigned to it. When encoding ISBN in an EAN-13 barcode, the ISBN number is preceded by the number 978 and the ISBN check digit is not used. When the ISBN number is encoded in the EAN-13 barcode in this way it is often called Bookland. A 5 digit add-on barcode is optional and can contain the price of the book or periodical. For more information, please review our How to Create an ISBN Barcode for a Book Tutorial.
• JAN - The JAN codes are the same as the EAN codes, except the first two characters are set to "49".
• Add-on Barcodes - An additional barcode can be created just to the right of the symbol to encode additional information. These barcodes are either 2 or 5 digits in length. IDAutomation fonts support the add-on barcodes.
• EAN14 is a barcode type created with ITF or Code 128 and is not included in this package.
• UCC128 or EAN128 is a barcode type created with Code 128 and is not included in this package.

• Patent Pending Technology - The latest version of this product includes new patent pending font technology which allows extremely high quality barcode printing.
• Advanced Font Encoding - IDAutomation's implementation of these symbologies allows a single advanced font to produce all UPC-A, UPC-E, EAN-8, EAN-13, JAN & ISBN barcodes.
• Multiple Font Tools Included - for easy integration into applications, several font tools are provided that are free to use with IDAutomation fonts. The font tools automatically format the start, stop and check characters to the barcode font. Available font tools include the following:
  • .NET Framework Assembly DLL (100% managed code)
  • C++ header file
  • C# .NET Class Library
  • Check digit calculator with Visual Basic 6 and FoxPro source code
  • Crystal Reports Formulas (allows distribution of crystal reports without the UFL)
  • Crystal Reports UFL (User Function Library)
  • DLL for Windows®
  • FileMaker Pro Plug-ins
  • FoxPro Program Module
  • LotusScript Functions for Lotus Notes, Domino and Approach
  • Microsoft® Office Macros for Word, Excel and Access with VBA source code
  • Microsoft Reporting Services
  • Online Font Encoder
  • Oracle Reports Libraries and PLL
  • OpenOffice & StarOffice VB macros
  • Source Code in Visual Basic, C++, PowerBuilder, FoxPro and JAVA
  • VB.NET Module
  • Complete list of all font tools
• Cross-platform Support - The unique encoding in IDAutomation fonts allows cross-platform support between UNIX, Macintosh and Windows® systems.
• Low Resolution Printer Support - Code128 Fonts are designed to print precisely on 203 DPI thermal printers and 300 DPI printers in addition to higher resolution printers. When printing at 203 DPI, the point size chosen should be a multiple of 6. When printing at 300 DPI, the point size chosen should be a multiple of 4.
• Five Different Heights Provided - Fonts with "S" in the name are "shortened height" fonts that are below what the UCC recommends. However, IDAutomation has observed these shorter symbols used with UPC-A and UPC-E barcodes and they do scan properly. Fonts with "M" in the name are "medium height" fonts and are recommended for printing EAN-8 and UPC-E barcodes. Fonts with "L" in the name are the largest with a height of approximately 22mm when printed at 16 points and are recommended for printing UPC-A and EAN-13 barcodes.
• Industry Standards - The UPC/EAN barcode fonts have been created to meet all UCC, EAN, European EN 797 and IEC 15420:2000 specifications. All symbols of this barcode specification are in the fonts including human readable characters and add-on symbols.
• Embeddable Functionality - The fonts included with the Developer License allow embedding into PDFs, Word documents and other files that support embedding, so those who do not have the fonts installed can still print the barcode.
• Non-Human Readable Fonts Provided - Fonts that exclude the normal human readable characters are provided in this package to support the printing of the human readable variation implementation.
• Multiple Formats Provided - After purchasing a license for this font package, the customer will receive all versions in a single ZIP file. The manual is supplied in a file named "readme.html" in the ZIP file. The following fonts are included:
  • TrueType fonts are supplied in PC and Macintosh format. The TrueType TTF fonts are compatible with Macintosh OS X and all versions of Microsoft Windows, including Pocket PC. Macintosh formatted MTT TrueType fonts are compatible with Macintosh System 7.1 and above.
  • OpenType OTF fonts with PostScript outlines are provided. These are compatible with Windows®, Macintosh OS X and other systems supporting the OpenType format.
  • PostScript Type 1 fonts are supplied in binary, ASCII and Macintosh versions.
  • Also included in this package are PCL laserjet soft fonts in 12, 16, 20 and 28 points.
  • The Developer License grants the right to convert IDAutomation's fonts to other formats as necessary including TrueDoc and OpenType.
  • More information is available about the font types provided.
  • For the most up to date installation procedures for Macintosh, UNIX and other operating systems, please visit IDAutomation's Technical Support Site.
• Data Sheet & Implementation Examples - For more technical information about the fonts such as character set detail and calculating the check character, please review the UPC/EAN Font Data Sheet.

To install the package in Windows, run the INSTALL.EXE setup utility. This utility will install the most commonly used fonts. The following describes how to manually install a font in Windows:

• Click on Start, select settings and click on Control Panel.
• Click on Fonts, click on File in the main tool bar, and select Install New Font.
• Locate the font that needs to be installed.
• The font will appear and look like this: font name (true type) - select the appropriate font and Click on OK.
• Click Start and choose to shut down and restart the computer.
• The font should be active after the computer restarts.

Installing the fonts on Macintosh OS X:

1. Drag or copy and paste the TrueType font file(s) ending in TTF to the Library/Fonts folder.
2. To activate the fonts, restart the application - some applications may require you to restart the computer.
3. The font should now be active in the font menu of your application.

To install the TrueType font on the Classic Macintosh (OS 7.1 - OS 9):

1. Download and install Stuffit Expander on your Macintosh if you do not have an expander utility that can open ZIP files and decode MacBinary files.
2. Open the ZIP distribution file that contains the fonts by dragging the ZIP file on the Stuffit Expander icon. The font files will be extracted from the ZIP distribution file and will appear in a subfolder of the folder you placed the ZIP file in. Open this subfolder to view the font files.  At this point, you may want to view the documentation supplied with the font files. To do so just drag the file "readme.html" to the Netscape or Internet Explorer icon.
3. Now we must decode the files from MacBinary format. Drag the font files that you wish to use that end with "mtt" to the Stuffit Expander icon.
4. Drag the decoded font files to the System - Fonts folder.
5. Restart the application you wish to use the font with.
6. The font will be active in the font menu of your application.

PCL Fonts:
To obtain information about installing PCL fonts, please refer to the PCLinfo.html document provided in the PCL folder of the package.

Font installation procedures for other operating systems are provided here

X dimension and Magnification Factor:
The X dimension (X is the width of the narrow bar) is listed below for various point sizes in millimeters and mils. 1 mil is equal to 1/1000 of an inch.

* When using a printer with less than 600 DPI, print at the following point sizes to create accurate barcodes:

Symbol Height:
Five different versions of the UPCEAN barcode fonts are provided to support different height requirements. The last character in the UPCEAN barcode font name determines the height of the barcode with the shortest being "XXS" and the tallest being "L". Five additional fonts are provided for the human readable variation implementation and can be identified by the unique ending character of "n".

Font Size and Print Quality

The UPC / EAN font characters are all contained in a single font represented in several different heights. IDAutomation's UPC / EAN barcode fonts were created according to that latest UCC, EAN and ISO/IEC 15420 standards so that the nominal size is achieved when printed at 16 points (or 18 points for 203dpi printers). Because the standards allow a magnification factor of .8 to 2.0, the fonts may be printed as small as 12 points and as large as 32 points. For best results, the UPC / EAN barcode fonts should be printed at the largest point size and height possible in this range. When using a printer with less than 600 DPI, only certain font sizes may be used as defined in the specifications.

Font Height

Fonts with "S" in the name are "shortened height" fonts that are below what the UCC recommends. However, IDAutomation has observed these shorter symbols used with UPC-A and UPC-E barcodes and they do scan properly. Fonts with "M" in the name are medium height fonts and are recommended for printing EAN-8 and UPC-E barcodes. Fonts with "L" in the name are the largest with a height of approximately 22mm when printed at 16 points and are recommended for printing UPC-A and EAN-13 barcodes.

Quiet Zone

IDAutomation recommends a quiet zone which is about 3 times the thickest bar in the barcode or about 12 times the X dimension. The minimum quiet zones according to ISO specifications are as follows:

Quiet zones are automatically set with the correct spacing when using IDAutomation's Font Tools, including the Online Font Encoder. To maintain the quiet zones during graphic design, where images may overlap the font spaces, the greater than and less than symbols may be used if necessary as defined in Figure 1-4.

Human Readable Variation

Fonts that exclude the normal human readable characters are provided in this package to support the printing of the human readable variation according to ISO/IEC 15420 2000 Figure E.3. With this type of implementation, digit "N" located at character "Z" may be used with the font names ending with the letter "n". Additionally, a separate custom field must be placed below the symbol according to the specification. The human readable variation should only be used when it is required. These fonts are provided in the HRVariation folder of the product package.

All symbols of the UPC and EAN barcode symbology have been mapped to the standard PC keyboard. This layout is presented in figures 1-1 through 1-5. The following barcodes should be made up as follows, reading from left to right:

UPCA (AKA UCC12):

1. The number representing the first digit from figure 1-3.
2. Normal guard pattern from figure 1-4.
3. The number representing the first digit from figure 1-2.
4. 5 digits from character set A of figure 1-1.
5. A center pattern.
6. 5 symbols from character set C of figure 1-1.
7. The last (or 12th) digit from figure 1-2.
8. Normal guard pattern from figure 1-4.
9. The last (or 12th) digit from figure 1-3.

UPCE: (also called the zero-suppression barcode)

1. The number representing the prefix digit from figure 1-3.
2. Normal guard pattern from figure 1-4.
3. 6 symbols from character sets A or B.
4. Special guard pattern from figure 1-4.
5. The number representing the check character from figure 1-3.

EAN13, ISBN, Bookland, ISSN & JAN:

• The EAN-13 barcode for a book is generated from the ISBN number assigned to it. When encoding ISBN in an EAN-13 barcode, the ISBN number is preceded by the number 978 and the ISBN check digit is not used. When the ISBN number is encoded in the EAN-13 barcode in this way, it is often called Bookland. A 5 digit add-on barcode is optional and can contain the price of the book.
• When encoding ISSN in an EAN13 barcode, the ISSN is preceded by the number 977 and the ISSN check digit (the last of the 8 digits) is not used. A two digit number, usually the number "00" (a 2 digit price code) is added to the end, and then the normal EAN check digit is added. Periodicals may have a two digit add on representing the issue number.
• The JAN codes are the same as the EAN codes, except the first two characters are set to "49". 

1. The number representing the 1st digit encoded by variable parity, from figure 1-3.
2. Normal guard pattern from figure 1-4.
3. 6 symbols from character sets A and B of figure 1-1. The difference between character sets A and B (called variable parity) is how the leading digit is encoded. This can be automatically calculated with the font automation tools, or can be calculated manually by reviewing the variable parity section below.
4. A center pattern.
5. 6 symbols from character set C of figure 1-1.
6. Normal guard pattern from figure 1-4.

Variable Parity in EAN13:

In EAN-13, the leading digit is encoded into the left half of the EAN-13 symbol by using variable parity between character sets A and B according to the following VB source code:

Select Case LeadingDigit
 Case 0 Encoding = "AAAAAACCCCCC"
 Case 1 Encoding = "AABABBCCCCCC"
 Case 2 Encoding = "AABBABCCCCCC"
 Case 3 Encoding = "AABBBACCCCCC"
 Case 4 Encoding = "ABAABBCCCCCC"
 Case 5 Encoding = "ABBAABCCCCCC"
 Case 6 Encoding = "ABBBAACCCCCC"
 Case 7 Encoding = "ABABABCCCCCC"
 Case 8 Encoding = "ABABBACCCCCC"
 Case 9 Encoding = "ABBABACCCCCC"
End Select

EAN8:

1. Normal guard pattern from figure 1-4.
2. 4 symbols from character set A of figure 1-1.
3. A center pattern.
4. 4 symbols from character set C of figure 1-1.
5. Normal guard pattern from figure 1-4.

EAN14:

EAN-14 is a different barcode type created with ITF or Code 128.

Figure 1-1: UPC / EAN barcodes with human readable characters. These are the primary barcodes with the number representing the symbol printed at the bottom.

Figure 1-2: UPC / EAN barcodes without human readable characters below. Used for far left and far right digits of UPC-A symbols and other barcodes as required.

Figure 1-3: UPC / EAN numbers and characters without barcodes. These are used as required for human interpretation but are not printed as a barcode. Digit value "N" located at character "Z" is to be used with the human readable variation implementation.

Figure 1-4: UPC / EAN guard patterns and special characters. 

Figure 1-5: Add-on UPC / EAN barcodes with human readable characters. These barcodes can be used for ISSN, ISBN bookland and others that require an add-on barcode. The human readable character is printed above the barcode.

About the UPC and EAN Numbers:

A UCC or EAN company number must be obtained before printing these barcodes on your products. This company number allows a company to build ID numbers that uniquely identify products, assets, etc. Information bout this may be obtained at the UCC website or EAN website.

JAN:

For more information on JAN barcodes, visit the Japanese Standards Association website.

ISBN and Bookland:

For more information on ISBN and Bookland barcodes, visit the ISBN website.

IDAutomation has many other products to offer for barcoding purposes including:

• ActiveX Controls - easy to use add-ins for Microsoft Access, Excel, VB and C++.
• .NET Forms Controls - create and print barcodes from Microsoft Visual Studio.NET applications. Also generates images that can be saved to a file.
• ASP Barcode Server for IIS - add barcodes to any web application with this component for Microsoft IIS.
• ASP. NET Barcode Web Controls - for creating bar codes in VB .NET or C# .NET web applications.
• Barcode Label Design Software - allows easy printing of barcodes with database support.
• Hosted Barcode Services - allow dynamic creation of barcodes without installing any software.
• Image Generators - easily create barcode images for almost any Windows application.
• Java Servlets, JavaBeans, Class Libraries & Applets - create barcodes on any operating system with a JVM.
• See also the Barcode Hardware Index for products such scanners and printers.

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