The project to test the accuracy of verifiers arose from concerns expressed by participants in the EAN.UCC system that verifiers from different companies produced significantly different results when testing the same barcode symbol. It was proposed that this project be conducted under the auspices of EAN International and the UCC (Uniform Code Council). Its purpose was to:
– test the compliance of verification equipment with the requirements of the ISO/IEC 15426-1 standard
– verify whether the requirements of the ISO/IEC 15426-1 standard are realistic
– confirm or refute the claim regarding the lack of repeatability of measurement results
– prepare guidelines regarding the reliable use of verification equipment.
Verifier manufacturers were asked to loan devices for testing, with guarantees of anonymity and access to data relating to their own products. The following companies participated in the project: RJS INC (part of Printronix Inc.) (USA), Hand Held Products Inc. (USA), Axicon Auto ID Ltd. (UK), REA Elektronik GmbH (Germany), Webscan Inc. (USA). Two verifiers were received from each company. They were tested in parallel by the UCC laboratory in Lawrenceville and the laboratory in North Ferriby, England.
Two sets of identical test symbols were used for the tests, containing 12 UPC-A codes and 4 codes each of UCC/EAN-128 and ITF-14 symbologies. These symbols were measured at Applied Image Group using a high-precision device called the “Judge”. The UPC-A test symbol set consisted of symbols that received a grade of A or D for symbol contrast, modulation, defects, and decodability. The other two symbologies were tested only for defects and decodability.
The article comes from the magazine “Logistyka” 1/2004.