Barcode Technology

Published on: 08 Aug, 2022 | 04:47:17 PM

You need just a few pieces of technology to start using barcodes. There are three key components:

v Barcode Printer: As noted earlier, you will need a printer designed for barcodes if you have even a few hundred items in your warehouse or replace products regularly. There are a wide range of printers available ––some are large and need to be plugged in, while others are wireless and built to be portable. Depending on the size of your operation, you may need multiple printers for different areas of the warehouse or store. Barcode printer is a computer peripheral for printing Barcode labels or tags that can be attached to, or printed directly on, physical objects. Barcode printers are commonly used to label cartons before shipment, or to label retail items^.Barcode printers are designed for different markets. Industrial barcode printers are used in large warehouses and manufacturing facilities. They have large paper capacities, operate faster and have a longer service life. For retail and office environments, desktop barcode printers are most common.

The most common barcode printers employ one of two different printing technologies–Direct thermal printers & Thermal Transfer Printers.

Direct Thermal Printer use a print head to generate heat that causes a chemical reaction in specially designed paper that turns the paper black. Direct thermal printers are generally less expensive, but they produce labels that can become illegible if exposed to heat, direct sunlight, or chemical vapors.

Thermal transfer printers also use heat, but instead of reacting the paper, the heat melts a waxy or resin substance on a ribbon that runs over the label or tag material. The heat transfers ink from the ribbon to the paper.

Direct Thermal Printer:- A direct thermal printer prints by applying heat to the material. It does not use any ribbon, ink or toner, but it requires a special type of heat-sensitive material that blackens when heat is applied. Because the label material is heat sensitive, it fades and the label can become hard to read and scan over time. In addition, direct thermal labels are sensitive to abrasions and exposure to water, chemicals, and strong sunlight. With no ribbon needed to print, direct thermal printers are also easy to operate and have fewer components that can fail. Usually, these printers have a lower purchase price and require less maintenance and repair attention than thermal transfer printers. And while direct thermal labels are slightly more expensive, you don’t have to spend money on ribbons. Contact MINDWARE for Direct Thermal Printers, Spare Parts and for Services! You can reach our sales team by phone at +91 9810822688 Concerning about services and spare parts please contact +91 8527522688/+91 8527422688

Mindware offers you Variety of Direct Thermal Printers from the Best Brands like – TSC, ZEBRA, GODEX & CITIZEN

For any queries you can send mail to gm@indianbarcode.com

You can view these products here –

TSC–– https://www.indianbarcode.com/tsc-da-310-barcode-printer

Zebra–– https://www.indianbarcode.com/zd220-thermal-desktop-printer

Godex –– https://www.indianbarcode.com/godex-rt-730-barcode-printer

Citizen – https://www.indianbarcode.com/citizen-cl-s621-barcode-printer

Thermal Transfer Printer:- Thermal transfer printers work by using a heated print head that applies heat to a ribbon, melting ink onto the media. The ink is absorbed so that the image becomes part of the media. This technique provides image quality and durability that is unmatched by other on-demand printing technologies. Thermal transfer printers can accept a wider variety of media than direct thermal models, including paper, polyester and polypropylene materials.Contact MINDWARE they offer you wide variety of Thermal Transfer Printers from the best Brands Like – TSC, ZEBRA, GODEX and CITIZEN

View this products here –– https://www.indianbarcode.com/barcode-printers

Different Types of Barcode Printers:-

There are four basic types of Barcode printers– Ink Jet, Dot Matrix, Laser, Thermal. Each barcode printer is unique and designed for a specific environment.

1) INK JET PRINTERS

An Inkjet printer is typically used in high production settings where barcodes need to be produced and applied at rapid speeds. They only require one step to finish the carton or readable material, while other Barcode printers may require the adhesion of the label to the finished product. Due to its ability to mark items quickly, Ink Jet printers are popular in high production environments.

There are different types of inkjet printers-below explain each one –

Single Function Inkjet Printers
Multifunction Inkjet Printers
Photo Inkjet Printers

1. Single Function Inkjet Printers: These types of printers are capable to perform only simple printing functions. These printers are very useful in home and small office usages where to need print enlarge documents with great efficiently.

ü Easy to operate

ü Less expensive

ü Various inks can be used as per your printing need

ü Easy to use

ü Able to print Black & White and color

ü Produce quality pictures depend on the model.

2.Multifunction Inkjet Printers: Multifunction Inkjet Printer is also known as the “All-in-One” functions printer. These printers are getting more popularity for using in home and office. They are capable to perform various tasks like as Printing, scanning, and copying. They need to replace ink cartridge, and they can also provide print Black & White or Color.

3.Photo Inkjet Printers: Main aim of photo inkjet printer is to make pictures stand out, and they are capable to produce color printout in several print sizes. These printers are costly compare to other inkjet printer because in which various types of inks are used like as dye and pigment based.

ü Best option for photographers

ü To perform multiple functions like as printing, scanning, and copying

ü Uses 6 to 12 ink cartridges

Inkjet printers are used in several areas for performing various tasks; like as –

Ø Inkjet printer is used in home and small office to perform for printing text due to their high contrast and speed.

Ø Inkjet printer is also used in banks and electricity department for taking bank statements and electricity bill, because it is capable to run long time without any hindrance.

Ø Inkjet printer is also able to provide high quality color print out, so it is also used by photographers and graphic designer

Ø It is used for printing signs, billboards, T-shirts, and more.

Examples of Inkjet Printer

Inkjet printer is an example of non impact printer that means this printer is able to produce printout without hitting a ribbon. Below some examples of this types of printers–

Canon Inkjet Printers

HP Inkjet Printers

Dell Inkjet Printers

2) DOT MATRIX PRINTERS

Dot matrix barcode printing technology is the oldest method for producing barcodes on-site. The barcode image is composed of hundreds of dots in a matrix to make a series of lines and spaces (commonly referred to as a barcode). The barcode label printers are easily accessible and are a cost-effective solution for many manufacturing and distribution companies. They can be printed on various surfaces and use multi-pass ribbons, which can drastically reduce for the cost for ribbons and labeling materials.

3) LASER PRINTERS

A laser Barcode printer is similar to a photo copier. They can print high-quality text and graphics on paper documents (or adhesive labels) and can be used as a document printer when not being used to print barcode labels. The density and resolution of these barcodes are high, meaning that the barcodes can be read easily by any infrared scanner. Barcode labels printed via a laser printer are not suitable for industrial environments, nor are they logical for small operations. Their durability is limited at best, as label printers cannot produce water or chemical resistant barcode labels.

THERMAL PRINTERS

Thermal printers include Direct Thermal and Thermal Transfer printers (as we discussed before). Thermal printers for barcode labeling use are the most popular types of printers in manufacturing environments as their barcodes are more durable than other solutions on the market.

There are two types of Thermal Printers – Thermal Transfer & Direct Thermal.

Thermal transfer printers work by using a heated print head that applies heat to a ribbon, melting ink onto the media. The ink is absorbed so that the image becomes part of the media. This technique provides image quality and durability that is unmatched by other on-demand printing technologies. Thermal transfer printers can accept a wider variety of media than direct thermal models, including paper, polyester and polypropylene materials.

Direct thermal printers work by creating images directly on the printed material without using a ribbon, toner or ink. Instead, this method uses chemically treated, heat-sensitive media that blackens when it passes under the thermal print head. As a result, this media is more sensitive to light, heat and abrasion. And, labels and tags are not as long lasting. Images can fade over time, and media will darken if overexposed to heat, light or other catalysts.

MOBILE PRINTERS

These portable tools are designed to meet your on-the-move barcode printing needs. They should be lightweight, durable and feature wireless connectivity. You should be able to install media easily. They should have an easy to read display. Some mobile printers have incredible durability to withstand sprays of water, immersion, drastic temperature ranges and repeated drops to concrete from a distance. Mobile printers are ideal for retail, hospitality, healthcare, warehouse management, transportation and manufacturing to print a variety of labels, receipts and tags. You can buy Mobile Printers from MINDWARE as we offer best prices for high quality printing mobile printer.

DESKTOP PRINTERS

Desktop printers are designed to do just that—fit on a desk or other small space. They should require minimal maintenance, be easy to use and offer varying wired and wireless connectivity options. Media should be simple to load. Desktop printers should be reliable, cost effective and able to handle a moderate level of print jobs. Premium models should evolve with technology and changing business needs.Desktop printers are ideal for use in retail, healthcare, hospitality, transportation and light manufacturing to print a variety of labels, tags, wristbands and receipts. Shop Desktop printers, Printer parts and accessories at affordable prices from MINDWARE. We have a variety of Desktop printer. You can view Desktop printers here - https://www.indianbarcode.com/zebra-zd230t-desktop-printer

INDUSTRIAL PRINTERS

For more demanding environments and higher volume printing, industrial printers are ideal. Larger in size, they are typically more substantial in construction. They should be easy to integrate into your existing enterprise and intuitive for your teams to operate. Premium models are incredibly rugged and can even support 24/7 environments and critical business operations. They can help you to see your entire supply chain in real time, increase efficiencies and leverage Internet of Things (IOT) technologies to gain a competitive advantage. Incredibly rugged models can even support 24/7 environments and critical business operations.Industrial printers are best suited for use in applications in manufacturing, transportation and logistics, government, retail and healthcare to produce labels and tags. In addition you can buy industrial printer, printer parts and accessories from Mindware. Customize your printer with our variety of different printer parts and accessories including Labels, Ribbons, charging adapters, and more. For any questions or more information, Contact us today! View these product - https://www.indianbarcode.com/tsc-ml240-industrial-barcode-printers

Industrial Printers

PRINT ENGINES

Print engines are designed to integrate into a print-and-apply system, such as a packaging line. They are typically accompanied by a product sensor to activate printing and an applicator (tamp) to affix the label to the item being marked. Print engines need to be durable workhorses that can perform nonstop. Because they are integrated into a system, you need easy access for speedy maintenance. And, it is ideal to have swappable components that can be removed to keep production lines moving. Print engines are used in manufacturing, shipping and fulfillment environments to produce labels.

Print engines & modules

As a Barcode supplier, we often asked about DPI—what is it? Does it matter? On the other hand we find that there are some common misconceptions and assumptions regarding DPI we often have to explain.

So here we aim to explain what DPI is and the role it plays when it comes to barcodes specifically so you can more confidently invest in the best print strategy for your application. Let’s get to it!

What is barcode resolution/DPI?

When talking about barcode resolution we’re talking about the same thing as print image resolution. Print image quality, or resolution, is measured in DPI or “dots per inch”—a literal description of the ink dots spread across the media depicting the final image.

While the dots may not be visible to the naked eye in most cases—they are there! In fact, they’re there before the image is even printed in a form you’re probably also familiar with—pixels. Pixels on a computer are very different from dots on a page, however they serve the same core purpose—spots that when viewed from a distance merge together to form a comprehensive image.

In a few words, barcode resolution is the overall quality of your barcode image measured in pixels per inch (PPI) on screen, and in DPI when printed onto your media—but what does that mean to you? Does Barcode DPI Matter?

To a certain degree, the higher the dpi, the sharper the image and the lower the dpi the more likely it is to have a grainy appearance. This is because a higher resolution contains a higher density of dots. If you’ve ever grabbed an image from the internet and printed it only to find it didn’t look quite as you expected, you’ve already witnessed this first hand. So yes, DPI does matter.

Size Matters-

For the most part you’ll find barcode printers with DPI capabilities of 203, 300 and 600 (though there are some 400 DPI printers around)—each of these will be best suited for different density needs.
203 DPI is best suited for less dense codes. Even with lower DPI the image can remain crisp and readable to the scanner. Medium to high density barcodes will perform much better at 300 dpi, and codes requiring especially high density will require at least 600 dpi.
Typically, lower density is best suited for larger barcodes and higher density is most suitable for smaller barcodes—especially smaller 2D barcodes—where sharp edges are critical in preventing misreads. But depending on what code you’re using, your needs may differ. Also, keep in mind that you can print low density codes with a high density printer so you won’t need a different printer to meet all of your size and density needs. Utilizing a high DPI printer for low density printing can decrease the likelihood of misreads or no-reads by increasing the quality of those codes—where there was one dot with a 200 DPI printer, you now have 3 dots with a 600 DPI printer.

ü Barcode Scanner: Scanners enable organizations to take advantage of the many benefits barcodes provide. There are a few different types of scanners to choose from: Laser scanners are the most popular because they’re relatively inexpensive, can read codes from up to two feet away and can read most 1D barcodes. This type of Barcode Scanner can be handheld or stationary. It doesn’t have to be close to the barcodes to read them. This model uses mirrors and lenses to read the barcode and can be used up to 24 inches away and there are long range models that can read barcodes up to 30 feet away. It can also read barcodes no matter what their orientation is. Laser scanners can perform up to 500 scans per second.

ü Central database: Barcodes are useful only if a computer can link those unique identifiers to a certain product. So a company needs a central data source that ties each barcode to a specific product to ensure scanning a barcode renders the right information. This data is often stored within a software application that point-of-sale. (POS) systems and warehouse devices can access.

By MINDWARE~