At
one time, producing barcodes was tough to do
and expensive, requiring specialized dedicated equipment. That was many years ago
but that is not the case today. Years ago,
dedicated thermal transfer printers were $15,000.
Today the same printers cost $1,500 and other than in high volume situations, a simple
laser printer could print the barcode label.
A set of six True Type Code 39 fonts are provided
free of charge with Gulfstream’s Barcode
Gateway. Now any Windows based program and
any Windows based printer can produce and
print barcodes. So one can produce barcodes
in Word, Excel, Wordpad or Crystal Reports
for
Microsoft Dynamics SL or add them to any
Crystal report and print them on any HP laser
printer. If you wanted the barcodes on a label,
you can use any mailing label stock that is
on the market
today.
So we can take this example of an inventory
item ID:
and turn it into this:
just by changing the font.
In order for the scanner to differentiate the start and stop of reading the barcode,
a leading and trailing asterick (*) must be inserted at the
beginning and end of the inventory ID above.
You
will notice that the barcode above does not have
a leading or trailing asterisk (*). With the
fonts
that we supply, you will need to have an asterisk
(*) as the leading and trailing character in
the
barcode to indicate to the scanner where the
barcode starts and stops. However, this is not
the case with all the fonts that are now available
on the market today.
So the proper barcode would look like this:
As mentioned above, the Barcode Gateway software comes with a set of True Type
Code 39 fonts. Also included with the software are a
number of Crystal Reports that have the barcodes
already added. For example, on the Anticipated
PO Receipts the PO number shows as a
barcode. The User can then scan the PO number
into the PO Receipts module in the Barcode
Gateway instead of having to type in the number.
Gulfstream’s Barcode Gateway for Microsoft Dynamics SL
The Barcode Gateway also allows you to produce barcodes from within the software.
There are a few ways that you can do this. As the Barcode
Gateway is a wireless solution, we have
integrated the software to work with a wireless
printer - the Zebra QL320. Once the Barcode
Gateway has been configured in option setup,
you are able to produce labels in the PR -
PO
Receipt Module, IL - Inventory Lookup Module
and the RI - Receipt Inventory module. Labels
can be produced on the fly as the wireless,
QL320 printer can be conveniently placed with the User
where ever they may be in the warehouse.
We have four label formats
that can be used
with the QL320 printer. They are as follows:
Label Format -
Our software can produce three different label formats. You chose
the format you want here. This is available for PO Receipt,
Inventory Lookup & Receipt
Inventory.
Label Format 0 - Inventory item, Description - Inventory Item is barcoded on
the label
Set up to use 3” across by 1” long
labels
Label Format 1 - Site, Inventory Item, Description,
Lot/Serial Number - Site, Inventory Item
and
Lot/Serial Number are barcoded on the label.
Set up to use 3” across by 2 3/8ths” long labels
Label Format 2 - Site, Inventory Item,
Description, Lot/Serial Number, PO
number - Site, Inventory item, Lot/Serial number and
PO number are barcoded on the label.
Set up to use 3” across by 2 3/8ths”
long labels
Label Format 3 - This label contains
the same info as Label Format
2 but it prints horizontally
rather than vertically as it
does for label formats 0 through
2. This format is used with a longer
label.
Set up to use 3” across by 4
15/16ths” long labels
Labels can be customized to
individual needs. Please
see the software price list for information
on the cost of adding a new
label format.
We can also produce barcodes in other ways. Within the Barcode Gateway Printer Maintenance screen, you are able to choose other
options and not just the QL320 Printer.
The Barcode Gateway stores information in tables &/or
files which we make available for use
with an external label writing program. There
are many such programs in the market at this time. One that we use in house and works well
for us is Label Matrix by Teklynx Software.
http://www.strandware.com/products//labels/labelmatrix_literature.html
The information from the file that we provide can be used with Label Matrix to
produce labels that meet the needs of the company. The labels
can then be printed on any thermal transfer
printer. There are many such printers available.
We do not recommend a specific printer
because there are so many different models available
and each company has different needs.
Zebra’s line of thermal transfer printers is
very comprehensive. You can also select another
type of printer such as a laser printer, not
just a thermal transfer printer if your label
printing needs are small.
The information in this document is meant to give you an idea of how the printing
of barcodes is accomplished. If you want more information that
pertains to your specific needs, please contact
your dealer. We can also be contacted at: sales@gulfstream.ca
or 1-877-377-6604.
Printable Version
