Bar Code Printing Quality Assurance

In 1991, China joined the International Article Numbering Organization. In 1993, it began to promote the use of bar code technology in publications. So far, 99.5% of books and periodicals use bar codes, but the pass rate of bar code printing quality is only 97%, which has a great influence on the bar code scanning computer management of bookstores. There are four main reasons for the unqualified print quality of books and magazines:
One, article, empty color with improper
Since bar code reading is realized by the difference in reflectivity of the light irradiated on the bar and the space, most of the light source of the bar code scanning device is red light, and therefore, the bar code of the white space black bar is the easiest to read. In order to reduce the cost of printing, some books and magazines print only one color: red, yellow, or orange, so that the bar code is printed with red on white, yellow on white, and orange on white, making the scanner's red light The reflectance on the strip and the space is almost the same, resulting in unreadable; some book cover designers do not understand the principle of reading the barcode, and print black barcodes or print the barcodes on dark blue, dark green, dark brown covers. The place where the cover has graphics and text, the bar code print contrast (pcs value) is very small, so that the scanning instrument can not read. In this case, as long as part of the base color of the cover bar code is hollowed out into white when the plate is made, and the black bar code is printed, the bar code can be read.
In order to ensure the printing quality of the bar code, the color of the bar should be black, dark blue, dark green, brown, and the empty colors should be white, red, yellow, orange. These 16 combinations are the best choices. To understand the absorption and reflection of light, the color of the bar must be able to absorb red light, so that the reflectivity of the bar is low; the empty color must reflect red light, so that the empty reflectance is higher. The maximum reflectance of the bar does not exceed 25%, the minimum value of the empty reflectance is not less than 96%, and the bar code printed contrast (pcs value) is 67% to 98%. The bar code scanning instrument can correctly read the bar code.
Second, any scaling bar code size
Some books and magazines, due to their small size (64 pages) or too many cover art and photos, do not have enough space to place barcodes, they will arbitrarily reduce the size of the barcodes, causing the space to be too small or too thin to be read by the scanner. Therefore, when bar codes need to be reduced, the bar code administrative department must use special equipment to make the codes, which can only be reduced to 80% of conventional bar codes.
Third, self-produced bar code film Some books and magazines are missing films, they will make a bar code or copy the bar code of the original book, and then take the plate, this practice is not allowed. The quality of the bar code or the photocopied bar code made by oneself is unqualified, and the bar code of the bar code of the plate making and printing is certainly not qualified. Barcodes are lost and must be re-applied to the bar code administrative department for making barcodes.
Fourth, the printed paper, ink, equipment, improper selection of bar code strips, space is very small, printed paper, ink, equipment, improper selection, printing is easy to paste version, the bar becomes thick, empty fine, when the strip width deviation exceeds ±30%, scanners cannot read. Therefore, book and bar code printing is best to choose offset printing, paper selection of coated paper, offset paper and other paper with less paper, printing cylinder liner should not be too soft, the ink's fluidity is moderate, to ensure not paste version. Bar code printing should ensure that the bar is clear and the dimensions are accurate, the bar width deviation and the print contrast are within the specified range, so that it can become a bar code printing qualified product.
The application of bar code scanning technology to realize the automation management of microcomputers is a trend and hotspot in the current international book industry pursuit of management modernization. With the increasing number of "scan bookstores" in China, the qualification rate of bar code printing quality in books and periodicals will affect the progress of computer management in the publishing industry in China. It is particularly important that the design, production staff, and management staff of the publishing units familiarize themselves with and master the principles of bar code reading and quality assurance. As a new thing, the bar code technology of books and periodicals will depend on the joint efforts of the publishing community to achieve healthy and rapid development.