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IDAutomation Code 128 Barcode Font
Technical Specifications & Data Sheet

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Code 128 Symbology Barcode Data Sheet

Three different start characters are used in the Code 128 bar codes to tell the barcode reader, which character set, is being used. The table below illustrates the three different character sets and the ASCII location to print the character. If using character sets A or B, the Code 128 barcode output can be created by simply selecting the Code 128 font and typing the appropriate letter from the keyboard with the exception of the space character barcode, extended functions and the start / stop characters. It is possible to copy and paste these extended characters from the Character Map chart. For more information on this function, please review the font FAQ page. 

The three character sets listed below are for Code 128. In the columns A, B and C, are listed the character or function the barcode scanner will read for the associated symbol. The columns ASCII, Char and Unicode are unique to IDAutomation's Code 128 barcode fonts. These columns designate the location in either ASCII or Unicode where the barcode symbol for the character resides. The column Char lists the character that resides at the ASCII location, which can be used to print the corresponding symbol. IDAutomation's character set provides easy methods of encoding functions such as returns and tabs in the barcode.

Code A Code B Code C ASCII * Unicode * Char * Value    Code A Code B Code C ASCII * Unicode * Char * Value
Space Space 00 0194 00C2 Â 00   V V 54 0086 0056 V 54
! ! 01 0033 0021 ! 01   W W 55 0087 0057 W 55
" " 02 0034 0022 " 02   X X 56 0088 0058 X 56
# # 03 0035 0023 # 03   Y Y 57 0089 0059 Y 57
$ $ 04 0036 0024 $ 04   Z Z 58 0090 005A Z 58
% % 05 0037 0025 % 05   [ [ 59 0091 005B [ 59
& & 06 0038 0026 & 06   \ \ 60 0092 005C \ 60
' ' 07 0039 0027 ' 07   ] ] 61 0093 005D ] 61
( ( 08 0040 0028 ( 08   ^ ^ 62 0094 005E ^ 62
) ) 09 0041 0029 ) 09   _ _ 63 0095 005F _ 63
* * 10 0042 002A * 10   nul ` 64 0096 0060 ` 64
+ + 11 0043 002B + 11   soh a 65 0097 0061 a 65
, , 12 0044 002C , 12   stx b 66 0098 0062 b 66
- - 13 0045 002D - 13   etx c 67 0099 0063 c 67
. . 14 0046 002E . 14   eot d 68 0100 0064 d 68
/ / 15 0047 002F / 15   eno e 69 0101 0065 e 69
0 0 16 0048 0030 0 16   ack f 70 0102 0066 f 70
1 1 17 0049 0031 1 17   bel g 71 0103 0067 g 71
2 2 18 0050 0032 2 18   bs h 72 0104 0068 h 72
3 3 19 0051 0033 3 19   ht i 73 0105 0069 i 73
4 4 20 0052 0034 4 20   lf j 74 0106 006A j 74
5 5 21 0053 0035 5 21   vt k 75 0107 006B k 75
6 6 22 0054 0036 6 22   ff l 76 0108 006C l 76
7 7 23 0055 0037 7 23   cr m 77 0109 006D m 77
8 8 24 0056 0038 8 24   s0 n 78 0110 006E n 78
9 9 25 0057 0039 9 25   s1 o 79 0111 006F o 79
: : 26 0058 003A : 26   dle p 80 0112 0070 p 80
; ; 27 0059 003B ; 27   dc1 q 81 0113 0071 q 81
< < 28 0060 003C < 28   dc2 r 82 0114 0072 r 82
= = 29 0061 003D = 29   dc3 s 83 0115 0073 s 83
> > 30 0062 003E > 30   dc4 t 84 0116 0074 t 84
? ? 31 0063 003F ? 31   nak u 85 0117 0075 u 85
@ @ 32 0064 0040 @ 32   syn v 86 0118 0076 v 86
A A 33 0065 0041 A 33   etb w 87 0119 0077 w 87
B B 34 0066 0042 B 34   can x 88 0120 0078 x 88
C C 35 0067 0043 C 35   em y 89 0121 0079 y 89
D D 36 0068 0044 D 36   sub z 90 0122 007A z 90
E E 37 0069 0045 E 37   esc { 91 0123 007B { 91
F F 38 0070 0046 F 38   fs | 92 0124 007C | 92
G G 39 0071 0047 G 39   gs } 93 0125 007D } 93
H H 40 0072 0048 H 40   rs ~ 94 0126 007E ~ 94
I I 41 0073 0049 I 41   us del 95 0195 00C3 Ã 95
J J 42 0074 004A J 42   fnc 3 fnc 3 96 0196 00C4 Ä 96
K K 43 0075 004B K 43   fnc 2 fnc2 97 0197 00C5 Å 97
L L 44 0076 004C L 44   Shift Shift 98 0198 00C6 Æ 98
M M 45 0077 004D M 45   code C code C 99 0199 00C7 Ç 99
N N 46 0078 004E N 46   code B fnc 4 code B 0200 00C8 È 100
O O 47 0079 004F O 47   fnc 4 code A code A 0201 00C9 É 101
P P 48 0080 0050 P 48   fnc 1 fnc 1 fnc 1 0202 00CA Ê 102
Q Q 49 0081 0051 Q 49   Start A Start A Start A 0203 00CB Ë 103
R R 50 0082 0052 R 50   Start B Start B Start B 0204 00CC Ì 104
S S 51 0083 0053 S 51   Start C Start C Start C 0205 00CD Í 105
T T 52 0084 0054 T 52   Stop Stop Stop 0206 00CE Î  
U U 53 0085 0055 U 53                

* To print the Code 128 space character use ASCII 194 instead of ASCII 32 because Windows cannot print a symbol instead of a space character from Visual Basic and most other development environments.

** Macintosh systems should print the Code128 font from Unicode locations if possible because the extended characters map to different characters than what is displayed on the "Char" column in MAC Roman encoding. More about this...

Manual Code 128 Check Character Calculation

NOTE: Several font tools and source code samples are provided that are free to use with IDAutomation's fonts that automatically format the start, stop and check characters to the barcode fonts. Therefore, manual check digit calculations are usually not necessary.

The check character is positioned after the data characters and just before the stop character. To determine the value of the check character:

  1. Reference the table above to obtain the value of the start character and all data characters.
  2. Assign a weighting to each data character (not the start character, just the data characters.) The weighting starts at 1 and increases by one for each data character.
  3. Multiply the character values by their weights for the data characters.
  4. Add these all together including the start character, divide by 103 and obtain the remainder.
  5. Use the table above to locate the character that has the value of the remainder, use this as the check character.

Calculating Character Set A or B:

The following table is an example of how to obtain the check character for the data "biz" using Code 128 character set B.

  Start B b i z STOP
weighting   1 2 3  
values 104 66 73 90  
totals 104 66 146 270  
  1. Calculate Total: 104 + (66*1) + (73*2) + (90*3) = 586
  2. Calculate Checksum: 586 divided by 103 = 5 remainder of 71. Check digit = value of 71. The character to print for the value of 71 is "g" or ASCII 103.

To print extended ASCII characters from the keyboard that do not have keys defined, use the ALT+<xxxx> key combination, where xxxx equals the character's ASCII location in 4 digits. For example, to type ASCII character 104 into Microsoft Word, select the font in Word, press the ALT key and while holding it down type 0104 on the keypad of the keyboard. The keypad must be used to do this and all 4 digits must be entered. 

Therefore to print the data "biz" as a barcode, type: ALT 0204, b, i, z, g, ALT 0206 or ÌbizgÎ. Click here for more information on printing fonts with extended ASCII characters or use IDAutomation's font automation tools.

Calculating Character Set C:

The following table is an example of how to obtain the check character for the number "667390" using Code 128 character set C. First, the number will have to be interleaved into pairs and then the appropriate character needs to be selected that represents the number pair.

  Start C 66 73 90 STOP
weighting   1 2 3  
values 105 66 73 90  
totals 105 66 146 270  
  1. Calculate Total: 105 + (66*1) + (73*2) + (90*3) = 587
  2. Calculate Checksum: 587 divided by 103 = 5 remainder of 72. Check digit = value of 72. The character to print for the value of 72 is ASCII 104.

Therefore to print the data "667390" as a barcode, type: ALT 0205, b, i, z, h, ALT 0206 or ÍbizhÎ. Click here for more information on printing fonts with extended ASCII characters or use IDAutomation's font automation tools.

Switching Between Character Sets:

It is possible to switch between character sets in a single Code 128 barcode symbol. Although character set B can encode text and numbers, it may require the user to switch to set A to encode a function such as a tab or carriage return.

The following table is an example of how to encode the data "biz" using Code 128 character set B with a switch to character set A for a carriage return function.

  Start B b i z É m STOP
weighting   1 2 3 4 5  
values 104 66 73 90 101 77  
totals 104 66 146 270 404 385  
  1. Calculate Total: 104 + (66*1) + (73*2) + (90*3) + (101*4) + (77*5) = 1375
  2. Calculate Checksum: 1375 divided by 103 = 13 remainder of 36. Check digit = value of 36. The character to print for the value of 36 is "D" or ASCII 68.

This type of switching between character sets is also compatible with IDAutomation's font automation tools. For example, if the data is bizÉm (É is the switch to set A and m is the function according to the chart) as the input for the Code 128 B function. The data ÌbizÉmDÎ would be returned, which would perform the switch to set A and the function of a return when printed with IDAutomation's font and scanned by a barcode scanner.

Calculating for UCC/EAN-128:

The FNC1 is treated as if another character so it's calculation will have to be figured in. Here is how to calculate (00)1234(15)12 which would be Ê001234Ê1512 in IDAutomation's font tools. Look at the chart to pair up the numbers with letters. More information about creating UCC/EAN128 barcodes is provided in the Code 128 FAQ.

 

Start C

FNC1

00

12

34

FNC1

15

12

STOP

weighting

 

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

 

values

105

102

00

12

34

102

15

12

 

totals

105

102

00

36

136

510

90

84

 
  1. Add up totals: = 1063
  2. Calculate Checksum: 1063 divided by 103 = 10 remainder of 33. Check digit = value of 33.

Therefore, according to the chart, the following text will be needed to create the barcode from the font: ÍÊÂ,BÊ/,AÎ  

Specifications

The X dimension (X is the width of the narrow bar) is listed below for various point sizes.

IDAutomation's Code 128 fonts have been specially designed to be able to produce dependable and scanable barcodes when printed at large and small point sizes. With a 600 DPI laser printer, the Code 128 font can be printed as small as 6 points if the scanner supports reading it. In the test lab, IDAutomation has been able to dependably scan the Code 128 font with the following hardware:

Keep in mind though; the Code 128 fonts should be printed at 12 points or larger for open systems.

Point Size

Approximate X dimension
48 .85 mm .032"
36 .63 mm .024"
24 .42 mm .016"
20 .35 mm .013"
16 .28 mm .011"
12 .21 mm .008"
8 .14 mm .006"
6 .105 mm .004"

* To print at a different X dimension, find the point size that has the X dimension closest to what is needed and use this formula to find the point size needed:
12 * (X dimension needed) / (X dimension at 12 points) = (point size) For example, to set an X dimension of 12 mils, print it at 14 points because:
12 * 12 / 10 = 14

Eighteen different versions of the Code 128 barcode fonts are provided to support human-readable versions and different height/width requirements. Fonts with the letter "H" in the font name are "human readable" versions more about these versions. The last characters in the Code 128 barcode font name determines the height of the barcode with the shortest being "XS" and the tallest being "XXL". Because each single font can be printed at various point sizes, there are several combinations of heights and widths that can be produced. (Click to view font names prior to July, 2003)

Font name of purchased version Font name of eval version* Font height at 12 points*
Code 128 Fonts with no text below the barcode:
IDAutomationC128XS IDAutomationSC128XS  1/16" (.078") or .2 cm
IDAutomationC128S IDAutomationSC128S  1/8" (.125") or .4 cm
IDAutomationC128M IDAutomationSC128M  1/4" (.25") or .6 cm
IDAutomationC128L IDAutomationSC128L  1/2" (.5") or 1.1 cm
IDAutomationC128XL IDAutomationSC128XL  5/8" (.625") or 1.6 cm
IDAutomationC128XXL IDAutomationS128XXL  1"  or 2.5 cm
Code 128 Fonts "Character set B" with text below the barcode:**
IDAutomationHbC128XS NA  1/16" (.078") or .2 cm
IDAutomationHbC128S NA  1/8" (.125") or .4 cm
IDAutomationHbC128M IDAutomationSHbC128M  1/4" (.25") or .6 cm
IDAutomationHbC128L NA  1/2" (.5") or 1.1 cm
IDAutomationHbC128XL NA  5/8" (.625") or 1.6 cm
IDAutomationHbC128XXL NA  1"  or 2.5 cm
Code 128 Fonts "Character set C" with text below the barcode:**
IDAutomationHcC128XS NA  1/16" (.078") or .2 cm
IDAutomationHcC128S NA  1/8" (.125") or .4 cm
IDAutomationHcC128M IDAutomationSHcC128M  1/4" (.25") or .6 cm
IDAutomationHcC128L NA  1/2" (.5") or 1.1 cm
IDAutomationHcC128XL NA  5/8" (.625") or 1.6 cm
IDAutomationHcC128XXL NA  1"  or 2.5 cm
* Measurements are approximate and were measured when printed at 12 points which should work for most scanners. Measurements for Human-Readable fonts do not include the text below. At 12 points, the X dimension is about 8 mils.

* To print at a different X dimension, find the point size that has the X dimension closest to what is needed and use this formula to find the point size needed:
12 * (X dimension needed) / (X dimension at 12 points) = (point size) For example, to set an X dimension of 12 mils, print it at 14 points because:
12 * 12 / 10 = 14

**  The human readable versions also work with IDAutomation's font tools. However, they are not normally used because the Code 128 symbology MOD103 check digit is always displayed in the result. They are often used for testing purposes or when it is not a problem to have the symbology check digit displayed. To print the human-readable data without the check digit, use the fonts beginning with "IDAutomationC128" and then print the data being encoded below or above the barcode.

Font names used prior to July, 2003

Font name of purchased version Font name of eval version* Font height at 12 points*
Code 128 Fonts with no text below the barcode:
AdvC128a sAdC128a  1/16" (.078") or .2 cm
AdvC128b sAdC128b  1/8" (.125") or .4 cm
AdvC128c sAdC128c  1/4" (.25") or .6 cm
AdvC128d sAdC128d  1/2" (.5") or 1.1 cm
AdvC128e sAdC128e  5/8" (.625") or 1.6 cm
AdvC128f sAdC128f  1"  or 2.5 cm
Code 128 Fonts "Character set B" with text below the barcode:**
C128bHa NA  1/16" (.078") or .2 cm
C128bHb NA  1/8" (.125") or .4 cm
C128bHc sC128bHc  1/4" (.25") or .6 cm
C128bHd NA  1/2" (.5") or 1.1 cm
C128bHe NA  5/8" (.625") or 1.6 cm
C128bHf NA  1"  or 2.5 cm
Code 128 Fonts "Character set C" with text below the barcode:**
C128cHa NA  1/16" (.078") or .2 cm
C128cHb NA  1/8" (.125") or .4 cm
C128cHc sC128cHc  1/4" (.25") or .6 cm
C128cHd NA  1/2" (.5") or 1.1 cm
C128cHe NA  5/8" (.625") or 1.6 cm
C128cHf NA  1"  or 2.5 cm

Installation Instructions

NOTICE: When printing the Code 128 fonts at less than 15 points, a high quality printer with a 600 DPI or greater resolution should be used; it may also be necessary to reduce the print intensity if it has been increased in the past to a value greater than normal. Click for assistance with low-resolution printers.

To install the TrueType fonts in Windows, run the INSTALL.EXE program or perform the following for manual installation:

  1. Click on Start, select settings and click on Control Panel.
  2. Click on Fonts. Click on File in the main tool bar; select Install New Font.
  3. Select the folder where the Code 128 bar code font is saved.
  4. The Code 128 bar code font will appear and look like this: IDAutomationSC128XS (TrueType) - select this font and click on OK.
  5. Click Start and choose to shut down and restart the computer.
  6. The font should be active when the computer is restarted.

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 a restart of the computer.
  3. The font should now be active in the font menu of the application.

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

  1. Download and install Stuffit Expander on the Macintosh if an expander utility is not already loaded to 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 the ZIP file was placed in. Open this subfolder to view the font files. At this point, please view the documentation supplied with the font files. To do so just drag the file "readme.html" to the Safari or Mozilla Firefox icon.
  3. Now the files must be decoded from MacBinary format. Drag the font files desired that end with "mtt" to the Stuffit Expander icon.
  4. Then drag the decoded font files to the System - Fonts folder.
  5. To activate the fonts, restart the application - some applications may require a restart of the computer.

To sign up for monthly updates about new products or upgrades, please click here.Font installation procedures for other operating systems are provided here

If there are any questions or assistance needed, please contact IDAutomation.

 

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