User's Manual

M-1
Appendix M
How to scan a bar code
The RF Terminal can be used with a variety of scanners – wands, lasers,
and CCDs. Which one you choose is dependent upon your application and
the quality and density of your bar codes. This section will include
information on different scanners as well as how to use each one.
Wand Scanners
The RF Terminal can be used with the F57 Switch Wand. Scanning with a
wand is like drawing a line with a pencil - hold the wand as you would a
pencil, about 30 degrees from perpendicular. Squeeze the wide black rubber
band (there should now be red light coming from the end of the wand) and
“draw” a line through the bar code, starting about ¼” before the bar code
and making sure you end at least ¼” past the end of the bar code. You do
not have to press hard – a light touch is fine and scanning quickly is
preferred to scanning slowly. The key to wand scanning is to make sure
you stay on the bar code the whole way though.
Laser and CCD Scanners
If you are using a laser or CCD scanner, technique is not as critical. The
scanners are “point-and-shoot”; you can’t miss. Upon triggering the beam,
the laser and CCD scans the bar code multiple times (36 scans per second)
until it has a good read, at which point it automatically shuts off. These
scanners are more expensive, but virtually foolproof. They read from a
distance, so they are much more convenient for distance shelf scanning or
scanning in tight spots. Different laser scanners have different distance
capabilities. Table M-1 shows the comparison of all the laser and CCD
scanners available from Worth Data.
Scanner Hi Density
Code 39
UPC
100%
40 mil Code
39
Paper 100
mil Code39
Retro-Reflective
100 mil Code 39
LI50 CCD 0.5” – 4” 0.5 - 7” 1” – 12” na 20” – 40”
LZ100 Laser 0 – 6” 0 – 12” 2” – 41” 7” – 41” 28” – 7.5 ft.
LZ200 Laser
& Terminal’s
Integrated
Laser
0.5” – 9” 0 – 17” 3” – 44” 9” – 50” 18” – 9.5 ft.
Symbol 3200
Laser
3.5” – 11” 2” - 22” 10” – 13 ft. 24” – 15 ft. 32” – 28.5 ft.
Table M-1. Scanner Comparison Chart
6 mil = high density
40 mil = low density
100 mil = very low density (with paper and retro-reflective label stock)