UPC (Universal Product Code) A is the most widely used linear barcode symbology designed for tracking products in departmental stores. UPC A was initially created at April 3, 1973 when grocery industry officially recognized UPC as standard barcode symbology to mark goods.
UPC A is well known with other names including Universal Product Code version A, Supplement 5/Five-digit Add-On, UPC-A Supplement 2/Two-digit-Add-On, UPC-A+5, UPC-A+2, UPC Code, UPC Symbol, GTIN-12, GS1-12, UCC-12.
Structure of UPC A barcode symbology
The UPC A number comprises of the following areas:
Number system consists of first digit in UPC number used to recognize type of product and is printed to the left side of the barcode symbol.
Manufacturer code is printed just below the barcode symbol. UCC council assigns manufacturer code to every company or manufacturer which distributes goods along with UPC A barcodes.
Product code consists of a 5-digit number assigned by the manufacturer and is printed below the barcode.
Check digit is implemented to check whether the barcode is generated or scanned correctly or not. Calculation of check digit is done using other remaining digits and is printed to the right of the barcode symbol.
The structure of UPC-A symbol is a combination of different elements explained below:
- Start guard bars, forever includes sample bar+space+bar
- Left halve consists of six digits encoded with the encoding schema A or B
- Center guard bars together with a pattern space+bar+space+bar+space
- Right halve is a collection of six digits encoded by means of the encoding schema C
- Stop guard bars, always contains a form bar+space+bar
Applications of UPC A barcode symbology
- Many countries including North America, Canada, United States and others implement UPC A barcodes to identify items in stores.
- UPC A is widely used for tracking miscellaneous products such as books, magazines, newspapers, toys, drugs, tickets and others.
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