Code 39
Self-checking encoding distinguishes Code 39: each character is drawn as nine elements of which exactly three are wide, so an error inside a single character is detectable without any check digit. David Allais and Ray Stevens developed the symbology at Intermec in 1974, the first to carry a full alphabetic range covering A through Z, the digits 0 through 9, and the punctuation set - . $ / + % and space. Density is the price of that redundancy. At a 0.19 mm X-dimension a Code 39 symbol is materially wider than a Code 128 symbol holding the same string, and practical payloads stop near eighty characters. Quiet zones of ten modules are required on both sides. United States defence, automotive, and healthcare labelling standards adopted it early, and use in those sectors outlived its density disadvantage.
Die erste Barcode-Symbologie, die den vollständigen alphanumerischen Zeichensatz (A–Z, 0–9 sowie Sonderzeichen) codieren konnte. Code 39 ist selbstprüfend – jedes Zeichen kann unabhängig verifiziert werden –, weshalb er in der US-Verteidigung, der Automobilindustrie und im Gesundheitswesen beliebt ist, wo Zuverlässigkeit wichtiger ist als Dichte.
Code 39
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