Pharmacode vs Code 128
Pharmaceutical Pharmacode for packaging line verification vs general-purpose Code 128. Pharmacode is intentionally simple (numbers only) for high-speed production line scanning.
Specification comparison
| Specification | Pharmacode | Code 128 |
|---|---|---|
| Classification | 1D Linear | 1D Linear |
| Symbology family | Independent Symbologies | Code Family |
| Year introduced | 1978 | 1981 |
| Developer | Laetus | Computer Identics |
| Data length | variable (1-16 bars) | variable (1-80 characters) |
| Variable length | Yes | Yes |
| Character set | Integer 3-131070 (binary encoding) | ASCII completo (128 caracteres) |
| Maximum capacity | Integer from 3 to 131,070 | 80 characters (practical limit) |
| GS1 data carrier | No | No |
| Unicode encoding | No | No |
| Binary data | No | No |
| Minimum X-dimension | 0.5 mm | 0.25 mm |
| Nominal height | 8 mm | 15 mm |
| Quiet zone | 4X | 10X |
| Example payload | 1234 | BarcodeFYI-2026 |
Highlighted rows mark specifications where the two symbologies differ.