Wednesday 7 December 2011

Getting the most from the barcode scanner


When there is a barcode scanner attached to ColorPoint there are a lot of useful shortcuts you can use in the software to reduce the amount of time it takes to set up a dispense and also decrease the probability of assigning a dispense to the wrong job.  This post should be helpful either if you’re considering ordering a barcode scanner for a new or existing system or you simply want to get the most out of your existing scanner.

Dispensing to a job

If you are using ColorPoint Manager to set up jobs then using the barcode scanner can eliminate time spent finding the correct job by using the job sheet from ColorPoint Manager.
JobSheet
If you scan the barcode under any job item when you are on the jobs screen on the console it will move to the dispense screen and automatically set the weight to equal to the estimated amount less what has already been dispensed to that item.  It will also book that dispense the job item you scanned on the job sheet.  This allows you to navigate the job screen much quicker than you could using the keys and also prevents the operator from accidentally booking a dispense to the wrong job.

Repeating a dispense

If you have a label printer in your ColorPoint Console you may have noticed that every time you do a dispense you get a label with a barcode on it.  If you scan this label when you are on the dispense screen (pictured below) then ColorPoint will create another exactly like the dispense that produced that barcode.  This means if you need another bucket of ink for the same job then instead of having to navigate to the job screen and select it again you can just scan the barcode of the original dispense thus saving you time and eliminating the possibility of selecting the wrong job.
DispenseScreen

 

Booking in a return

If you scan the barcode from a dispense label then ColorPoint will match use the composition of the scanned dispense for the new return.  As well eliminating the time spent finding the correct formula to book the return in as this method also allows for more accurate return matching in future.  This is because if there was an over dispense during the original dispense, for example someone added too much on a manual add, ColorPoint can compensate for this when using the return in the future.  Using this method also means that the return will keep traceability information from the original dispense that would have otherwise been lost.

Getting a dispense from the queue

If you use the dispense queue as part of your work flow then the barcode scanner can be use to select a dispense from the queue.  You can scan the barcode of a formula code or a job number and ColorPoint select the first matching dispense from the dispense queue.  This saves time spent looking in the dispense queue for the desired dispense.

What if i don’t have a label printer or a printer attached to ColorPoint Manager?

Although we do recommend having printers for both the ColorPoint Console and ColorPoint Manager for the most efficient use of the barcode scanner it is possible to still get some of the benefits of using the barcode scanner as long as you have a printer capable of printing a barcode somewhere in the organisation.  The ColorPoint barcode scanner reads barcodes produced in the Code 39 format (sometimes also known as the 3 of 9 format) which can be produced by simply installing and using a custom font.  Although the installation of a custom font is beyond the scope of this document if you are interested in generating your own barcodes for use with ColorPoint Manager please contact Rexson directly and we will send you the details on how to get started.