Bar Code Standards

A bar code is a combination of parallel bars and spaces that communicates data about a product or shipping container. Often referred to as U.P.C. symbols (or Uniform Product Codes), the standards for bar codes are part of the global EAN.UCC System.

GS1 Canada provides tools and information that allow businesses to fully take advantage of bar code standards, such as:

• Bar Coding Basics for Shipping Containers  [538kb PDF]
• Bar Coding for Designers, Printers & Packagers  [1,850kb PDF]

GS1 System  — The set of international GS1 identification and business communications standards that lead to greater visibility of goods and services in logistics, supply and administrative processes. This includes all parts of the supply chain including raw material producers, manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, retailers and end-consumers world-wide.

• Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) Allocation Rules — Rules to describe the entire family of EAN.UCC data structures for trade item identification.

• GS1 Databar™ (Formerly RSS) - A new type of bar code that addresses specific space-constrained applications. DataBar combines new technology with the history and success of the 25-year-old bar code to tell the whole product story.

• SCC-14— The 14-digit number assigned to fixed content shipping containers.

• 2005 Sunrise — Effective January 1, 2005, all North American trading partners must be able to accept and process EAN-13s.

Electronic Product Code (EPC) — The next generation of bar code designed to provide a unique serial number for each item in the supply chain using a string of numbers to identify the manufacturer, the product, and the product’s serial number.

EAN.UCC-14 (SCC-14), U.P.C. symbols, and DataBar are types of GTINs defined in the EAN.UCC system.