Public Review Available for Chinese Barcode

WARRENDALE, Pa.—AIM Global, a trade association for automatic identification and mobility, announced that a public review draft of the International Symbology Specification: Grid Matrix is available for a 30-day public review.

Developed by AIM Global’s technical symbology committee (TSC), the Grid Matrix is designed to encode the entire GB 2312-1980 Chinese character set efficiently. Grid Matrix can also encode 7-bit ASCII, numeric and binary data. It is intended for use in printed symbols and mobile phone display applications.

"AIM Global is pleased to announce the public review of Grid Matrix—the first proposed international symbology specification from China,” says AIM Global president Dan Mullen. “China is a very important market for barcode technology, and the development of this symbology specification is a strong indication of the future growth we can expect. It's important to mention that the active involvement of the symbology sponsors from China, along with the dedication of the TSC members, resulted in this document being progressed from the initial submission to public review in less than 18 months. This is a major accomplishment."

The public review process ends Sept. 30. Interested reviewers can download the document for a fee. AIM Global members can download it free of charge at www.aimglobal.org.