JP5445355B2 - Machine reading code data management system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for determining whether or not an output product is correct by using a machine-readable code pattern output on a printer output product.

In the process of issuing a large amount of documents such as direct mail and invoices, a management pattern such as a barcode is often used for production process management and history management. In particular, for forms with different contents for each destination, strict process management is essential, and various methods and apparatuses using management patterns have been proposed.
Patent Document 1 is an invention of an inspection apparatus and an inspection method by the same inventor as the present invention, and describes a method for acquiring and inspecting a code pattern from a form on which a management code is printed.

JP 2009-151513 A

  According to Patent Document 1, since code data having a predetermined specific system is targeted, it is difficult to rationally handle code data having a plurality of different systems or code data having a new system. There is.

  Therefore, the present invention enables the registration of a machine reading code consisting of a new code system not registered in the database in advance, and managing a plurality of different types of code data including code data consisting of this new code system as one management. The challenge is to make the system handleable.

The system for managing code data for machine reading of the present invention that solves the above problems
Image data for printer output is generated from machine-readable code data in a predetermined format stored in a database, the image data is output as a code pattern on a sheet via a printer, and the code pattern output on the sheet is Machine-readable code data provided with verification means that is read by a scanner, decodes the read code pattern, converts the code pattern into code data, and verifies the converted code data by comparing the code data stored in the database Management system,
A code data group consisting of a plurality of different systems is stored in the database, and a registration name giving means for giving a different registration name for each set of code data constituting the code data group, and corresponding to the registration name A format definition table describing a data format of a set of code data to be
Machine-readable code data is generated and converted based on the format definition table.

Configuration diagram of the machine-readable code data management system of the present invention Functional block diagram of the machine reading code data management system of the present invention Diagram showing code pattern Schematic diagram of code data management table Schematic diagram of data structure of format definition table Diagram showing the flow to code pattern generation Diagram showing the flow of the verification process

<Configuration of management system for machine-readable code data>
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a machine reading code data management system (hereinafter referred to as a management system). FIG. 1 shows an aspect including printer output, and the management system of the present invention is represented as a part of a form manufacturing system.
In the form manufacturing system shown in FIG. 1, when the form 22 is manufactured from the paper 21 by the printer 20, the code pattern 24 for individually identifying the form 22 is simultaneously output on the form 22, The management system 1 of the invention is responsible for the generation, management, reading and verification of this code pattern 24.

  In the management system 1 of the present invention, the management apparatus 11 has a database 12 for storing code data and management data related to the code pattern 24, and is responsible for the generation and management of the code data. Furthermore, the management apparatus 11 exchanges data regarding the code pattern 24 with the printer 20 and the scanner 15 via the network 13, and outputs the code pattern 24 on the form 22 and the code pattern 24 output on the form 22. Control reading of.

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the management system 1.
The management device 11 of the management system 1 includes a registered name assigning means 31, a format setting means 32, a code pattern generating means 33, a decoding means 34, a collating means 35, and a reading means 36, and performs the above data processing and control.

  The registered name assigning means 31 assigns a registered name for identifying a management unit based on an instruction from the administrator. In the form manufacturing system shown in FIG. Set the destination name. Here, the item name is used as the registered name, and the description of the management system 1 is continued.

  The format setting means 32 sets the same code format as the type of code used for each item. The code pattern generation unit 33 generates a code pattern to be output on the form 22 according to the format definition table set by the format setting unit 32. The reading unit 36 reads the code pattern 24 on the form 22 by the scanner 15. The decoding unit 34 converts the code pattern read by the reading unit 36 into code data. The collating unit 35 collates the code data obtained by the decoding unit 34 with the code data stored in the database.

The database 12 stores an item name 41, a code type 42 used for each item, a format definition table 43 describing a format of code data, and the like, and forms a code data management table 40 to be described later. Yes.
The database 12 stores a code data group 44 associated with the item name. The code data group 44 is a set of code data output on the form 22 and is assigned to each form 22 on a one-to-one basis. For example, if an item consists of 100 individual forms, and these are individually identified, 100 pieces of code data are required.

Here, the types of codes used for each item will be described.
FIG. 3 is an example of a code pattern output on the form 22. Examples of machine-readable code patterns that are suitable for output by a printer include a bar code 241, a two-dimensional code 242, and an OCR character 243. For example, a two-dimensional code has a large amount of information to be recorded, and an OCR character can be read by a human as well as a machine.
As described above, there are various code patterns. For example, NW-7 and CODE39 are used for barcodes, and OCR-A and OCR-B are used for OCR characters. It is standardized, and each standard forms a code system.

FIG. 4 is a configuration example of the code data management table.
In the code data management table 40 of FIG. 4, a code type (code type) 42 is assigned to each item to be manufactured, and the format of the code is represented as a format definition table 43. The format definition table explains (defines) the meaning of the arrangement of the data of each digit of the code data that is the basis of the code pattern 24. For example, when interpreting the code data, refer to the definition table and refer to the meaning. Will be interpreted.

FIG. 5 shows the data structure of the format definition table.
The figure shows an example of a two-dimensional code format definition table. The type and meaning of the letters and numbers of each digit are defined by the definition table 51. Since the information included in the code data varies depending on the item, the format of the format definition table is set for each item.

  As described above, since the code data management table 40 has the code type 42 and the format definition table 43, the management system 1 of the present invention can manage a plurality of different types of code data in a unified manner. Become.

<Operation of management system>
The operation of the management system of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 6 shows the flow up to the generation of the code pattern, in other words, the work setting flow for manufacturing the form 22.

First, the management apparatus 11 registers the item name 41 by the registered name giving means 31 (S61). The first row of the code data management table 40 in FIG. 4 corresponds to “◯ △ Trading XXDM”.
Next, the format setting means 32 sets the type of code used for the item including the standard 421 (S62), and further describes the data structure in a predetermined format and sets it as the format definition table 43 (S63). . In the example of FIG. 4, the code is “NW-7 barcode”, and the data structure is “xxxxxxxx ########”.
Such information is stored in the database (DB) 12 for each item (S64), and individual code data is generated according to the format definition table 43 (S65).

  When the form 22 is manufactured, the code data group 44 of the item to be manufactured is sent to the printer 20 (S66), and the code pattern 24 is output on the form 22. The code data sent to the printer 20 may be the code data as it is, or image data obtained by converting the code data into a code pattern.

FIG. 7 shows a flow relating to code data collation.
In collation, first, the target item is designated from the code data management table 40 of the database 12 (S71), and then the code pattern 24 on the form 22 is read by the scanner 15 of the reading means 36 (S72). The decoding means 34 converts the read code pattern into code data (S73).

Next, illegal collation processing is performed by the collating means 35 (S75). The illegal extraction process is, for example, the following process.
The collating means 35 searches the code data group 44 of the designated item for data that is equal to the converted code data. If there is a match, an appropriate form 22 has been output. If there is no match, some improperness has occurred. This is the simplest example of matching.
In addition, for example, when a matching item is found in the code data of another item, it can be estimated that a different type of form is included in the target form.
In addition, when the code pattern cannot be detected, a print failure due to feeding of two sheets can be considered.
In this way, accidents in the manufacturing process such as extinction, mixing of different varieties, excess and deficiency can be found by verification.

1 Code Data Management System 11 Management Device 12 Database 13 Network 15 Scanner 22 Form 20 Printer 24 Identification Code

Claims (1)

Generate image data for printer output from machine-readable code data in a predetermined format stored in the database,
Outputting the image data as a code pattern on a sheet via a printer;
The code pattern output on the paper is read by a scanner, the read code pattern is decoded and converted into code data,
A machine-readable code data management system comprising verification means for verifying by comparing the converted code data with code data stored in the database,
The database stores code data groups consisting of a plurality of different systems,
A registered name giving means for giving a different registered name for each set of code data constituting the code data group;
A format definition table describing a data format of a set of code data corresponding to the registered name;
With
A machine-readable code data management system that generates and converts machine-readable code data based on the format definition table.

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