Hi,
Has anyone tried to integrate bar codes in OD? I have a small bar code scanner that works well for inventory, and I was thinking it can work for tracking lab cases too, if we can print a bar code on a label with the patient's name.
Barcodes
Re: Barcodes
Neat idea.
The barcoding can really be completely separate from OD. All the scanners are USB these days.
How much information you want to encode will determine which barcode (and consequently which barcode scanner) you want to implement. Code 128 is one of the simplest and ubiquitous, but is limited in the number of characters you can encode. It's generally best for a string of characters, eg., 1234567 or perhaps lastnamefirstname. A 2D matrix barcode is much better if you want to store more information or have formatted output (i.e. carriage returns). The entry level scanners will generally not be capable of handling 2D barcodes. For 2D stuff, nothing was better than Symbol Technologies hardware. Apparently, Symbol was acquired by Motorola in 2007, so you'll have to dig through Motorola's site if that's what you're interested in.
Wasp makes some pretty easy to use barcode software http://www.waspbarcode.com/software/. It's fairly easy and straightforward for creating your own barcode labels. You can also buy fonts that allow you to generate barcodes from good old Word, a good source for that is http://www.idautomation.com. If you're serious about printing large volumes of labels, stay away from the Dymo stuff - it's junk. Zebra label printers are the only way to go: http://www.zebra.com/
Finally, RFID (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio-freq ... tification) may supplant barcoding (believe it or not, barcoding is a bit tedious), so you might consider barcoding as a temporary stopgap as RFID matures and becomes more streamlined in SBO environments.
Good luck.
The barcoding can really be completely separate from OD. All the scanners are USB these days.
How much information you want to encode will determine which barcode (and consequently which barcode scanner) you want to implement. Code 128 is one of the simplest and ubiquitous, but is limited in the number of characters you can encode. It's generally best for a string of characters, eg., 1234567 or perhaps lastnamefirstname. A 2D matrix barcode is much better if you want to store more information or have formatted output (i.e. carriage returns). The entry level scanners will generally not be capable of handling 2D barcodes. For 2D stuff, nothing was better than Symbol Technologies hardware. Apparently, Symbol was acquired by Motorola in 2007, so you'll have to dig through Motorola's site if that's what you're interested in.
Wasp makes some pretty easy to use barcode software http://www.waspbarcode.com/software/. It's fairly easy and straightforward for creating your own barcode labels. You can also buy fonts that allow you to generate barcodes from good old Word, a good source for that is http://www.idautomation.com. If you're serious about printing large volumes of labels, stay away from the Dymo stuff - it's junk. Zebra label printers are the only way to go: http://www.zebra.com/
Finally, RFID (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio-freq ... tification) may supplant barcoding (believe it or not, barcoding is a bit tedious), so you might consider barcoding as a temporary stopgap as RFID matures and becomes more streamlined in SBO environments.
Good luck.
Cheers,
Bill Starck, DDS
Big Idea Software, LLC
Developer, EASy(Electronic Anesthesia System) for Open Dental
817-807-1709
TX, USA
Bill Starck, DDS
Big Idea Software, LLC
Developer, EASy(Electronic Anesthesia System) for Open Dental
817-807-1709
TX, USA
Re: Barcodes
Hi,
Is there any plan to use the sheets for the labcases soon? I'm asking because i was trying this weekend to use a bar code scanner to track the labcases. The driver for the scanner supports ODBC and can add data to a mysql table, which in turn can be synchronized with the labcase table. The only limitation is the number of fields available for the label or the lab prescription. I can currently print the PatNum and the date in the bar code format, but would be great to have the LabCaseNum available to make sure the synchronization occurs for the same case.
We are using the Letter Merge feature to print the lab slip. I think would be much easier if we can print it from the labcase window.
Is there any plan to use the sheets for the labcases soon? I'm asking because i was trying this weekend to use a bar code scanner to track the labcases. The driver for the scanner supports ODBC and can add data to a mysql table, which in turn can be synchronized with the labcase table. The only limitation is the number of fields available for the label or the lab prescription. I can currently print the PatNum and the date in the bar code format, but would be great to have the LabCaseNum available to make sure the synchronization occurs for the same case.
We are using the Letter Merge feature to print the lab slip. I think would be much easier if we can print it from the labcase window.
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