Method and apparatus for applying bar code information to products during production

Abstract

Bar code information is printed on a printable surface associated with a product, such as a label or container of the product, or the product itself, during a production run under the control of a printer computer. The bar code information may include two components of a composite bar code symbol, where the first component is either pre-printed or printed during a production run, and the second component is printed during the production run. The first component may identify a product that is carried in the containers, while the second component identifies a lot, batch, expiration date or commodity number. In another aspect, check data is used to confirm the accuracy of information that is used by a printer computer to control a printer. In another aspect, first and second bar code symbols portions are read to recover information, and a database is accessed to determine if the recovered information is consistent.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A method for applying bar code information to a product on a production line, comprising: 
 printing, on a printable surface associated with the product, and during a production run, bar code information that supplements bar code information associated with the product;    wherein the supplemental bar code information provides information associated with the production run.    
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein: 
 the bar code information associated with the product is pre-printed on the printable surface.    
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein: 
 the supplemental bar code information identifies at least one of a lot, batch, expiration date and commodity number associated with the production run.    
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein: 
 the bar code information associated with the product identifies at least one of the product and information for using the product.    
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein: 
 the supplemental bar code information and the bar code information associated with the product form a composite bar code.    
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein: 
 the printable surface comprises a label.    
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein: 
 the printing occurs before the label is applied to a container of the product.    
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein: 
 the printing occurs after the label is applied to a container of the product.    
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein: 
 the printable surface comprises a container of the product.    
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein: 
 the printable surface comprises a tab associated with the product.    
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein: 
 the printing comprises printing using at least one of ink jet printing, laser marking, laser printing, electrographic printing, flexographic printing, thermal transfer printing, thermal printing and electrographic printing.    
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein: 
 the supplemental bar code information is concatenated horizontally with the bar code information associated with the product.    
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein: 
 the supplemental bar code information is concatenated vertically with the bar code information associated with the product.    
     
     
         14 . An apparatus for applying bar code information to a product on a production line, comprising: 
 means for printing, on a printable surface associated with the product, and during a production run, bar code information that supplements bar code information associated with the product;    wherein the supplemental bar code information provides information associated with the production run.    
     
     
         15 . A method for applying bar codes on a production line, comprising: 
 programming a computer with information associated with a production run;    printing, responsive to the programming, during the production run, and on a printable surface associated with a product on the production line, bar code indicia that carries the information.    
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein: 
 the information carried by the bar code indicia identifies at least one of a lot, batch, expiration date and commodity number associated with the production run.    
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein: 
 the programming comprises scanning a bar code to provide the computer with the information.    
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein: 
 the programming comprises receiving a manual user input to provide the computer with the information.    
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein: 
 the programming comprises receiving an electronic transmission to provide the computer with the information.    
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein: 
 the printing comprises printing using at least one of ink jet printing, laser marking, laser printing, electrographic printing, flexographic printing, thermal transfer printing, thermal printing and electrographic printing.    
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein: 
 the printable surface comprises a label.    
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein: 
 the printable surface comprises a container of the product.    
     
     
         23 . An apparatus for applying bar codes on a production line, comprising: 
 means for programming a computer with information associated with a production run;    means for printing, responsive to the programming means, during the production run, and on a printable surface associated with a product on the production line, bar code indicia that carries the information.    
     
     
         24 . An error detection method for use in a production line in which bar codes are applied to products: 
 receiving first check data at a printer computer that controls a printer on the production line;    wherein the first check data is calculated at another computer based on information associated, at least in part, with a production run on the production line;    receiving the information at the printer computer;    computing second check data at the printer computer based on the received information; and    determining whether the first and second check data agree.    
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 24 , further comprising: 
 instructing the printer to print, during the production run, on a printable surface associated with a product, and when the first and second check data agree, bar code indicia that carries the received information.    
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 24 , further comprising: 
 setting an error message if the first and second check data do not agree.    
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein: 
 the first check data is received at the printer computer via an electronic transmission from the another computer.    
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein: 
 the information is received at the printer computer via an electronic transmission from the another computer.    
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein: 
 the information is received at the printer computer via a manual user entry.    
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein: 
 the information is received at the printer computer by scanning a bar code.    
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein: 
 the information comprises a product identifier and at least one of a lot, batch, expiration date and commodity number associated with the production run.    
     
     
         32 . An error detection apparatus for use in a production line in which bar codes are applied to products: 
 means at a printer computer for receiving first check data;    wherein the printer computer controls a printer on the production line, and the first check data is calculated at another computer based on information associated, at least in part, with a production run on the production line;    means at the printer computer for receiving the information;    means at the printer computer for computing second check data based on the received information; and    means for determining whether the first and second check data agree.    
     
     
         33 . An error detection method for use in a production line in which bar codes are applied to products: 
 reading first bar code indicia from at least one product during a production run on the production line to recover first information therefrom;    reading second bar code indicia from the at least one product during the production run to recover second information therefrom; and    determining if the first and second information are consistent.    
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 33 , wherein: 
 the first bar code indicia is provided pre-printed; and    the second bar code indicia is printed during the production run.    
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 33 , wherein: 
 the first and second bar code indicia form a composite bar code symbol.    
     
     
         36 . The method of  claim 33 , wherein: 
 at least one of the first and second bar code indicia includes information relating to the production run.    
     
     
         37 . An error detection apparatus for use in a production line in which bar codes are applied to products: 
 means for reading first bar code indicia from at least one product during a production run on the production line to recover first information therefrom;    means for reading second bar code indicia from the at least one product during the production run to recover second information therefrom; and    means for determining if the first and second information are consistent.