Read curved, wrinkled and crumpled 1D barcodes on bottles, vials, cans and delivery bags. Most decoders need one straight line through every bar. barKoder's Segment Decoding® reads each segment of the barcode and puts the data back together, so it keeps reading when no such line exists.
Barcodes in the field are rarely flat. They wrap around test tubes, get crumpled on delivery bags and distort on plastic bottles. Test Segment Decoding on the items your users scan, at the angles they hold them.
Pick 1D barcodes that fail with your current scanner:
Compare successful reads and how often users have to rotate or flatten the item.
Start an SDK trialA 1D decoder reads a barcode along a scan line. Most decoders, hardware or software, need at least one straight line that crosses every bar. When a label curves around a bottle along the Z axis, the edges of the barcode taper off and that line disappears.
Instead of looking for one line through the whole barcode, Segment Decoding finds individual segments, works out how they relate to each other and reassembles them into one readable code. On a crumpled label, each fold becomes its own segment. The same approach helps with partially torn or scratched labels, when enough valid segments remain.
Segment Decoding works with all supported 1D barcodes and adds to barKoder's other algorithms for damaged, crumpled and wrinkled codes. It is most useful on non-retail symbologies such as Code 39 and Code 128. For blurred EAN and UPC barcodes, pair it with DeBlur mode.
Segment Decoding is one setting, called misshaped 1D in the API. These examples are copied from the barKoder docs.
Barkoder.setEnableMisshaped1D(Barkoder.constants.EnableMisshaped1D.Enable);
enableMisshaped1D = BarkoderSDK.constants["EnableMisshaped1D"]["Enable"];
BarkoderSDK.setEnableMisshaped1D(enableMisshaped1D);
bool isEnabled = true;
_barkoder.setMisshaped1DEnabled(isEnabled);
print('Misshaped 1D barcodes enabled set to: $isEnabled');
On Android and iOS the same option is the enableMisshaped1D decoder config setting.
Misshaped 1D in each API reference: Android, iOS, Web, Flutter, React Native, Capacitor, Cordova, .NET MAUI, NativeScript and Python.
The misshaped 1D setting behind Segment Decoding is documented in the Android, iOS, Web, Flutter, React Native, Capacitor, Cordova, .NET MAUI, NativeScript and Python SDKs.
Direct SDKs for mobile, browser, desktop and server environments.
Official integrations for teams building one application across platforms.
Teams that read curved, damaged and badly positioned barcodes with barKoder.
Verified credentials
Certified information security management built around internationally recognized controls.
Official Solution Provider supporting standards-based barcode and data-capture workflows.
Solution Provider listing covering barcode, mobile application and 2D barcode capabilities.
Discover the barKoder Web SDK listing and connect through Microsoft Marketplace.
Registered Independent Software Vendor in Zebra's PartnerConnect ecosystem.
Install the free barKoder demo app, or open the web demo, and scan your own barcodes before you integrate the SDK.
iPhone and iPad
Scan with your camera, or point it at the QR code to open the App Store.
Android phones and tablets
Scan with your camera, or point it at the QR code to open Google Play.
Any modern browser
Runs the Web SDK in your browser, on desktop or mobile, with nothing to install.
Test with known samples. Print or display the testing sheet and scan each 1D and 2D barcode with the demo app. The data sheet summarizes the SDK for your team.
Use a decoder that doesn't need a straight line through every bar. With Segment Decoding enabled, the barKoder SDK reads 1D barcodes on bottles, cans, vials and test tubes from the angle the user holds them, without rotating the item into a perfect position.
Yes. A crumpled label creates folds that break the straight scan path. Segment Decoding treats each fold as a separate segment and stitches the data back together, which is why it works on squashed poly-bags and padded envelopes.
Often, yes. Because the data is assembled from several segments, a scratch, dirt or a small tear doesn't stop the read if enough valid segments remain. For damaged QR and Data Matrix codes, use MatrixSight®.
All 1D barcodes the SDK supports, for example Code 128, Code 39 and EAN and UPC. It is not for 2D codes.
No. Turn it on in the SDK with the misshaped 1D setting, for example enableMisshaped1D on Android and iOS or setEnableMisshaped1D in the Web SDK. In the demo app, use the Misshaped template.
The logic is more complex than standard decoding, but the barKoder engine is written in optimized C++ and runs natively on the device. Users often save time overall, because they no longer re-align or flatten the barcode to get a read.
Yes. VIN barcodes are often Code 39 labels on paper or car windows, where Z-axis deformation is common. barKoder's VIN scanning mode is built on Segment Decoding and MatrixSight®, so it reads deformed Code 39 and Code 128 VINs as well as damaged QR and Data Matrix VINs.
No. Segment Decoding is software. It runs on the built-in camera of standard smartphones and tablets, so teams can move from dedicated rugged scanners to the devices they already have.
Test Segment Decoding on your own bottles, vials and parcels with a free 30-day trial for 25 devices, or talk to an SDK expert about your project.
