Industrial marking and traceability

Traceability marking is unforgiving: the code must scan, the content must match the production record, and the cycle must fit the takt of the line or workstation.

Codes that carry data

• QR Code, DataMatrix, Code 128, EAN-13 and Code 39 are built as vector modules and mark like any other geometry — hatching included.
• Resizing never distorts a code: the module size is recalculated and 2D grids stay centered in the box you set.
• QR error correction is selectable (L/M/Q/H); 1D codes can carry a human-readable label inside the object bounds.
• Serialized codes out of the box: barcode content uses the same template engine as variable text — serial number, date/time or lines from a TXT/CSV file exported from your production system.

In the production cycle

• Foot pedal — the cycle waits for the hardware footswitch before each pass.
• Start-mark input on a GPIO port with selectable polarity — trigger the burn from a fixture sensor or a PLC; a mark-complete output pulse tells the line the pass is done.
• Test buttons read the inputs and pulse the output right from the settings — check the wiring without firing the laser.
• Passes per press, a part counter and session timers keep the station accountable; Esc always stops the laser, wherever keyboard focus is.

IO control is implemented end-to-end; final validation of pedal and port scenarios on production machines is still in progress.

Prepare offline, mark on the line

The built-in controller emulator runs the entire program without a machine: a process engineer prepares layouts, checks templates and simulates the job at a desk, and the operator gets a ready .znm file — an open, human-readable project format that carries its pens and job settings with it.

Good to know

• No barcode inversion (light modules on dark background) and no configurable quiet zone — leave the margin when placing the code.
• No conveyor (fly mark) marking yet — parts are marked stationary.
• With IO triggers active, jobs run as bounded passes (not the continuous loop) — Zenom switches automatically and says why.

See it in detail: Objects, Automation, Marking. Evaluating Zenom for a line? Contact us.