ISO/IEC 23941:2022

Information technology — Automatic identification and data capture techniques — Rectangular Micro QR Code (rMQR) bar code symbology specification

This document defines the requirements for the symbology known as rMQR. It specifies the rMQR symbology characteristics, data character encoding methods, symbol formats, dimensional characteristics, error correction rules, reference decoding algorithm, printing quality requirements and user-selectable application parameters.

Technologies de l'information — Techniques d'identification automatique et de capture des données — Spécification de la symbologie de code à barres Rectangular Micro QR Code (rMQR)

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 19-May-2022
• ICS: 35.040.50 - Automatic identification and data capture techniques
• Technical Committee: ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 31 - Automatic identification and data capture techniques
• Drafting Committee: ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 31/WG 1 - Data carrier
• Current Stage: 6060 - International Standard published
• Start Date: 20-May-2022
• Due Date: 08-Mar-2023
• Completion Date: 20-May-2022

Standards Content (Sample)

INTERNATIONAL ISO/IEC
STANDARD 23941
First edition
2022-05
Information technology — Automatic
identification and data capture
techniques — Rectangular Micro QR
Code (rMQR) bar code symbology
specification
Technologies de l'information — Techniques d'identification
automatique et de capture des données — Spécification de la
symbologie de code à barres Rectangular Micro QR Code (rMQR)
Reference number
ISO/IEC 23941:2022(E)
© ISO/IEC 2022

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ISO/IEC 23941:2022(E)
COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO/IEC 2022
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on
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or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
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Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
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ISO/IEC 23941:2022(E)
Contents Page
Foreword .v
Introduction . vi
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Mathematical and logical symbols, abbreviated terms and conventions .3
4.1 Mathematical and logical symbols. 3
4.2 Abbreviated terms . 3
4.3 Conventions . 3
4.3.1 Module positions . 3
4.3.2 Byte notation . 3
4.3.3 Version references. 3
5 Conformance . 4
6 rMQR specifications . .4
6.1 Basic characteristics . 4
6.2 Summary of additional features . 5
6.3 Symbol structure . 5
6.3.1 General . 5
6.3.2 Symbol Versions and sizes . 8
6.3.3 Finder pattern . 10
6.3.4 Separator . 10
6.3.5 Timing pattern . 10
6.3.6 Alignment patterns . 11
6.3.7 Finder sub pattern . 11
6.3.8 Corner finder pattern .12
6.3.9 Encoding region .12
6.3.10 Quiet zone . 13
7 Requirements .13
7.1 Encode procedure overview . .13
7.2 Data analysis . 14
7.3 Modes . 15
7.3.1 General .15
7.3.2 Extended channel interpretation (ECI) mode . 15
7.3.3 Numeric mode . 15
7.3.4 Alphanumeric mode . 15
7.3.5 Byte mode .15
7.3.6 Kanji mode . 16
7.3.7 Mixing modes . 16
7.3.8 FNC1 mode . 16
7.4 Data encoding . 16
7.4.1 Sequence of data . 16
7.4.2 Extended channel interpretation (ECI) mode . 18
7.4.3 Numeric mode . 20
7.4.4 Alphanumeric mode . 21
7.4.5 Byte mode . 22
7.4.6 Kanji mode . 22
7.4.7 Mixing modes .23
7.4.8 FNC1 modes . 24
7.4.9 Terminator .25
7.4.10 Bit stream to codeword conversion . 25
7.5 Error correction .28
7.5.1 Error correction capacity .28
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ISO/IEC 23941:2022(E)
7.5.2 Generating the error correction codewords . 31
7.6 Constructing the final message codeword sequence . 32
7.7 Codeword placement in matrix. 33
7.7.1 Symbol character representation. 33
7.7.2 Function pattern placement . 33
7.7.3 Symbol character placement . 33
7.8 Data masking . 37
7.8.1 General . 37
7.8.2 Data mask patterns . 37
7.9 Format information . 37
8 Symbol printing and marking.39
8.1 Dimensions .39
8.2 Human-readable interpretation . 39
8.3 Marking guidelines .40
9 Symbol quality .40
9.1 Methodology .40
9.2 Symbol quality parameters .40
9.2.1 Fixed pattern damage .40
9.2.2 Scan grade and overall symbol grade .40
9.2.3 Grid non-uniformity .40
9.3 Process control measurements .40
10 Decoding procedure overview .40
11 Reference decode algorithm .41
12 Auto-discrimination capability .52
13 Transmitted data .52
13.1 General principles . 52
13.2 Symbology identifier . 52
13.3 Extended channel interpretations . 52
13.4 FNC1 . 53
Annex A (normative) Error detection and correction generator polynomials .54
Annex B (normative) Error correction decoding steps .56
Annex C (normative) Format information .58
Annex D (normative) Position of alignment patterns .61
Annex E (normative) Symbology identifier .62
Annex F (normative) rMQR print quality – symbology – specific aspects .63
Annex G (normative) Byte mode character sets .69
Annex H (informative) JIS8 and Shift JIS character sets .70
Annex I (informative) Symbol encoding examples .72
Annex J (informative) User guidelines for printing and scanning of rMQR symbols .74
Annex K (informative) Autodiscrimination .76
Annex L (informative) Process control techniques.77
Bibliography .79
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ISO/IEC 23941:2022(E)
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) and IEC (the International Electrotechnical
Commission) form the specialized system for worldwide standardization. National bodies that are
members of ISO or IEC participate in the development of International Standards through technical
committees established by the respective organization to deal with particular fields of technical
activity. ISO and IEC technical committees collaborate in fields of mutual interest. Other international
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO and IEC, also take part in the
work.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance
are described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria
needed for the different types of document should be noted. This document was drafted in
accordance with the editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives or
www.iec.ch/members_experts/refdocs).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject
of patent rights. ISO and IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent
rights. Details of any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the
Introduction and/or on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents) or the IEC
list of patent declarations received (see patents.iec.ch).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to
the World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) see
www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html. In the IEC, see www.iec.ch/understanding-standards.
This document was prepared by Joint Technical Committee ISO/IEC JTC 1, Information technology,
Subcommittee SC 31, Automatic identification and data capture techniques.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards
body. A complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html and
www.iec.ch/national-committees.
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ISO/IEC 23941:2022(E)
Introduction
Rectangular Micro QR Code (rMQR) is a matrix symbology. The symbol consists of an array of nominally
square modules, arranged in a rectangular pattern. Included is a unique finder pattern located at a
single corner which is intended to assist in easy location of the symbols position, size, and inclination.
A wide range of sizes of symbol is provided for, together with two levels of error correction. Module
dimensions are user-specified to enable symbol production by a wide variety of techniques.
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INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO/IEC 23941:2022(E)
Information technology — Automatic identification and
data capture techniques — Rectangular Micro QR Code
(rMQR) bar code symbology specification
1 Scope
This document defines the requirements for the symbology known as rMQR. It specifies the
rMQR symbology characteristics, data character encoding methods, symbol formats, dimensional
characteristics, error correction rules, reference decoding algorithm, printing quality requirements
and user-selectable application parameters.
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO/IEC 19762, Information technology — Automatic identification and data capture (AIDC) techniques —
Harmonized vocabulary
ISO/IEC 8859-1, Information technology — 8-bit single-byte coded graphic character sets — Part 1: Latin
alphabet No. 1
ISO/IEC 15415, Information technology — Automatic identification and data capture techniques — Bar
code symbol print quality test specification — Two-dimensional symbols
3 Terms and definitions
For the purpose of this document, the terms and definitions given in ISO/IEC 19762 and the following
apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https:// www .electropedia .org/
3.1
character count indicator
bit sequence which defines the data string length in a mode (3.6)
3.2
encoding region
region of the symbol not occupied by function patterns (3.4) and available for encoding of data and error
correction codewords, and for format information (3.3)
3.3
format information
encoded pattern containing information on the error correction level and version (3.15) applied to
symbol characteristics
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ISO/IEC 23941:2022(E)
3.4
function pattern
overhead component of the symbol [finder pattern, separator (3.12), timing patterns (3.14), alignment
patterns, finder sub patterns and corner finder pattern] required for location of the symbol or
identification of its characteristics to assist in decoding
3.5
masking
process of XORing the bit pattern in an area of the symbol with a mask pattern to equalize the number
of light and dark modules
3.6
mode
method of representing a defined character set as a bit string
3.7
mode indicator
identifier indicating in which mode (3.6) the following data sequence is encoded
3.8
padding bit
zero bit, not representing data, used to fill empty positions of the final codeword during the encoding
process
3.9
remainder bit
zero bit, not representing data, used to fill empty positions of the symbol encoding region (3.2) after
the final symbol character, where the area of the encoding region (3.2) does not divide exactly into 8-bit
symbol characters
3.10
remainder codeword
codeword, placed after the data codeword stream that was generated in data encoding process, used
to fill empty codeword positions to meet the requirements of number of data codeword of the version
(3.15) and error correction definitions
3.11
segment
sequence of data encoded according to the rules of one ECI or encoding mode
3.12
separator
function pattern (3.4) of all light modules, one module wide, used to separate the finder pattern from
the rest of the symbol
3.13
terminator
bit pattern of defined number (depending on symbol) of all zero bits used to end the bit string
representing data
3.14
timing pattern
alternating sequence of dark and light modules enabling module coordinates in the symbol to be
determined
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ISO/IEC 23941:2022(E)
3.15
version
size of the symbol represented in terms of the number of modules in the vertical and horizontal axes,
indicated, for example, as R7x59
Note 1 to entry: The error correction level applied to the symbol can be suffixed to the Version Indicator, e.g.,
Version R11x27-M.
3.16
version Indicator
five-bit identifier indicating symbol version used for a part of the format information (3.3)
3.17
error correction level indicator
one-bit identifier indicating error correction level used for a part of the format information (3.3)
4 Mathematical and logical symbols, abbreviated terms and conventions
4.1 Mathematical and logical symbols
DIV is the integer division operator
MOD is the integer remainder after division
XOR is the exclusive-or logic function whose output is one only when its two inputs are not equivalent.
It is represented by the symbol ⊕.
4.2 Abbreviated terms
BCH Bose-Chaudhuri-Hocquenghem
ECI Extended Channel Interpretation
RS Reed-Solomon
4.3 Conventions
4.3.1 Module positions
For ease of reference, module positions are defined by their row and column coordinates in the symbol,
in the form (i, j) where i designates the row (counting from the top downwards) and j the column
(counting from left to right) in which the module is located, with counting commencing at 0. Module
(0, 0) is therefore located at the upper left corner of the symbol.
4.3.2 Byte notation
Byte contents are shown as hexadecimal (hex) values.
4.3.3 Version references
Symbol versions are referred to in the form Version RC xC -E where C identifies the vertical number
V H V
of modules (7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 17), C identifies the horizontal number of modules (27, 43, 59, 77, 99, 139),
H
and E indicates the error correction level (M and H). For example, R13x27-M indicates a rectangular
symbol that has 13 vertical modules, 27 horizontal modules, and an error correction level M. Versions
may be referred to without error correction level. For example, R13x27.
NOTE For M and H, see 6.1 e).
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ISO/IEC 23941:2022(E)
5 Conformance
rMQR symbols (and equipment designed to produce or read rMQR symbols) shall be considered as
conforming with this document if they provide or support the features defined in this document.
6 rMQR specifications
6.1 Basic characteristics
rMQR is a matrix symbology with the following characteristics.
a) Encodable character set:
1) numeric data (digits 0 - 9);
2) alphanumeric data (digits 0 - 9; upper case letters A - Z; nine other characters, as shown in
Table 5.);
3) byte data [default shall be the character set defined in Annex G; or other sets as otherwise
defined (see 7.3.5)];
4) Kanji characters (Characters can be compacted into 13 bits (see 7.3.6).
b) Representation of data:
A dark module is nominally a binary one and a light module is nominally a binary zero. See 6.2 for
details of reflectance reversal.
c) Symbol size (not including quiet zone):
See Table 1 for the symbol sizes for 7 x 43 modules to 17 x 139 modules (Version R7x43 to R17x139).
d) Data characters per symbol:
The maximum symbol size of Version R17x139-M is as specified below.
— numeric data: 361 characters
— alphanumeric data: 219 characters
— Byte data: 150 characters
— Kanji data: 92 characters
e) Selectable error correction:
This symbology supports two levels of Reed-Solomon error correction, M and H, which allows the
recovery of rMQR codewords up to the indicated rate below.
— M 15 %
— H 30 %
f) Code type:
Matrix
g) Orientation independence:
Yes (both rotation and reflection)
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ISO/IEC 23941:2022(E)
Figur
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