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  • EPC Length

    Kit Check uses a 96-bit EPC.

    Kit Check inlays have a 128 bit EPC memory bank, but Kit Check only uses a 96-bit EPC today.

    The inlay uses “PC word” to define the EPC length. If PC word is 3000, then the EPC is 96-bit; if it’s 4000, the EPC would be 128-bit. In other words, if we write 96-bits to the inlay, then during subsequent reads, the chip tells the reader it only has 96-bit of info and return the 96-bit EPC.

    EPC Schema

    Kit Check currently supports two versions of EPC layouts.

    • Version 1
      • Originally launched in 2012
      • Currently used by Kit Check’s Basic and Detailed tags, 503B compounders, and tagging service providers.
      • These tags can be registered in Data Service, but not Registry.
    • Version 2
      • Originally launched in 2019
      • Currently used by pharma manufacturers and any partner looking for cGMP compliance.
      • These tags can be registered in Registry, but not Data Service.

    Version 1

    Version 1 EPC example.

    The Kit Check EPC v1 has 5 logical components, illustrated in the graphic above.

    1. Header
    2. Specifications Version
    3. Tag Issuer Code
    4. Tag Issuer Data
    5. Serial Number

    Each character or position of the EPC is a hex character.

    1. Header

    This is always fixed with the hex characters 80.

    2. Specifications Version

    This defines which version of the EPC Layout Specifications (this document) governs the generation and interpretation of this EPC.

    3. Tag Issuer Code

    This is a 4-character hex code issued by Kit Check.

    Each issuer code represents the party or business entity that generated the tag. In many cases, this is the same party that is associating that tag to a new item. But in the case that one party creates the tag and another party creates the item and associates it, the tag issuer will refer to the former.

    Because the issuer code is scoped to a tag issuer, this allows for tag issuers to generate their own serial numbers, if they so choose, and guarantees that their numbers won’t collide with the serial numbers from other tag issuers.

    4. Tag Issuer Data

    This is a 2-character hex code that the tag issuer can choose to use for any purpose aside from serialization. This code should not be considered part of the item’s serial number.

    This code may be used to represent item data or contain other information useful to business logic and operations. For example, a compounder with multiple facilities might choose to represent the facility in which this item was compounded.

    In most cases, tag issuers should leave this blank by setting it to the hex characters 00.

    5. Serial Number

    This is the tag’s unique serial number, within the number-space scoped by the issuer ID.

    For tag issuers that are requesting serial numbers from Kit Check, this will be the variable portion in the EPCs that we create for you.

    For tag issuers that manage and generate their own serial numbers, this 14-character hex code is where you’ll incorporate your serial number into the overall EPC. This allows for approximately 72 quadrillion unique numbers.

    NOTE: Please be careful about decimal-to-hexadecimal conversion. If you generate decimal serial numbers , you’ll need to convert them to hexadecimal and left-pad with zeros (for a total of 14 characters) before incorporating it into the overall EPC.

    Version 2

    Version 2 EPC example.

    The Kit Check EPC v2 has 5 logical components, illustrated in the graphic above.

    1. Header
    2. Specifications Version
    3. Tag Issuer Code
    4. Tag Type ID
    5. Serial Number

    Each character or position of the EPC is a hex character.

    1. Header

    This is always fixed with the hex characters 80.

    2. Specifications Version

    This defines which version of the EPC Layout Specifications (this document) governs the generation and interpretation of this EPC.

    3. Tag Issuer Code

    This is a 4-character hex code issued by Kit Check.

    Each issuer code represents the party or business entity that generated the tag. In many cases, this is the same party that is associating that tag to a new item. But in the case that one party creates the tag and another party creates the item and associates it, the tag issuer will refer to the former.

    Because the issuer code is scoped to a tag issuer, this allows for tag issuers to generate their own serial numbers, if they so choose, and guarantees that their numbers won’t collide with the serial numbers from other tag issuers.

    4. Tag Type ID

    This is a 2-character hex code that the tag issuer must register with Kit Check. This code should not be considered part of the item’s serial number.

    This code, in conjunction with the Tag Issuer ID, determines a number of attributes of the inlay and tag.

    5. Serial Number

    This is the tag’s unique serial number, within the number-space scoped by the issuer ID and tag type ID.

    For tag issuers that are requesting serial numbers from Kit Check, this will be the variable portion in the EPCs that we create for you.

    For tag issuers that manage and generate their own serial numbers, this 14-character hex code is where you’ll incorporate your serial number into the overall EPC. This allows for approximately 72 quadrillion unique numbers.

    NOTE: Please be careful about decimal-to-hexadecimal conversion. If you generate decimal serial numbers , you’ll need to convert them to hexadecimal and left-pad with zeros (for a total of 14 characters) before incorporating it into the overall EPC.

  • When displaying the EPC as a QR Code for barcode scanning, we recommend using the item’s full URI, not just the EPC.

    Constructing the Kit Check QR Code

    The URI can be constructed by appending the EPC (without hyphens) to our URL prefix.

    URL: http://poptag.co/qr/
    EPC: 8001-FFFF-00000000-8765-4321
    
    QR Code Data: http://poptag.co/qr/8001FFFF0000000087654321

    This URI is used in the Kit Check application in several ways. Notably, the user can scan the QR code on a single item to look up details about that item.

  • Printing or Displaying the Kit Check EPC

    When displaying the 96-bit Kit Check EPC in any human-readable form, it should be written as 24 hex characters and formatted with hyphens, as described below.

    This formatting should be used whenever possible. This includes both when displaying it on-screen and when printing it on a label or other packaging.

    NOTE: Formatting the EPC with hyphens is for readability purposes only. They hyphens are not technically part of the EPC and are not encoded on the inlay.

    1. Convert from 96-bit to 24-hex

    Convert the 96-bit EPC into a string of 24 hex characters. Each position can contain a 0-9 or an A-F character.

    96-bit: 100000000000000111111111111111110000000000000000000000000000000010000111011001010100001100100001
    24-hex: 8001FFFF0000000087654321

    2. Add hyphens

    The 24 hex characters should be formatted into 5 segments or groupings. The segments will have 4, 4, 8, 4, and 4 characters each, respectively. Each segment should be separated by a hyphen.

    Without hyphens: 8001FFFF0000000087654321
    With hyphens: 8001-FFFF-00000000-8765-4321

    NOTE: The middle grouping is 8 characters, not 4.

  • The Kit Check Registry Service tunnel reads GS1 compliant 2D Data Matrixes containing four principal data elements, which are identified using GS1 Application Identifiers:

    1. GTIN-14
    2. Lot Number
    3. Expiration Date (YYMMDD)
    4. Serial Number

     

    For additional information regarding how to correctly encode the 2D Data Matrix, refer to GS1’s Data Matrix Guideline.

    GTIN-14

    The GTIN-14 is a Global Trade Identification Number consisting of 14-digits that is encoded with the NDC of the drug product. The first digit consists of the ‘Indicator Digit’, which is zero for unit of use packaging, but will vary for unit of sale packaging. The second and third digits consist of the ‘Company Prefix’ with is always ’03’ when the GTIN contains an NDC. Digits four through thirteen contain the 10-digit NDC while the last digit is reserved for the ‘Check Digit’ (represented by an ‘x’ below). For example:

    Unit of use packaging NDC: 1111-2222-33

    GTIN-14: 0031111222233x

    The Application Identifier ’01’ is to identify GTINs, meaning that the above GTIN-14 would be represented as:

    String: 010031111222233x

    Human Readable: (01) 003 1111 2222 33 x

    Lot Number

    The lot number is a variable length string with a maximum of 20 alphanumeric characters and uses the Application Identifier ’10’. Since this is a variable length string, it must be followed by a separator character, which can either be ‘FNC1’ or ‘<GS>’ (ASCII value 29 (decimal), 1D hexadecimal)). These separator characters are never displayed in the human readable expression of the string. For example, a Lot Number of ABCD1234 is expressed as:

    String: 10ABCD1234FNC1

    Human Readable: (10) ABCD1234

    Expiration Date

    The expiration date is expressed as ‘YYMMDD’ and uses the Application Identifier ’17’. An expiration date of December 9, 1999 is expressed as:

    String: 17991209

    Human Readable: (17) 991209

    Serial Number

    The serial number is a variable length string with a maximum of 20 alphanumeric characters and uses the Application Identifier ’21’. As with lot numbers, this variable length string must be followed by a separator character, unless the string is the last element string encoded in the data matrix. For example, a serial number of 1234567890 is expressed as:

    String: 211234567890FNC1

    Human Readable: (21) 1234567890

    Complete String

    All of the elements above can be strung together in the following way for a correctly encoded string.

    String: 010031111222233x1799120910ABCD1234FNC1211234567890

    Human Readable: (01) 0031111222233x (17) 991209 (10) ABCD1234 (21) 1234567890