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Swapped Characters when Scanning

When scanning barcodes with mobile devices, it may occur that letters or numbers appear swapped in the scan result—for example, PRODUKTION-01 is recorded as PORDUKTION-10. This behavior can happen sporadically and affects various barcode types as well as different character orders.

Cause​

This issue is caused by keyboard-based (wedge) scan output. When a scanner uses keystroke simulation to deliver scan results, characters are injected one by one into the focused input field—similar to someone typing very fast. Depending on system load or timing, characters can arrive out of order.

Note:
The issue affects various barcode types and can randomly swap both letters and numbers. Adjusting the intercharacter delay is only a workaround, not a reliable fix.

Solution​

The recommended solution is to switch from keyboard/wedge output to intent-based scanning. Instead of simulating keystrokes, the scan result is delivered directly to TheFlex as an Android Intent—reliably, without timing issues, and independent of system load.

See: Intent-based Scanning (Zebra, Honeywell, CipherLab, Datalogic)

Further information​

  • Intent-based scanning is supported by all major enterprise scanner vendors (Zebra DataWedge, Honeywell, CipherLab, Datalogic).
  • Once intent-based scanning is configured, swapped characters are no longer possible since no keystroke simulation is involved.