SAP ABAP IMG Activity AIN_VC_EPC (Define EPC Settings)
Hierarchy
☛ EA-APPL (Software Component) SAP Enterprise Extension PLM, SCM, Financials
   ⤷ LO-SCI-AIN (Application Component) Auto-ID Backend Integration
     ⤷ AID-BI (Package) Auto-ID Backend Integration
IMG Activity
ID AIN_VC_EPC Define EPC Settings  
Transaction Code S_PEN_05000197   (empty) 
Created on 20050524    
Customizing Attributes AIN_VC_EPC   EPC Settings 
Customizing Activity AIN_VC_EPC   EPC Settings 
Document
Document Class SIMG   Hypertext: Object Class - Class to which a document belongs.
Document Name AIN_VC_EPC3    

Use

In this IMG activity you define Electronic Product Code (EPC) versions. These versions define how EPC tag data is encoded on the EPC tag itself, as well as how it is encoded for use in the information system layers of the EPC Systems Network (that is, the EPC Uniform Resource Identifier).

EPC is an identification scheme for universally identifying physical objects via Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags. The standardized EPC data consists of an EPC that uniquely identifies an individual object. An EPC version defines the length and position of this data, without defining its content.

The general structure of EPC encodings on a tag is as a string of bits (that is, a binary representation), consisting of a tiered, variable length header followed by a series of numeric fields for which the overall length, structure, and function are completely determined by the header value.

For more information, see http://www.epcglobalinc.org.

An EPC setting is constructed as follows:

  • EPC Version
  • EPC Header
    • EPC Header (Binary Format)
      • You define EPC header value with binary format. The header defines the EPC type and structure of the EPC tag encoding. The EPC tag encodings include a header field followed by one or more value fields. The header field defines the overall length and format of the value fields. The value fields contain a unique EPC identifier and optional filter value .
    • Decimal Value
      • You define the EPC header value with decimal format. (This is used for encoding/decoding.)
    • URI Format of EPC
      • You define the Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) format. This section defines the semantics of EPC-URI encodings translated into other EPC encodings and vice versa.
      Note: A URI is a character string representation that is commonly used to exchange identity data between software components of a larger system.
  • Partition
    • The partition indicates where the subsequent company prefix and item reference numbers are divided. This organization matches the structure in the EAN.UCC GTIN in which the company prefix added to the item reference number (plus the single indicator digit) totals 13 digits. The company prefix may vary from 6 to 12 digits and the item reference (including the single indicator digit) from 7 to 1 digit(s). The available values of the partition and the corresponding sizes of the company prefix field and item reference field are defined here.
  • Active EPC Version
    • You define the active EPC version for your encoding scheme.
  • Company Prefix
    • You define the company prefix, company prefix length, and company prefix index.

  • Company Prefix
    • Assigned to a managing entity by EAN or UCC, the company prefix is the same as the company prefix digits within an EAN.UCC GTIN decimal code.
  • Company Prefix Length
    • EPC encodings carry an explicit division between the company prefix and the remaining digits. Hence, converting from the traditional decimal representation of an EAN.UCC system code and an EPC encoding requires independent knowledge of the length of the company prefix.
    Note: Usually you have to add a leading zero to your UCC company prefix to get the EAN.UCC prefix, which is used in the 14 digit GTIN.
  • Company Prefix Index
    • The company prefix index encodes the EAN.UCC company prefix. The value of this field is not the company prefix itself, but rather an index into a table that provides the company prefix as well as an indication of the company prefix length.
    In the 64-bit EPC, the limited number of bits prohibits a literal embedding of the EAN.UCC company prefix. As a partial solution, a company prefix index is used. This index, which can accommodate up to 16,384 codes, is assigned to companies that need to use the 64-bit tags, in addition to their existing EAN.UCC company prefixes. The index is encoded on the tag instead of the company prefix, and is subsequently translated to the company prefix at low levels of the EPC system components (that is, the reader or savant).

Requirements

Standard settings

As a standard customizing, the following EPC tag data standards are shipped:

  • EPC_1.24 EPC Tag Data Standards Version 1.1 Rev.1.24
  • EPC_1.27 EPC Tag Data Standards Version 1.1 Rev.1.27

Activities

Define EPC Version

  1. Specify an EPC version and description.
  2. Specify the EPC types you want to encode/decode, and maintain header values with binary and decimal format. For each EPC type, specify the URI format you use.
  3. For 96-bit EPCs, specify the partition table.
  4. Save the entries.

Defining Active EPC Version

  1. Choose an active EPC version.
  2. Save the entry.

Define Company Prefix

  1. Define the company prefix that the EAN or UCC assigns to a managing entity.
  2. Define the company prefix length.
  3. If you are using 64-bits EPCs, define the company prefix index. (Even if the company prefix is smaller than 16,383.)
  4. Save the entry.

Example

Business Attributes
ASAP Roadmap ID 105   Define functions and processes 
Mandatory / Optional 1   Mandatory activity 
Critical / Non-Critical 1   Critical 
Country-Dependency A   Valid for all countries 
Maintenance Objects
Maintenance object type C   Customizing Object 
Assigned objects
Customizing Object Object Type Transaction Code Sub-object Do not Summarize Skip Subset Dialog Box Description for multiple selections
AIN_VC_EPC C - View cluster SM34  
History
Last changed by/on SAP  20050525 
SAP Release Created in 600