GS1 DataMatrix for Pharmaceuticals
GS1 DataMatrix is the global standard for 2D barcodes on pharmaceutical products. It can encode all required serialization data in a small space suitable for unit-level packaging.
Why DataMatrix?
Application Identifiers (AIs)
AIs are prefixes that identify the type of data that follows:
Data String Structure
The encoded data follows this pattern:
(01)GTIN(21)SerialNumber(10)BatchNumber(17)ExpiryDate
Example:
(01)00614141123452(21)ABC123(10)LOT456(17)251231
Meaning:
- GTIN: 00614141123452
- Serial: ABC123
- Batch: LOT456
- Expiry: 2025-12-31
Human Readable Interpretation (HRI)
The data must also be printed in human-readable format below or beside the barcode:
GTIN: 00614141123452
SN: ABC123
LOT: LOT456
EXP: 2025-12-31
Technical Specifications
Verification Grades
ISO/IEC 15415 defines quality grades A-F:
Common Issues