Socket Talk

ScannerSettings™ Now Available in the Apple® App Store

Attention Apple developers! 

Are you using the SocketScan^™ 10 SDK to integrate the iOS certified Socket Bluetooth Cordless Hand Scanner 7Xi or 7XiRx with your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch application?

If you answered yes, then you’ll be interested to know there’s a new application utility available that enhances the integration process and puts control over the configuration of the CHS 7Xi and 7XiRx at your fingertips. 

What is ScannerSettings

The ScannerSettings application is a tool for Apple iOS developers integrating the CHS 7Xi and 7XiRx with their applications for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices. 

Developers using the Socket Software Development Kit (SDK) can take advantage of having access to the source code for ScannerSettings, which is included in the SDK, to customize the following with respect to the CHS 7Xi and 7XiRx:

• Supported 2D and 1D symbologies or barcode types
• Define suffix or prefix (e.g. a carriage return or special character)
• Customize user feedback mechanisms (LED, beep, vibrate)

The ScannerSettings utility provides developers with a proven source code example of what is possible when incorporating SocketScan 10 SDK APIs into their applications; it demonstrates that development with the CHS 7Xi and 7XiRx can be as simple or complex as an application code requires.

Free Download

You can download ScannerSettings for free in the Apple App Store in iTunes. ScannerSettings requires Apple iOS 4.1 or later and will only work with the Socket Bluetooth CHS 7Xi or 7XiRx barcode scanner.

The CHS 7Xi and 7XiRx are Apple iOS certified for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch and sold separately, SKU# CX2864-1336 (7Xi) and CX2866-1338 (7XiRx).

The source for ScannerSettings is included in the purchase of any of the following SocketScan 10 Software Development Kits:

• SKU# SW1245-1322—SDK + CHS 7XiRx + Charging Cradle
• SKU# SW1244-1321—SDK Only

Read the press release announcing the availability of ScannerSettings here.

Socket Deployments in Life Sciences

Last week, Socket announced Cook Medical, the world's largest privately held medical manufacturing company, as our first volume customer for the new CHS 7XiRx barcode scanner. The company plans to deploy 540 units of the CHS 7XiRx with the Apple iPhone running a custom inventory application they developed with the SocketScan 10 SDK. For many years, Life Science companies like Cook Medical have been a significant market for Socket, especially for our barcode scanners, which provide rapid and robust data collection with a broad range of device platforms, including Apple, Android, BlackBerry, Windows and more.

Of the six medical manufacturers included in the Fortune 500 this year — Medtronic, Baxter International, Boston Scientific, Becton Dickinson, Stryker and St. Jude Medical — at least three have actively deployed Socket products, and another has been testing the SoMo 650 as a replacement for the HP iPAQ. Multiple Fortune 500 pharmaceutical companies have also been Socket customers over the years.

Sales Force Automation
For Socket's Life Science customers, the most popular application by far is Sales Force Automation. Typically a sales representative / technician uses our CHS Bluetooth barcode scanner with a smartphone or tablet while visiting a hospital or clinic to track consignment inventory of costly medical devices. The mobile solution speeds up order processing and invoicing, minimizes data entry errors, and helps to ensure that customers have the latest product versions at hand. 

Multiple Fortune 500 medical device manufacturers use Socket CHS barcode scanners for Sales Force Automation, including our largest Life Sciences customer, who has deployed thousands of CHS units to sales teams worldwide, most recently with the Apple iPad. The CHS not only provides the ease of use and high quality that medical sales professionals demand, but also complements the latest smartphones and tablets to promote a positive professional image during customer visits.

Patient Diaries
After Sales Force Automation, the next most common Life Sciences application is recording patient diaries in clinical trials. For example, the SoMo 650 handheld computer has been used as a patient diary in vaccine studies. Having an electronic diary helps Life Science companies quickly validate data and speed up FDA submissions.