Method and apparatus for reading bar codes on photographic film and

Abstract

Two bar code sensors are disposed at opposite sides of a passage of a photographic film, each bar code sensor having two photosensors disposed along a line perpendicular to the transportation direction of the photographic film. Each time a photographic film is fed by a predetermined distance, signals outputted from the two bar code sensor units are sampled and are compared with the signals obtained at the second preceding sampling timing to convert them into binary signals. Based on the data configuration of binary signals, i.e., based on the discrimination between the start code and end code, or the presence or absence of a clock track, automatic discrimination is performed between DX bar code data and frame number bar code data which then are decoded into a film type and frame number, respectively. The setting conditions of a photographic film also can be determined based on the bar code data configuration. An alarm is output if the setting conditions are not normal. The feed amount of a read-out frame number code is measured to calculate the number of a frame set at the print stage. Reading a frame number bar code may be performed synchronously with reading the DX bar code clock track.