How to insert or stamp high quality barcodes into existing PDF files using iTextSharp

How to insert or stamp high quality barcodes into existing PDF files using iTextSharp and C# or VB.NET

How to insert or stamp high quality barcodes into existing PDF files using iTextSharp and C# or VB.NET

Prerequisites

• Neodynamic Barcode Professional SDK 3.0 for .NET (or greater)
• iTextSharp dll from http://sourceforge.net/projects/itextsharp/
• Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 (or greater)
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 or Visual Basic 2010 Express or Visual C# 2010 Express

Suppose you have been required to take a PDF document and insert or stamp a barcode into it. In the .NET world, there’re plenty of PDF-related products or solutions for managing such document format. One of the most popular solutions out there is <a href="http://sourceforge.net/projects/itextsharp/">iTextSharp</a> (ak.a. iText#), which is a port of the iText open source java library. iTextSharp is written in C# and allows you PDF generation as well as PDF manipulation like splitting, merging, etc.; all inside the .NET platform.

iTextSharp does offer some barcode generation capabilities out-of-the-box which can be used without troubles in your project. However, there’re situations or clients/apps requirements that the barcode features built-in iTextSharp might not be sufficient to fill them. In these cases, a specialized software component like Neodynamic Barcode Professional SDK for .NET is the right tool you need.

In this article, we’ll show you how to use Barcode Professional SDK for .NET along iTextSharp for inserting or stamping an EAN/UPC Composite barcode, a 2D Micro PDF417 barcode, and a linear GS1 DataBar (formerly RSS) barcode which are not part of iTextSharp library into an existing PDF document (NOTE: you could replace the built-in iTextSharp barcode encoders with the one offered by Barcode Professional SDK if needed. For example, Barcode Professional provides features like human readable text justifying, Bar Width/Module Adjustment, etc. which are not found on the iTextSharp library)

The barcodes generated by Barcode Professional SDK will be at high quality resolution (300 dpi although you can change the code below to match any other dpi value) to get a more convenience output printing quality.

This is the PDF document before and after inserting or stamping the barcodes:

http://www.neodynamic.com/demo-faq/b...p-C-VB-NET.jpg


To reproduce the code, please follow up these steps:

• Download and install Barcode Professional SDK 3.0 for .NET (or greater)
• Download iTextSharp dll from http://sourceforge.net/projects/itextsharp/
• Open Visual Studio and create a new project, for instance, a Console App project
• In the created project, add a reference to itextsharp.dll and Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.dll assemblies
• Download the sample PDF document called SampleDoc.pdf to C:\temp folder
• Copy/paste the following code in your project:
  NOTE: The barcodes in the code below are being generated at 300dpi so please change it per your needs.
  
  Visual Basic .NET
  Dim pdfFile As String = "C:\Temp\SampleDoc.pdf"
  Dim pdfFileOut As String = "C:\Temp\SampleDoc_barcode.pdf"
  Dim dpi As Integer = 300
  
  '1. Open the PDF file using a PdfReader
  Dim pdfReader As New iTextSharp.text.pdf.PdfReader(pdfFile)
  '2. Create a PdfStamper object for inserting or stamping the barcodes...
  Dim pdfStamper As New iTextSharp.text.pdf.PdfStamper(pdfReader, new System.IO.FileStream(pdfFileOut, System.IO.FileMode.Create, System.IO.FileAccess.Write))
  '3. Get the page content from the PDF file by creating a PdfContentByte object
  Dim pdfPage As iTextSharp.text.pdf.PdfContentByte = pdfStamper.GetOverContent(1)
  Dim pageWidth As Single = pdfReader.GetPageSize(1).Width
  Dim pageHeight As Single = pdfReader.GetPageSize(1).Height
  '4. Generate the barcode images using Barcode Professional SDK
  
  '4.1. Generate the UPC-A CCB composite barcode.
  Using bc1 As New Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeProfessional()
  'set the desired barcode symbology e.g. UPC-A CCB
  bc1.Symbology = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.Symbology.UpcACCB
  'set the value to encode e.g. Primary Data = 01234567890 and Secondary Data = 991234-abcd
  bc1.Code = "01234567890|991234-abcd"
  'set the barcode unit and sizes...
  bc1.BarcodeUnit = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeUnit.Inch
  bc1.BarWidth = 0.013 'the narrow bar width a.k.a. X value
  bc1.BarHeight = 1 'the height of the barcode bars
  bc1.GuardBarHeight = bc1.BarHeight + 5 * bc1.BarWidth 'the height of the guard bars only available for EAN/UPC barcodes
  bc1.QuietZoneWidth = 9 * bc1.BarWidth 'the quiet zone for UPC-A is 9 times the BarWidth value per GS1 spec
  
  'Generate the barcode image content for inserting it into the PDF page
  'For high quality, you can generated the barcode at, for instance, 300 dpi
  Dim barcodeImage1 As iTextSharp.text.Image = iTextSharp.text.Image.GetInstance(bc1.GetBarcodeImage(System.Drawing.Imaging.ImageFormat.Png, dpi))
  'set the position of the barcode image. PDF uses Points as unit (1 point = 1/72 inch)
  'the starting point (x=0, y=0) in the PDF coord is the bottom-left corner!!!
  barcodeImage1.SetAbsolutePosition(pageWidth - 4.25F * 72F + ((3.25F - (barcodeImage1.Width / dpi))/2) * 72F , pageHeight - ((barcodeImage1.Height / dpi) * 72F) - (2.5F * 72F))
  'scale the image based on the image dpi
  barcodeImage1.ScalePercent(72F / CSng(dpi) * 100F)
  'add the image object to the pdf page
  pdfPage.AddImage(barcodeImage1)
  End Using
  
  '4.2. Generate the 2D Micro PDF417 barcode.
  Using bc2 As New Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeProfessional()
  'set the desired barcode symbology e.g. Micro PDF417
  bc2.Symbology = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.Symbology.MicroPdf417
  'set the value to encode e.g. ABCDE-1234567890-PDF
  bc2.Code = "ABCDE-1234567890-PDF"
  'set the barcode unit and sizes...
  bc2.BarcodeUnit = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeUnit.Inch
  bc2.BarWidth = 0.01 'the narrow bar width a.k.a. X value
  bc2.BarRatio = 3 'in MicroPdf417 each bars' heigh in a row is calculated as BarWidth * BarRatio
  
  'Generate the barcode image content for inserting it into the PDF page
  'For high quality, you can generated the barcode at, for instance, 300 dpi
  Dim barcodeImage2 As iTextSharp.text.Image = iTextSharp.text.Image.GetInstance(bc2.GetBarcodeImage(System.Drawing.Imaging.ImageFormat.Png, dpi))
  'set the position of the barcode image. PDF uses Points as unit (1 point = 1/72 inch)
  'the starting point (x=0, y=0) in the PDF coord is the bottom-left corner!!!
  barcodeImage2.SetAbsolutePosition(72F + ((3.25F - (barcodeImage2.Width / dpi)) / 2) * 72F, pageHeight - ((barcodeImage2.Height / dpi) * 72F) - (6F * 72F));
  'scale the image based on the image dpi
  barcodeImage2.ScalePercent(72F / CSng(dpi) * 100F)
  'add the image object to the pdf page
  pdfPage.AddImage(barcodeImage2)
  End Using
  
  '4.3. Generate the GS1 DataBar-14 Stacked barcode.
  Using bc3 As New Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeProfessional()
  'set the desired barcode symbology e.g. DataBar-14 stacked
  bc3.Symbology = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.Symbology.GS1DataBar14Stacked
  'set the value to encode e.g. 0061414199999
  bc3.Code = "0061414199999"
  'set the barcode unit and sizes...
  bc3.BarcodeUnit = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeUnit.Inch
  bc3.BarWidth = 0.0208 'the narrow bar width a.k.a. X value
  
  'Generate the barcode image content for inserting it into the PDF page
  'For high quality, you can generated the barcode at, for instance, 300 dpi
  Dim barcodeImage3 As iTextSharp.text.Image = iTextSharp.text.Image.GetInstance(bc3.GetBarcodeImage(System.Drawing.Imaging.ImageFormat.Png, dpi))
  'set the position of the barcode image. PDF uses Points as unit (1 point = 1/72 inch)
  'the starting point (x=0, y=0) in the PDF coord is the bottom-left corner!!!
  barcodeImage3.SetAbsolutePosition(pageWidth - 4.25F * 72F + ((3.25F - (barcodeImage3.Width / dpi)) / 2) * 72F, pageHeight - ((barcodeImage3.Height / dpi) * 72F) - (6f * 72F));
  'scale the image based on the image dpi
  barcodeImage3.ScalePercent(72F / CSng(dpi) * 100F)
  'add the image object to the pdf page
  pdfPage.AddImage(barcodeImage3)
  End Using
  
  'close PdfStamper
  pdfStamper.Close()
  'close PdfReader
  pdfReader.Close()
  
  
  C#
  string pdfFile = @"C:\Temp\SampleDoc.pdf";
  string pdfFileOut = @"C:\Temp\SampleDoc_barcode.pdf";
  int dpi = 300;
  
  //1. Open the PDF file using a PdfReader
  iTextSharp.text.pdf.PdfReader pdfReader = new iTextSharp.text.pdf.PdfReader(pdfFile);
  //2. Create a PdfStamper object for inserting or stamping the barcodes...
  iTextSharp.text.pdf.PdfStamper pdfStamper = new iTextSharp.text.pdf.PdfStamper(pdfReader, new System.IO.FileStream(pdfFileOut, System.IO.FileMode.Create, System.IO.FileAccess.Write));
  //3. Get the page content from the PDF file by creating a PdfContentByte object
  iTextSharp.text.pdf.PdfContentByte pdfPage = pdfStamper.GetOverContent(1);
  float pageWidth = pdfReader.GetPageSize(1).Width;
  float pageHeight = pdfReader.GetPageSize(1).Height;
  //4. Generate the barcode images using Barcode Professional SDK
  
  //4.1. Generate the UPC-A CCB composite barcode.
  using (Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeProfessional bc1 = new Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeProfessional())
  {
  //set the desired barcode symbology e.g. UPC-A CCB
  bc1.Symbology = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.Symbology.UpcACCB;
  //set the value to encode e.g. Primary Data = 01234567890 and Secondary Data = 991234-abcd
  bc1.Code = "01234567890|991234-abcd";
  //set the barcode unit and sizes...
  bc1.BarcodeUnit = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeUnit.Inch;
  bc1.BarWidth = 0.013; //the narrow bar width a.k.a. X value
  bc1.BarHeight = 1; //the height of the barcode bars
  bc1.GuardBarHeight = bc1.BarHeight + 5 * bc1.BarWidth; //the height of the guard bars only available for EAN/UPC barcodes
  bc1.QuietZoneWidth = 9 * bc1.BarWidth; //the quiet zone for UPC-A is 9 times the BarWidth value per GS1 spec
  
  //Generate the barcode image content for inserting it into the PDF page
  //For high quality, you can generated the barcode at, for instance, 300 dpi
  iTextSharp.text.Image barcodeImage1 = iTextSharp.text.Image.GetInstance(bc1.GetBarcodeImage(System.Drawing.Imaging.ImageFormat.Png, dpi));
  //set the position of the barcode image. PDF uses Points as unit (1 point = 1/72 inch)
  //the starting point (x=0, y=0) in the PDF coord is the bottom-left corner!!!
  barcodeImage1.SetAbsolutePosition(pageWidth - 4.25f * 72f + ((3.25f - (barcodeImage1.Width / dpi))/2) * 72f , pageHeight - ((barcodeImage1.Height / dpi) * 72f) - (2.5f * 72f));
  //scale the image based on the image dpi
  barcodeImage1.ScalePercent(72f / (float)dpi * 100f);
  //add the image object to the pdf page
  pdfPage.AddImage(barcodeImage1);
  }
  
  //4.2. Generate the 2D Micro PDF417 barcode.
  using (Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeProfessional bc2 = new Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeProfessional())
  {
  //set the desired barcode symbology e.g. Micro PDF417
  bc2.Symbology = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.Symbology.MicroPdf417;
  //set the value to encode e.g. ABCDE-1234567890-PDF
  bc2.Code = "ABCDE-1234567890-PDF";
  //set the barcode unit and sizes...
  bc2.BarcodeUnit = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeUnit.Inch;
  bc2.BarWidth = 0.01; //the narrow bar width a.k.a. X value
  bc2.BarRatio = 3; //in MicroPdf417 each bars' heigh in a row is calculated as BarWidth * BarRatio
  
  //Generate the barcode image content for inserting it into the PDF page
  //For high quality, you can generated the barcode at, for instance, 300 dpi
  iTextSharp.text.Image barcodeImage2 = iTextSharp.text.Image.GetInstance(bc2.GetBarcodeImage(System.Drawing.Imaging.ImageFormat.Png, dpi));
  //set the position of the barcode image. PDF uses Points as unit (1 point = 1/72 inch)
  //the starting point (x=0, y=0) in the PDF coord is the bottom-left corner!!!
  barcodeImage2.SetAbsolutePosition(72f + ((3.25f - (barcodeImage2.Width / dpi)) / 2) * 72f, pageHeight - ((barcodeImage2.Height / dpi) * 72f) - (6f * 72f));
  //scale the image based on the image dpi
  barcodeImage2.ScalePercent(72f / (float)dpi * 100f);
  //add the image object to the pdf page
  pdfPage.AddImage(barcodeImage2);
  }
  
  //4.3. Generate the GS1 DataBar-14 Stacked barcode.
  using (Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeProfessional bc3 = new Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeProfessional())
  {
  //set the desired barcode symbology e.g. DataBar-14 stacked
  bc3.Symbology = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.Symbology.GS1DataBar14Stacked;
  //set the value to encode e.g. 0061414199999
  bc3.Code = "0061414199999";
  //set the barcode unit and sizes...
  bc3.BarcodeUnit = Neodynamic.SDK.Barcode.BarcodeUnit.Inch;
  bc3.BarWidth = 0.0208; //the narrow bar width a.k.a. X value
  
  //Generate the barcode image content for inserting it into the PDF page
  //For high quality, you can generated the barcode at, for instance, 300 dpi
  iTextSharp.text.Image barcodeImage3 = iTextSharp.text.Image.GetInstance(bc3.GetBarcodeImage(System.Drawing.Imaging.ImageFormat.Png, dpi));
  //set the position of the barcode image. PDF uses Points as unit (1 point = 1/72 inch)
  //the starting point (x=0, y=0) in the PDF coord is the bottom-left corner!!!
  barcodeImage3.SetAbsolutePosition(pageWidth - 4.25f * 72f + ((3.25f - (barcodeImage3.Width / dpi)) / 2) * 72f, pageHeight - ((barcodeImage3.Height / dpi) * 72f) - (6f * 72f));
  //scale the image based on the image dpi
  barcodeImage3.ScalePercent(72f / (float)dpi * 100f);
  //add the image object to the pdf page
  pdfPage.AddImage(barcodeImage3);
  }
  
  //close PdfStamper
  pdfStamper.Close();
  //close PdfReader
  pdfReader.Close();

Remember to download and install Barcode Professional SDK for .NET in order to reproduce this sample demo.


Links:
This Demos
Demos
Download Barcode Professional SDK for .NET
More Information about Neodynamic Barcode Professional SDK for .NET


Neodynamic
.NET Components & Controls
http://www.neodynamic.com