Customising your barcode scanner fields

Columns added to your sheet via the web directly mirror the fields in the mobile app, allowing you to modify hundreds of devices remotely from any web browser. No coding needed.

Field types

You often want to capture additional data when a barcode is scanned (this could be a photos, GPS location or quantity scanned). To do this, simply add additional fields using the Orca Scan web or mobile app.

You can choose from the following field types:

Field type	Description
Date	Inserts a date value when tapping the calendar icon. You can configure the timezone format for each sheet.
Date (automatic)	Inserts or updates the date value automatically on scan.
GPS location	Inserts the device latitude and longitude values when tapping the GPS icon.
Number (auto-increase)	Has the same attributes as the Number field and automatically increases the quantity by +1 for every scan.
Text field	Can contain text and numbers of any form. It also includes a barcode icon to open the camera and scan a barcode into the field.
True/false boolean	Displays as a YES / NO button and inserts a value of TRUE or FALSE in the final dataset.
Drop-down list	Lets you define a preset list of options that users can choose one option from.
Email	Has a normal text entry but will only accept the entry of an email format.
GPS location (automatic)	Inserts or updates the device latitude and longitude values automatically on scan.
Number	Has plus and minus buttons to increase/decrease the quantity. Shows the deltas in yellow next to the quantity for ease of calculation.
Date Time (automatic)	Inserts or updates the date and time value automatically on scan.
Number (auto-decrease)	Has the same attributes as the Number field and automatically decreases the quantity by -1 for every scan.
Date Time	Inserts a date & time value when tapping the calendar icon.
Time	Inserts a time stamp when tapping the field.

Field settings

Each field also has additional settings that alter how they behave inside the mobile app. The options are:

Setting	Description
Show in mobile list	Will display these values in the main list of items. Often, people will use descriptions rather than the actual barcode numbers.
Searchable in mobile list	Allows users to search by this value in the mobile list.
Auto focus	Upon scan, the app will go to this field and open the keyboard to prepare for entry. It allows you to control the flow of entries.
Auto select value	Will mark an existing value with the cursor to quickly delete or overwrite.
Required	Users must provide a value to save and continue.
Empty on scan	Does not populate previously entered values, making it easy to enter new values. This is useful when tracking entries with the audit trails.
Hidden	Hides the entire field from mobile users.
Read only	The field is greyed out and mobile users are unable to edit the value.

Hidden fields

The Hidden setting hides the field from mobile users. It’s useful when dealing with sensitive data or removing fields users don’t need to see.

For instance, many users hide the Barcode field as it is rarely important for the end-user to see it.

Read-only fields

The Read-only setting greys out the value in a field and keeps users from changing the values. This is useful when populating data only for informational purposes, like prices or descriptions.

Show in mobile list

You can set which fields you would like to be displayed in the mobile list:

Example of barcode and quantity in mobile list

Required fields

Setting a field to required forces the user to enter a value before they can save and continue.

Important: the setting only applies when fields are empty. If users are scanning the same items repeatedly, consider enabling the Empty on scan setting to force the user to enter a new value on each scan.

Empty fields

The Empty on scan setting ensures that the data in the Cloud sheet never populate for the mobile user.

It’s useful when a new entry is required by users that scan the same barcode. It’s often used with the Audit trail that logs all the entries in individual rows.