Added documentation about the barcode scanner

assets/controllers/elements/nonprintable_char_input_controller.js

@@ -0,0 +1,106 @@
+/*
+ * This file is part of Part-DB (https://github.com/Part-DB/Part-DB-symfony).
+ *
+ *  Copyright (C) 2019 - 2026 Jan Böhmer (https://github.com/jbtronics)
+ *
+ *  This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ *  it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as published
+ *  by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
+ *  (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ *  This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ *  but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ *  MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ *  GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ *  You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ *  along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+import {Controller} from "@hotwired/stimulus";
+
+/**
+ * Purpose of this controller is to allow users to input non-printable characters like EOT, FS, etc. in a form field and submit them correctly with the form.
+ * The visible input field encodes non-printable characters via their Unicode Control picture representation, e.g. \n becomes ␊ and \t becomes ␉, so that they can be displayed in the input field without breaking the form submission.
+ * The actual value of the field, which is submitted with the form, is stored in a hidden input and contains the non-printable characters in their original form.
+ */
+export default class extends Controller {
+
+    _hiddenInput;
+
+    connect() {
+        this.element.addEventListener("input", this._update.bind(this));
+
+        // We use a hidden input to store the actual value of the field, which is submitted with the form.
+        // The visible input is just for user interaction and can contain non-printable characters, which are not allowed in the hidden input.
+        this._hiddenInput = document.createElement("input");
+        this._hiddenInput.type = "hidden";
+        this._hiddenInput.name = this.element.name;
+        this.element.removeAttribute("name");
+        this.element.parentNode.insertBefore(this._hiddenInput, this.element.nextSibling);
+
+        this.element.addEventListener("keypress", this._onKeyPress.bind(this));
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Ensures that non-printable characters like EOT, FS, etc. gets added to the input value when the user types them
+     * @param event
+     * @private
+     */
+    _onKeyPress(event) {
+        const ALLOWED_INPUT_CODES = [4, 28, 29, 30, 31]; //EOT, FS, GS, RS, US
+
+        if (!ALLOWED_INPUT_CODES.includes(event.keyCode)) {
+            return;
+        }
+
+        event.preventDefault();
+
+        const char = String.fromCharCode(event.keyCode);
+        this.element.value += char;
+
+        this._update();
+
+
+    }
+
+    _update() {
+        //Chrome workaround: Remove a leading ∠ character (U+2220) that appears when the user types a non-printable character at the beginning of the input field.
+        if (this.element.value.startsWith("∠")) {
+            this.element.value = this.element.value.substring(1);
+        }
+
+        // Remove non-printable characters from the input value and store them in the hidden input
+        const normalizedValue = this.decodeNonPrintableChars(this.element.value);
+        this._hiddenInput.value = normalizedValue;
+
+        // Encode non-printable characters in the visible input to their Unicode Control picture representation
+        const encodedValue = this.encodeNonPrintableChars(normalizedValue);
+        if (encodedValue !== this.element.value) {
+            this.element.value = encodedValue;
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Encodes non-printable characters in the given string via their Unicode Control picture representation, e.g. \n becomes ␊ and \t becomes ␉.
+     * This allows us to display non-printable characters in the input field without breaking the form submission.
+     * @param str
+     */
+    encodeNonPrintableChars(str) {
+        return str.replace(/[\x00-\x1F\x7F]/g, (char) => {
+            const code = char.charCodeAt(0);
+            return String.fromCharCode(0x2400 + code);
+        });
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Decodes the Unicode Control picture representation of non-printable characters back to their original form, e.g. ␊ becomes \n and ␉ becomes \t.
+     * @param str
+     */
+    decodeNonPrintableChars(str) {
+        return str.replace(/[\u2400-\u241F\u2421]/g, (char) => {
+            const code = char.charCodeAt(0) - 0x2400;
+            return String.fromCharCode(code);
+        });
+    }
+}

assets/controllers/helpers/scan_special_char_controller.js

@@ -0,0 +1,136 @@
+/*
+ * This file is part of Part-DB (https://github.com/Part-DB/Part-DB-symfony).
+ *
+ *  Copyright (C) 2019 - 2026 Jan Böhmer (https://github.com/jbtronics)
+ *
+ *  This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ *  it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as published
+ *  by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
+ *  (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ *  This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ *  but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ *  MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ *  GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ *  You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ *  along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+import { Controller } from "@hotwired/stimulus"
+
+/**
+ * This controller listens for a special non-printable character (SOH / ASCII 1) to be entered anywhere on the page,
+ * which is then used as a trigger to submit the following characters as a barcode / scan input.
+ */
+export default class extends Controller {
+    connect() {
+        // Optional: Log to confirm global attachment
+        console.log("Scanner listener active")
+
+        this.isCapturing = false
+        this.buffer = ""
+
+        window.addEventListener("keypress", this.handleKeydown.bind(this))
+    }
+
+    initialize() {
+        this.isCapturing = false
+        this.buffer = ""
+        this.timeoutId = null
+    }
+
+    handleKeydown(event) {
+
+        // Ignore if the user is typing in a form field
+        const isInput = ["INPUT", "TEXTAREA", "SELECT"].includes(event.target.tagName) ||
+            event.target.isContentEditable;
+        if (isInput) return
+
+        // 1. Detect Start of Header (SOH / Ctrl+A)
+        if (event.key === "\x01" || event.keyCode === 1) {
+            this.startCapturing(event)
+            return
+        }
+
+        // 2. Process characters if in capture mode
+        if (this.isCapturing) {
+            this.resetTimeout() // Push the expiration back with every keypress
+
+            if (event.key === "Enter" || event.keyCode === 13) {
+
+                this.finishCapturing(event)
+            } else if (event.key.length === 1) {
+                this.buffer += event.key
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    startCapturing(event) {
+        this.isCapturing = true
+        this.buffer = ""
+        this.resetTimeout()
+        event.preventDefault()
+        console.debug("Scan character detected. Capture started...")
+    }
+
+    finishCapturing(event) {
+        event.preventDefault()
+        const data = this.buffer;
+        this.stopCapturing()
+        this.processCapture(data)
+    }
+
+    stopCapturing() {
+        this.isCapturing = false
+        this.buffer = ""
+        if (this.timeoutId) clearTimeout(this.timeoutId)
+        console.debug("Capture cleared/finished.")
+    }
+
+    resetTimeout() {
+        if (this.timeoutId) clearTimeout(this.timeoutId)
+
+        this.timeoutId = setTimeout(() => {
+            if (this.isCapturing) {
+                console.warn("Capture timed out. Resetting buffer.")
+                this.stopCapturing()
+            }
+        }, 500)
+    }
+
+    processCapture(data) {
+        if (!data) return
+
+        console.debug("Captured scan data: " + data)
+
+        const scanInput = document.getElementById("scan_dialog_input");
+        if (scanInput) { //When we are on the scan dialog page, submit the form there
+            this._submitScanForm(data);
+        } else {  //Otherwise use our own form (e.g. on the part list page)
+            this.element.querySelector("input[name='input']").value = data;
+            this.element.requestSubmit();
+        }
+
+
+    }
+
+    _submitScanForm(data) {
+        const scanInput = document.getElementById("scan_dialog_input");
+        if (!scanInput) {
+            console.error("Scan input field not found!")
+            return;
+        }
+
+        scanInput.value = data;
+        scanInput.dispatchEvent(new Event('input', { bubbles: true }));
+
+        const form = document.getElementById("scan_dialog_form");
+        if (!form) {
+            console.error("Scan form not found!")
+            return;
+        }
+
+        form.requestSubmit();
+    }
+}

assets/controllers/pages/barcode_scan_controller.js

@@ -114,7 +114,11 @@ export default class extends Controller {
         // Mark as handled immediately (prevents spam even if callback fires repeatedly)
         this._lastDecodedText = normalized;
 
-        document.getElementById('scan_dialog_input').value = decodedText;
+        const input = document.getElementById('scan_dialog_input');
+        input.value = decodedText;
+        //Trigger nonprintable char input controller to update the hidden input value
+        input.dispatchEvent(new Event('input', { bubbles: true }));
+
         //Submit form
         document.getElementById('scan_dialog_form').requestSubmit();
     }

docs/usage/scanner.md

@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+---
+title: Barcode Scanner
+layout: default
+parent: Usage
+---
+
+# Barcode scanner
+
+When the user has the correct permission there will be a barcode scanner button in the navbar.
+On this page you can either input a barcode code by hand, use an external barcode scanner, or use your devices camera to
+scan a barcode.
+
+In info mode (when the "Info" toggle is enabled) you can scan a barcode and Part-DB will parse it and show information 
+about it.
+
+Without info mode, the barcode will directly redirect you to the corresponding page.
+
+### Barcode matching
+
+When you scan a barcode, Part-DB will try to match it to an existing part, part lot or storage location first.
+For Part-DB generated barcodes, it will use the internal ID of a part.  Alternatively you can also scan a barcode that contains the part's IPN.
+
+You can set a GTIN/EAN code in the part properties and Part-DB will open the part page when you scan the corresponding GTIN/EAN barcode.
+
+On a part lot you can under "Advanced" set a user barcode, that will redirect you to the part lot page when scanned. This allows to reuse
+arbitrary existing barcodes that already exist on the part lots (for example, from the manufacturer) and link them to the part lot in Part-DB.
+
+Part-DB can also parse various distributor barcodes (for example from Digikey and Mouser) and will try to redirect you to the corresponding
+part page based on the distributor part number in the barcode.
+
+### Part creation from barcodes
+For certain barcodes Part-DB can automatically create a new part, when it cannot find a matching part.
+Part-DB will try to retrieve the part information from an information provider and redirects you to the part creation page 
+with the retrieved information pre-filled.
+
+## Using an external barcode scanner
+
+Part-DB supports the use of external barcode scanners that emulate keyboard input. To use a barcode scanner with Part-DB,
+simply connect the scanner to your computer and scan a barcode while the cursor is in a text field in Part-DB.
+The scanned barcode will be entered into the text field as if you had typed it on the keyboard.
+
+In scanner fields, it will also try to insert special non-printable characters the scanner send via Alt + key combinations.
+This is required for EIGP114 datamatrix codes.
+
+### Automatically redirect on barcode scanning
+
+If you configure your barcode scanner to send a <SOH> (Start of heading, 0x01) non-printable character at the beginning
+of the scanned barcode, Part-DB will automatically scan the barcode that comes afterward (and is ended with an enter key)
+and redirects you to the corresponding page.
+This allows you to quickly scan a barcode from anywhere in Part-DB without the need to first open the scanner page.
+If an input field is focused, the barcode will be entered into the field as usual and no redirection will happen.

src/Form/LabelSystem/ScanDialogType.php

@@ -61,6 +61,8 @@ class ScanDialogType extends AbstractType
             'attr' => [
                 'autofocus' => true,
                 'id' => 'scan_dialog_input',
+                'style' => 'font-family: var(--bs-font-monospace)',
+                'data-controller' => 'elements--nonprintable-char-input',
             ],
         ]);
 

templates/base.html.twig

@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 
 <!DOCTYPE html>
 <html lang="{{ app.request.locale | replace({"_": "-"}) }}"
-      {#  For the UX translator, just use the language part (before the _. should be 2 chars), otherwise it finds no translations #}
+    {#  For the UX translator, just use the language part (before the _. should be 2 chars), otherwise it finds no translations #}
       data-symfony-ux-translator-locale="{{ app.request.locale|u.truncate(2)  }}">
 <head>
     <meta charset="UTF-8">
@@ -76,6 +76,14 @@
 <body data-base-url="{{ path('homepage', {'_locale': app.request.locale}) }}"
       data-locale="{{ app.request.locale|default("en")|slice(0,2) }}"
       data-keybindings-special-characters="{{ settings_instance('keybindings').enableSpecialCharacters ? 'true' : 'false' }}">
+
+{# Listen for the special  #}
+{% if is_granted("@tools.label_scanner") %}
+<form class="d-none" {{ stimulus_controller('helpers/scan_special_char') }} action="{{ path("scan_dialog") }}" data-turbo-frame="content">
+    <input name="input" type="hidden">
+</form>
+{% endif %}
+
 {% block body %}
     <header>
         <turbo-frame id="navbar-frame" target="content" data-turbo-action="advance">
@@ -121,13 +129,13 @@
 
     <!-- Back to top button -->
     <button id="back-to-top" class="btn btn-primary back-to-top btn-sm" role="button" title="{% trans %}back_to_top{% endtrans %}"
-            {{ stimulus_controller('common/back_to_top') }} {{ stimulus_action('common/back_to_top', 'backToTop') }}>
+        {{ stimulus_controller('common/back_to_top') }} {{ stimulus_action('common/back_to_top', 'backToTop') }}>
         <i class="fas fa-angle-up fa-fw"></i>
     </button>
 
     {# Must be outside of the sidebar or it will be hidden too #}
     <button class="btn btn-outline-secondary btn-sm p-0 d-md-block d-none" type="button" id="sidebar-toggle-button" title="{% trans %}sidebar.big.toggle{% endtrans %}"
-            {{ stimulus_controller('common/hide_sidebar') }} {{ stimulus_action('common/hide_sidebar', 'toggleSidebar') }} style="--fa-width: 10px;">
+        {{ stimulus_controller('common/hide_sidebar') }} {{ stimulus_action('common/hide_sidebar', 'toggleSidebar') }} style="--fa-width: 10px;">
         <i class="fas fa-angle-left"></i>
     </button>