A pallet scan can identify one logistics unit without proving what is inside it or whether it belongs to the delivery at the door. A useful receiving workflow must connect the scanned SSCC to the expected shipment record, show the operator what is known, and route duplicates or content differences without silently completing the wrong receipt.
This guide uses an editorial inbound shipment. The numbers and outcomes are teaching examples, not customer data or measured AIDC GO performance. The warehouse management system owns the receiving rules; a handheld supplies capture and operator interaction only in the configuration that the project verifies.
Give each identifier one job
An SSCC identifies a logistics unit such as a pallet. GS1's General Specifications 26.0 defines Application Identifier 00 for an 18-digit SSCC and explains that the key identifies the logistics unit. A GTIN identifies a trade item. A purchase order expresses what was ordered. A Despatch Advice or advance ship notice describes what the sender says was dispatched.
Those references must not be treated as interchangeable. Reading an SSCC can locate the corresponding inbound record, but the application still has to establish the supplier, shipment, purchase order, expected contents and receiving status. The existing GS1 parsing guide covers how an element string becomes application fields; this article starts after a candidate SSCC value has been parsed.
Prepare the expected arrival before the truck is received
The GS1 Logistic Label Guideline, release 1.3 states that the Despatch Advice or ASN should be processed before the goods arrive and should specify the SSCC and contained trade items for each logistics unit. It also says that rejection or other handling without a Despatch Advice should be agreed between the parties.
Build the receiving task from the actual project agreement. The expected list may contain SSCC, supplier, shipment reference, purchase order, expected item lines, quantities and any inspection requirement. When no ASN exists, show a defined exception path such as manual reference selection, supervised receipt or hold for investigation. Do not invent an expected pallet or let the handheld create an authoritative receipt only because a barcode decoded.
Capture the intended pallet code
A logistics label can contain several symbols or several GS1 element strings. Define which data is the logistics-unit key, how the application recognises AI 00, and what should happen when another nearby code is selected. The multiple-barcode guide covers target selection rather than receiving policy.
Evaluate the label at the actual work position. Record symbol type, dimensions, print quality, wrap or damage, protective film, reflections, pallet orientation and expected scanning distance. Use a positive label, a competing product code and a damaged or reflective label. The handheld-terminal category is the starting point for the device class; the exact scan engine and configuration still need sample-label verification.
Walk through an editorial receiving example
Assume the expected arrival lists pallet A as (00)395012340000000016, pallet B as another SSCC, and the related purchase-order lines. The first value is an editorial, check-digit-valid SSCC. It is not an assigned production identifier and must not be reused on a real logistics unit.
The operator opens the named arrival, scans pallet A, and sees the matched supplier, shipment and expected contents. The application records a provisional match, then asks for the inspection or quantity confirmation required by the receiving agreement. Only after those steps pass does the system commit the receipt and retain the user, time, SSCC, record identity and result.
GS1's EDI solutions overview distinguishes Despatch Advice and Receiving Advice messages. Those standard message roles do not dictate the screens, approvals or automatic behavior of a particular WMS.
Route four outcomes without losing their differences
| Receiving observation | Application decision | Operator evidence to retain |
|---|---|---|
| Expected SSCC and contents agree | Match the named logistics unit, complete required inspection and commit the authorised receipt | SSCC, inbound record, inspected fields, user, time and final status |
| SSCC is not on the expected list | Hold or route to the project's unexpected-unit process | Scanned value, selected arrival, carrier or supplier reference and disposition |
| Same pallet label is scanned again | Detect the existing logistics-unit or transaction identity before creating another receipt | Original receipt identity, repeat event, current pallet state and operator response |
| SSCC matches but goods, quantity or condition differ | Preserve the unit match and open a discrepancy rather than rewriting the expectation | Expected lines, observed difference, damage or count evidence and approval path |
The quantity-entry guide explains item, unit and count decisions. The duplicate-read guide separates capture repeats from business duplicates. Receiving should call those rules instead of replacing them with a single beep or a total count.
Separate the pallet identity from its contents
The guideline allows different receiving practices depending on the agreement: an SSCC may support acceptance against the Despatch Advice, or the receiver may check contents and damage, particularly for mixed logistics units. Therefore, a successful SSCC match establishes which logistics unit is being handled. It does not by itself prove item identity, quantity, condition or acceptance.
If a pallet has two labels showing the same SSCC on different faces, both scans refer to the same logistics-unit identity. The application should not count two pallets merely because it received two decode events. If two different SSCC values appear on one physical pallet, stop and resolve the label or record conflict rather than choosing whichever scanned first.
Show what is known and what is still open
Design the handheld screen so the operator can see the scanned SSCC, selected arrival, match state, expected contents, required checks and the next permitted action. An unexpected unit must not look like a successful receive. A discrepancy must remain open until the authorised workflow resolves it.
When connectivity is interrupted, preserve the receiving transaction identity and its confirmation state. The offline transaction guide explains why a missing response does not prove that the backend rejected the operation. Do not create a second receipt simply because the first confirmation did not reach the handheld.
Validate the complete receiving path
Test the expected pallet, a pallet outside the list, the same SSCC from both label faces, a competing code on the label, and a matched pallet with a content or condition difference. Confirm the raw captured value, parsed field, matched record, visible decision, committed transaction and audit record for each case.
Provide sample labels, expected-arrival files or redacted message examples, parsing rules, duplicate policy, inspection requirements, offline behavior, WMS and application versions, device model, scanner configuration and operator feedback requirements through Integration Support. Use the warehousing and logistics page to place the receiving task in the wider workflow, then contact AIDC GO for the relevant hardware and interface documents. AIDC GO does not supply a WMS merely because a device can scan the label.