CkPython Requires Chilkat v11.7.0+

QR Code with Non-English Text (UTF-8 and ECI)

See more QR Code Examples

Demonstrates text outside ASCII. QrCode always stores text as UTF-8 bytes, which is what phones expect. A QR code can also say so explicitly with an ECI header: setting encoding.eci to 26 declares the bytes to be UTF-8, for readers that would otherwise assume another character set. The header costs a little space, and a few older readers do not understand it, so it is off by default. CkPython

import sys
import chilkat

success = False

#  This example requires the Chilkat API to have been previously unlocked.
#  See Global Unlock Sample for sample code.

#  The text is "Gruesse aus Muenchen" written with u-umlaut and sharp s.  It is given here with
#  JSON escapes only so that this source is plain ASCII.  Decode turns the escapes into characters.
sbText = chilkat.CkStringBuilder()
sbText.Append("Gr\u00fc\u00dfe aus M\u00fcnchen")
sbText.Decode("json","utf-8")

json = chilkat.CkJsonObject()
json.UpdateSb("payload.text",sbText)
json.UpdateString("output.path","qa_output/qr_utf8.png")
json.UpdateBool("output.overwrite",True)
json.UpdateString("output.return","none")

fmt = chilkat.CkFormats()
jsonOut = chilkat.CkJsonObject()
success = fmt.QrCode("generate",json,jsonOut)
if (success == False):
    print(fmt.lastErrorText())
    sys.exit()

#  17 characters, three of which take two bytes in UTF-8.
print("characters: " + str(sbText.get_Length()))
print("bytes encoded: " + str(jsonOut.IntOf("symbols[0].payloadBytes")))
print("ECI header: " + str(jsonOut.HasMember("symbols[0].selectedEncoding.eci")))

#  Without an ECI header (qa_output/qr_utf8.png):

#  

#  The same text with an ECI header declaring UTF-8.
json.UpdateInt("encoding.eci",26)
json.UpdateString("output.path","qa_output/qr_utf8_eci.png")
success = fmt.QrCode("generate",json,jsonOut)
if (success == False):
    print(fmt.lastErrorText())
    sys.exit()

print("with encoding.eci = 26, ECI header: " + str(jsonOut.HasMember("symbols[0].selectedEncoding.eci")) + ", value " + str(jsonOut.IntOf("symbols[0].selectedEncoding.eci")))

#  With the ECI header (qa_output/qr_utf8_eci.png).  Both scan as the same text:

#  

#  Sample output:

#  characters: 17
#  bytes encoded: 20
#  ECI header: False
#  with encoding.eci = 26, ECI header: True, value 26