Setting up Zebra scanners with DataWedge for Ordovee

Why does my Zebra scanner scan, but the form won’t move?

You pull the trigger, the barcode reads, and the SKU lands in the input field — and then nothing happens. The cursor sits there. You have to reach up, tap Submit, and only then does the pick advance. Multiply that by every pick on every order all day and the scanner stops feeling like a scanner.

The fix is one setting deep inside Zebra’s DataWedge configuration: tell DataWedge to append an Enter key (carriage return) after the scanned data. Once that is set, each scan auto-submits the form, and your handheld starts behaving like a true one-trigger workflow. This guide walks that setup end to end on a Zebra Android device. The same approach applies broadly across Zebra Android TC- and MC-series handhelds (TC21, TC22, TC52, TC57, MC33 and their siblings), although menu labels can vary by DataWedge version.

You’ll need the handheld and a barcode to test with — any printed SKU or location label from Ordovee works, or print a test label with the free label generator.

What DataWedge actually does

DataWedge is the Zebra app that sits between the scan engine and whatever app you’re using — in your case, the browser running Ordovee. When you pull the trigger, DataWedge decodes the barcode, formats the output, and types the result into the active text field as if you’d typed it on a keyboard.

That last part is the important one. DataWedge isn’t sending data through Ordovee — it’s typing keystrokes into the focused input. Which means everything Ordovee needs is configurable through DataWedge itself, including the Enter keystroke that tells the form “I’m done, submit me.”

Step 1: open DataWedge and pick a profile

On the Zebra handheld, swipe up to the app drawer and open DataWedge. You’ll see a list of profiles. Most devices ship with a Profile0 (default) that applies to every app unless something more specific is matched. (The left panel of the composite image further down shows what this list looks like.)

You have two options:

• Edit Profile0 (default). Fastest path. Any app that does not already have its own DataWedge profile will use these scanner settings, including your browser if it is unassociated. Good choice if this handheld is dedicated to Ordovee work.
• Create a new profile named ODV. A little cleaner if the device also runs other apps that need different scanner behavior. Tap the + icon, name it ODV, and we’ll associate it with the browser in the next step.

For a dedicated handheld, editing Profile0 is the simpler route and is what we’ll show in the rest of this walkthrough. If you create a new profile, every step below applies to that profile instead.

Step 2: enable the profile and associate it with the browser

Open the profile you’re configuring. At the top, make sure Profile enabled is checked.

Scroll to Associated apps. If you’re editing Profile0 (default) you can skip this step — Profile0 applies to apps that do not already have their own DataWedge profile.

If you created a separate ODV profile, open Associated apps, tap +, and select the browser you actually use from the installed-app list. Then select * so the profile applies to all of that browser’s activities.

Step 3: confirm barcode input is enabled

Back in the profile, find Barcode input. Make sure the toggle at the top of that section reads Enabled.

Tap into Decoders and make sure QR Code is enabled — Ordovee’s generated SKU labels, location labels and packing slips all use QR codes. If you also scan manufacturer barcodes or retail UPCs, enable the additional symbologies you actually use. Zebra recommends leaving decoders you don’t need switched off, which keeps scanning quick and avoids misreads.

Step 4: enable keystroke output

Scroll down to Keystroke output. This is what types scanned data into the focused field. Make sure the toggle at the top of the section is Enabled.

Step 5: how do you make a Zebra scanner press Enter after each scan?

The setting you want is Send ENTER key, in Basic Data Formatting. Zebra documents it plainly: it appends an ENTER character to the processed data.

In the profile you’re editing, open Basic Data Formatting — it sits in the profile’s settings alongside Keystroke output, as one of the Process options. Then:

• Leave Send data enabled. It is on by default.
• Turn on Send ENTER key.

That appends an Enter keystroke after the barcode data. Ordovee’s handheld scan fields treat that Enter as the end-of-scan signal, so the scan is processed without a separate tap.

One Enter is enough. If a suffix or an Advanced Data Formatting rule also appends an Enter, each scan can submit twice.

Step 6: save and back out

DataWedge saves the profile automatically as you exit. Tap the back arrow until you’re out of the profile and back at the DataWedge home. Nothing else to confirm — the profile is live the moment you leave the screen.

See the picking workflow this setup unlocks → Scanner-First Picking on the Warehouse Floor

Step 7: the verification

Time to make sure the configuration works. Open Ordovee on the handheld and head into a screen with a scan field — picking is the easiest one to test.

1. Open Ordovee in the browser. Sign in if you aren’t already.
2. Tap into Picking and start a session, or resume an existing one until you reach a scan prompt.
3. Aim the scanner at the type of barcode the screen is asking for — a location label, a SKU label, or a packing-slip QR.
4. Pull the trigger once.

What should happen:

• The scanned value appears in the input field only briefly.
• The current scan step processes without you touching Submit.
• Ordovee advances to the next step if the scan is valid.

Ordovee’s scan prompts are contextual — a location prompt expects a location, a SKU prompt expects a SKU — so scan what the screen is asking for rather than whatever label is nearest.

If the form advances on its own, you’re done. If the value lands in the field but the form sits waiting, head back to Step 5 — Send ENTER key is almost always what was missed.

Where this setup pays off in Ordovee

Ordovee’s handheld scan inputs use Enter as the end-of-scan signal. With DataWedge appending an Enter, those workflows can process a scan without a separate Submit tap:

• Picking — location → SKU → tote becomes three trigger pulls without tapping Submit between scans. See Scanner-First Picking for the full walkthrough.
• SKU and location lookup — scan a label and the lookup runs on its own, taking you to the matching handheld results without tapping Search.
• Add Inventory — set the location, then scan SKU labels to record inventory additions without submitting each scan by hand.

One DataWedge setting covers all of them.

Common questions and snags

A few patterns we see when the verification step doesn’t behave:

Why does my scanner submit twice or skip ahead?

More than one formatting rule is probably adding an Enter. In Basic Data Formatting, check that you’re adding the Enter only once, and make sure another suffix or an Advanced Data Formatting rule isn’t adding a second one.

The scanner reads the barcode, but nothing lands in the field — why?

Either Keystroke output is disabled (the scan decodes but never types anywhere — check the toggle at the top of Step 4) or the label’s decoder is off (walk back through Step 3 — QR Code is the one Ordovee’s own labels need).

The settings look right, but nothing changed — what did I miss?

First make sure you’re editing the profile that is actually active for your browser. If you’re using a custom profile, check that the browser is associated with it (Step 2), or move the settings into Profile0 (default). Then confirm Keystroke output and Send ENTER key are both enabled.

A third symptom looks similar but has a different cause: if scans submit yet characters go missing or arrive scrambled in a browser field, the Enter setting is probably working. Look next at the Keystroke output settings and scan timing. That one has its own walkthrough — DataWedge in the browser: fix scans in a web app.

Not using a Zebra?

The same principle applies to most rugged handhelds and keyboard-wedge scanners: configure the scanner to send an Enter or Return after the barcode data. The setting name varies by manufacturer and model, so follow your handheld’s own manual to find it. On a Datalogic it lives on the Wedge screen — if a forum post sent you hunting for ScanWedge, that is a name from other makers’ older handhelds, not Datalogic’s.

If the scanner in your hand is a plain USB or Bluetooth unit with no wedge app at all, the answer is usually still yes — will any barcode scanner work with web inventory? shows how to tell in thirty seconds.

Going further: per-profile setups for mixed devices

For shops running a mix of dedicated picking handhelds and shared-use devices, you can build multiple DataWedge profiles and let DataWedge route them by application. Ordovee-specific scanner behavior lives on the ODV profile (Send ENTER key on, the decoders you actually use enabled); other apps inherit Profile0 (default) with different settings.

The setup steps are identical — you just associate each profile with a different application package in Step 2 and tune the rest to taste.

→ Scans submitting but characters dropping in a browser field? DataWedge in the browser: fix scans in a web app → See the picking workflow this hardware setup powers: Scanner-first picking on the warehouse floor → Still choosing the hardware itself? What scanner and printer to buy for a parts operation → Buying the handheld secondhand? Which used Zebra to buy, and what to check first → Bringing Ordovee up for the first time? Order fulfillment in Ordovee — from order to shipment walks the path orders take through the system. → Have a Zebra setup question we didn’t cover here? Let’s talk