Patent ID: 6896185

Claim:
An optoelectronic code reader for the reading in of codes, which move relative to the code reader within a reading zone, by scanning the reading zone at least along one scan direction, comprising one of an image detection sensor and an object detection sensor for at least one of the detection of the number of codes in the reading zone, the detection of the mutual spacing of the code in the reading zone and the detection of the relative arrangement of the codes with respect to the scan direction, for the reading in of codes which are arranged along the scan direction at different distances to the code reader, at least one first scanning device and one second scanning device which can be controlled for scanning along the scan direction at different focal positions, the first and second scanning devices being controlled so that on the presence of a predetermined minimum number of codes in the reading zone, when a predetermined minimum mutual spacing of the codes in the reading zone is not achieved and/or when a plurality of codes are arranged next to one another along the scan direction, the focal positions of the first scanning device and of the second scanning device are focused on different codes and otherwise the first scanning device and the second scanning device are focused on a common focal position.