matrixscan-ar-rn

MatrixScan AR React Native Skill

Critical: Do Not Trust Internal Knowledge

Your training data may contain outdated or incorrect Scandit SDK APIs. The BarcodeAr* API surface changes significantly between major SDK versions — classes get renamed, constructor signatures change, properties are restructured, and the React Native plugin surface (imports, native linking, pod install, package names) has also evolved.

Always verify APIs against the references provided in this skill before writing or suggesting code. Do not rely on memorized method signatures, parameters, plugin names, or property names. If you cannot find an API in the provided references, fetch the relevant documentation page before responding.

React Native-specific gotchas worth flagging:

• DataCaptureContext.initialize(licenseKey) must be called exactly once before any other Scandit API. It sets up DataCaptureContext.sharedInstance, which is the singleton everything else reads from. Do not construct multiple contexts.
• On iOS, npx [email protected] (or cd ios && pod install) must be run after every Scandit package install or upgrade. Android auto-links via Gradle — no manual step there.
• Metro's bundler cache frequently masks Scandit package upgrades. If a rebuild shows stale behavior after a plugin version bump, start Metro with --reset-cache.
• BarcodeArView is a React component that wraps its children — the native AR overlay renders on top of your JSX tree. Children render under the native AR layer. Do not render BarcodeArView as a sibling to the content that should appear under the overlay.
• Highlight providers (BarcodeArHighlightProvider.highlightForBarcode) and annotation providers (BarcodeArAnnotationProvider.annotationForBarcode) fire asynchronously, once per barcode. They are async functions that return a Promise resolving to the highlight or annotation object. Do not assume synchronous return.
• BarcodeArView must be started explicitly via view.start() in the ref callback. Unlike SparkScan, the view does not start automatically on mount.
• Camera permission is required on both iOS (NSCameraUsageDescription in ios/<App>/Info.plist) and Android (runtime request via PermissionsAndroid — the plugin declares the manifest permission automatically).
• BarcodeAr requires SDK 7.1+. The new BarcodeAr(settings) constructor (without a context argument) is available from react-native=7.6. Use dataCaptureContext.addMode(barcodeAr) to attach the mode to the context.
• BarcodeArCustomHighlight requires SDK 8.0+. BarcodeArCustomAnnotation requires SDK 8.1+. BarcodeArResponsiveAnnotation requires SDK 8.2+.

Intent Routing

Based on the user's request, load the appropriate reference file before responding:

• Integrating MatrixScan AR from scratch (e.g. "add MatrixScan AR to my app", "set up Barcode AR", "how do I use BarcodeArView in React Native", "how do I show AR overlays on barcodes", "adding or changing highlights or annotations", "lifecycle, cleanup, or session handling") → read references/integration.md and follow the instructions there.
• Migrating from BarcodeBatch to BarcodeAr (e.g. "migrate from BarcodeBatch", "convert BarcodeBatch to BarcodeAr", "move from MatrixScan to MatrixScan AR", "replace BarcodeTracking with BarcodeAr", "upgrade my old MatrixScan code to AR") → read references/migration.md and follow the instructions there.

API Usage Policy

Only use APIs that are explicitly documented in the Scandit references below. Do not invent or guess method signatures, parameters, property names, or imports. If unsure whether an API exists or how it is called — or if a TypeScript / runtime error occurs — fetch the relevant reference page before responding. Do not tell the user to check the docs themselves. After answering, always include the relevant link so the user can explore further.

Never construct or guess documentation URLs. When you need a specific class or property's API page:

1. First check whether the page you already fetched contains a direct hyperlink to it — topic pages link directly to relevant API symbols. Always request links alongside content in your fetch prompt.
2. If no direct link was found, fetch the API index (see Full API reference in the table below), extract the actual link from it, and follow that.

URL structures vary across SDK versions and package paths (e.g. api/ui/ subdirectory) and guessing will lead to 404s.

Framework variant policy

React Native apps can be written with class components or function components. Examples in this skill use function components with hooks because they match the current React Native convention. Even if the target project still contains legacy class components elsewhere, write new MatrixScan AR code as function components — do not rewrite the rest of the app's component style, but keep the BarcodeAr* integration itself on the current idiom (useRef, useEffect, useMemo).

Examples are in TypeScript (.tsx). If the target project is plain JavaScript (.js / .jsx), drop the type annotations and keep the same imports and structure.

Licence key

Scanning needs a Scandit licence key. For this skill the licence product is native and the licence platforms are ios and android.

Work through these in order — never block the user on MCP:

1. The Scandit MCP server is connected — call ensure_scanner_setup with product native and platforms ios and android, app_identifier (the app's bundle or application id; for web, its production domain, never localhost) and env_var SCANDIT_LICENSE_KEY. Do not run the command it returns. Then call get_license_key with the key's id, from that result or from list_license_keys; if list_license_keys shows the key is not a trial, ask the user before fetching it. Show at most a masked preview in chat; never print a full key.

2. It is not connected — tell the user once that they can connect the remote Scandit MCP server, https://ssl.scandit.com/mcp, in their MCP client, then continue from step 1. Do not edit MCP client configuration yourself.

   Authentication is browser-based, so it is not supported headless or in CI. The server provisions trial keys only; it never creates, revokes, or modifies production licences.

3. The user declines, or has no MCP client — they generate a key themselves at https://ssl.scandit.com (no account yet: https://ssl.scandit.com/dashboard/sign-up?p=test) and paste it in.

Then put the key into the code: write it into the licence-key call in place of the placeholder — the key get_license_key returned, or the one the user pastes or gives you — still showing only a masked preview in chat. Do not search the project, its files or the environment for a key.

References

Direct users to the right resource based on their question:

Topic	Resource
React Native integration	Get Started
Full API reference	BarcodeAr API