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Barcode

The barcode is a symbol in a machine-readable form to represent a combination of numbers or characters to identify any product uniquely. The printed barcode is attached to a product or item. There are two kinds of barcodes i) One Dimensional (1-D) ii) Two Dimensional (2-D). One Dimensional barcode consists of a series of parallel black lines and white lines of different width which is readable by a barcode scanner. And the layout of the Two Dimensional barcode is square or rectangle. The image scanner is used to read the grid or pixel within the tow-dimensional symbol to decode to human-readable code. Norman Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver are the original inventors of the barcode, but the bar code developed by George Laurer was commercially successful.

One-Dimensional (1D) Barcode

One Dimensional Barcode consists of a series of black and white variable-width vertical lines. These types of barcodes are commonly used to identify the consumer products for point of sales transactions or inventory management system. Barcode scanner reads the barcode in one direction, i.e. horizontally. It decodes the width of each column to numbers or characters. UPC (Universal Product Code) is one of the examples of a 1-D barcode.

Few major 1-D Barcode types –

UPC Barcode

There are different formats of UPC barcode and among them “UPC-A” is the most commonly used barcode format. UPC-A, UPC-B, UPC-C are 12 digit codes. UPC-E, UPC-5, UPC-2 are 6,5 and 2 digit code respectively. This barcode is widely used in the USA and Canada.

EAN (European Article Number) Barcode

EAN is much more acceptable than UPC barcode in European countries and globally. The labels found on the backside of the books are mostly EAN-13 Barcode symbols. The major difference between EAN-13 and UPC-A is the form of a human-readable number, otherwise, the format of the barcode is the same. EAN-13, EAN-8 are 13 and 8 digit barcodes respectively.

ITF 14

The bar code is surrounded by a thick black bar which is known as Bearer Bar. This kind of bar code is mostly used in carton or packaging. This is not intended for point of sales system. ITF 14 is the GS1 implementation of Interleaved 2 of 5 (ITF) bar code. Interleaved 2 of 5 pattern uses continuous two bars to represent one digit. ITF 14 barcode consists of 12 digits.

Code 39 and Code 128 and GS1 128

Code 39 and Code 128 are the alphanumeric barcode. Code 39 is the lower density barcode than Code 128. So, Code 128 is much more suitable for small labels. Code 39 is also known as 3 of 9 barcodes. GS1 128 uses the same characteristics of Code 128, but GS1 128 can contain various data other than identification number such as manufacturing date of the product, open date, weight, size, lot number, destination, customer’s account e.t.c.

Two-Dimensional (2 D) Barcode

In a One-Dimensional barcode, only the different variations of width bars are used to read the corresponding code and not the height of the bar. But, in the case of a two-dimensional barcode, the image scanner digitally analyzes the two-dimensional image i.e each dot of the image to convert the barcode image into meaningful information about the products or items. The benefits of 2D barcodes are 1) it can store a larger data set than a 1-D barcode. The 2-D bar code like QR code can store ten times more data than 1-D barcode 2) 2D bar codes are less prone to error than one-dimensional barcodes. 2D-barcode can be scanned a barcode even if 30% portion of the image is damaged.

Few major 2-D Barcode types –

QR Barcode

QR stands for Quick Response. This kind of barcode was first designed in 1994 for the automotive industry in Japan then, its popularity expanded throughout the world because of the first readability feature and more storage capacity than a one-dimensional barcode. The usual form of QR Code is square with multiple black color grids and white background. It uses a position detection pattern to determine the correct position of the barcode to decode the code quickly without error. The “position direction pattern” consists of comparable large squares at three corners of the QR code symbol. The pattern facilitates the scanner to read the code quickly by scanning effectively and without error from multiple directions in reference to the position direction pattern. The fewer data can be stored as we increase the error correction level. Many forms of data can be encoded to QR Code which are alphanumeric, binary, symbols, control codes, Kanji, Kana, and Hiragana.

Data Matrix Code

A Data Matrix Code is a Two-Dimensional Code. It uses the L shape symbol at the left and bottom of the image to find the orientation of the code image and correct the image distortion. It can store large volumes of data in a small space. And that is why this kind of barcode is used in small size machines parts. The barcode can be used to store product ID, serial number, expiration date, manufacture date, and any alphanumeric data. A dashed line positioned on the upper-right side gives the reader information about the Data Matrix code size, which is also known as Timing pattern. A Data Matrix symbol can store up to 2,335 alphanumeric characters or 3116 numeric values. Data matrix code is believed to be more reliable than QR because of the higher Error Correction level, but the QR code is much popular and supported by a most 2-D image scanner, including the latest smartphones.

References

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