ACADEMY OF TECHNOLOGY

... translate your vision

into reality

A
Report On
'Barcode & Barcode Reader'
By
Suryadip Basu, Computer Science & Engineering, 4th semester, Roll No. 204.

A report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of,

HU 481 : Technical Report Writing.
13th March, 2014.
Academy Of Technology
Aedconagar, Hooghly:- 712121.

CERTIFICATE BY SUPERVISOR

Prof. Shaswati Chaterjee <supervisor 1>

Assistant Prof. Department of General Engineering Sciences and Humanities,
Academy of Technology, Hooghly
Academy of Technology, Adisaptagram.

Prof. Sriparna Chatterjee <supervisor 2>

Assistant Prof. Department of General Engineering Sciences and Humanities,
Academy of Technology, Hooghly

This is to certify that the Technical Report entitled "BARCODE &

BARCODE READER" is a document of work done by, Suryadip Basu under our
supervision during the period, January 2014 to March 2014.

( Prof. Shaswati Chatterjee )

__________________________
( Prof. Sriparna Chatterjee )

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STATEMENT BY THE CANDIDATE

Suryadip Basu
B.Tech 4th semester,
Dept. Of Comp. Science & Engg. , Roll 204,
Academy of Technology,

I hereby state that the Technical Report entitled BARCODE & BARCODE
READER has been prepared by me to fulfil the requirements of HU 481 during
the period January 2014 to March 2014.

( Reporter's Signature )

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I am extremely grateful to the Director of, Academy of Technology and Prof.

Shaswati Chatterjee for providing & helping me with my Technical Report.
I express my thanks to the founder of this Bar-coding System Prof. Norman
Joseph Woodland & his Team To Bring such an awesome technology for human
use & making my Technical Report efficiently.
I will be failing in duty if I do not acknowledge with grateful thanks to the authors
of the references and other literatures referred to in this Technical Report.
I express my thanks to all faculty and friends for all the help and co-ordination
extended in bringing out this Technical Report successfully in time.
Last but not the least, I am very much thankful to my parents who guided me in
every step which I took.

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ABSTRACT

Barcode or Barcode Reader, is an optical machine-readable representation of

data relating to the object to which it is attached. Originally barcodes
systematically represented data by varying the widths and spacing of parallel lines,
and may be referred to as linear or one-dimensional (1D). Later they evolved into
rectangles, dots, hexagons and other geometric patterns in two dimensions (2D).
Although 2D systems use a variety of symbols, they are generally referred to as
barcodes as well. Barcodes originally were scanned by special optical scanners
called barcode readers.

In Chapter1, the Introduction & the brief history of the Barcode have been
discussed. In Chapter2, the process preparation, features and advantages,
disadvantages are discussed. In Chapter3, the future aspects and conclusion have
been discussed.

We are concluding that barcode has its advantages in many fields in Retail arena
like better time allocation and decision making in many spheres of retail.
Unlike advantages, it has its bottlenecks also like initial cost is quite high while
installation and proper training and education.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
CONTENTS

PAGE NO.

Certificate by Supervision ................................................................................... I

Statement by Candidate ....................................................................................... II
Acknowledgement .................................................................................................. III
Abstract .................................................................................................................... IV
List Of Figures ......................................................................................................... VI
Introduction ............................................................................................................. 01
CHAPTER 1 : Bar-coding Technology .............................................................. 02
CHAPTER 2 : Barcode Scanning & Decoding .................................................. 03
CHAPTER 3 : Types Of Barcodes & Scanners ................................................. 04
CHAPTER 4 : Applications, Pros. & Cons. ........................................................ 06

Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 07
Bibliography .............................................................................................................. 08

LIST OF FIGURES
CONTENTS

PAGE NO.

Figure 1 - Barcode & Barcode Reader ...................................................... 01

Figure 1.1 - Barcode Design Construction ...................................................02
Figure 1.2 - Barcode Construction Rules................................................... 02
Figure 2.1 - Barcode Reading principle ..................................................... 03
Figure 3.1 - Types Of Barcodes ................................................................... 04
Figure 3.2 - Pen Based Reader ..................................................................... 05
Figure 3.3 - Laser Based Reader .................................................................. 05
Figure 3.4 - Omni-directional Reader .......................................................... 05
Figure 4.1 - Barcode In Use ............................................................................ 06
Figure 5 - Sample Barcode ............................................................................... 07

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INTRODUCTION

In

1932 a small group of students from Harvard University, London first

developed the concept of Automatic Product Identification By passing a high

intensity light through some Morse Code. Which gradually developed to Barcoding system from the year, 1948. Soon the bar-coding technology opened for
public use from, 1967.
In 1974, the first the first bar coding was introduced to the retail world on a packet
of Wrigleys Gum. Thirty eight years later the number of applications for bar code
technology has exploded, going far beyond grocery stores and retail. Read between
the lines and you will see bar code technology popping up in new and unusual
places such as hospitals, law firms, retail stores, security, and Department of
Defense, corporate offices, libraries, and rental cars.

Figure 0.1 :- Barcode & Barcode Reader

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CHAPTER 1 : Barcoding Technology

barcode is an optical machine-readable representation of data relating to the

object to which it is attached. Originally barcodes systematically represented data

by varying the widths and spacing's of parallel lines, and may be referred to as
linear or one-dimensional (1D). Later they evolved into rectangles, dots, hexagons
and other geometric patterns in two dimensions (2D). Although 2D systems use a
variety of symbols, they are generally referred to as barcodes as well. Barcodes
originally were scanned by special optical scanners called barcode readers. Later,
scanners and interpretive software became available on devices including desktop
printers and smart phones.
The Laser Light Scans the barcode & generates wave-form from the light reflected
back from the white areas of the barcode.
There are Two Quiet Zones at the two ends of the barcode, then it has a start
checkpoint & end checkpoint at it's two sides, after the start point it contains the
actual data then a check symbol validates the existence of the scanned code.

Figure 1.1 - Barcode Design Construction

Figure 1.2 - Barcode Construction Rules

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CHAPTER 2 : Barcode Scanning & Decoding

Barcodes are mostly scanned by a Special Laser light which is generated when a
laser light is fall on a rotating polygon an mirror.
After falling of the laser light on the barcode, the laser light gets absorbed on the
black portions & gets reflected on the white portions. Thus the reflected light is
further analysed by a photo-diode which acts as a receiver & Generates a Waveform. This Generated Wave-form is then further processed by a decoder & then the
final code/output comes.
In bar-coding system each character is represented by a pattern of wide and narrow
bars. A barcode reader uses a photo sensor to convert the barcode into an electrical
signal as it moves across a barcode. The scanner then measures the relative widths
of the bars and spaces, translates the different patterns back into regular characters,
and sends them on to a computer or portable terminal.

Figure 2.1 - Barcode Reading Principle

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CHAPTER 3 : Types of Barcodes

1.) LINEAR BARCODES (1-D) :# U.P.C.(A & E) => So called as, Universal Product Code which has Types A & E.
# E.A.N. (8 & 13) => So called as, European Article Numbering Which has
Types EAN8 and EAN13.
# CODE (39 & 128) => Basic Barcode Used In Retail Store Nowadays. Which
has Types, Code 39 & 128.

Figure 3.1 - Types of Barcodes

2.) 2-D BARCODES :# P.D.F. 417 => It Stands for Portable Data File which has a high capacity of,
2725 Characters.
# AZTEC CODE =>It Has A High Density Of Data Holding Capacity @3750
Bytes.
# DATA MATRIX => High Density Of Data Holding Capacity @3116 Bytes.
# QR-BARCODE => Mostly used in android camera based scanners.
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CHAPTER 3 : Types of Barcode Scanners

Types of Barcode Reader Are :-

# Pen Based ==>

Figure 3.2 - Pen Based Reader

# Laser Based ==>

Figure 3.3 - Laser Based Reader

# Omni- Directional ==>

Figure 3.4 - Omni-Directional Reader

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CHAPTER 4 : Applications, Pros. & Cons.

Applications :> Inventory of merchandise sold at retail.
> An automatic update of stock levels.
> Automatic re-ordering of new stock.
> Better marketing information.
> Give a unique identification to every product and every piece.

Pros.:-

Cons.:-

> Fast and Reliable Data Collection.

> Pricing Issues.

> 10,000 Times better Accuracy.

> Damaged Labels.

> Reduced Labor Costs.

> Upfront Costs.

> Necessary Inventory Levels.

> Printer Requirements.

> Faster Access to Information.

> Training.

> Customer Satisfaction.

> Has Restrictions.

Figure 4.1 - Barcode In Use

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CONCLUSION
Thus, we can observed that barcode has its advantages in many fields in
Retail arena like better time allocation and decision making in many spheres
of retail.
Unlike advantages, it has its bottlenecks also like initial cost is quite
high while installation and proper training and education is needed to use
this kind of gadget in retail.

Positive Impact On Daily Life.

Have Lots Of Advantages With Minor Bottlenecks.
It Has Its Versatile Uses & Its User Friendly.
Laser Emission Near Or On Human Body Is Very Harmful.

Figure 5 - Sample Barcode

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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Barcode Wikipedia

the Free Encyclopaedia,

< http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barcode > 10 Feb 2014.

Kalimpong Wikipedia

the Free Encyclopaedia,

< http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalimpong> 10 Feb 2014.

"Kalimpong Science Museum, India" < http://kalimpongsciencecentre.org/>

How Barcodes Work ? ", You Tube, 15 Feb 2014.

< https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6aR1k-ympo>

" Barcode Reader Technical Guide ", Keyence International Limited,

< http://www1.keyence.com/dwn/bar_code_tech_guide_ka.pdf >

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