Norman Woodland, co-inventor of bar code, passed away

Norman Woodland (91), co-inventor of the bar code, passed way.

What is Barcode?

A barcode is an optical machine-readable representation of data relating to the object to which it is attached. Initially barcodes systematically represented data by varying the widths and spacings 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). Barcodes originally were scanned by special optical scanners called barcode readers; later, scanners and interpretive software became available on devices including desktop printers and smartphones.

They are widely used in supermarket checkout system, consumer products, speeds passengers through airline gates, tracks mail, encodes medical patient information, and is in near universal use across transportation, industrial and shipping industries worldwide.

The very first scanning of the now omnipresent Universal Product Code (UPC) barcode was carried out in 1974.

Month: Current Affairs - December, 2012