Why Barcodes

We the common people are quite familiar with barcodes. We see barcodes on a daily basis because they are printed on the packages of almost every consumer product. To our eyes barcodes are a series of black and white stripes. In actuality barcodes are machine readable data codes. In other words, the stripes are codes containing information related to the product. The information can be gathered by reading/scanning the barcode with a scanner.

Barcode scanners

The task of reading barcodes cannot be performed with regular computers. A device called the barcode scanner is required for this task. A barcode scanner is an electronic device which contains light source, lens and decoder circuits. It merely collects optical information in the form of pulses which is then converted to electrical signals.

Types of scanners

Barcode scanners are quite common for there is a massive need for scanning barcodes in a wide range of industries and businesses. These scanners come in different shapes and even with variant technologies. Based on the technology used, barcode scanners can be categorized into roughly 7 types:

1. Pen type readers

As the name suggests these scanners resemble pen which have a light source and photodiode. The light source and photodiode are placed at the tip of the pen. When the tip is moved across the bars the photodiode measures widths of the bars and spaces which is then converted to waveform

2. Laser Scanners

The working principle for the laser scanners is similar to the pen type scanners. As the name goes these obviously use a laser as a light source. Laser scanners are more reliable and widely accepted as the standard scanner.

3. CCD readers

Charge-Coupled Device or CCD readers are basically semiconductor devices. Hundreds of tiny sensors are placed at the tip of such scanners.

4. Camera based readers

The newest type of barcode scanners are the two dimensional imaging scanners. Obviously a camera is used to capture the picture of the barcode; the image is then digitally processed to get the information. There are also large field of view readers which are mainly used for industrial purposes.

5. Omni-directional barcode scanners

This type of scanners typically uses lasers. The advantage of these scanners is that it is not required to scan the barcode from a certain side at a certain angle. These are most common in the payment counter of the supermarkets, where products are slid over the scanner.

6. Smartphones

With the advent of smartphone technology scanning barcodes have been further made easier. All the major operating systems including Symbian, android etc. in the market offer barcode scanning.

Barcodes are usually connected with a cord to the computer via serial, parallel or USB connections. Some brands offer wireless connections as well. Barcodes and barcode scanners have made life much easier for the consumers. This system of transferring coded information is efficient and stressfree.

A point-of-sale, in short POS, system is a computer automated replacement for a sales register. Point of sale devices plays an essential role in the management everyday business operations. The POS system can carry out numerous functions such as track and record customer orders, process debit and credit cards, and handle stock. These systems involve a computer, which includes application-based programs and I/O devices made for specific work setups. POS systems can be discovered in the majority of businesses that serve customers such as retail stores, restaurants, hotels, and entertainment establishments.

POS and retail store

POS is very essential in running business activities, especially retail store. It enables retailers to know their customers. POS software helps the businesses track the most preferred products through different consumer profiles.  Based on customer shopping habits, retailers can rapidly identify what products they must market. POS softwares allow companies to track their consumers so that they can understand their needs. As a result, it becomes easier for retailers to cater to their customer preferences.

A good POS system can help retail store

• Simplify and improve inventory handling.
• Save significant amounts of time by automating bookkeeping and various other retail tasks for managers.
• Dramatically improve customer service.
• Easily show where you are making and losing money so you can make adjustments and increase profits.
• Improve the effectiveness of marketing efforts.

POS Helps make more money

A retail POS system can assist you enhance your profits in numerous ways. Quicker, more trusted checkouts indicate fewer workforces are required. Sales reports enable you to optimize your stock levels and manage costs. Inbuilt loyalty programs advocate higher ticket averages.  They also help repeat business from your consumers.  You can also earn revenues from internet sales by integrating ecommerce servicers.

There are still may other ways POS can help you increase your bottom line.

POS Helps run business more efficiently

A good retail POS system raises your effectiveness by doing away with needless job. Rather than using separate units for your ecommerce, retail, mail order, and wholesale departments, choose one retail software package that can easily handle your whole company. Pick a retail POS system that enhances your rate of service along with on-the-fly data entry, data-driven lookups, and faster ticket entry.

Ensure that the retail software you select can automate all of your process related tasks, such as purchasing, customer loyalty, physical count, and label printing.

You see bar codes everywhere around you. You see them in super markets, on greeting cards, consumable goods and labels. Ever wondered what it is a bar code? It is an optical representation of data associated to the object to which it is affixed.  Barcodes initially were scanned by unique optical scanning devices called bar code readers. Later on, interpretive software application and scanners became readily available on devices including smartphones and desktop printers.

Barcodes can be used for business activities around the world. It can be used:

• to track and manage your vehicle fleet and the drivers
• to track assets in building including every computer, desk, desk accessory, telephone, and copier
• to help security guards identify and record every employee, every room they work in and every door they enter and exit.
• to unlock, lock or secure entrances or exits throughout the factory plant.
• to track incoming and outgoing of mail within an organization.
• To identify slow selling items in order to prevent inventory build-up
• To identify and record fast selling items
• To predict seasonal fluctuations

History of Bar Codes

On October 7, 1952, Bernard Silver and Joseph Woodland, inventors of bar codes, were issued first patent for a barcode type product. The Silver and Woodland barcode is referred to as a bull’s eye symbol, composed of a series of concentric circles.

The idea of bar code came into light in 1948. During that period, Bernard Silver was a graduate student at one of the top tech universities in the United States. He overheard the owner of the local food chain called food fair proposing one of the faculty members of Drexel Institute of Technologies to research a model that can read product information automatically during checkout.  Silver told his classmate Norman Joseph Woodland about the proposal. They both enthusiastically started working on various systems. At first, they used ultraviolet ink, but the ink was expensive and too unstable.

On 20 October, 1949, Silver and Woodland filed their patent application for “Classifying Apparatus and Method”.  There they described both bullseye and linear printing patterns, as well as electronic systems and the mechanical systems needed to read the code. The patent was issued as U.S Patent 2,612,994 on October 7, 1952.

Bar Code – Commercial Use

The first commercial bar code was appeared in 1966. However, it was soon realized that industry standard set should be maintained for bar codes.  The American company Monarch Marking produced the first bar code for retail trade use and the British company Plessey Telecommunications introduced bar code for industrial use.