Question

I’m pretty much a noob. I’ve been wondering how mobile barcode readers worked. I’ve seen several apps on the market that would let you scan a barcode, and then show you corresponding product data.

I was wondering where the product data typically comes from. Is it usually from a built-in database, or do apps tend to connect to a server to access a database?

Thanks for any and all assistance!

Answer 1

Barcode readers/scanners work by using some sort of standard format to communicate data to the device ‘reading’ the code. There are typically two types of ‘barcodes’ used today:

• The standard Barcode – often referred to as a UPS code
• And the QR code – popular for cell-phone apps.

From a developer’s standpoint, both work the same way:

• A device ‘reads’ the code, the code is interpreted to represent a set of numbers (typical of the standard Barcode), or numbers and characters (QR code).
• The interpreted code is used to seek the related data in a database somewhere – A UPC code would have a database of items referenced with a number (just like the number you would read at the bottom of a UPC label), and a QR code frequently references a URL that can be opened in any web browser.

The information from a barcode comes from the referenced data that the barcode points to – so you don’t have to carry around a database of information anytime you want to scan a code – you just have to be able to connect to that source of information.

Hope this helps.