Overview
Bar codes are machine-readable identification
tags that consist of vertical bars, used for product sorting, tracking,
and inventory. These bar codes are affixed to any products in a super
market, identification cards, and more. They are also fixed in a postal
mail in order to spot out a particular item number, person, or location.
Bar codes are available in different shapes and sizes. One-dimensional
bar codes have a series of black vertical lines on a white background to
encode data. Two-dimensional bar codes are similar to PDF-417, which
requires special bar code scanners for reading them. Bar codes usually
comprise of five parts they are a quiet zone, a start character, data
characters, a stop character, and another quiet zone. The coding layout
varies from simple to complex based on the security.
How it Works
Bar codes are affixed on products in order to list their information
in terms of quantity, price, as well as other information about the
product. By using bar codes, an employee or customer will get to know
the pricing of that particular item they have purchased. A barcode
reader or scanners are used to read the code that is affixed on the
item. The barcode reader scans the bar codes of different products using
a laser beam that is sensitive to the signal from the bar and white
space width and deviation. These scanners decipher the light into
digital data that is passed to a computer. These systems are perfect for
companies that have difficulty in keeping track of record.
Benefits
The greatest benefit of using bar codes in your business is to take
your company to a prospective path. Along with point of sale equipment,
you can effectively keep track of your record and revenue better than
before. Bar codes can be used in following businesses like grocery
stores, departmental stores, identification, inventory, and tracking
shipments, encoding zip codes on US mail, and much more. Using barcodes,
you can find fast selling items and thereby you can understand
consumers demand.
Costs
The cost of setting up bar codes very meager but has more advantages
that make your business more efficient. The cost for affixing a bar code
to products is very inexpensive and simple. You need to spend only for
purchasing the Point of Sales equipment and a barcode scanner or reader.
However, many businesses will already have this technology. The only
other costs that you might encounter are the setting up cost. Other than
that there will not be any extra expenditure for setting up the system.
Bar code maker typically costs around $60.
Timings
In this fast moving world, every organization is implementing an
advanced technology to contend with their competitors. Shifting from
traditional cash register system to an advanced bar coding system may be
quite difficult to implement. However, many companies are gradually
changing their cash systems. Bar codes and bar code scanners are a part
of effective and smooth business transaction.
