A. THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL BAR CODE, WITH AN INFORMATION DENSITY OF 1,...

17.

A. The two-dimensional bar code, with an information density of 1,100 bytes,

allows a considerably greater amount of information to be coded than the tradi-

tional bar code, including customized information. Thus, the manufacturer is

able to add additional information on the bar code that it finds useful for its own

tracking purposes. It also has built-in redundancy, meaning that the identical

information is duplicated on the same code. Therefore, if the code is damaged, it

can still be read. The technology even allows pictures or text to be contained

within the code, as well as barcode encryption. The new technology dramatically

reduces the errors of the single dimensional bar code and reduces the enormous

costs that some companies have reported in the past.