A QR code (QR denotes ‘Quick Response’) is a two-dimensional matrix code that is designed by keeping two points under consideration, i.e. it must store large amount of data as compared to 1-D barcodes and it must be decoded very quickly at high speed even by any handheld device like phone. The code consists of black modules arranged in a square pattern on a white background. The information encoded may be text, a URL or other data. The popularity of QR codes is growing rapidly all around the world. Nowadays, mobile phones with built-in camera are widely used to recognize the QR Codes.
The idea behind the development of the QR code is the limitation of the barcode information capacity (can only hold 20 alphanumeric characters).
QR Codes are created by the Toyota subsidiary Denso Wave in 1994, and was initially used for tracking inventory in vehicle parts manufacturing. While they are developed for tracking parts in vehicle manufacturing, QR codes are now used in many other fields, from commercial tracking to entertainment, in-store product labeling, and in those applications that are aimed at smartphone users. Users may open URL; receive text after scanning QR codes. By using QR code generating sites or apps, users can generate and print their own QR codes for others to scan and use.
The QR code system consists of a QR code encoder and decoder. The encoder is responsible for encoding data and generation of the QR Code, while the decoder decodes the data from the QR code. Plain text, URL, or other data are given to the QR code encoder, and it generates the required QR code. When we want to access the data of the QR code, QR code is decoded via QR Code decoder (scanner) which retrieves the data of QR code.
