The availability of camera phones provides people with a mobile platform for decoding bar codes, whereas conventional scanners lack mobility. However, using a normal camera phone in such applications is challenging due to the out-of-focus problem. In this paper, we present the research effort on the bar code reading algorithms using a VGA camera phone, NOKIA 7650. EAN-13, a widely used 1D bar c...

BACKGROUND Bar code technology has decreased transcription errors in many healthcare applications. However, we have found that linear bar code identification methods are not failsafe. In this study, we sought to identify the sources of bar code decoding errors that generated incorrect patient identifiers when bar codes were scanned for point-of-care glucose testing and to develop solutions to p...

Original scientific paper This paper proposes a new symbology which eases the use of any two-dimensional matrix bar code on the market from a user perspective, respecting the rules of each 2D matrix bar code. By proposing a new symbology, the exisiting function patterns are transfered into a digital space and additional parts are added. By adding a part called the rim, any 2D matrix bar code ca...

Bar coding for the medication administration step of the drug-use process is discussed. FDA will propose a rule in 2003 that would require bar-code labels on all human drugs and biologicals. Even with an FDA mandate, manufacturer procrastination and possible shifts in product availability are likely to slow progress. Such delays should not preclude health systems from adopting bar-code-enabled ...

Traditionally, the method of bar code recognition is based on edge detection. Because of the high density of the stacked two-dimensional bar code, the signal is severely blurred by the point spread function of the optical system. And this method is not suitable. In order to deblur the image, a deconvolution technique is necessary. Under the influence of noise, deconvolution is a type of ill-pos...