Barcode reading using picture taken using mobile phone camera

Question

How do we do programmatic reading of a barcode that is captured using a mobile phone camera? For example, how do that using iPhone or Android or Java ME? Do we need separate har

Answer 1

Barcodes can be read through analysis taken from phone cameras.

A well-known complication is that fixed-focus cameras (like on the older 2G/3G iPhones and some Androids) cannot take in-focus snapshot form short distances. To counter that, special "deconvoluting" algorithms have to be used - and last time i checked this was not part of the Zebra Crossing.

Some have implemented solutions - i am aware of the following apps for iPhone who can read UPCs with fixed-focus camera: pic2shop (Benoit Maison / Vision Smarts), RedLaser (Occipital) and ShopSavvy (Big in Japan) - check them out and i think all of them have available SDKs for interested 3rd parties.