The QR Code Comeback
Francis Léonard
CEO Tip&Go (USA Canada) - Are you ready to tackle the labor shortage? Tip&Go THE E-tipping solution !
?This week I'll be at HITEC in Charlotte, North Carolina (The biggest hotel technology show on the planet. So for this week's topic, we're going to keep it simple and talk about the famous QR code we've known forever ??.
QR?
‘QR’ stands for “Quick Response.” This is because QR codes provide information way faster than traditional barcodes[1]. They can be read 10 times faster than any other code and they can stock 200 times more information!
Who invented the QR code?
The QR code was invented in Japan in 1994 by Masahiro Hara who was an engineer with Denso Wave (an industrial equipment manufacturer with the Toyota Group). Hara knew that the multiple barcodes on automobile parts were slowing down Toyota's production system. He therefore proceeded to develop what we now know as a QR code.
Hara was inspired by the game Go. "I used to play Go on my lunch break. One day, while arranging the black and white pieces on the grid, it hit me that it represented a straightforward way of conveying information. It was a eureka moment."[2]
As a result of Hara’s efforts, the code contributed to making the management of a wide range of tasks more efficient for the auto industry. ?Later, it was adopted by food, pharmaceutical and contact lens companies in response to pressure from people who wanted to know more about their production processes (to trace products).
By making the specifications of the code publicly available so that anyone could use it freely Denso Wave greatly contributed to the spread of the QR code, which is now used by people all over the world[3]
Benefits
On top of being faster and ‘roomier’ than standard barcodes, QR codes are more reliable. A traditional barcode that has been scratched cannot be read anymore while a QR code that was damaged by up to 30% remains functional!
QR codes are also accessible to all; no need to download an application. In 2002, with the advent of mobile phones that had a QR code-reading feature, QR codes became widespread among the public in Japan. Mobile phones made it possible to access a website or get a coupon by simply scanning the code. The sheer convenience helped to rapidly increase the popularity of the QR code in the 2000’s. ?However, in following years, QR codes were somewhat forgotten, up until their revival.
2020: the COVID-19 pandemic restored the importance of QR codes, which became a contactless alternative for various operations like payments, restaurant menus, tipping ??, etc.[4]?
Today, with over 6 billion smartphone users, 80% of the world's population benefits from this handy way of communicating[5].
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Tip&Go is not a tech company but it uses a simple and easily accessible technology to allow clients to show their gratitude to hotel employees in less than 10 seconds! This is how QR codes allow Tip&Go to fulfill its mission???.
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Francis Léonard, CEO
TIP&GO?
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[2] Masahiro Hara, quoted on Nippon.com, Feb. 10, 2020.