How QR Codes Were Invented
How QR Codes Were Invented — an illustrated inventions story, set in Global. 10 illustrated pages, free to read on Wonder Inventions.
Page 1
Lila stared out the window at the pouring rain, a sigh escaping her lips. "Another day stuck inside," she muttered, twirling a strand of her midnight-black hair. Her older brother, Leandro, chuckled from his spot on the couch. "Hey, at least we have the underwater documentary on!"
Page 2
"Look at those glowing squids!" Leandro exclaimed, pointing at the TV. Lila's eyes widened, momentarily forgetting her boredom. "Imagine discovering a new species down there. Wait a second, how do they even keep track of all the different sea creatures?" Her curiosity piqued, she raced towards her room, calling out, "I'm going to check my Invention Encyclopedia!"
Page 3
Lila burst into her room, the walls lined with science posters and bookshelves overflowing with books. She rushed to a dusty, leather-bound book glowing faintly on the top shelf. "This is it!" she whispered, pulling the heavy book down, its pages radiating a soft light. "'The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step,'" Lila murmured, remembering Lao Tzu's famous quote. "Time to take that step into history!"
Page 4
With a flash of light and a dizzying swirl, Lila found herself in a bustling workshop, the air thick with the smell of ink and metal. A man with kind eyes and a gentle smile looked up from his work. "Welcome! I am Masahiro Hara," he said, wiping ink from his hands with a cloth. "We are trying to find a better way to track parts and supplies at Denso Wave."
Page 5
"Parts? Supplies?" Lila asked, bewildered. Hara chuckled, pointing to a shelf stacked with boxes. "Back then, we used barcodes. Slow, easily damaged, and they can only hold a little information. We need something that can store much more data and be read quickly, even if it's dirty! In 1994, we started thinking, 'How can we pack more information into a small space?'"
Page 6
Hara led Lila to a whiteboard covered in complex diagrams. "We were inspired by the game of Go and the patterns in magazines," he explained, pointing to a large square filled with black and white modules. "That's how we came up with the QR code - Quick Response code! It could hold hundreds of times more information than a barcode." He then wrote, "In fact, QR codes can store up to 7089 numeric characters!"
Page 7
"But why a square?" Lila asked, scribbling in her notebook. Hara smiled. "The square shape allows the scanner to read the code from any direction quickly. Those three squares in the corners? They tell the scanner how to orient itself! The error correction is amazing, too. Even if part of the code is damaged, it can still be read! In 2020, with the pandemic, QR codes became even more essential."
Page 8
Just then, a colleague rushed in, looking frantic. "Hara-san, the delivery manifest is smudged, and the barcode scanner is broken! We can't track the incoming shipment!" Hara calmly pointed to a newly printed sheet of paper. "Use this new QR code reader I just finished testing and scan the QR code on each part. It has error correction built in!" The colleague scanned the QR code, and a list of parts instantly appeared on the screen.
Page 9
Suddenly, everything began to blur again. Lila felt a familiar tug, and she knew it was time to go. "Thank you, Hara-san! I learned so much!" she called out as the workshop dissolved around her. A booming voice echoed in the distance. "As Isaac Newton said, 'If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.' Continue to build upon the great ideas that came before you!"
Page 10
Back in her room, Lila closed the Invention Encyclopedia, a wide smile spreading across her face. She ran back to the living room, her voice bubbling with excitement. "Leandro, did you know that QR codes are everywhere? You can even use them to pay for things at the store! Today, the global mobile payment market is predicted to reach 1.63 trillion U.S. dollars in 2024!" she exclaimed.
About this story
- Location: Global
- Audience: kids (ages 6–12)