U.S. invents an optical tag that stores a lot of data

Recently, researchers at the Media Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) invented an optical tag that stored more than a million of data on the same size bar code without the security concerns of RFID tags. The so-called Bokode, which is only 3mm in size, is much smaller than a conventional bar code. It measures data by measuring the brightness and angle of light emitted by a Bokode tag. Ankit Moha, a postdoctoral researcher at MIT Labs, was the lead author of the paper. Coauthors include associate professor Ramesh Raskar, graduate student Grace Woo, postdoctoral fellow Quinn Smithwick, and Shinsaku Hiura of Osaka University.

Bokode's design creates and interprets information from an angle, which makes the way the standard camera sees the world different from that of the human eye. It can also detect the identity of an object and its relative angle to an optical tag from a distance. Because Bokode allows users to use existing devices to read information from a great distance, it is more useful and more flexible than traditional bar codes.

Bokodes can be combined with common cameras, unlike RFID with dedicated reading devices, which is a major obstacle to popularity.

Bokode's prototype product prices are much higher than RFID tags. One is $5, but the MIT News Service reported that researchers believe that the mass production price can be reduced to $0.05 each.

Some prototypes rely on built-in lenses and LED light sources, but negative labels rely on reflected light. Compared with active RFID, it also has security benefits: Bokode can be hidden, but active RFID tags must be read by remote devices.