Universal Product Code

n. Abbr. UPC

A number and barcode that identify an individual consumer product, often used for tracking inventory.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

U′niver′sal Prod′uct Code`

a standardized bar code in widespread use in retail sales.

[1970–75]

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

Universal Product Code - code consisting of a series of vertical bars of variable width that are scanned by a laser; printed on consumer product packages to identify the item for a computer that provides the price and registers inventory information

bar code

code - a coding system used for transmitting messages requiring brevity or secrecy

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References in periodicals archive

The supermarket pioneered the Universal Product Code (UPC or bar code), now scanned more than five billion times daily in over 100 countries, FMI reports.

The supermarket turns 75

But rather than a laser eye simply reading a Universal Product Code (UPC), RFID scanners send a radio frequency to the chip, and information is then broadcast back to the scanner.

RFID: coming to a tool crib near you

And what is known as the qualifier is the universal product code (UPC) that the supermarket scanner uses.

Looking for refunds can pay off

High on the list of things I find no less annoying than the eyesore presence of the Universal Product Code on magazine cover art and colorized TV prints of classic films noir is the untitled painting.

Untitled

We expect that UID will mature as did the universal product code and that a few years after introduction, the payoff in the use and analysis of the data will be even more profound than the data capture quality.

Unique identification of tangible items: gaining in international acceptance

Just like the 11-digit Universal Product Code (UPC) that identifies items sold in most countries today, a sliver of DNA could identify every living species on Earth, Hebert and his Guelph colleagues assert.

DNA bar codes: life under the scanner

EPC is an enhancement of the Universal Product Code (UPC)--the bar code.

EPC and RFID to revolutionize corrugated packaging

The UCC was founded in 1972 to administer the Universal Product Code (UPC).

The home for standards

Anyone in the retail and consumer goods sector, as well as in other commercial, industrial, or even government sectors, that uses the 12-digit Universal Product Code (UPC) symbol to identify goods, should be aware of the changes that will be coming to this vital but often overlooked commercial technology.

Preparing for the 2005 Sunrise Date

And the absence of Caxton, Napster, Universal Product Code, James Dewar, China (to mention just a few proper nouns in the text I tried to look up) from the index is scandalous.

Really useful; the origins of everyday things. (Science)

The EPC resembles the Universal Product Code (UPC) bar code in that it carries unique product information.

Get "smart": Electronic Product Code tags could provide the visibility shippers have been seeking for real-time control over inventory in transit

The Global Release Indentifier, or GRid, is a code akin to the Universal Product Code (UPC) bar code found on a CD or cassette tape in stores.

e-business: Music industry tags Web sales to compensate song-writers