The QR code ticket
A QR code ticket holds its code in a square pattern that a camera can read from any angle, which is why it took over from the barcode.
A QR code ticket carries its unique reference in a two-dimensional square pattern. Unlike a barcode ticket, it can be read upside down, at an angle and with part of it obscured, because the pattern carries error correction. That tolerance is what makes it practical for a phone screen held by a stranger.
Why the square beat the stripes
A barcode ticket has to be roughly level and roughly still, which is a lot to ask of someone holding a phone in one hand and a drink in the other. A square pattern has no orientation, so the helper simply points the camera and gets an answer.
The pattern also survives damage. A fold across a printed ticket, a smear on a screen or a thumb over a corner will usually still read, because part of the code is redundant by design.
When it refuses to read
Three things cause nearly all failures: a dim screen, a cracked screen, and a code printed too small. Asking the holder to turn the brightness up solves more scanning problems than any change of software. School play tickets printed four to a page are a classic example of the third.
Glare is the fourth. A glossy phone screen under a spotlight reflects straight back into the camera. Moving half a step out of the beam works immediately, which is worth telling the person on the gate before the queue arrives.
The code on a Passavo ticket
Every ticket carries its own code as a square pattern, printed large enough to read from a screen at low brightness. The same code works on paper, on a screen and in a wallet, so the visitor chooses and the gate does not care.
A code stands for one place and nothing else. It does not contain the buyer's name or their payment details, so a photograph of a ticket reveals nothing about the person who bought it.
Also searched for as
- barcode ticket
- scannable ticket
- ticket code
- qr ticket
Common questions
Does the code contain personal details?
No. It is a reference to a place in our system. Everything about the buyer stays in the account and never travels on the ticket.
What size should we print it?
Our tickets already print it at a workable size. If you design your own layout, keep the square at least the width of a thumbnail and leave white space around it.