DOT PATTERN, DOT-PATTERN-FORMING MEDIUM, PROGRAM FOR GENERATING IMAGE DATA FOR DOT PATTERN, DOT PATTERN FORMING APPARATUS, OPTICAL DEVICE, OPTICAL DEVICE READER, INFORMATION I/O DEVICE, DOT PATTERN READER

摘要

Provided is a novel dot pattern that is a technique for realizing the definition of information according to the distance and direction between two dots rather than the positions in which dots are arranged, where, in contrast to the prior art described above, the novel dot pattern: (1) is capable of being read even when the printing resolution or reading resolution is low, (2) has a large amount of information capable of being defined by a small number of dots, (3) is capable of being decoded at high speed, (4) is easily read even when the arrangement of an imaged dot pattern is markedly deformed, and (5) is not easy to visually decipher. A dot pattern provided with at least a set comprising a starting-point-information dot, which is an information dot representing a starting point, and a terminal-point-information dot, which is an information dot representing a terminal point; the plurality of information dots being arranged so that the spacing between information dots that are adjacent in a prescribed sequence from the starting-point-information dot has a prescribed distance value or a prescribed distance value between predetermined directions; and a code being encoded on the basis of the prescribed distance value or the prescribed distance value between the predetermined directions has.