Learn in the textbookTypes of Standards and Code Systems
DefinitionA JAN code (JANコード) is Japan's common product code, which gives each kind of product (item) a unique number so it can be told apart, and it is printed on goods as a barcode.
ExplanationThere are two lengths: a 13-digit standard type and an 8-digit short type. The last digit, the check digit, is calculated from the other digits by a fixed formula and is used to detect errors in the number that was read. Details such as the product name are not stored in the number itself; the store's system looks them up from registered data using the number.
AnalogyThink of menu numbers in a food court: the operator hands out stall numbers so none overlap, and each stall numbers its own dishes. The same dish keeps the same number however many plates of it are served.
Memory hookJAN stands for Japanese Article Number, and an article here means an item of goods.