UPC是在IBM公司工程师諾曼·伍德蘭的环形码基础上诞生的[1]。1966年,美国国家食物连锁协会(National Association of Food Chains,NAFC)要求研制加快货物验收速度的设备,国家收款机(National Cash Register,IBM公司的前身)在1967年开发出了用来替代伍德兰德牛眼码的新式同心圆环码。
^Alumni Hall of Fame Members. University of Maryland Alumni Association. The University of Maryland. 2005 [2009-06-10]. (原始内容存档于2007-06-23). After graduating from Maryland in 1951, George Laurer joined IBM as a junior engineer and worked up the ranks to senior engineer. In 1969, he returned to the technical side of engineering and was later assigned the monumental task of designing a code and symbol for product identification for the Uniform Grocery Product Code Council. His solution — the Universal Product Code — radically changed the retail world. Since then, he has enhanced the code by adding a 13th digit. Laurer retired from IBM in 1987. He holds some 25 patents and is a member of the university’s A. James Clark School of Engineering Hall of Fame.