Barcode Laser

Are some barcode scanners at supermarkets dangerous for the eyes?

I was at my local supermarket tonight where they have large built-in barcode scanners fixed in an upright position underneath the touch screen that the cashiers work on. They have a separate unit for the cash register and another screen on top of it for the customer to see the products going through.

As I was waiting on the opposite end of another cashier where an employee was working, I noticed laser lights coming out of the barcode scanners screen which is fairly large, and it was shining in my eyes and I looked into it several times.

I’m not too familiar with the danger of lasers and was just concerned if the laser light from some of these large supermarket barcode scanners could be damaging to the eyes? I’m only asking because my eyes are feeling discomforted and that could be unrelated to this. Thank you

No, there is no danger.

Barcode scanners are a very low frequency that pose no health risk.

Notice how close the object being scanned has to be to it also ...that's because the wavelength of the beam emittited is so short and weak.

If they posed any danger, there would be shielding of some type around them , or they wouldn't be used at all.

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Are some barcode scanners at supermarkets dangerous for the eyes?

I was at my local supermarket tonight where they have large built-in barcode scanners fixed in an upright position underneath the touch screen that the cashiers work on. They have a separate unit for the cash register and another screen on top of it for the customer to see the products going through.

As I was waiting on the opposite end of another cashier where an employee was working, I noticed laser lights coming out of the barcode scanners screen which is fairly large, and it was shining in my eyes and I looked into it several times.

I’m not too familiar with the danger of lasers and was just concerned if the laser light from some of these large supermarket barcode scanners could be damaging to the eyes? I’m only asking because my eyes are feeling discomforted and that could be unrelated to this. Thank you

Barcode scanning devices use lasers, and lasers are harmful to the eyes. Below are some websites which indicate the the scanners can cause harm. I'm don't know a lot about this sort of thing, but you could call your eye doctor or go to an eyeglasses shop such as LensCrafters where there is usually an optometrist on duty and they will probably know a lot about it and hopefully could answer your questions better.

Here is an excerpt from this website below for the "Adesso NuScan 3000 Optical Laser Barcode Scanner":
"Less Harmful to your Eyes
By using a fixed expanding laser light, the NuScan 3000 is less harmful to your eyes than traditional barcode scanners.(We do not recommend staring into the laser light. Possible eye damage could result from mishandling of scanner.)"

http://www.studica.com/products/product_detail.cfm?productid=52329

Here is a website where you can ask an optometrist a question:

http://medical.justanswer.com/JA/ASP_ASK/FID_5/K_1057/P_0/TR/Optometrist-Questions.htm