Claycode: Stylable and Deformable 2D Scannable Codes

TL;DR

Claycode is a new type of 2D scannable code that allows for extensive stylization and deformation, encoding messages in a tree structure within colorful regions, and demonstrating high robustness in real-time decoding.

Contribution

Introducing Claycode, a novel stylable and deformable 2D code that encodes data in a tree structure and maintains functionality under heavy deformation.

Findings

Outperforms traditional codes in deformation tolerance

Supports extensive stylization without losing readability

Enables real-time decoding from camera streams

Abstract

This paper introduces Claycode, a novel 2D scannable code designed for extensive stylization and deformation. Unlike traditional matrix-based codes (e.g., QR codes), Claycodes encode their message in a tree structure. During the encoding process, bits are mapped into a topology tree, which is then depicted as a nesting of color regions drawn within the boundaries of a target polygon shape. When decoding, Claycodes are extracted and interpreted in real-time from a camera stream. We detail the end-to-end pipeline and show that Claycodes allow for extensive stylization without compromising their functionality. We then empirically demonstrate Claycode's high tolerance to heavy deformations, outperforming traditional 2D scannable codes in scenarios where they typically fail.