Framing codes for robust synchronization and addressing of self-clocking glyph codes

Claim 1

An optically readable record for storing encoded information; said record comprising a recording medium; a self-clocking data code pattern for encoding said information; said data code pattern being composed of glyphs that are written in a two dimensional code field on said recording medium on centers that are spatially distributed in nominal accordance with a predetermined spatial formatting rule; the glyphs of said data code pattern being defined by respective symbols that are selected from a finite set of optically discriminable symbols to encode said information; and a self-clocking synchronization code pattern, said synchronization code pattern being composed of glyphs that are written on said recording medium on a lattice-like pattern of centers which are positioned to fully frame at least a portion of said data code pattern; the glyphs of said synchronization code pattern being defined by symbols that are selected from said set of symbols to encode at least one periodic synchronization code which has a periodicity that is selected to cause the glyph encoding of a single period thereof to substantially span at least one fully framed portion of said data code pattern along one dimension of said code field; whereby said synchronization code pattern provides multiple paths of self-clocking glyphs for reaching any given glyph thereof from any other glyph thereof, and said data code pattern and said synchronization code pattern have a substantially homogeneous visual appearance.