By the end of the 80s, Datalogic was already a world leader in the field of barcode reading and identification applications in Logistics and Manufacturing, but further product development continued to be made also in Retail. Datalogic wanted to provide retailers with a barcode reader that could simplify and speed up the check-out process. Thanks to his vision and his ever-watchful eye on technological evolution, Dr. Romano Volta led his research and design team to create the first handheld contact reader with CCD technology, a revolutionary device that allowed close to contact distance reading with easier and more reliable barcode data capturing compared to optical pen. The next step would see the launch of the laser-based handheld devices.