VISION 2018 Show | MVPro 10 | September 2018 by Clifton Media Lab

MACHINE VISION PROFESSIONAL

INTERVIEW WITH EMVA WINNER

LOOK FORWARD TO VISION 2018

FACIAL RECOGNITION TECH DEBATE

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LEADING INDUSTRY EXECUTIVES TALK ABOUT MACHINE VISION

ISSUE 10 - SEPTEMBER 2018

‘WHAT THE BOSSES THINK…’

Let’s Doubleh! t d i w d n a B e h t

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CONTENTS

MVPRO TEAM

Welcome to MVPRO

LATEST NEWS - The latest and biggest stories from the Machine Vision sector

NEWS - a round-up of what’s been happening in the Machine Vision sector

TAMRON - New Camera Module with CMOS Global Shutter and 30x Zoom

ACM COATINGS - ACM Coatings readies itself for second VISION

EMVA YOUNG PROFESSIONAL AWARD 2018 - MVPro Magazine tracked down the winner of this year’s EMVA Young Professional Award 2018, Doris Antensteiner, and asked her a few questions about the award, her career and what she has planned

‘WHAT DO THE BOSSES THINK…?’ - With the end of the decade in sight, and Vision 2018 just around the corner, editor Neil Martin thought it a good time to ask a select number of industry bosses some key questions about the sector in general

CONFERENCES - The autumn conference season is fast approaching and although Vision 2018 may loom large, there are a number of other shows that require our attention

EURESYS - Upgrading your image acquisition system while keeping the same camera

BASLER 30 YEARS - Norbert Basler founded his company 30 years ago. Today Basler is a world market leader in industrial cameras with annual sales of over €150m and an ambitious growth strategy for the future

STEMMER - 360˚ 3D part inspection simplified

MVTEC - MVTec will be attending their 20th Vision trade show in November and we talk to MVTec’s Head of Sales Gerhard Wagner about its approach to the sector’s premier event

FACIAL RECOGNITION - Editor Neil Martin highlights the recent concerns over facial recognition technology and wonders how we balance a necessary tool with human rights

GARDASOFT - Jools Hudson for Gardasoft Vision explains to MVPro why connectivity in machine vision is so important.

VISION BUSINESS - Basler busy and the latest semiconductor equipment forecast

PUBLIC VISION - Editor Neil Martin takes a look at the slightly nervous sentiment overhanging the global economy and also examines the latest results from Cognex

Neil Martin Editor-in-Chief neil.mar tin@mvpromedia.eu

Alex Sullivan Publishing Director alex.sullivan@mvpromedia.eu

Cally Bennett Group Business Manager cally.bennett@mvpromedia.eu

Sean Welch Media Sales Executive sean.welch@mvpromedia.eu

Visit our website for daily updates

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MVPro Media is published by IFA Magazine Publications Ltd, Arcade Chambers, 8 Kings Road, Bristol BS8 4AB Tel: +44 (0)117 3258328 © 2018. All rights reserved ‘MVPro Media’ is a trademark of IFA Magazine Publications Limited. No part of this publication may be reproduced or stored in any printed or electronic retrieval system without prior permission. All material has been carefully checked for accuracy, but no responsibility can be accepted for inaccuracies. Designed by The Wow Factory www.thewowfactory.co.uk

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THANKING THE BOSSES I realised that as soon as I had the idea for the ‘What the bosses think’ feature, which starts on page 24, that asking a lot of busy people, in the summer, what they thought about the machine vision sector in general, might be fraught with a few problems, not least that most were about to embark on their well-earnt holidays. Continental Europe still seems to shut down in August and who can blame them? Brits might contend with the usual two weeks, but they are spread from the end of June to the end of August. Summer is an odd time, when you never know who is away and what might be coming into the office. I guess the last thing they wanted was to be quizzed about the industry. But, to their credit, we got some great replies. And it gives us a great insight into the industry. This is a pivotal year, not least because 2019 is the last year of the decade. And we need to ask ourselves, is machine vision coming of age? Has the sector reached the point when it can really exploit its advantages and take its true place in the industrial order of things? Mention machine vision to people in the street and from the majority you get a blank look. Some might have a stab at some vague notion of giving machines the power of sight, which I suppose it is, but beyond that they have little understanding. Our sister publication, RoboPro Magazine, has no such problems - everyone knows what a robot is and what it means, rightly, or wrongly, to them. But machine vision effects everyone in their daily lives, from parking their car to receiving the correct package from the courier. It is so entwined in our daily lives that remove it, and life could not continue as it does know. One thing that does come across from our chat with the bosses, is the sense of optimism for the future. And that’s because this sector not only has critical traction (it is not blue-sky thinking), but because it has so much growth in front of it. The future does indeed look rosy. And it will be interesting to see how this is reflected at Vision 2018, the last one before the new decade. Vision is an event worth looking forward to and in the next issue of MVPro, we will take a look at some of the product which is due to feature in Stuttgart in November.

Neil Martin Editor neil.martin@mvpromedia.eu Arcade Chambers, 8 Kings Road, Clifton, Bristol, BS8 4AB MVPro B2B digital platform and print magazine for the global machine vision industry

Neil Neil Martin Editor, MVPro

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RoboPro B2B digital platform and print magazine for the global robotics industry www.mvpromedia.eu

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New Camera Module with CMOS Global Shutter and 30x Zoom Camera modules, aka block cameras, are devices with an integrated image sensor, lens optics, video output and control electronics. Thanks to their easy integration in imaging systems, camera modules are widely used, globally, e.g. in video surveillance and industrial automation. With the M P2030M-GS, Tamron is advancing this product species to an unseen level to improve existing and enable new applications, featuring an industrial grade CMOS Global Shutter image sensor, Full-H D resolution at 60 fps, 30x optical zoom, and compatibility to the interface of many other camera modules in the market Whenever a camera and its captured objects are moving relative to each other, the resulting video images are subject to motion blur (see figure 1). Typical scenarios are video captures of cars on a highway or recordings of cameras mounted on flying drones. This motion blur is especially severe at CMOS sensors with rolling shutter, where the pixels are read-out line by line. As automatic image processing algorithmscan hardly cope with such artifacts, true machine vision applications require blur-free frames of CMOS

sensors with global shutter technology, where exposures are started and stopped at the same time for all pixels of the sensor. Tamron’s “newest eye for industry”, the MP2030M-GS, is the first camera module with a CMOS Global Shutter sensor and integrated optical zoom going into series production (see figure 2). Its industrial grade color image sensor provides Full HD (1920 x 1080) video at 60 fps. Thanks to its high dynamic range, the video images bring out rich

details of dark and bright image areas in the same scene. A low readout-noise combined with near-infrared sensitivity enable clear captures even under low light conditions. Above all, the MP2030M-GS, features a Tamron signature lens with electronically controllable 30x optical zoom and a field of view between 60° and 2.5°. Comfort functions like autofocus, auto-iris, auto-white balance, noise reduction, digital defogging, and digital vibration compensation are also included.

FIGURE 1: MOTION BLUR ADVANTAGE OF GLOBAL SHUTTER VS. ROLLING SHUTTER

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This camera module is 56 x 61 x 124 mm small, weighs approx. 360 g, and its digital control/video-output interface is compatible with many other camera modules on the market. Thus, the MP2030M-GS is both, a value-adding drop-in replacement of discontinued camera modules in existing installations and an enabler of all-new applications in Intelligent Traffic Systems (ITS), manufacturing automation, airborne aerial surveillance, entertainment, and research. A pre-series model will be demonstrated at the Intertraffic Amsterdam trade show, booth 12.916, from March 20th to 23rd.

FIGURE 2: TAMRON MP2030M-GS CAMERA MODULE WITH CMOS GLOBAL SHUTTER

About Tamron With “New Eyes for Industry,” TAMRON is driving the progress of imaging technologies and their application areas to the benefit of our global society. From video surveillance to automation in manufacturing, food production, and logistics to medical imaging, Intelligent Traffic Systems, and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles – TAMRON’s industrial optics and camera modules enable completely new vision systems or improve the quality and efficiency of existing solutions.

Contact: Andreas Klein, a.klein@tamron.de, +49 (221) 97 03 25 74

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ACM Coatings readies itself for second VISION ACM Coatings is a subsidiary of ACKTAR, a leading global manufacturer of deep-black coatings and foils for straylight-absorption in photonic devices. Both companies are getting ready for their second VISION and Alexander Telle, General Manager, is looking forward to Stuttgart

As for the company’s focus on VISION, Alexander told us: “Our ultra-black coatings and foils fit perfectly to every demanding industrial vision task. We are focusing on increasing the awareness of our ultra-black coatings and foils among all relevant customers. “We want to let know our customers how you can use our products to enhance the performance of their optics and imaging systems.” The company attends VISION to attract potential new customers: “We hope to get in contact with many new potential customers that maybe haven’t even heard from us. We would like to show them how our products can help to enhance their vision setups by absorbing light or laser power, delivering maximum contrast or suppressing scattered light.”

Alexander is keen to highlight the fact that visitors should visit the company’s booth because the impact of scattered light on the performance of vision systems is often underestimated. This is especially the case beyond the visible spectrum. On the booth visitors will not only see our ultra-black coatings and foils live in different applications, but also how these products can be brought to typical vision and imaging applications. The company will showcase two main product categories at VISION: ultra-black coatings and ultra-black foils. The coatings are completely inorganic, non-toxic and non-outgassing. They can be applied to a large number of substrates, have a high level of temperature stability (-269°C to +450°C) and work in a wide spectral range (UV to IR). Alexander: “Our ultra-black foils are your product of choice for straylight suppression,

laser power absorption or the enhancement of signal-to-noise ratio when uncompromised optical performance is required. The foils are available with a self-adhesive backing that allows users to attach it to nearly any substrate easily. Being available as standard sheets or in customized shape, they are your standard solution in challenging straylight issues. Use them for your vision and imaging applications for covering measuring chambers, separation of lighting and imaging channels, black image background, calibration target, aperture or beam dump. “In optics and photonics applications they fulfil the toughest requirements with regard to light absorption and residual reflection, including under 1st class vacuum and cleanroom conditions. The main applications for the black coatings are stray light absorption in optical systems, such as portable

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devices, cameras for mobile phones, automotive applications, sensors and receivers, gauges, pyrometers, spectrometers as well as high-emissivity applications in the technical optics. The company serves the industries aerospace, laser technology, technical optics, sensor technology, medical technology, biotechnology and industrial imaging.

(1) boosting performance to maximum - by using our products together with an adjusted optical and mechanical design;

(2) optimizing existing systems - by using our products directly in existing system designs leading to immediate enhancements without additional efforts;

As for the future, Alexander is optismitc: “The market for photonic application is growing. Therefore, we see ourselves growing. Demanding prospective photonic applications like augmented reality or autonomous driving requires optoelectronic systems that we will equip for best performance.”

(3) simplification: the use

The products impact of the products to the performance of the applications and systems of our customers is driven by three different approaches:

of our products enables new solutions with reliable performance but reduced complexity of the overall optical and mechanical design.

ACKTAR ultra-black coatings & foils • suppress stray light

• absorb laser power • create high emissivity

www.acktar.com www.acm-coatings.de mvpromedia.eu

And the EMVA Young Professional Award 2018 goes to… MVPro Magazine tracked down the winner of this year’s E MVA Young Professional Award 2018, Doris Antensteiner, and asked her a few questions about the award, her career and what she has planned

It was back in June when the EMVA Young Professional Award 2018 was awarded to Doris Antensteiner. She was recognised by the judges for her work Fusion of Light Field and Photometric Stereo. A statement from EMVA said: “Recovering the shape and reflectance properties of a scene are fundamental problems in computer vision. Conventional imaging systems only provide limited information, since they can’t capture directional radiance information and only provide the sum of light at each image position. Hence, they capture two-dimensional pictures of this world. A more complete description can be achieved by using light field cameras and photometric stereo approaches. The combination of a depth map from light field with surface normals from photometric stereo enables a highly precise depth reconstruction and material analysis. “The awarded work resolves the problematic nature of acquiring a highly precise 3D surface reconstruction of objects with a focus on industrial applications. This is achieved by analyzing light rays passing through the camera lens, which capture a scene illuminated from a defined direction. An optimal fusion of light field and photometric stereo is found using variational methods. Solutions both for area-scan and multi-line scan cameras are achieved. The latter allows the algorithms in the awarded work to be apt for a wide range of industrial applications.

“Applications of the results achieved in the work lie in the field of product inspection, defect detection, brand protection, product security and optical inspection of materials. A highly precise 3D reconstruction allows a detailed error detection in production lines. Methods of anti-counterfeiting can be improved by a better description and analysis of the material structure. The EMVA Young Professional Award is an annual award to honour the outstanding and innovative work of a student or a young professional in the field of machine vision, or image processing. The awardee was announced during the 16th EMVA Business Conference in Dubrovnik/Croatia, where she also presented her work as part of the regular conference program.

future career the finalization and achievement of the award is an important milestone. Additionally to an honour, I’m very grateful for the travel support and price money. Describe your role at the Austrian Institute of Technology Center for Vision, Automation and Control? I am currently a PhD candidate in the center for Vision, Automation & Control in the high-performance vision group. We are focused on industrial image processing applications, such as inline computational imaging, defect classification, surface inspection, quality inspection and classification tasks. I developed methods to achieve highly precise 3D reconstructions by combining light field data with surface normal from photometric stereo.

And we asked Doris some questions. What does the winning of the award mean to you? It is an honour for me to be given the award for the work I have achieved during the years of working on my PhD. I am truly grateful for this as well as the possibility to attend the EMVA business conference and to present my work to the community. The journey towards the accomplishment of my PhD project was a great learning experience and gave me a lot of new insights, though it wasn’t easy and required a lot of time and hard work. I am grateful to my colleagues and my supervisor who provided me support. For my

And your previous role at Kapsch TrafficCom? I was an image processing engineer at the R&D Video & Sensor in the field of incident detection systems in tunnels and on the open road. We provided video stream analysis for intelligent transport systems including tracking and the classification of objects. Do you see yourself as an academic, or technical engineer? It is great to have the opportunity that my research is directly used in industrial applications. Having this interface between science and industry is highly motivating and therefore a great combination.

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Do you prefer academia, or industry?

What are the main applications for your work?

Industry needs research and academia to stay ahead and continue its rapid development. On the other hand, research needs goals to be given a direction and to be able to offer highly relevant solutions.

The topic of my research has a plethora of applications. Covering the inspection of objects such as PCBs, PCB assembly, wafers, coins, highly reflective materials, banknotes, packaging or the reconstruction of street or rail surfaces.

When will you finish your doctorate?

Many industrial problems can be analysed and tackled with vision algorithms. This allows a wide range of interesting research challenges, which are additionally highly useful from a practical point of view.

I finished my PhD this August, shortly after receiving the EMVA Award. Have you worked, or studied outside of Austria? During my master studies I spent a semester in Copenhagen, Denmark which gave me insights in a different study system.

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What attracts you to the machine vision sector?

What are your career ambitions? I want to push industrial research further and establish novel and well applicable solutions. We wish Doris the very best with her career.

‘ WHAT DO THE BOSSES

THINK? ’ With the end of the decade in sight, and Vision 2018 just around the corner, editor Neil Martin thought it a good time to ask a select number of industry bosses some key questions about the sector in general

This is not so much about product, but about machine vision industry itself.

• has the investment community supported the industry?

We chose seven questions which allowed for a look back, as well as a good look forward.

• name one thing you might have hoped for in the industry that has yet to happen?

The questions were as follows:

•

if you could wish for one major development for the sector as we enter the last year of the decade, what would it be?

• what will have been the single most important milestone over the last decade? • has the industry received the recognition it deserves from the wider business community, governments etc?

• how do you feel about the future (for example, does the prospect of a slowing global economy worry you, or are you more concerned that technology can keep pace with growing demand)?

I didn’t ask a direct question about the current trade wars which are being waged around the globe, given that we are a bi-monthly magazine, and that everything might be wrapped up either way, good, or bad, depending on your stance - by the time we publish. But, the fact that the US, China, and indeed Europe, is in the midst of very serious trade negotiations, is obviously the very big elephant in the room for many companies. We shall have to wait and see how that pans out.

• where did you hope your company will be, at the end of the next decade (2029)?

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The fact that the US, China, and indeed Europe, is in the midst of very serious trade negotiations, is obviously the very big elephant in the room for many companies

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Christof Zollitsch, CEO, STEMMER IMAGING 1.

If you could wish for one major development for the sector?

A change and development of the mind-set. Too many sectors do not recognise the potential of the digital transformation of their processes

Single most important

milestone over the last decade?

The acceptance that the digital transformation of industrial and non-industrial processes including industry 4.0 has gained acceptance and is now starting to be delivered

3. Has the industry

4. Has the investment

community supported the industry?

Very much so. Three points highlight this. Firstly our own IPO last February was oversubscribed 2.5 times. Secondly, the increased number of M&A transactions in our sector confirms the significance of this market to the investment community and finally our peer group of public traded vision companies are all performing above market indices.

5. Name one thing you

might have hoped for in the industry that has yet to happen?

The industry is developing well. There is nothing substantial that we are waiting to happen. The move from each new technology development to mainstream revenue contribution continues to take longer than we would like. It would be nice to develop faster.

6. How do you feel

about the future?

If there is a market slowdown, this puts pressure on improving efficiency, which drives the demand for automation. If the market booms again to keep up with production automation is needed. Therefore our belief is the machine vision industry will outperform the general economy.

Where do you hope your company will be, at the end of the next decade (2029)?

Remain as one of the leading machine vision technology suppliers with strong products and services expanding in to new geographical regions.

received the recognition it deserves?

Only in the last few years. The rate of visibility of vision based digitalisation has become a common sight and is no longer seen as very specialized.

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Keith Reuben, President, Teledyne Imaging: Smart Vision Solutions 1.

If you could wish for one major development for the sector?

I would hope that the current trade tensions around the world abate, and that we resolve the issue of tariffs. The largest world economies, which also happen to be the largest markets for machine vision products, are currently having trade issues. Today, this is the single biggest threat to growth of our industry which has had a great run so far in this decade.

2. Single most important milestone over the last decade?

Without a doubt, the most important milestone over the last decade has been the advances weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve seen in CMOS image sensor technology. While the technology advancements have been significant, the net effect has made machine vision cameras more affordable. This, together with standards such as Gigabit Ethernet, has allowed easy connectivity, provided customers with many options, and has helped drive machine vision into non-industrial markets.

Has the industry received the recognition it deserves?

I do not believe so. Unfortunately, our own industry has not been successful in promoting and engaging governments on the importance of our technology. This is the reason machine vision is still viewed as a â&#x20AC;&#x153;technologyâ&#x20AC;? and not as a critical solution for quality manufacturing. Without machine vision, products we take for granted would not be affordable to consumers. Machine vision has been instrumental in improving yields in the semiconductor industry, which has had an impact on devices we use every day. As an example, mobile devices that have become ubiquitous for business and personal use, would not be affordable without machine vision.

Has the investment

community supported the industry?

Though we are seeing more investment, it is not to the extent we are seeing in other industries. Our industry consists of many small companies. There needs to be consolidation in order to attract the investment community.

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5. Name one thing you

might have hoped for in the industry that has yet to happen?

Machine learning is on the cusp of being deployed in the industry. This will have a profound impact on the traditional methods of image analysis. Deep Learning will not only change the products we produce but also the way we interact with our customers. Our business models will change from one largely dependent on hardware products to one selling services. Customer relationships will be stronger and machine vision companies will become more involved in the success of their customers.

6. How do you feel

about the future?

Our industry is not immune to the macroeconomic events that are taking place. The slowing of the global economy is a concern, and companies need to be flexible, responsive and ready to make strategic changes when the need arises. For Teledyne Digital Imaging, we address many markets; from machine vision to medical imaging, to aerospace and defence. We use machine vision technology across our different groups. This is one way to mitigate or reduce the impact of any global slowdown in the industrial markets.

Where do you hope your company will be, at the end of the next decade (2029)?

Teledyne has a large portfolio of technologies from sensors (not only vision but also motion, acceleration, pressure etc.) to software solutions. Our parent company, Teledyne Technologies is a conglomerate of more than 60 companies, and we have access to all of this for the development of new products, I believe we will continue to grow as a successful industrial solutions company providing services to many industries.

Dr Olaf Munkelt, Managing Director, MVTec Software GmbH 1.

If you could wish for one major development for the sector?

The recognition of embedded vision as a major path to grow the business. This includes addressing new markets as well as developing the classical PC-based machine vision business further. We do believe that embedded vision has a great future aheadthus we already make sure today that our products HALCON and MERLIC both can easily be integrated in embedded vision systems.

2. Single most

important milestone over the last decade?

That would be the Industrial Internet of Things, aka “Industry 4.0”, and the corresponding automation of more and more elements within the production process. Machine vision as “eye of the production” is a crucial part of this automation, since the trend towards the digital factory fuels the need for quality data and process knowledge, and machine vision can deliver the necessary input.

3. Has the industry

received the recognition it deserves?

The automation industry has received a lot of recognition in the past years thanks to, e.g., artificial intelligence and machine learning. These hot topics pose questions such as how work will change in our production process, what we have to learn in order to secure our jobs, etc. So, yes, the recognition is there.

4. Has the investment

community supported the industry?

Machine vision as part of the automation industry has delivered above the average growth rates in the past years compared to other industries. So, there is a high interest from the investment community to participate in this growth. Recent M+A activities prove this, and it is fair to say that such activities will continue.

Name one thing you might have hoped for in the industry that has yet to happen?

As we are a provider of standard software products for machine vision, we see a clear demand for both the automatic interpretation of images and the ease-ofuse of the software. The first has been addressed by deep learning in the past years and it is obvious now that successful machine vision systems still need a combination of deep-learning and rule-based programming.

Ease-of-use is key to achieve a better acceptance of machine vision. The right combination of automatic interpretation of images and ease-of-use is an utmost important topic, which we are working on at MVTec for both HALCON and MERLIC

6. How do you feel

about the future?

We can only shape the future, we cannot change the past. In general, I feel positive about things I can change. And these are many: the future in our industry still demands the automation of processes either inside or outside the factory floor. As vision is an integral part of many automation processes we at MVTec see prosperous years ahead of us.

Where do you hope your company will be, at the end of the next decade (2029)?

We want to remain and further strengthen our position as technology leader in machine vision. Furthermore, with our products HALCON and MERLIC, we strive to remain the number one provider of standard software for machine vision (incl. embedded vision).

“Machine vision as part of the automation industry has delivered above the average growth rates in the past years compared to other industries. So, there is a high interest from the investment community to participate in this growth.”

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Arnaud Destruels, European Marketing Manager, Image Sensor Solutions, Sony 1.

3. Has the industry

received the recognition it deserves?

Not at the level that I expected, and of course it depends on each country (Franceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s situation is different to Germany or the UK or Russia), now the things are changing step by step and really in a positive direction.

4. Has the investment If you could wish for one major development for the sector?

Machine vision has to provide the simplest image solution (grabbing and processing have to be more integrated). It means that hardware and software have to be improved to be more convenient for the end customer - so compactness, high resolution imaging in different light conditions or adapted/ appropriated output.

2. Single most important milestone over the last decade?

community supported the industry?

More and more. Because they know where the growth in the future is coming (industrie 4.0 or IoT). These domains are a kind of gold mine for newcomers (startup or big companies) or historical players as well, because AI will drive the world and the images are like the fuel of AI.

6. How do you feel

about the future?

I have no fears concerning the future. Industrial cameras are in ever greater demand in the modern world (production/ life style). The global economy need this engine, now the maturity of machine vision technology is key for a quick adoption. The unique doubt that I have is how long it will take to be fully deployed in the new world.

Where do you hope your company will be, at the end of the next decade (2029)?

Still the reference and the leader of MV technology innovation (hardware / software for use cases such as robotics or IoT).

5. Name one thing you

might have hoped for in the industry that has yet to happen?

Wireless industrial cameras (battery-powered and networked for image output)

Without any doubt, the switch from analogue to digital technology.

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Sam Lopez, Director of Sales and Marketing, Matrox Imaging 1.

If you could wish for one major development for the sector?

Our major wish would be to achieve greater global cohesion on the standards governing the industry. The current multitude of standards-from camera interfaces to robot communication to industrial protocols-has led to tremendous market fragmentation. These technology silos may protect their founders but cause wasteful duplication of efforts for those serving these different technology ecosystems.

We hope for the day when industry, and in particular, leading hardware/software manufacturers, can come together and establish global unified standards to help defragment the market and further drive growth in the automation sector. Moreover, greater uniformity of standards would provide less industrialized nations with more affordable access to the automation technology used by developed countries; in this way, developing countries could bolster their growth and advancement through greater access to developments in automation. Improved consumer spending will help drive greater demand for manufacturing, which is a huge boon to the sector!

Single most important

milestone over the last decade?

This past decade has seen major shifts that have reshaped the face of the machine vision sector. Deep learning and its use of artificial neural networks to imitate the way the human brain works for recognition and decision-making has been a significant change that we are only just beginning to see unfold. Increasing automation and digitization is driving the development of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), which is transforming the way industries work. 3D vision was another huge disrupter to the market. Growing automation across industry verticals-particularly automotive and consumer electronics sectors-plus advancements in 3D machine-vision technologies, such as cameras and various imaging tools, have dramatically broadened the scope of 3D machine vision in both industrial and non-industrial sectors.

3. Has the industry

received the recognition it deserves?

Automation-especially robotguided automation-has received a lot of attention from the business and government sectors, though not all of it positive. Indeed, there has been considerable negative press

focused on how increased automation will contribute to job loss. The truth is, increasingly intelligent technology is helping to replace the demand for low-skill occupations, those that individuals are less interested in doing. Automation will continue to boost the economy as new jobs emerge and existing roles are redefined. Increased automation will naturally propel us towards greater efficiency that, in turn, will drive economic growth, which is surely a boon for the wider business community and governments.

6. How do you feel

about the future?

A slowing global economy is a far greater concern than whether technology will be able to keep pace with growing demand. Over the past decade, and even going back further, technology has met and surpassed expectations. Even popular concepts-like smartphones, digital assistants, or autonomous vehicles, concepts that would have once seemed out-of-place beyond the science-fiction realm-are now actual, tangible features of our everyday world. This is not to say that â&#x20AC;&#x153;the future is hereâ&#x20AC;?, full stop, but we suspect that technology has far outpaced individuals; it is people and governments that will need to leverage knowledge in policy-making processes and improve the quality of government decisions to keep pace with the change.

Where do you hope your company will be, at the end of the next decade (2029)?

Our aim is for Matrox Imaging to remain-and continue to excel-as an industry leader as we enter a new decade. We hope our company helps propel industry growth in terms of fostering social responsibility, economic viability, and environmental awareness within the machine vision sector.

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Dr Andreas Franz, CEO, FRAMOS

3. Has the industry

As a supplier for backbone technologies for different applications this industry was a “hidden champion” overall

If you could wish for

one major development for the sector?

Not to be too dependent on developments in the consumer sector on the technology sector; Joint investments in technology and markets (e.g. own Hardware like Sensors, jointly Co invested)

2. Single most important milestone over the last decade?

received the recognition it deserves?

4. Has the investment

community supported the industry?

Recently they come more and more into the market. So far players were quite small for this industry, but this is now changing.

5. Name one thing you

might have hoped for in the industry that has yet to happen?

Significant price decrease esp. in camera technology that pushed massive market growth / usage.

Paul Wilson, Chairman of UKIVA and CEO of Scorpion Vision 1.

If you could wish for one major development for the sector?

I think this is a development of resources and skills rather than a technological development. Without this, our industry will suffer.

2. Single most important milestone over the last decade?

The development of GigE Vision and its universal acceptance.

3. Has the industry

received the recognition it deserves?

I don’t think so. People don’t really appreciate the value of machine vision and what it is capable of.

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Move of industry into embedded vision. This is a game changer to drive the industry by machines that see and think, it really pushes the industry to be part of new devices in nearly all markets.

6. How do you feel

about the future?

Imaging technology is still expanding in new devices and applications. Global trends support all usage of imaging so I see no downside.

Where do you hope your company will be, at the end of the next decade (2029)?

That we are the company known in the world for enabling machines to see.

Name one thing you might have hoped for in the industry that has yet to happen?

Better standards and aligned training and education.

do you feel 6. How about the future? I am excited about the future for the machine vision industry. There is much wider awareness of MV than there was 10 years ago and it plays a more central role in many automation systems. Growth can only go in one direction and that is up. I think technology will keep pace with growing demand but there will be a shortage of skilled engineers within our industry.

Where do you hope your company will be, at the end of the next decade (2029)?

Scorpion Vision will be a world leader in 3D robot vision. UKIVA will evolve to become a professional standards organisation, promoting training and guiding policy for the UK machine vision industry.

Dr Albert Schmidt, Managing Director, Vision Competence Center by Baumer 1.

If you could wish for one major development for the sector?

Whatever it is - Let us not wish, let us work to make it happen. On our own and together with partners. But if you press for ONE topic: then I would say we should push our standardization for IoT/Industry 4.0. We all, but especially the customers will benefit from this.

2. Single most important milestone over the last decade?

For machine vision components it was certainly the change from CCD to CMOS imaging sensors. If you are looking for a single date as a symbol, it was the day Sony decided to stop manufacturing CCDs. For machine vision overall it was the rise of 3D. I would consciously not yet list Deep Learning. That will be for the next decade to decide.

3. Has the industry received the recognition it deserves?

If one is in our business for the recognition, then one is probably in the wrong place. Our industries products and services are in growing demand to meet the need for automation, IoT/ Industry 4.0 and now also artificial intelligence. Let us be proud and content with this form of recognition.

4. Has the investment

community supported the industry?

Even with the abundance of investment capital, the investors still have a choice. The last years have shown that there is a lot of willingness to invest in our industry. The stock prices for the public companies show a steady development and the few IPOs are successful. The very big deals are missing, but this is mainly due to the structure of our industry.

5. Name one thing you

might have hoped for in the industry that has yet to happen?

From the userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s point of view, the optical side of machine vision. The illumination, its interaction with the objects to be inspected and the lenses are often difficult to grasp. Apparently small changes have a decisive influence on the systems performance. This is a large field for improvements.

do you feel 6. How about the future? There are always business cycles, protectionism on different scales, new technologies, new entrants into the business - you name it. As long as we accept that changes take place and keep adapting to them, we are in good shape. As for keeping pace with the growing demand: If there is demand, then human imagination will find ways and means to meet it.

Where do you hope your company will be, at the end of the next decade (2029)?

We intend to be still one of the leader for high-quality machine vision to shape the market. With a lot of new products and services based on the customer needs and on knowledge acquired and developed along the way with our highly qualified people.

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Hilary Briggs, Managing Director and Jools Hudson, Marketing Manager, Gardasoft Vision

If you could wish for one major development for the sector?

Gardasoft will continue to innovate and move into new applications for our advanced control capabilities. We are particularly excited by the new Open Lens Communication Standards being produced by EMVA which will enable many lens parameters to be controlled via GenIcam. Gardasoft is adding products such as embedded lens control to our portfolio to support the demand for increasing integration of machine vision systems. (Jools Hudson)

2. Single most important milestone over the last decade?

One of the most important milestones has been the enhancement of image processing capabilities. This has led to major opportunities for miniaturisation and embedded imaging applications which has opened up new market opportunities for Gardasoft. In particular, we are developing many new applications of embedded light and lens control. (Hilary Briggs)

3. Has the industry

received the recognition it deserves?

Innovations such as driverless vehicles have led to automated imaging capabilities becoming much more widely understood and designed into an ever-broader range of applications. This is supported by news from the AIA that sales in North America have grown by 19% in the first quarter of 2018. (Hilary Briggs)

4. Has the investment

community supported the industry?

Very large players such as Google and Tesla have entered the industry with enormous amounts of investment in their specific fields. This has generated a lot of excitement about Machine Vision technology which is sure to encourage further investment. (Hilary Briggs)

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Name one thing you might have hoped for in the industry that has yet to happen?

A broader understanding of the importance of accurate light control would benefit many modern machine vision implementations. Lighting is critical to ensuring that machine vision data is both reliable and repeatable and all sorts of factors can degrade the quality of the measurements if lighting is not wellcontrolled. For example, interference from ambient light or aging lighting can cause measurements to be unreliable. It would save a lot of time and effort if it became more widely understood that quality lighting control can help avoid many common issues. (Jools Hudson)

How do you feel about the future?

The future looks very encouraging. The market is growing strongly, driven not only by improvements in the technology but also the need for more automation in many sectors of the economy. The challenge is ensuring a good supply of skilled engineers to continue our drive for innovation and growth. Gardasoft has an apprentice programme in conjunction with the local technical college and provides student placements to help with this. (Hilary Briggs)

Where do you hope your company will be, at the end of the next decade (2029)?

The need for enhanced connectivity between vision components and control systems has never been greater and the adoption of connectivity standards has the power to transform our industry. I am very excited by the new GenIcam Harvester project that is being developed with the backing of EMVA. I predict that this open-source image-acquisition library will bring machine vision capability to a huge range of new applications and allow full integration of hardware without the past handicap of proprietary protocols and applications. (Jools Hudson)

Michael Beising, CEO, EVT Eye Vision Technology 1.

If you could wish for one major development for the sector?

More and cheaper Sensors in the Thermal but also Multispectral Area. This is one major problem which hinders us in generating more solutions in a wide range of application. Fast DeepLearning Chips which enables also to realize real time image understanding based on DL or ML.

2. Single most important milestone over the last decade?

The ability to use DL and ML in machine vision solutions,

Marc DAMHAUT, Chief Executive Officer, Euresys

The most significant change in the industry is that we now see a renewed interested from the investment community. Not only is machine vision recognized as a major technology that will enable Industry 4.0, but all developments, products and technologies related to computer vision in general are now expected to generate significant returns and are valued at a higher price. We also see a lot of applications coming from non-manufacturing industries. It is challenging (and also very exciting) to position ourselves in this new ecosystem.

first based on NVidea Chips and later based on the Intel Myriad.

3. Has the industry

received the recognition it deserves?

Of course not, this is one reason, why we still find new markets where machine vision is widely not known.

4. Has the investment

community supported the industry?

do you feel 6. How about the future? The technology can keep pace, there are also many new options which would allow to speed up.

Where do you hope your company will be, at the end of the next decade (2029)?

Massively growing to a large company, the market is there.

There are some which work in this area, but mostly not with the small companies, they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t see the big markets - so the investment is not so valuable for them as investing in end customer developments.

5. Name one thing you

might have hoped for in the industry that has yet to happen?

Cheaper Sensors for the non standard spectrums - like Thermal or Multispectral

FINAL WORD So what can we take from these varied and insightful comments? Generally, the mood is upbeat, and the consensus is that the machine vision sector, despite what world events might throw at it, is set for a profitable future. There is also the feeling that investors are generally more interested in the sector, which bodes well for those companies which are considering external funding, IPOs, or trade sales.

The introduction of new technologies is a must, as is the need for common standards and education. It also comes across that the sector has not always achieved the recognition it deserves from wider industry, but this is undoubtedly set to change. One year from now, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll gauge opinion from leading bosses again, just to see what has changed over the year.

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Contributors

Christof Zollitsch

Keith Reuben

Dr Olaf Munkelt

Arnaud Destruels

CEO, STEMMER IMAGING

President, Teledyne Imaging: Smart Vision Solutions

Managing Director, MVTec Software GmbH

European Marketing Manager, Image Sensor Solutions, Sony

Sam Lopez

Paul Wilson

Dr Albert Schmidt

Michael Beising

Director of Sales and Marketing, Matrox Imaging

Chairman of UKIVA and CEO of Scorpion Vision

Managing Director, Vision Competence Center by Baumer

CEO, EVT Eye Vision Technology

Jools Hudson

Hilary Briggs

Marketing Manager, Gardasoft Vision

Managing Director, Gardasoft Vision

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Autumn Conference Season The autumn conference season is fast approaching and although Vision 2018 may loom large, there are a number of other shows that require our attention

THIRD EUROPEAN MACHINE VISION FORUM The tagline for the third European Machine Forum is ‘where research meets industry.’ The show kicks off on Wednesday, September 5 (starting in the evening) and goes through to Friday, September 7, 2018, 2pm. The venue is the Bologna Business School (BBS) and the focal topic of the third forum is Vision for Industry 4.0 and beyond.

The program has been finalized with a Vision Standards Session on the Friday with Jochem Herrmann, Arnaud Darmont, Dr Friedrich Dierks and Dr. Horst Heinol-Heikkinen, and there is a subsequent panel discussion And Prof Dr Paolo Rocco, Politecnico di Milano, will talk about “Robots, Vision and Industry 4.0”. Michele Leoni, Global Product Business Developer Manufacturing at Datalogic, will talk about “Traceability for Industry 4.0: Barcode and beyond” Prof Dr Oscar Déniz Suárez, VISILAB, Ciudad Real, Spain, will also talk about “Experiences into Bringing Artificial Vision Everywhere”

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NEC - SEPTEMBER A group of shows take place at the NEC Birmingham on the 25 and 26 September. The PPMA, TCT, What’s New In Electronics and the Sensors & Instrumentation shows all share the NEC venue. Scorpion Vision, the UK and Ireland Hikvision Machine Vision distribution partner, will be demonstrating the 2018/19 range of Hikvision machine vision cameras, smart cameras, vision processing boxes and lenses, at the Sensors & Instrumentation show. The company said that Hikvision has been gaining ground with it’s tier 1 camera and lens solutions. With GigE and USB3.0 cameras with resolutions up to 29 megapixel and small form factor 12MP and 20MP cameras, it added that it can provide a vision solution for all applications. Compact Smart Camera models are available with either open platform or our own Scorpion Vision 2D/3D vision software. Complimenting the range of cameras is the compact HikVision Vision Box PC, a fanless solid state vision processing platform.

SECURITY ESSEN FUJIFILM Optical Devices Europe will show the wide range of Fujinon Zoom Lenses at Security Essen, Messe Essen Germany, September 25 to 28. This years´ booth of FUJIFLM at Security Essen focuses on the great variety of zoom lenses.

The highlight on the booth is the expanded line-up of the Full HD Fujinon zoom lens series with 32x and 60x optical magnification that will be presented in live demonstrations. The well-known 60x Tele-zoom lens series D60x16.7 features 2 Megapixel/ Full HD resolution and covers a focal length range of f = 16.7 ~ 1000 mm on 1/1.8” security cameras. These high-end Tele-zoom lenses offer optical image stabilization, autofocus function, a visible light cut filter (“fog-filter), ND filters, a built-in 2x extender and many features more for highest image quality. Analog control is provided as well as a serial interface to control the lens via PC. As an addition, the new HD60x16.7 lenses are introduced to the market at Security Essen. They offer the same optical and mechanical specification as incorporated in the highend D60x16.7 series, but with analog control only and reduction of the 2x extender and ND filters for best priceperformance ratio – without compromising image quality. The 32x zoom lenses impress with Full HD image quality across the entire zoom range with maximum focal lengths of up to f = 400 mm (FD32x12.5SR4A) and f = 500mm (FH32x15.6SR4A). To respond to increasing market demands for color images even in low light, the lenses are designed for large sensor sizes of 1/1.8” and 2/3”. The built-in visible-light-cut filter enables reliable performance even in fog, rain and snow. Since the lenses have a small size and offer analog control as well as serial control, the lenses are very easy to integrate into housings and into existing surveillance systems.

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VISION 2018 Europe’s biggest machine vision show is not far now and in the next issue of MVPro Magazine we will be previewing products which are destined to be launched. Here though, we have a sneak preview of some of the products which will be launched at Stuttgart.

Sony First up is Sony Europe’s Image Sensing Solutions division which will unveil a new polarised-light module based on its 5 MP GS CMOS device at the show. Sony told MVPro Magazine that the polarised camera will be joined by an embedded vision concept camera and two new Sony modules: a 12 MP module based on the Camera Link transmission standard; and a 4K FCB block camera. Sony’s Arnaud Destruels said: “At the show we’ll be highlighting several strategic additions to our strong and rapidly growing family of advanced GS CMOS machine vision cameras. In recent months, we expanded the line-up significantly, adding advanced pre-processing features and new capabilities such as IEEE1588master-device functionality. In addition, we’ve added new transmission standards, launching our first USB 3 module.”

EVT EVT will also be busy at Vision, starting with a new smart line scan camera, the RazerCam Z, which is freely programmable under Linux OS. High data rates are supported by the powerful FPGA and the camera is optimized for high computing power and fast frame rates. The suitable applications are manyfold, as the line scan camera is either available with the EyeVision Software as EyeCheck 4700L, or without software as RazerCam Z. Thanks to the high fps, steel strips, paper webs, or endless material with high-speed production can be inspected for defects. Resolutions of 2048 pixel with a line rate of up to 47

kHz can be reached. The whole application can be executed in the smart line scan camera RazerCam Z. The FPGA helps, in cases where the evaluation is getting complex. Furthermore the line scan camera has an automatic shading correction, which works additive as well as multiplicative in the FPGA. The camera is also available with the EyeVision Software as EyeCheck 4700L. Therefore several features are added too. For example the complete Standard command set of the EyeVision software is included. Or, additionally, there are special commands for the inspection of endless material. Also on show will be MultiInstance Support for EyeVision software. With the latest EyeVision software it is now possible to run several cameras, each with a different inspection program on different instances at the same time. With the Multi-Instance support the user is now able to run as many cameras and inspection programs as the PC hardware can handle. It does not matter if the cameras are from a different maker, have different interfaces or are color or gray sensor or even themal imaging cameras. Any cameras can be combined. There are several Remote Server and one Remote Client. The user can connect with and configure each EyeVision instance (= Remote Server) separately. This means that different inspection programs can run on the different instances. In the future there it will also be possible to through a 3D sensor in the mix. Therefore also a 3D inspection can be carried out with the same license. Another product at the show is the company’s Number

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Plate Reading with the VECID Deep Learning Tool. With the new VECID (= Vehicle Identification) tool the EyeVision software is able to read the number plates on cars or motorbikes, etc. with the state-of-the-art set of algorithms. The base of the VECID Deep-Learning-Algorithms is the TensorFlow open source framework and library for training our own models. The pretrained networks can be used to classify the image data. VECID will run on the following platforms: • x86 • embedded ARM systems • Windows • Linux In addition, due to the flexible hardware support by the EVOS (EyeVision Operating System) the Deep Learning System is instantly available for the small single core ARM processors up to the latest x86 platforms. The final product which we know to be a Vision is EyeVision 3D for the recognition of bent pins and lifted leads. With EyeVision 3D, not only pins of ICs, THTs, SMDs or even BGAs can be inspected, but also the problem of lifted leads or lifted pads. First, the EyeVision 3D can determine the wobble circle. This means if the pin are not exactly centered. Also the software can recognize if the pins have the same height, if there are standing out or are too deep in the body. As well as if the pins are bent. And to top that the EyeVision can also recognize if the pins are rest correctly on the board after the assembly. During the manufacturing of electronic components the lifted leads are among the most critical errors.

deep learning and convolutional neural networks (CNNs). What’s more, the latest release offers new and expanded options for embedded vision as well as updated USB3 Vision interfaces. The company said that in addition, core technologies will be further improved, and for developers, the new version provides helpful innovations and valuable new features in HALCON’s integrated development environment HDevelop. The new release comes in two editions: Steady and Progress. Johannes Hiltner, Product Manager HALCON at MVTec, said: “With HALCON 18.11, we are raising the bar when it comes to standard machine vision software. We have steadily advanced important and promising technologies for both deep learning and embedded vision, and have expanded the range of functions available in this new HALCON version accordingly. Developers, in particular, will also benefit from a wide range of new features and further improved usability.”

VISION 2018 UPDATE The organisers of Vision 2018 are busy setting their stall out for the show. VISION is billed as leading world trade fair for machine vision and will be held this year in Stuttgart from 6 to 8 November 2018. It’s staged every two years and covers the entire spectrum of machine vision technology. The organisers state that in addition to first-class exhibitors, VISION

has always been characterised by its strong international character and a varied accompanying programme. One permanent fixture at the trade fair will also be held again this year, i.e. the “Industrial VISION Days”, the world’s largest talk forum for machine vision. Additional highlights will include the “Integration Area”, the special show on “International Machine Vision Standards” under the aegis of the EMVA, and the IPC4 Vision stand showcasing industrial PCs (IPCs). Another highlight will the leading providers of illumination for machine vision will present their visionary developments during the show. In particular, hyperspectral imaging has boosted innovation tremendously and is opening up entirely new application areas for machine vision. Companies such as Advanced Illumination, Büchner, CCS, Effilux, Falcon Illumination, Gardasoft, Laser Components, Metaphase, Phlox, Smart Vision Lights, TPL Vision and Z-Laser, most of whom have been exhibiting at VISION for many years, use the leading world trade fair to provide information on new methods in illumination technology and machine vision. Florian Niethammer, VISION Project Manager at Messe Stuttgart, is expecting exciting new developments from exhibitors who have illumination systems in their portfolio: “There is a great deal happening in this area at present. In particular, the topic of hyperspectral imaging has boosted innovation tremendously and is opening up entirely new application areas for machine vision.”

Hyperspecral Application: Suitable illumination is an important prerequisite for hyperspectral machine vision systems, e.g. to distinguish between plastics (picture source: Perception Park)

MVTec Software MVTec Software will officially launch the new version of its standard software HALCON, at VISION. The new version, 18.11, includes new AI technologies, specifically from the fields of

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LED Beleuchtungen: There is increasing demand for customer-specific variants of LED illumination (picture source: Stemmer Imaging)

Demand for special LED-based lights Hyperspectral imaging can be used to detect the chemical composition of objects and therefore distinguish, for example, between plastics which appear very similar on the outside. Suitable illumination is essential for these systems. “In particular, users from the area of food inspection are eagerly waiting for special multispectral or hyperspectral illumination based on LEDs,” said Sophie Perrot, an illumination expert at Stemmer Imaging. “The existing systems work with halogen lamps which produce a great of heat, which is a hindrance when using multispectral machine vision in the food industry. LED-based illumination will greatly extend the application area of machine vision systems, especially in this segment.“

John Thrailkill: (Picture source: Advanced Illumination

John Thrailkill: Thrailkill: “In order to perform their tasks, a large number of end customers need illumination with higher intensity, a lower price and easier integration.“ However, John Thrailkill, cofounder and CEO of Advanced Illumination, believes that there is a need for optimisation here: “In particular, there is a lack of individual optical and mechanical designs for customer-specific applications. A large number of end customers require illumination with higher intensity and a lower price, and want easier integration.“ According to Thrailkill, the expectations of OEMs actually go one step further: “The important factors include customer-specific adaptation possibilities in illumination geometry, various options for operation and fast delivery times with wavelengths.“

Daniell Haug: Picture source: Falcon Illumination

Daniell Haug:

Trend towards customer-specific adaptations

Haug: “Ever faster running production processes need shorter exposure times and, thus, more luminous intensity.“

LED lights have been wellestablished for years in machine vision systems as a technological basis for illumination of test objects.

The increasing requirements for illumination systems are also confirmed by Daniell Haug, “Prokurist” and Product Manager at Falcon

Jochen Maier: Picture source: Laser Components

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Illumination: “In particular, high power density is now required because quicker production processes need shorter exposure times and, thus, more luminous intensity.“ Falcon Illumination and other manufacturers are catering to this trend by making greater use of high-power LEDs and flash controllers. According to Haug, lightintense LEDs can be briefly “overdriven” by the controllers, thereby producing higher light output. Light intensity between one and eight times higher than with standard LEDs is therefore achieved.

Alternatives to LEDs Alternatives to LED-based illumination are required if no machine vision solution can be attained with visible light.One of these options, which was presented by some companies during the last VISION and is becoming increasingly more important, is the use of extended light spectrums in the ultraviolet and infrared range in conjunction with correspondingly sensitive cameras. However, lasers are also being used to an increasing extent in machine vision as illumination technology. Jochen Maier: Maier: “With line lasers, users expect increasingly higher projection quality.“ “The requirements are also increasing in this case,” said Jochen Maier, Head of the Optosystems Division at Laser Components. “With line lasers, users expect increasingly higher projection quality. The key qualities here are less diffused light and less interference in the line; homogeneous power distribution is now almost always taken for granted.“ “Higher-performance laser modules are needed at times for short exposure times,” added Maier. “There is also growing demand for smart housing solutions for easy integration at the customer.”

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Intelligent lighting – a step towards Industry 4.0

Hall 6 will address new challenges in production technologies.

Another current trend in the area of illumination technology is called intelligent lighting. The objective here is to ideally exploit the reserves of illumination systems and therefore also use them in a more efficient and economical way.

Most of the exhibitors (67%) are from Germany and 556 exhibitors (33%) are from other countries.

“Intelligent lighting can be used to monitor illumination systems and is therefore a step towards Industry 4.0,” said Sophie Perrot from Stemmer Imaging. “Since the technical properties and the dynamic application data of illumination are permanently available in the system, the user can be informed in good time about decreasing lighting levels or other important changes.” Companies such as Stemmer Imaging, which have exhibited at VISION since its première in 1988, offer intelligent lighting systems featuring Triniti technology which was developed by Gardasoft in collaboration with other lighting manufacturers such as CCS, Metaphase and Smart Vision Lights. A large number of partners in the area of software support this approach. According to Perrot, these concepts provider users with an easier opportunity to ideally adapt illumination to their utilisation conditions and achieve stable brightness over a longer period of time so that production machines are made more efficient.

SPS IPC DRIVES No sooner is Vision wrapped up, then our attention turns to SPS IPC Drives which takes place in Nuremberg on 27 to 29. Around 1,700 exhibitors are expected to turn up and share solutions, trends and the latest information on the smart and digital automation. Many international renowned companies of the automation industry present their products at this event and the main topic will be Industrie 4.0. Alongside products and examples of applications, topic-based special display areas and presentations,

In 2017, just over 70,000 visitors attended the show, of which 73% were from Germany and 27% from other countries. The organisers recently put out an update. “All signs point to growth for the SPS IPC Drives: To date, the booking rate is already higher compared to last year’s result. To accommodate the growing level of interest and continue to develop in line with the industry, the leading exhibition in smart and digital automation needs more space. For this reason, an additional hall will be provided for the Exhibition on 27 - 29 November 2018. For event organizer Mesago Messe Frankfurt GmbH, the new Hall 3C (due to open in Fall 2018) was the obvious choice. With its unique design, and quality and energy standards to match, the new Hall looks set to be the main attraction in the southwest corner of the exhibition grounds in Nuremberg, winning over exhibitors and visitors alike. “ “Due to the expansion of the Exhibition, some changes have been made to the focus areas of individual halls. In future, Hall 5 and Hall 6 will focus on Software and IT in manufacturing, as well as one new core topic: Industrial Communication. To ensure that the topic of Mechanical Infrastructure also has room to grow, exhibitors from this area will be based in the newly added Hall 3C. This is adjacent to Hall 2, which also focuses on the theme of Mechanical Infrastructure. “For the first time, a total of 17 halls will be open to provide trade visitors with information on the latest products and solutions for smart and digital automation. The familiar hall layout will not change much. However, the main topics will be presented in a more compact way on the exhibition grounds, making it easy to find products and solutions quickly.”

Basler celebrates its 30th anniversary Norbert Basler founded his company 30 years ago. Today Basler is a world market leader in industrial cameras with annual sales of over €150m and an ambitious growth strategy for the future Here is what Basler had to say to celebrate its birthday: “After the record sales year in 2017, Basler AG is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. The Ahrensburg-based company can look back on an eventful and successful past. What began as a two-man operation in the technical center in Lübeck has developed into the world’s leading manufacturer of industrial cameras.” Setting standards for the future “As the world market leader, Basler sets standards in many respects, both on the product side and in socially relevant areas such as promoting young talents and reconciling work and family life. As an employer, the company enjoys an excellent reputation and has been able to build the industry’s largest talent pool. “Basler is heavily involved in school projects and regional initiatives; for example, the company is a founding member of the „Stiftung Beruf und Familie im HanseBelt“ (“Foundation Career and Family in HanseBelt”) and has held the Hertie Foundation’s “audit berufundfamilie” (“audit career and family”) certificate since 2011. “The continuing further development of the successful ace camera series as well as the development and marketing of new technologies such as 3D and embedded vision are important elements in Basler’s product strategy. A sustainable growth strategy will continue the success of the company in the future. With the acquisition of mycable GmbH, a leading provider in the field of consulting and development of embedded computing architectures, Basler is strengthening the expansion of its business in the direction of computer vision. “Norbert Basler and Dietmar Ley are expecting developments in the coming years: “The classic market of factory automation is changing; machine vision is constantly being revolutionized. The embedded vision trend will gradually replace today’s predominantly PC-based image processing and at the same time enable a multitude of new applications. We want to play an active role in this development and open up new market segments. This will lay the foundation for the sustainability of our growth.

to our courage in taking risks and our willingness to understand constant change as normal – but above all to our more than 600 employees worldwide, their exceptionally strong identification with the company, their creativity and their motivation.” Looking back: From system supplier to component manufacturer “When Norbert Basler founded the company in 1988 together with a fellow student and a starting capital of 2,000 D-Mark, the business idea was clear: an image processing company. Within a few years success was achieved, especially with systems for testing optical data carriers. 10 years later, the company began to develop its own cameras and market them worldwide from 1998 on. A year later Basler went public. “With its new strategic focus on the camera business, Basler entered the new millennium and gradually withdrew from the systems business over the next few years. Basler strengthened sales in the Far East and built its own production facility in Singapore. This strategy contributed significantly to the strong growth of the company: Camera production rose from 24,000 units in 2009 to more than 450,000 units in 2017. “Through its consistent focus on the volume segments of the industrial camera market, Basler achieved annual revenue growth rates of more than 15 percent despite steadily decreasing average prices. In the record year of 2017, Basler even increased its sales by 54 percent over the previous year. This success is also reflected in the stock market: In 2017, the Basler share is the most successful share in northern Germany. The consistent growth is also the result of the company’s high innovation performance and the resulting high attractiveness of the products it brings to the market.” (picture: company founder Norbert Basler and CEO Dr Dietmar Ley)

“I am very proud of what we have achieved at Basler on the basis of trusting cooperation and long-term thinking, especially in our record year 2017,” emphasizes CEO Dietmar Ley. “We owe this

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Camport Video Converters from Euresys Upgrading your image acquisition system while keeping the same camera Image acquisition has advanced dramatically over the past decade with faster and higher resolution cameras, frame grabbers that support more cameras at higher frame rates, and vision interfaces offering higher bandwidth and longer cable lengths. Companies that are developing new systems from scratch have the luxury of selecting best-of-breed components based on the same vision interface standard that work perfectly together. But there are many other applications where companies are seeking improvements – faster processing speed, adding more cameras, operating cameras at a longer distance from the host, etc. But they want to keep the existing camera or detector despite of the fact that it’s based on an older vision interface such as Camera Link or the even older analog PAL/NTSC interface. In particular, many Camera Link cameras are in use today with a maximum speed of 850 Megabits per second (MB/s) and maximum link length of 10 meters, far below the specifications offered by today’s state of the art vision interfaces. Furthermore, Camera Link does not offer error checking and only provides 4 watts of power over the cable to the camera. It’s not hard to understand why many vision integrators and end users are sticking with Camera Link and even PAL/NTSC cameras. The design of an imaging application nearly always begins with the selection of the camera based on properties such as optical response, frame rate, color accuracy, and sensitivity that are finely tuned to the specific application.

For example, flat panel detectors are increasingly used in digital radiography because they are more sensitive, faster and less expensive than film. Their sensitivity allows a lower dose of radiation for a given picture quality. On the other hand, the cameras used to inspect printed circuit boards are carefully tuned provide enough resolution to detect the smallest potential defect and the frame rate needed to keep up with production speeds.

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Many of the cameras used in these applications and many other were developed years ago to work with outdated vision interface systems. But the cameras themselves provide excellent performance and the developers and users often do not want to spend the money, take the time or run the risk of replacing them. But they often do want to upgrade the systems such as by adding cameras, moving cameras to more distant locations, acquiring images at a faster rate, etc. Currently, the outdated vision interfaces used by the cameras often prevent these upgrades from being made.

The converters are designed to minimize latency by specially optimizing transmission time to avoid delays.

Connect pal/ntsc or camera link cameras to standard coaxpress, gigevision or usb-3 ports

1 or 2 Gigabit per second (Gbps) GigE Vision systems are readily available with a number of 10 Gbps systems now entering the market. USB-3 Vision is offering 5 Gbps speeds and easy plug and play installation. On the other hand, cable length with USB-3 Vision is limited to 3 to 5 meters and available power over USB is also quite low at 4.5 watts. CoaXPress is generally considered to be todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s highest performing standard because it offers high speeds and long link lengths. The CoaXPress interface currently offers speeds up to 6.25 Gbps, although converters normally are limited to 3 Gbps by Camera Link cameras. CoaXPress offers cable lengths up to 130 meters and up to 40 meters for full data rates. CoaXPress runs on coaxial cables which are the best solution for high speed data transmission because they provide a higher frequency spectrum than twisted-pair cables. CoaXPress also provides up to 13 watts of power to the camera per cable and offers cyclic redundancy check (CRC) error checking.

This obstacle has recently been overcome through the introduction of Euresys Camport Video Converters that can be used to connect cameras with previous generation vision interfaces such as Camera Link or PAL/NTSC to frame grabbers and other devices through the state- of-the-art CoaXPress, GigE Vision and USB-3 Vision interfaces. Simply connect the camera to the converter using the older style interface and connect the frame grabber to the converter with the newer style interface.

Each of the three leading stateof-the art vision interfaces has different advantages and limitations and these should be considered in selecting the converter. GigE Vision has the advantage of using very inexpensive cable that provides a long reach of 100 meters. Another advantage is that inexpensive switchs can be used to aggregate cameras into a single network where any of them can be accessed by the host.

Medical applications Medical and dental imaging is the largest potential application for these new video converters. For example, there are an increasing number of imaging sources in the operating room such as computer assisted surgery systems, endoscope and microscope video, intraoperative imaging including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and fluoroscopy, and so on. These sources need to be networked so they can be displayed for the surgeon or shared with consultants or students and recorded for training or legal purposes. The cameras and imaging sources are typically acquired over time and support a variety of current and outdated vision interfaces. Video converters make it easy to connect older cameras to modern peripherals in order to deliver state of the art performance at an economical cost. Military and surveillance applications There are also many potential applications in the military and surveillance fields. Camport Video Converters are provided with the feature-rich Sphinx software development kit (SDK) that provides the building blocks to quickly and easily design high performance video applications that use minimal central processor unit (CPU) resources. The SDK includes a filter driver and acquisition library for Windows and optionally Linux. The converters are also compatible with third party software libraries including MATLAB, LabView, Halcon, Sapera, VisionPro, StreamPix and TroublePix. In conclusion, the new generation of video converters makes it possible to update a wide range of existing cameras and other image sources to support the latest vision interface standards. So they can improve performance and range of a camera that perfectly fits the applicationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s requirements.

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360Ë&#x161; 3D part inspection simplified Mark Williamson, STE M M E R I MAGI NG Many scanning applications require shape data for 360Âş of a part, including portioning applications in the food industry. This can now be achieved quickly and easily by networking multiple 3D line profile sensors in a ring configuration. These are used for the creation of a 3D point cloud of the complete circumference of the part in a common co-ordinate system, for full cross sectional visualisation and measurement. This process has been simplified by the introduction of Firmware 5.0 for the Gocator 3D line profile sensors from LMI Technologies. The Gocator series of 3D line profilers bring advanced 3D smart imaging capabilities to a wide market, providing factories with a comprehensive range of tools to improve efficiencies in product validation. Laser line measurements of cross-sectional shapes of parts and materials surfaces can be collected to create 3D point clouds for volumetric measurements. Built-in measurement tools make 3D measurement reliable, repeatable, and easy, and there is no need to send 3D point cloud data to 3rd-party software. Setting up the system Two conveyor belts are used. The gap between them allows the Gocators to be networked in a ring around the part with a clear line of view of it as it passes from one conveyor to the next. As the part moves through the sensor ring, a 3D point cloud of the entire

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Making measurements Measurements can be made using the new Profile Closed Area tool provided in Firmware 5.0. This allows cross sectional area measurements to be made on profiles as the object moves through the sensor ring, from which the volume can be calculated by multiplying the area by length. For portioning applications where the target object must be cut according to its total weight, the weight of the object can be determined from its volume and density. Scripting can be used to accumulate the areas from the profiles acquired as the object moves through the sensor ring and trigger downstream control decisions to activate cutters when the target weight is reached. Other multi-sensor configurations For added versatility, it is possible to have a number of other Gocator multi-sensor networking configurations. Two or more sensors can be mounted side by side to measure large objects that are wider than a single sensor’s field of view. Sensors mounted opposite each other can determine true object thickness when the object cannot be referenced to a known surface like a conveyor. Sensors mounted at an angle to an object can eliminate shadowing effects. circumference is acquired with full data preservation on object sides and any overhanging areas. Data is “stitched” into a complete 3D model to provide accurate volume measurement. All of the sensors in the ring network are aligned to a common coordinate system in order to determine relative position using a known calibration piece. Setting this up is done by a new enhanced

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6 degrees of freedom simple alignment process. A known polygon calibration target is passed through the ring. Each angular corner is aligned between the sensors so the smart sensor can then calculate each sensor’s position and transform data into a common coordinate system. This transformation is carried out automatically for every 3D point produced by the sensor.

Author: Mark Williamson, STEMMER IMAGING, The Old Barn, Grange Court, Grange Road, Tongham GU10 1DW UK. Tel: +44 1252 780000 E-mail: m.williamson@ stemmer-imaging.co.uk Internet: www.stemmerimaging.co.uk

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MVTec celebrates 20th VISION MVTec will be attending their 20th Vision trade show in November and we talk to MVTec’s Head of Sales Gerhard Wagner about its approach to the sector’s premier event When it comes to VISION, held every two years in Stuttgart, MVTec Software has a clear and straightforward objective: to once again emphasize its technological leadership in machine vision software. It was back in 1998 when the company first attended the show and now its two core products, HALCON and MERLIC, are recognised as industry leaders. New versions of both will be released shortly after the event, which gives visitors to the company’s VISION booth (1-E72) a chance to pre-experience the new features. Gerhard believes that HALCON, soon available in version 18.11, and MERLIC, soon in its fourth version, will become stars of the show: “Technologywise, we will showcase several live demos regarding embedded vision, deep learning, parallel processing, and deflectometry, as well as presentations about hyperspectral imaging and 3D vision – all realized with our software. “Furthermore, we will host a live forum at our booth, where MVTec experts will hold practically relevant presentations on deep learning with HALCON 18.11 and the new parallelization with MERLIC 4 every half hour.” MVTec looks back over the 20 years at the show as being a time of “fruitful collaboration” and sees 2018 as being no exception. Gerhard explains: “We want to enthrall old and new customers with our great innovations, of course, but also emphasize that our products have a strong, long-established standing in machine vision and can actually be used in all kinds of industries. “Apart from that we want to raise more consciousness for the possibilities of machine vision

technologies such as deep learning or embedded vision technologies amongst the visitors. Furthermore we strive to – again – sustainably showcase MVTec as the technology leader for machine vision software in the global markets. He adds: “Visitors will gather most beneficial insights about what is state-of-the-art in machine vision software – and thus can save both time and money to their companies.” But, for MVTec, VISION is not only about showcasing their products, its a chance to: “... once again work closely together with our partners and our broad network in the industry to present a variety of different use-cases for any application and need. “On top, we will participate in several forums and talks to present the ‘hottest’ topics live to interested visitors.” Gerhard, like most of the sector’s senior executives, believes there’s a bright outlook for the future of the industry. For him, when someone asks who needs machine vision, his answer is simple: “Anybody who must mass-produce goods, anybody who would like to automatize his production and anybody who wants 100% quality for their entire production.” His own company’s products have numerous applications, including all demanding areas of imaging such as the semi-conductor industry, inspection, optical quality control, metrology, medicine and surveillance. And now, in particular, software by MVTec enables new automation solutions in settings of the Industrial Internet of Things.

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Gerhard says: “Our products have always set new, high-level standards for machine vision software in industrial environments, and we aim to keep it that way.” Since MVTec was founded in November 1996 as a spin-off of the Technical University of Munich and the Bavarian Research Center for Knowledge-Based Systems (FORWISS), it has steered its path to success without recourse to external shareholders. It is wholly owned by the management. It has earnt its position as a leading international manufacturer of software for machine vision and its products are universally known throughout the industry. HALCON is optimized for the needs of OEMs and system integrators. It allows engineers to set up their own solutions for a specific machine vision task. MERLIC is a powerful, all-inone machine vision software product that enables users to quickly build complete solutions without programming. But it doesn’t stop there. MVTec also builds customized software solutions for machine vision – from consultancy, studies, and prototypes up to integrated products.

Software solutions can be based on standard PC or embedded hardware (for example Arm-based systems). What’s more, MVTec’s team has an excellent background in processing images of different kinds, including 3D, infrared, hyperspectral and X-ray images. Gerhard explains the company’s mission: “To offer customers the greatest possible benefit, MVTec’s innovative work is driven by a commitment to be the number one supplier for all kinds of machine vision software technologies. “MVTec focusses on in-house research and hence takes a leading role in the challenging process of understanding how machines can learn to see.” As for the future, MVTec’s objective is clear: “We want to remain and further strengthen our position as technology leader in machine vision. Furthermore, with our products HALCON and MERLIC, we strive to remain the number one provider of standard software for machine vision, including embedded vision.” Given MVTec’s progress so far, you wouldn’t bet against it being a star of VISION for the next 20 years.

Gerhard Wagner - Head of Sales at MVTec Software GmbH Gerhard Wagner started his career at MVTec in 2007 as European Sales Manager. His key task was to expand and to strengthen MVTec’s market position within Europe. Here, he managed to win established machine vision distributors as new sales partners for MVTec. He supervised the market entry and thereby implemented the extension of the business in Europe. In the course of personnel expansions within the sales department, Mr. Wagner became Head of Sales and was put in charge of the external sales team. Mr. Wagner has more than 30 years of sales and management experience in international companies in the technology market. Before his occupation at MVTec Software GmbH, Gerhard Wagner was working as Head Sales Manager for an international supplier of embedded systems and was in charge of setting up and developing the sales team. There, he was also acting as Director of Business Development and was responsible for the deployment of global key accounts. Before that he filled sales positions at distributors as well as manufacturers of semi-conductors and components. Mr. Wagner has got a higher qualification in electrical engineering and lives in the Greater Munich area.

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Facial recognition technology is “dangerous and inaccurate” says watchdog Editor Neil Martin highlights the recent concerns over facial recognition technology and wonders how we balance a necessary tool with human rights The mainstream media is kicking up a fuss about cameras that can spot you in a crowd and decide if you are angry, or happy. The overall aim of course is to spot someone with malicious intent, say at a public transport hub, or a sports event. If you can spot someone about to place a bomb, or launch an attack, then who would argue about the use of such cameras? The controversy comes of course, because similar cameras are being used to spot people who are of interest to the police, those that might be wanted for an offence, or have skipped bail. And that would still be okay, if it wasn't for the fact that many innocent people are being caught up in false arrests say campaigners. Back in May Big Brother Watch released a report which claimed that facial recognition technology used by the Metropolitan Police at last year’s Notting Hill Carnival was 98% inaccurate, misidentifying 95 people as criminals. It pointed out that the force is planning seven more deployments.

It further claimed that one police force stores photographs of all innocent people incorrectly matched by facial recognition for a year, without their knowledge, resulting in a biometric database of over 2,400 innocent people. Big Brother Watch’s campaign called on UK public authorities to immediately stop using automated facial recognition software with surveillance cameras. It was backed by David Lammy MP and 15 rights and race equality groups including Article 19, Football Supporters Federation, Index on Censorship, Liberty, Netpol, Police Action Lawyers Group, the Race Equality Foundation and Runnymede Trust.

police are wrongly identifying thousands of innocent citizens as criminals. “It is deeply disturbing and undemocratic that police are using a technology that is almost entirely inaccurate, that they have no legal power for, and that poses a major risk to our freedoms. “This has wasted millions in public money and the cost to our civil liberties is too high. It must be dropped.” It’s a modern day dilemma. We all want to be safe, yet no-one wants the arrests of innocent people. How do we balance the rights of the individual, with the need to spot wrong-doers?

Silkie Carlo, director of Big Brother Watch, said: “Realtime facial recognition is a dangerously authoritarian surveillance tool that could fundamentally change policing in the UK. Members of the public could be tracked, located and identified – or misidentified – everywhere they go.

The answer has to be greater accuracy. The technology is not going to go away, it will not be dis-invented. The system providers have to be able to achieve greater success rates and the police are going to have to use it as just one part of their usual procedures to make arrests. And politicians do need to introduce safeguards to ensure that it is not being abused.

“We’re seeing ordinary people being asked to produce ID to prove their innocence as

But, whether it's liked, or not, camera recognition technology is here to stay.

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Focusing on Standards Jools Hudson for Gardasoft Vision explains to MVPro why connectivity in machine vision is so important and how the new Open Lens Communication Standwward and the GenIcam Harvester project from EMVA are creating new opportunities for machine vision

Gardasoft Marketing Manager, Jools Hudson, explained to me how the company evolved from its early days into a global provider of machine vision control technology. “Gardasoft Vision was originally founded in 1999 to produce lighting controllers that were used for machine vision LED lighting. In the period since then we have expanded our expertise so that we now offer a range of sophisticated control and sequencing technology which is mostly for machine vision, but not exclusively. We have created a versatile range of controllers to precisely trigger, sequence and drive devices such as LEDs and liquid lenses which need an accurate current drive. Our controllers are used extensively in both factory automation and traffic applications, and we also manufacture a range of high-intensity strobe lights that are popular for line scan, web inspection, traffic management and rail asset management.” Technical excellence underpins the success of Gardasoft. “We make a really significant investment in research and development every year”, commented Jools, “and this gives us the capability to drive the latest technologies and also allow us to develop new products really fast for our customers. It’s common for machine vision applications to throw up challenges that can’t be met using standard components and we’re in a unique position to create specialist, bespoke controllers - quickly. Over the years we’ve designed a lot of custom products for specialist OEMs and System Integrators.

These days there’s growing demand from OEMs and Systems Integrators, and also from machine builders, for small, self-contained vision systems that can be built into small or awkward spaces. These kinds of system often need embedded control of other aspects of the vision system, such as the illumination or the lens, and we’ve met this need by developing highperformance, embedded controllers specifically for applications such as motorised lenses, liquid or focustunable lenses and lighting.” The need to understand both the available technology and the customer’s application leads us nicely to the subject of standards and connectivity. Jools said, “One undoubted breakthrough for the machine vision industry has been the establishment of the GigE Vision and GenIcam standards. They have brought us enhanced connectivity and the ability to integrate vision with other ethernet components including our ethernet-enabled lighting controllers. These two standards also bring users the reassurance that GigE-compliant components from different manufacturers can be used interchangeably. Gardasoft recognises the growing demand

for better connectivity between machine vision components and control systems and a couple of years ago we launched the triniti™ lighting control system which provides really good connectivity all the way from the control system to the LED lighting itself. This intelligent platform networks LED lighting, camera and imaging software to provide an integrated application with a single graphical interface. Using triniti technology a single interface can be used to set up both camera and lighting, adjust the system timing and view the captured images. The final settings can be sent to both camera and controller. When we launched our liquid lens controllers we expanded the system so that Optotune focus-tunable lenses can also be controlled with triniti.”

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Although this sounds a pretty comprehensive approach, there is still plenty more to come, as Jools explained. “There are two exciting developments that build on GenIcam and offer lots of potential for users. The first is the new Open Lens Communication Standard being produced by EMVA which enables lens parameters to be controlled via GenIcam and also feed information back from the lens to the camera. This will be particularly important for lenses which have motors driving focus, zoom or aperture and also for liquid lens control. I’m very excited about the Open Lens standard because it will open new possibilities for controlling focus and depth of field and

integrating these parameters into image acquisition. The second development is the GenIcam Harvester project that’s being developed with backing from EMVA. Harvester is an opensource image acquisition library, which can accommodate image acquisition, device manipulation and image data visualization. Harvester sits between the GenIcam layer and the application. One of its major benefits is to provide access to image processing libraries for anyone who’s interested without all that cost and complexity that comes from using proprietary protocols and applications. For Gardasoft it opens up a number of possibilities, including replacing our existing SDKs with dedicated Harvester modules. This will make it much easier to create integrated solutions because data from the various different components like lights, cameras and lenses can be handled together. Variables like light intensity, pulse frequency, liquid lens autofocus, camera shutter speed and many other parameters will all be available. It will also be possible to build in automatic software updates, which will smooth away another potential source of problems. I’m really excited about the capability to develop a huge range of new applications based on Harvester.” Gardasoft will be demonstrating some of the potential offered by GenIcam Harvester at the Vision Show in Stuttgart, 6-8 November 2018. Harvester is distributed at www.GitHub.com and the GenICam package is distributed at www.emva.org.

Jools Hudson runs the strategic marketing for Gardasoft Vision. Jools received her early training at the University of Surrey, studying for a degree in engineering. After some years designing initially hardware and then software for Racal and Dowty she took up an offer to study for an MBA at Cranfield University. Jools used her new knowledge to make a move into marketing and promoted the very technology she had previously designed. In recent years, Jools has been responsible for marketing, sales and technical support functions for a number of instrumentation and imaging companies including Thorlabs and Carl Zeiss Microscopy.

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VISION BUSINESS

Basler Busy and the Latest Semiconductor Equipment Forecast Basler, the world’s leading manufacturer of industrial cameras, has had a busy summer, acquiring Silicon Software and entering into a Chinese JV, and we got the latest semiconductor equipment forecast

Basler Basler has acquired, a German manufacturer of image acquisition cards and software for the graphical programming of vision processors. A statement from Basler said that the two Silicon Software managing directors, Dr Klaus-Henning Noffz and Dr Ralf Lay, will be working for Silicon Software and Basler. The statement also said: “Basler continues to expand its product portfolio for Computer Vision applications with this transaction. Camera customers will benefit from comprehensive and easy-to-integrate solutions for

capturing and processing images in the future. With a view to next-generation image sensors and their associated higher data rates; easy-to-use high-performance image acquisition cards are becoming increasingly important. “By combining Basler’s cameras with intelligent image acquisition cards from Silicon Software, customers will receive solutions from a single source in the future, which already allow pre-processing and analysis of image data “on board” and open up costcutting potential. The graphical programming of the vision processors via Silicon Software’s VisualApplets software leads to shorter development times and faster time-to-market cycles for customers.”

Dr. Klaus-Henning Noffz (CEO, Silicon Software), Dr. Dietmar Ley (CEO, Basler AG), Dr. Ralf Lay (CEO, Silicon Software)

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Basler CEO Ley said: “Silicon Software’s product portfolio complements our product portfolio and will significantly contribute to successfully implement our planned expansion strategy towards the performance segment of the Computer Vision Market.” Dr Klaus-Henning Noffz and Dr Ralf Lay, CEOs of Silicon Software, added: “The strategic alignment of the two companies fits very well together. Basler and Silicon Software can now offer solutions from image acquisition to analysis for all performance areas worldwide. There are two strong brands that also stand for innovations in embedded and Industry 4.0.” Founded in 1997, Silicon Software is headquartered in Mannheim, Germany, and is a manufacturer of hardware for the image acquisition and processing of industrial cameras and software for the graphical programming of vision processors. With more than 50 employees, the company produces and distributes standard products as well as customized OEM solutions for image processing applications in factory automation and medical technology. Sales in 2017 totaled around 8.6 million euros. Basler also signed a joint venture agreement with its Chinese distributor Beijing Sanbao Xingye. The German company, the world’s largest manufacturer of industrial cameras, said in a statement that this move would strengthen its position in the Chinese market. Beijing Sanbao Xingye has been Basler‘s distribution partner in China for nearly 20 years. The company distributes image processing components, and consults its customers in machine vision and scientific imaging. Both companies have agree to transfer the Machine Vision division to the newly established Beijing-based Basler China with branch offices in Shenzhen and Shanghai. The management is staffed by employees of both companies.

The company said that the founding of Basler Vision Technology China brings the manufacturer and its customers closer together and the range of offering will be increasingly geared to local requirements in the future. What’s more, customers will benefit from the manufacturer’s ability to offer China market leading products, an improved supply chain and increased flexibility. Basler CEO Dietmar Lay said: “Sanbao Xingye (MVLZ) and Basler have been working together for many years in a trusting and successful manner. We are proud to join forces – pairing our leading-edge technology and manufacturing know-how with MVLZ’s superb consulting competence and market insight.” Guan Qunli, Chairman of Sanbao Xingye: “We are pleased to announce the joint venture with Basler AG, the industry leader in industrial cameras, with an excellent reputation and a world-leading brand. By bundling our strengths, we will serve our customers even better in the future and offer our employees attractive future prospects.” Semiconductor Equipment Forecast The global industry association which represents the electronics manufacturing supply chain, released its midYear Forecast at the annual SEMICON West exposition. SEMI reported that that worldwide sales of new semiconductor manufacturing equipment are projected to increase by 10.8% $62.7bn 2018, exceeding the historic high of $56.6bn set last year. Another recordbreaking year for the equipment market is expected in 2019, with 7.7% forecast growth to $67.6bn. The SEMI report said: “The SEMI Mid-Year Forecast predicts wafer processing equipment will rise 11.7 percent in 2018 to $50.8 billion. The other front-end segment, consisting of fab facilities equipment, wafer manufacturing, and mask/reticle equipment, is expected to jump 12.3 percent to $2.8 billion this year. The assembly and packaging equipment segment is projected to grow 8.0 percent to $4.2 billion in 2018, while semiconductor test equipment is forecast to increase 3.5 percent to $4.9 billion this year. “In 2018, South Korea will remain the largest equipment market for the second year in a row. China will rise in the rankings to claim the second spot for the first time, dislodging Taiwan, which will fall to the third position. All regions tracked except Taiwan will experience growth. China will lead in growth with 43.5 percent, followed by Rest of World (primarily Southeast Asia) at 19.3 percent, Japan at 32.1 percent, Europe at 11.6 percent, North America at 3.8 percent and South Korea at 0.1 percent.

Dietmar Ley (CEO, Basler AG), Guan Qunli (Chairman of Sanbao Xingye)

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“SEMI forecasts that, in 2019, equipment sales in China will surge 46.6 percent to $17.3 billion. In 2019, China, South Korea, and Taiwan are forecast to remain the top three markets, with China rising to the top. South Korea is forecast to become the second largest market at $16.3 billion, while Taiwan is expected to reach $12.3 billion in equipment sales.

Public Vision Editor Neil Martin takes a look at the slightly nervous sentiment overhanging the global economy and also examines the latest results from Cognex

MACRO-VIEW The threat of a full-scale trade war is currently hanging over global business, with the US and China sharing early blows, and the EU and other countries desperate to stay out of the firing line. Opinions as to the long term effect it will have business are mixed. There is a lot of debate as whether this is part of a President Donald Trump warm-up campaign for more meaningful negotiations at a later date, or a dig-in by the world’s biggest economies and a fight to the finish. Whatever the outcome, it is a worrying time for business. Economists and fund managers are unsure of the implications for the US economy and others. Gary Herbert, CFA, Portfolio Manager and Head of Global Credit at Brandywine Global, commented recently on the outlook for credit markets in light of the latest trade war news between the US and China. He said:

the chances for such a happening are low. They said: “Improving market dynamics, including better investor sentiment, low positioning and positive price momentum, means the chances of a major equities correction of 10%-plus are low. The likelihood is lessened further by strong corporate fundamentals, as demonstrated by one of the best US earnings seasons in Q2 of the past years; good macro data pointing to consolidation at a healthy level; gradual and predictable central bank policies; and the start of targeted Chinese easing to counter the growth slowdown and negative trade impact.

On the macro-level, it appears ‘steady-as-she-goes.’ What we don’t quite know at the moment is whether we are skirting a major storm front, or heading towards it. The US economy is thundering along, China is doing its best to control what might be a major bubble (that’s over and above what some commentators believe will be a disastrous trade war with the US, with the latter coming out on top) and Europe doing its best to steer a very middle path and shake off the final effects of the 2008/9 crash.

“While some market jitters were sparked recently by the unwinding of crowded trades in some of the ‘FAANGs’, including Facebook and Netflix, these developments were not significant enough to derail the market, especially as divergence in their prices and performance means investors do their homework to assess the relative qualities of each company.

“Given the mercurial and combative approach of the Trump administration, particularly with respect to global trade and the possibility of an escalation in tariffs, we have a more cautious outlook on global credit. However, even with the threat of tariffs, the U.S. is on a strong economic growth trajectory. We expect that assets with lower interest rate sensitivity and growth-oriented sectors, such as higher-quality high yield, should continue to do well despite the increased volatility.” As for whether we are nearing a market correction, the house view at NN Investment Partners, is that

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COGNEX

on the weaker state of the consumer electronics market.

and gross margin is expected to be at around 70%.

Cognex, one of the major players in the machine vision sector and a NASDAQ quoted company, has released second quarters results.

Investors now generally believe that Cognex is back on track and the shares took a significant lift, with large numbers being traded after the results announcement.

The issue Cognex faces is lower spending by a number of OLED display and smartphone manufacturing customers. This is what the management brought up in the first quarter and the company explained that spending in this area goes in trends and is difficult to predict.

Background The market not only welcomed the figures, but also the sentiment from the senior executives regarding the future.

With a headline revenue figure of $211m, representing growth of 19%, it comfortable beat the guidance proffered by management of between $200m to $210m.

This compares to the first quarter announcement which saw some lacklustre talk

As for the future, revenue for the third quarter is pegged at between $220m and $230m,

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Despite this note of caution, investors appear to be giving Cognex the benefit of the doubt and are looking forward to a strong future.

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Results in full Cognex results for the second quarter of 2018shown in table above and discussed below. Table 1 below shows selected financial data for Q2-18 compared with Q2-17 and Q1-18, and the first six months of 2018 compared with the first six months of 2017. All periods presented reflect the two-for-one stock split in Q4-17. * The financial results for all periods presented reflect the retroactive adoption of a new revenue recognition standard (ASC 606, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers”) that became effective onJanuary 1, 2018. This standard did not have a material impact on total revenue. For a historical perspective, Exhibit 4 of this news release includes the company’s quarterly Statement of Operations for 2017 adjusted for the impact of the new standard. **Non-GAAP net income per diluted share excludes tax adjustments. A reconciliation from GAAP to Non-GAAP is shown in Exhibit 2 of this news release.

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Found and Chairman of Cognex, Dr Robert J Shillman, said: “Revenue was the second highest of any quarter in our company’s 37-year history. And operating margin was at our 30% long-term target.” Robert J Willett, CEO, said: “Our results for Q2 of 2018 were rather good. I am pleased with our overall Q2 performance, which was slightly better than our expectations. Revenue grew by 19% year-on-year despite significantly lower revenue from the OLED display market in Asia. Opportunities for machine vision in our other served markets continue to grow rapidly, and because of that, we plan to go on investing strongly in new product development and sales resources to position ourselves for success over the long term. “Looking at the second-half, comparisons will be more challenging, particularly for Q3, because of last year’s extraordinary sales into OLED display and smartphone manufacturing.”

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Details of the Quarter Statement of Operations Highlights – Second Quarter of 2018 • Revenue increased 19% from Q2-17 and increased 25% from Q1-18. Revenue from most of Cognex’s end markets grew worldwide, both yearon-year and sequentially. An exception was consumer electronics—Cognex’s largest end market—where revenue was flat with Q2-17. • Gross margin was 74% for Q2-18, which was at the lower end of Cognex’s target range compared with 76% for both Q2-17 and Q1-18. The decrease was primarily due to revenue mix, with a higher percentage of revenue coming from application-specific customer solutions in Q2-18. • Research, Development & Engineering (RD&E) expenses increased 15% from Q2-17 and decreased 13% from Q1-18. The year-on-year increase in RD&E reflects Cognex’s investment in engineering resources and employee-related costs for the development of new products. The sequential decrease in RD&E reflects development efforts related to large opportunities in Q1-18 and lower stock option expense.

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• Selling, General & Administrative (SG&A) expenses increased 27% from Q2-17 and 5% from Q1-18. SG&A increased both year-onyear and sequentially due to investments in sales resources, and higher costs for travel and demonstration equipment. On a sequential basis, the increase was partially offset by lower stock option expense. • Investment and other income was $3,313,000 in Q2-18; $1,969,000 in Q2-17; and $3,517,000 in Q1-18. Investment income increased year-on-year due to higher yields on invested balances. On a sequential basis, the decrease was due to changes in the fair value of contingent consideration associated with recent acquisitions. • The effective tax rate was 16% in Q2-18, 9% in Q217, and 2% in Q1-18. All periods presented include a varying discrete tax benefit related to employee stock options exercised during that quarter. Excluding this discrete benefit and other discrete events, the rate was 17%, 18% and 15%, respectively (tax adjustments are summarized in Exhibit 2). The decrease year-

on-year was due to the lower U.S. federal statutory corporate tax rate enacted in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The increase on a sequential basis was due to the expectation that more of the company’s profits in 2018 will be earned and taxed in higher tax jurisdictions than previously anticipated.

Balance Sheet Highlights – July 1, 2018 • Cognex’s financial position as of July 1, 2018, continued to be very strong, with $755 million in cash and investments and no debt. Cash and investments decreased by $73 million from the end of 2017. Cash outflows included $121 million spent to repurchase Cognex common stock, $22 million paid for capital expenditures, and $16 million in dividends paid to shareholders. Cash inflows consisted of $73 million generated from operations and $15 million received from the exercise of employee stock options. Cognex intends to continue to repurchase shares of its common stock in Q3-18, subject to market conditions and other relevant factors.

•

Inventories decreased by $7 million, or 7%, from the end of Q1-18 and increased by $22 million, or 32%, from the end of 2017. The increase from year end reflects strategic purchases for anticipated large customer shipments in the coming quarters and planned new product introductions.

Financial Outlook – Q3 2018 This financial outlook reflects the new revenue recognition standard (ASC 606, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers”) that took effect on January 1, 2018. Cognex does not believe this standard will have a material impact on total revenue. For a historical perspective, Exhibit 4 of this news release includes the company’s quarterly Statement of Operations for 2017 adjusted for the impact of the new standard. •

Revenue for Q3-18 is expected to be between $220 million and $230 million. This range represents a decline year-on-year due to substantially lower revenue expected from large customers in OLED display and smartphone manufacturing.

• Gross margin is expected to be in the mid-70% range, which is Cognex’s target range for gross margin under the new revenue recognition standard. • Operating expenses are expected to be approximately flat on a sequential basis. • The effective tax rate is expected to be 16%, before discrete tax items.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures • Cognex believes thenonGAAP financial measures are helpful because they allow investors to more accurately compare Cognex results over multiple periods using the same methodology that management employs in its budgeting process and in its review of Cognex’s operating results. NonGAAP presentations exclude the following: (1) stock option expense for calculating non-GAAP operating income and net income (because these expenses have no current effect on cash or the future uses of cash, and they fluctuate because

of changes in Cognex’s stock price), and (2) certain one-time discrete events, such as tax adjustments (because these costs are outside of Cognex’s normal business operations). Cognex also uses results on a constant-currency basis as one measure to evaluate performance. Constant-currency information compares results between periods as if the exchange rates had remained constant periodover-period. Cognex does not intend for non-GAAP financial measures to be considered in isolation, or as a substitute for financial information provided in accordance with GAAP. • The tax effect of items identified in the reconciliation is estimated by applying the effective tax rate to the pre-tax amount. However, if a specific tax rate or tax treatment is required because of the nature of the item and/or the tax jurisdiction where the item was recorded, the tax effect is estimated by applying the relevant specific tax rate or tax treatment, rather than the effective tax rate.

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