At Automate, VSD spoke with Jonathan Sparks of Interact Analysis about major machine vision trends: including faster adoption of stereo and time-of-flight cameras, the growing impact of AI and deep learning, changing business models like subscription pricing, and regional shifts driven by Chinese vendors and rising hubs in Eastern Europe and India.

Related Machine Vision Forecast: Interact Analysis on AI, Robotics, and Market Shifts

Visions: A Machine Vision and Automation Solutions Podcast, is the podcast for engineers, designers, integrators, and end users who want to keep an informed eye on the imaging and machine vision industry. Every Tuesday we will explore the latest in imaging trends, developments and solutions. Here you will find interesting, useful insights and observations from expert interviews, solo episodes, even the occasional panel discussion, all of which aim to expand your knowledge on imaging and machine vision.

Transcript

Well, hello and welcome to "Visions: A Machine Vision and Automation Solutions Podcast." I'm your host, Jim Tatum, senior editor of Vision Systems design and Visions is an endeavor business media production from your friends at Vision Systems Design. Here you'll find the latest on everything from end user machine vision solutions to trends, developments, and perspectives on all things machine vision and imaging. Whether you've been working in the industry for a while or you're just starting to take a closer look at it, this podcast is designed to grow your knowledge and bring greater focus to your understanding of the imaging and machine vision industry. And now on to our show.

Well, hi everyone, and welcome to visions. You know, like many of you, I recently spent a few days a couple weeks ago at the Automate Show in Chicago. And every year I leave with the exact same reaction. Wow. I mean, from AI powered vision systems and robotics to new sensing technologies and software platforms. The pace of innovation can be downright overwhelming. There's so much happening that it can be difficult to separate the promising ideas from the technologies that will truly shape the future of automation and machine vision. We all want to know what's next. What trends are gaining real momentum? What challenges are driving investment? Which innovations are likely to deliver lasting impact rather than just generating buzz?

While no one has a crystal ball, obviously some organizations do have a unique vantage point on the industry. One of those is Interact Analysis, the market intelligence firm whose research helps inform automation companies, investors, and industry organizations around the world. In fact, interact provides market data to the Association for Advancing Automation, a three who, as we all know, organizes and hosts Automate. In fact, at Automate Vision Systems Design head of content Sharon Spielman sat down with Jonathan Sparks of interactive analysis to discuss the current state of the machine vision market, the technologies attracting the most attention and the trends expected to influence the industry over the next several years.

Sparks pointed out that camera technology remains a core growth area within machine vision, noting the increasing adoption of stereo and time of flight cameras, which offer the dual benefits of lower cost and simpler deployment compared to traditional 2D cameras. These are widely used in mobile robotics, inspection and bin picking applications, as sparks puts it. We're forecasting and seeing higher growth in stereo cameras and time of flight cameras, where there's a lower price point and an easier opportunity to deploy a 3D camera. 

Complementing this, the rise of deep learning and AI powered software plays a big role in reducing barriers for end users and easing integration challenges for manufacturing. He noted the software's role as offering that opportunity for incremental growth across right now and then across the next few years. Now, regarding recent supply chain concerns, Sparkes' research with the leading vendors over the past six months found limited disruptions at present, although geopolitical tensions like those related to the Iran conflict can introduce risks in semiconductor manufacturing or helium availability. The current consensus seems to be optimistic. As he puts it, people are saying they're not seeing any constraints or huge adverse effects right now. Nonetheless, he advises stakeholders to monitor the situation given its fluid nature.

Geographically, China continues to emerge as an innovation powerhouse in machine vision, quickly designing and manufacturing advanced high resolution cameras and aggressively expanding into Asia-Pacific and European markets. Sparks said that the growth of Chinese vendors is huge right now, and in fact, it's creating challenges for established American and European players. Meanwhile, Eastern Europe, particularly Poland and Turkey, stand out as rising hubs for automation investment. Turkey's position as a gateway between Asia and Europe fuels innovation, while India's growing industrial base is enabling greater machine vision adoption after years of cost driven hesitancy. The regulatory environment pertaining to data privacy, AI ethics and cybersecurity remains a developing challenge. Responses among companies vary, with some viewing regulations like Europe's Cyber Resilience Act as serious business threats, while others maintain a more cautious stance about the timeline and impact. Sparkes says he thinks it's still probably a few years away that people need to really have that in their mind.

But ethical concerns around AI use and data handling mirror this uncertainty, with companies adopting differing approaches. Business models and machine vision are also changing. Subscription based software licensing and usage driven pricing models have gained traction recently. Sparkes explained how companies are exploring monetization strategies tied to operational metrics, such as how many picks are being done and whether that's by the month or by the year. There's still nascent. There is speculation around integrating vision technology into broader robot as a service offerings in mobile robotics.

On the market structure, Sparkes sees ongoing fragmentation with many niche application providers. While large scale mergers have been limited mostly to smaller acquisitions such as the late April purchase of hyperspectral specialist virion, the industry's diversity creates fertile ground for future consolidation. As he says, there's always a space for a new company to enter the market with a good solution. Intersecting technologies such as robotics, Internet of Things and 5G are major enablers for machine vision innovation. Cameras increasingly serve as safety sensors and robotics applications, enhancing operational security and manufacturing and logistics environments.

Sparkes stressed that evolving network capabilities open new deployment possibilities in complex settings, driving incremental market growth. Regarding sustainability, Sparkes said that its prominence as a market driver has waned somewhat due to diminishing government incentives and changing policy priorities globally. Still, energy use, particularly in relation to to rising costs in Europe, remains an important consideration. As he says, it's not necessarily just the cause of deploying a vision system, but how much energy is it using?

Sparkes' advice for OEMs and system integrators is straightforward. Differentiation and diversification are becoming essential with mounting price pressures on commoditized cameras, particularly from Chinese manufacturers. Companies are increasingly turning to software services and integrated solutions to create value. Many are also expanding into new markets, including defense applications such as drones and surveillance, as he says. A lot of companies are now pivoting or at least serving that industry that perhaps hadn't planned to a few years ago.

Well, that's a wrap for this episode of visions, produced by Endeavor Business Media, a division of endeavor B2B. Thanks very much for tuning in. If you enjoyed today's show, be sure to subscribe to the podcast and share this episode with a colleague who would find it helpful. Until our next episode, you can find us at vision dash systems dot com or on LinkedIn, Facebook, or for more insights, updates, and breaking news to keep you in the know. Thanks for tuning in. Until next time, stay focused on your visions.