It looks like machine vision systems became even more popular last year. The North American machine vision market grew 14.4 percent to more than $1,517 million, according to the Quarterly Machine Vision Report from Vision Systems International (VSI). Nello Zuech, VSI's president, attributes a big chunk of that growth to application-specific "turnkey" systems, particularly those used in semiconductor manufacturing. "Capital spending in the semiconductor market grew about 20 percent last year, and machine vision sales into that market grew proportionally," Zuech says, adding that semiconductor manufacturing typically accounts for 20 to 25 percent of the total machine vision market. The market for configurable, general-purpose machine vision products grew by a smaller amount last year–by 4.6 percent to $331.7 million. Looking ahead to this year, Zuech expects that capital spending in semiconductor, automotive and other key industries won't be high enough to drive any additional machine vision growth in North America. "The market will most likely be flat in 2007, which isn't so bad given that 2006 was a really good year," he says.
Safety networks have become more complex, and have actually become simpler and easier to deploy for plant operators. This slideshow highlights developments in plant safety with an emphasis on integrated safety networks.
As the MEMS industry spans a myriad of industries and markets, the future of MEMS in consumer electronics will enable a myriad of functionality, applications, and personalization.
The Nest is a sleek-looking digital thermostat which can actually "learn" its owners' schedule and then continue to regulate temperature to suit the user's preferences and patterns.
Thanks to embedded electronics, medical devices are getting smaller and smarter than ever. Pacemakers and implantable defibrillators are now able to call physicians. MRIs, CT scanners, and ultrasound machines are gaining mobility. And the venerable Band-Aid may soon be able to detect illnesses ranging from fevers to heart arrhythmias. On February 21, join Design News senior editor Charles Murray for a wide-ranging discussion, "Embedded Angles for Medical Products," which will explore the latest developments in medical electronics. The discussion will examine advances in medical device technology and offer an inside look at the embedded electronics behind it.
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
20 
