Ann Arbor, MI--The Vision Show, which was held in Boston, Massachusetts May 8-10, attracted some 2,100 people from 20 countries. Overall attendance was up 9% from the last show, which was held in 2010. Reflecting a growing demand for machine vision and imaging components and systems to help companies improve their accuracy and reliability, comply with FDA and other traceability regulations, increase throughput and maximize their overall efficiency, 59% of the attendees visited The Vision Show for the first time. Exhibitors displayed new technology products at this show. Overall, 61% of the attendees plan to buy one or more products that they saw at this show within the next 12 months.
The Vision Show, which first launched in 1996 and is held every other year, showcases vision and imaging technologies such as cameras, lenses and optics, lighting equipment, sensors, vision software, frame grabbers, complete vision systems and other ancillary products. According to the AIA, the global trade association that produces the show, it is North America’s only dedicated machine vision and imaging show, and featured a sold out hall with 103 exhibitors.
The show offered an in-depth four-day educational conference and attendance at the conference was up 47% over 2010. More companies seem to be investing in the education of their employees again (after the economic downturn which began in 2008). Another attraction to the conference was AIA’s Certified Vision Professional program. Two levels – CVP-Basic and CVP-Advanced – were taught. This was the first time the CVP-Advanced was offered in Boston. Those interested in certification sit for an exam and AIA reports that 23 people were certified at the Basic level and 19 people at the Advanced level as a result of the Boston conference.
The AIA announced its AIA Certified System Integrator program at the show. This certification program is designed to help qualified system integration companies highlight their experience and areas of expertise. Companies must meet AIA’s specific criteria for years of experience, skill level of employees, and number of successful projects completed each year. Additionally, the AIA verifies each company’s experience in specific industries.
The AIA released Camera Link HS, the next generation communications protocol standard, at the Boston show. Camera Link HS offers high bandwidth scalable from 300 MB/s to 16,000 MB/s and flexible cable lengths of up to 300 meters on fiber optic and 15 meters on copper cables. Exhibitor Teledyne DALSA (Canada) displayed their Falcon2 camera and Xcelera HS PX8 frame grabber that utilize this new standard. Silicon Software (Germany) showed their microEnable 5 series frame grabbers for Camera Link HS and CoaXPress.
A few of the other new products included the introduction of the world’s first 10 GigE video transmitter by Pleora Technologies (Canada). SCHOTT North America (USA) showed off its new miniMML, which has a micro telecentric lens, illumination and CMOS camera all in one compact unit. They also featured new spot LEDs and a LED strobe controller. Active Silicon (United Kingdom) showcased FireBird, its new line of frame grabbers for CoaXPress, Camera Link and PoCL, along with high definition serial digital interfaces modules (HD-SDI) for block cameras.
The Vision Show is next scheduled for May 2014.
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