Report assesses image sensor market
According to a new market report published by Transparency Market Research (Albany NY, USA) the US image sensors market was worth $2.0 billion in 2011 and is forecasted to reach $3.7 billion in 2017 at a compound annual growth rate of 11.1 per cent from 2011 to 2017.
The report says that the linear image sensors segment accounted for the largest share -- or. 84.2 per cent -- of the US image sensors market at $1.7 billion in 2011. The X-ray image sensors market segment will have the fastest revenue growth at a compound annual growth rate of 18.8 per cent during 2011 - 2017. US CMOS image sensor shipments reached 464.0 million units in 2011 registering a growth of 27.6 per cent over 2010.
Image sensors are broadly categorized under area image sensors, linear image sensors and X-ray image sensors. Linear image sensors are further segmented into CMOS image sensors, NMOS image sensors and InGaAs image sensors. The linear image sensors command the largest share of shipment and revenue, largely due to CMOS image sensors, which accounts for more than 90 per cent of the linear image sensor market.
Image sensor prices have shown a downward trend over the last few years and are expected to have a similar trend over the next few years. The average selling price per unit of overall image sensors in the US stood at $3.9 in 2011. Average cost per unit for CMOS image sensors in the same year was $3.5 whereas average cost of CCD image sensors was $8.3 per unit.
The report entitled "Image Sensors Market - The US Industry Analysis Market Share, Trends and Forecast, 2011 - 2017," is available for purchase here.
Interested in reading more about image sensors? Here’s a compendium of news stories and feature articles on image sensors that Vision Systems Design has published over the past year.
1. Imager uses angle-sensitive pixels
Cornell University scientists (Ithaca, NY, USA) have developed a class of CMOS image sensor which, when combined with a standard camera lens, performs lightfield imaging without any additional off-chip optics.
2. New imager counts the photons
Researchers led by Professor Kenneth Shepard at Columbia University (New York, NY, USA) aim to develop a novel two-dimensional high-frame-rate CMOS imager based on single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs).
3. Backside-illuminated image sensors: optimizing manufacturing for a sensitivity payoff
Backside-illuminated CMOS image sensors (BSI) capture light directly on the light-sensitive layer of silicon. They have a higher sensitivity in a broader spectrum than the mainstream frontside-illuminated imagers (FSI). And in the field of high-end and specialty imagers, they have started to compete with established charged-coupled device (CCD) technology.
4. Novel sensors help smart cameras serve niches
While typical smart cameras address multiple visible-light applications, more sophisticated camera designs are now emerging that address specialized niche applications such as fingerprint analysis, 3-D imaging, and nondestructive testing.
5. Cheap camera captures pictures of crops
A lightweight imager that can be used on small aircraft such as UAVs has been developed by researchers from the US Agricultural Research Service (ARS; Beltsville, MD, USA) and Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC; McLean, VA, USA).
6. Smart camera is capable of automated image analysis
Researchers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL; Pasadena, California ) led by David Thompson have been provided with funding from NASA to develop a visible-wavelength imager integrated with dedicated hardware for space missions.
7. Camera vendors leverage CMOS imagers
To address specialized machine-vision and image-processing markets, vendors have leveraged the benefits offered by CMOS fabrication techniques to meet the demands of low-power, high-resolution, intelligent or low-light-level/high-dynamic-range applications.
8. Camera vendors employ custom sensors to differentiate products
Camera vendors are now looking to customize their product offerings by forging partnerships with less well known CMOS design houses.
9. Microlenses make miniaturized closeup imaging a reality
By mounting specialized optics onto commercially available CCD and CMOS imagers, researchers are developing low-cost miniaturized imaging systems to tackle applications ranging from multispectral analysis to stress testing and biomedical imaging.
10. Image sensors detect depth data
Cornell University (Ithaca, NY, USA) researchers led by assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering Alyosha Molnar are building image sensors that could lead to the development of the next generation of 3-D cameras, as well as the ability to focus photos after they are taken.
-- by Dave Wilson, Senior Editor, Vision Systems Design