"The current registration status [of around 300 exhibitors] and the reservations show the great popularity of the industry. Overall, we expect growth of around 25 percent in exhibitor numbers by October compared to the previous year," says Florian Niethammer, Head of Trade Fairs & Events at Messe Stuttgart and responsible for the Vision. If this forecast is correct, the trade fair would come close to the 400 exhibitor mark.

In addition to national and international key players, Messe Stuttgart is welcoming many new players this year: Around 17 percent of the registered companies are attending Vision for the first time. Among them is Beckhoff Automation. "After the long period without attendance at trade fairs, we are looking forward to the lively exchange with machine vision experts," explains Bernd Stöber, Senior Product Manager Vision at Beckhoff. He continues: "Our solution approach based on PC-based controllers already covers a wide range of applications. With new innovative vision products and functions, we are once again significantly expanding the application range of our platform. We want to present this to the market. What better event to do this than the world's leading trade fair for machine vision?"

Vision again in two halls

The increasing number of exhibitors is also reflected in the space occupied. Once again, Vision will be held in the Paul Horn Hall (Hall 10) as well as the Alfred Kärcher Hall (Hall 8), but the two halls will be around a quarter busier than in 2021: On 25,000 square meters, everything revolves around the topic of image processing.

The high international importance of Vision is reflected in the international share of exhibitors: After the ratio of national and international exhibitors was almost balanced in 2021, the foreign share for 2022 is currently 56 percent. The Vision is thus once again developing in the direction of familiar structures. At the record-breaking Vision in 2018, around 60 percent of exhibitors came from abroad.

Many exhibitors from the USA, Japan and China

Exhibiting companies from the USA are particularly well represented this year, followed by Japan, China, the Netherlands and Switzerland. The positive mood among exhibitors is clear to hear. This is also the case for camera supplier Vieworks from South Korea. Janice Lee, Sales Manager at Vieworks: "We have been exhibiting at Vision for several years. Due to Covid-19, we were unable to attend the show in 2021. So we're even more excited to be back in 2022 to meet our customers in person at Vision, showcase our products and technologies, and learn about the latest market trends."

Trend Topics Artificial Intelligence and Hyperspectral Imaging

Machine vision is on the rise. New trend topics are taking over the field and artificial intelligence has become indispensable. In view of the technical developments, Niethammer is convinced that Vision will offer the right solutions for countless user industries: "At Vision 2022, it will be exciting to see what new possibilities the topic of hyperspectral imaging offers, where things are headed in the trend topics of AI and deep learning, and what new developments will be seen in the area of embedded vision and 3D."

Components and systems for many industries

Exhibiting companies will showcase the opportunities machine vision offers for a variety of industries - including medical and pharmaceutical, food and beverage, traffic engineering and infrastructure, retail and retail trade, automotive and supplier industries, mechanical and plant engineering, and logistics. In addition to components, high-performance machine vision systems will be showcased at Vision.

The Swiss company Compar will also be represented among the 2022 system suppliers. For Stefan Basig, Marketing & Sales Manager at Compar, the world's leading trade fair has a special significance: "For our industry, the machine vision trade fair stands for a clear vision. For three days, everything revolves around technology trends, product highlights and knowledge transfer. We have been using the platform for several years to deepen our knowledge in the field of machine vision. As a system integrator, it is particularly important for us to present refined and cost-effective systems to potential customers and to support them in selecting efficient solutions from a wide range of products. It is not words that should convince, but the systems themselves. After all, Vision is all about seeing and experiencing everything for yourself."

The machine vision industry is growing and growing

"The machine vision industry is developing dynamically and is becoming more and more important. The prospects for Vision 2022 are therefore promising and expectations are high. We are pleased to welcome the industry to the 30th edition of the world's leading machine vision trade fair here in Stuttgart. After numerous restrictions imposed by Covid-19, Vision 2022 is Messe Stuttgart's first own event, which will once again have a special international significance," said Roland Bleinroth, Managing Director of Messe Stuttgart.

Anne Wendel, VDMA Machine Vision Department in the VDMA Robotics + Automation Association, underlines the development of the machine vision industry: "The robotics and automation sector, and especially the machine vision industry, is recording full order books. In 2021, a 17 percent increase in sales was recorded in the European machine vision industry according to the VDMA market survey. The forecasts for 2022 are positive despite lower expectations due to disrupted supply chains. VDMA forecasts predict a 5 percent increase and sales of €3.2 billion for the German machine vision industry. For robotics and automation as a whole, growth of 6 percent to 14.4 billion euros is expected. This gives us a positive outlook for the upcoming Vision 2022."