Total machine vision sales in North America rose 6 percent in the second quarter of 2013 compared with the second quarter a year ago, according to new statistics from the Automated Imaging Association (AIA). "It's good to see the market growing again," said AIA President Jeff Burnstein. "After the contraction in 2012, it is very encouraging to see two consecutive quarters of growth in North America." Total machine vision sales include systems and components. The main category of growth was machine vision systems, including application-specific systems and smart cameras, with a 7 percent increase over the second quarter of 2012. Conversely, sales of machine vision components decreased by 2 percent. Cameras and software both saw decreases in the second quarter, while lighting, optics and imaging boards increased over last year. "While MV components were down this quarter, 69 percent of industry experts believe we will see an increase in sales over the next six months,” said Alex Shikany, director of market analysis for AIA. “On the other hand, 73 percent of experts believe machine vision systems will remain flat over the same time period." For more information, visit: www.visiononline.org