spectrum of applications of photinics. In 2020, Sony has launched the first intelligent vision sensors with AI edge computing capabilies. It is a further development of Exmor technology. Components A smart camera usually consists of several (but not necessarily all) of the following components: Image sensor (matrix or linear, CCD- or CMOS) Image digitization circuitry Image memory processor (often a DSP or suitably powerful processor) program- and data memory (RAM, nonvolatile FLASH) Communication interface (RS-232, Ethernet) I/O lines (often opto-isolated) Lens holder or built in lens (usually C, CS or M-mount) Built in illumination device (usually LED) Purpose developed real-time operating system (For example VCRT) Optional video output (e.g. VGA or SVGA) Energy supply by e.g. energy harvesting Fields of application Having a dedicated processor in each unit, smart cameras are especially suited for applications where several cameras must operate independently and often asynchronously, or when distributed vision is required (multiple inspection or surveillance points along a production line or within an assembly machine). In general smart cameras can be used for the same kind of applications where more complex vision systems are used, and can additionally be applied in some applications where volume, pricing or reliability constraints forbid use of bulkier devices and PC's. Typical fields of application are: automated inspection for quality assurance (detection of defects, flaws, missing parts...) non contact measurements. part sorting and identification. code reading and verification (barcode, Data Matrix, alphanumeric etc.) web inspection (inspection of continuously flowing materials such as coils, tubes, wires, extruded plastic) for defect detection and dimensional gauging. detection of position and rotation of parts for robot guidance and automated picking unattended surveillance (detection of intruders, fire or smoke detection) biometric recognition and access control (face, fingerprint, iris recognition) visual sensor networks and smartdust robot guidance nearly any machine vision application Developers can purchase smart cameras and develop their own programs for special, custom made applications, or they can purchase ready made application software from the camera manufacturer or from third party sources. Custom programs can be developed by programming in various languages (typically C or C++) or by using more intuitive, albeit somewhat less flexible, visual development tools where existing functionalities (often called tool or blocks) can be connected in a list (a sequence or a bi-dimensional flowchart) that describes the desired flow of operations without any need to write program code. The main advantage of the visual approach versus