Research shows that video in data collection is increasing

08 June 2017

A recent survey, conducted by HBM, shows that video use is accelerating in data collection. Almost half of the respondents (47%) already use video in data recording today, while 54% of the respondents expect video use within their organisation to increase in the next year.

Video cameras are already used in many industrial test and measurement applications in addition to data collection with traditional tactile sensors. However, until now, there has been very little information on the level and nature of this use.

“Based on the study there is no longer any question that recording video data in parallel to tactile sensors or digital bus signals is becoming more and more attractive to users,” said Christof Salcher, product manager Instrumentation at HBM. “Video supports traditional sensor data and is becoming a valuable source of additional information, making the room for interpretation even narrower in testing”.

In summary, the latest survey shows:

• Video is most commonly used in structural durability, fatigue testing (48%). Machine monitoring or general lab testing (30%) and mobile data acquisition or road load data acquisitions (28%) are also relatively common areas of application.

• The most common reason for using video in data collection is to gain additional input analysing unexpected deviations (73%). Other common reasons are decision finding (50%) and visualisation of results to management (41%).

• Regular video (such as webcams) is by far the most common equipment for video in data collection. In the survey, 80% of respondents use this type. High-speed video is used by over one-third of the respondents (36%), often in combination with traditional video.

• Video in data collection is likely to increase substantially in the next years – this is indicated by both sides; by those already using video today and by those who do not. In total, 54% of all the respondents expect video use in data collection within their organization to increase. Among non-users that amounts to 37%.

• Use brings more use – Those already using video are more prone to increase their usage within the next years (76%). Of those 50 respondents expecting to increase their use of video in data, a majority (69%), predicts a substantial growth of 10-50%. None of those already using video expect the video usage to decrease in the next year.

The survey was conducted in Autumn 2016 among 100 respondents from Europe, with an emphasis on the Nordics. Download the full report here.