Companies are driving "smart manufacturing" through the use of data, automation and a more intensive approach to analytics. Simon Jacobson, vice president with Gartner, explains how this trend will impact the way in which product is made in the future -- and what role human beings will play.

Cognex Corp., a vendor of machine vision systems, has introduced the In-Sight 7010. The entry-level vision system was designed for inspection tasks where vision sensors are too limited, and a standard vision system might not be cost-effective.