Since the outbreak of the epidemic, the operations of retail, catering, tourism and other industries have been hit hard. The sensor market is also one of the technical areas that have been hit hardest by the Covid-19 pandemic. Let's take a look at what is the status of the sensor business affected by the epidemic?
"The sensor business is in turmoil." The problem is cost, not demand. This is what IDTechEx concluded in its survey of the post-Covid sensor market. For example, due to the reduction of fossil fuels and internal combustion engines and the hindrance of the commercialization of existing sensor technologies, the pandemic has further affected the automotive sensor market. Troubled automakers need all LiDAR sensors that can be used, but the unit cost is still high.
In fact, innovation in sensor technology is progressing. Market analysts estimate that more than 80 new patents have been granted for applications in the fields of automotive radar, LiDAR, biosensors, and printing and flexible sensors. Japan ranks among the top, accounting for three-quarters of the 16 top patent recipient countries. Samsung Electronics is the only non-Japanese company in the top five, followed by Canon, Toyota, Panasonic and Toshiba.
On the contrary, mass production in emerging markets (such as biosensors, such as glucose monitors) seems to be a way to get rid of the current predicament of the sensor industry. During the new coronavirus pandemic, the research and development activities of biosensors increased rapidly. Researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich have been prioritizing research on a biosensor that will help detect Covid-19 in areas with a high risk of infection, such as train stations and hospitals.
According to the AMR report, the global biosensor market generated $17.5 billion in 2018 and is expected to generate $38.6 billion by 2026, with a compound annual growth rate of 10.4% from 2019 to 2026.
At the same time, the rise of chronic diseases such as diabetes, increased investment in R&D activities, and the use of nanotechnology to develop biosensors have promoted the growth of the global biosensor market. However, the huge investment required for R&D activities hindered market growth. On the other hand, in the next few years, it is expected to adopt innovative technologies in biosensors to improve their efficiency.
In addition, IDTechEx also sees emerging markets where sensors are integrated into municipal water supply and power grids, which may offset the decline in the energy industry. Edge sensors installed as nodes in IoT deployments are regarded as big data generators. Once broadband, low-latency 5G networks are launched, sensor networks are expected to become popular.
