STANDARDS DEVELOPMENT
Legal framework to shape interpretation of standards
The European Machine Vision Association has written a new set of policies for machine vision standards, designed to protect IP among other aspects. EMVA’s standards manager, Werner Feith, explains the changes
a standard, together with any reference- or standard-testing implementations. At the same time, the policies clarify the rights and responsibilities of the working groups hosted by the EMVA. Additional important aspects of the new
policies include the commitment to ensure companies that contribute to standards and which hold necessary patents for the standard are prepared to issue Royalty-Free, Fair, Reasonable and Non-Discriminatory (RF-FRAND) licenses to users of the standard. Tis ensures that company IP is protected without creating barriers to adoption. Te new policies suggest a nominated group, representing both the EMVA and the working group, manage and licence the IP encapsulated in reference implementations, to protect the IP of the parties involved.
What other aspects play a role in designing these new rules? Tere is also a political aspect. It is important to understand how the evolution of global standards development could affect the industry, while also seeking practical approaches to ensure the successes of the past continue. Tis is particularly important in a European context, as EU companies have had a lot of advantages over the last few decades – the Made in Germany label, for example, is still recognised for innovation and reliability all over the world. It’s in this context that the role of
Werner Feith
How is the role of standardisation changing? Allow me to open with a general remark that the main motivation for all standardisation efforts in any industry is to create a benefit for the end user. Tis is the reason why, in machine vision, even fierce competitors decided two decades ago to work together on standards. Tis has been an enormous success and standards have laid the foundation for the adoption of machine vision in so many verticals. Since then vision technology has
matured. In addition, technical developments are now often triggered from outside of the core machine vision community: ‘AI’ and ‘embedded’ are the most prominent examples. Te EMVA has realised that, over the past 20 years,
standardisation has grown organically, but a legal framework has not kept pace with standards development.
How has the EMVA reacted to this? Intellectual property is an important aspect of standards development within the EMVA and the working groups, where many experts contribute know-how, code and maybe even patents to create the final standard. It is important for companies involved in developing a standard to have a clear legal basis for contributions. Similarly, companies that hold relevant patent IP should not have their rights reduced through participation in a standard’s development. Te EMVA’s new set of policies provides a clear legal framework for all contributions to
36 IMAGING AND MACHINE VISION EUROPE VISION YEARBOOK 2022/23
standardisation in machine vision is entering a new period of evolution. Key commercial concerns such as liabilities, IP rights and protection, and ownership of contributions to standards, as well as keeping standards free of potential licence fees, should be addressed in a professional licence framework. Additionally, standards play an important
role in an increasingly connected world, and leadership in standards development is playing a more geopolitical role. One example that occupies the standards community is that China has published a standards 2035 roadmap, which outlines a strategy to make the country a leader in standards development, including building its own set of standards in key technologies. Tis could be a potential threat to all common global standardisation activities and build market barriers to outsiders that want to do business in China. As it stands, a large number of national
standards in China already have no reference to international standards. Tis is something we as a relatively small machine vision community have to take into consideration. We have to protect contributors, users and EMVA IP rights,
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