Cognex Corporation Ships 100,000TH Machine Vision System.

NATICK, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 22, 1999--

Cognex Corporation (NASDAQ: CGNX), the world's leading supplier of machine vision systems, has shipped its 100,000th machine vision system. The vision system was shipped to Shinkawa, Ltd., a leading Japan-based manufacturer of semiconductor production equipment, as part of a record $12 million purchase order, which was announced by Cognex earlier this year. Shinkawa integrates the Cognex vision systems into wire-bonding, tape-bonding, and die-bonding machines that are used to manufacture semiconductor chips.

"For more than 10 years, Cognex has provided us with thousands of machine vision systems that have consistently met our high standards of performance," said Mr. Kenji Fujiyama, President of Shinkawa. "We are very pleased with our long-term business relationship with Cognex."

"As one of our first OEM customers, Shinkawa has played a pivotal role in Cognex's success, and it is fitting that they receive this landmark shipment," said Dr. Robert J. Shillman, Cognex's President, CEO, Chairman, and Founder. "This significant milestone is proof that leading manufacturers around the world rely on Cognex machine vision to improve productivity, lower costs, and assure product quality."

Founded in 1981, Cognex has pioneered the field of machine vision. The company has received 60 patents for inventions in the field of machine vision, and it has nearly 100 patents pending. Among the company's many innovations are the world's first machine vision system built on a single printed circuit board; the first high-speed pattern-location algorithm operating on gray-scale images, and PatMax, the first machine vision software that can accurately determine the position of objects despite changes in scale or rotation or when items are partially obscured.

Cognex Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, and markets machine vision systems, or computers that can "see." Cognex is the world's leader in the machine vision industry, having shipped to date more than 100,000 machine vision systems. Cognex's Modular Vision Systems Division, headquartered in Natick, Massachusetts, specializes in machine vision systems which are used for automating the manufacture of a wide range of discrete items and for assuring their quality. Cognex's Surface Inspection Systems Division, headquartered in Alameda, California, specializes in machine vision systems which are used for inspecting the surfaces of products manufactured in a continuous fashion, such as metals, paper, and plastics. In addition to its corporate headquarters in Natick, Massachusetts, Cognex also has regional offices located throughout North America, Japan, Europe, and Southeast Asia. Visit Cognex on-line at http://www.cognex.com.