Nikon
Nikon Corporation (株式会社ニコン, Kabushiki-gaisha Nikon) (UK: /ˈnɪkɒn/, US: /ˈnaɪkɒn/; Japanese: [ɲiꜜkoɴ] ⓘ) is a Japanese optics and photographic equipment manufacturer headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. The companies held by Nikon form the Nikon Group.[3]
This article is about the corporation. For people named Nikon, see Nikon (disambiguation).
Native name
株式会社ニコン
Kabushiki-gaisha Nikon
July 25, 1917
Tokyo City
Worldwide
Still cameras, SLR cameras, DSLR cameras, digital cinema cameras, binoculars / monoculars, binocular telescope, laser rangefinder, field microscopy, precision equipment, microscopes, riflescopes, surveying equipment, regenerative medicine solutions, material processing equipment, ophthalmic lenses and many instrumental products
¥6.8 billion (FY2020)[2]
¥(12.0) billion (FY2020)[2]
20,190 (March 31, 2020)[2]
Nikon's products include cameras, camera lenses, binoculars, microscopes, ophthalmic lenses, measurement instruments, rifle scopes, spotting scopes, and equipment related to semiconductor fabrication, such as 'steppers' used in the photolithography steps of such manufacturing. Nikon is the world's second largest manufacturer of such equipment.[4]
The company is the eighth-largest chip equipment maker as reported in 2017.[5] Also, it has diversified into new areas like 3D printing and regenerative medicine to compensate for the shrinking digital camera market.[6][7][8][9]
Among Nikon's many notable product lines are Nikkor imaging lenses (for F-mount cameras, large format photography, photographic enlargers, and other applications), the Nikon F-series of 35 mm film SLR cameras, the Nikon D-series of digital SLR cameras, the Nikon Z-series of digital mirrorless cameras, the Coolpix series of compact digital cameras, and the Nikonos series of underwater film cameras.
Nikon's main competitors in camera and lens manufacturing include Canon, Sony, Fujifilm, Panasonic, Pentax, and Olympus.
Founded on July 25, 1917 as Nippon Kōgaku Kōgyō Kabushikigaisha (日本光学工業株式会社 "Japan Optical Industries Co., Ltd."), the company was renamed to Nikon Corporation, after its cameras, in 1988. Nikon is a member of the Mitsubishi group of companies (keiretsu).[10]
On March 7, 2024, Nikon announced its acquisition of Red Digital Cinema.[11]
Recent development[edit]
Revenue from Nikon's camera business has dropped 30% in three years prior to fiscal 2015.[45] In 2013, it forecast the first drop in sales from interchangeable lens cameras since Nikon's first digital SLR in 1999.[46] The company's net profit has fallen from a peak of ¥75.4 billion (fiscal 2007) to ¥18.2 billion for fiscal 2015.[45] Nikon plans to reassign over 1,500 employees resulting in job cuts of 1,000, mainly in semiconductor lithography and camera business, by 2017 as the company shifts focus to medical and industrial devices business for growth.[47][45][48]
In March 2024, it was announced Nikon had acquired the American camera manufacturer specializing in digital cinematography, Red Digital Cinema.[49]
Nikon's digital capture line also includes a successful range of dedicated scanners for a variety of formats, including Advanced Photo System (IX240), 35 mm, and 60 mm film.
Nikon introduced its first scanner, the Nikon LS-3500 with a maximum resolution of 4096 x 6144 pixels, in 1988. Prior to the development of 'cool' LED lighting this scanner used a halogen lamp (hence the name 'Coolscan' for the following models). The resolution of the following LED based Coolscan model didn't increase but the price was significantly lower. Colour depth, scan quality, imaging and hardware functionality as well as scanning speed was gradually improved with each following model. The final 'top of the line' 35mm Coolscan LS-5000 ED was a device capable of archiving greater numbers of slides; 50 framed slides or 40 images on film roll. It could scan all these in one batch using special adapters. A single maximum resolution scan was performed in no more than 20 seconds as long as no post-processing was also performed. With the launch of the Coolscan 9000 ED Nikon introduced its most up-to-date film scanner which, like the Minolta Dimage scanners were the only film scanners that, due to a special version of Digital ICE, were able to scan Kodachrome film reliably both dust and scratch free. In late 2007 much of the software's code had to be rewritten to make it Mac OS 10.5 compatible. Nikon announced it would discontinue supporting its Nikon Scan software for the Macintosh as well as for Windows Vista 64-bit.[99] Third-party software solutions like SilverFast or Vuescan provide alternatives to the official Nikon drivers and scanning software, and maintain updated drivers for most current operating systems. Between 1994 and 1996 Nikon developed three flatbed scanner models named Scantouch, which couldn't keep up with competitive flatbed products and were hence discontinued to allow Nikon to focus on its dedicated film scanners.
Nikon Metrology[edit]
Overview[edit]
Nikon Metrology, a division of Nikon, produces hardware and software products for 2D & 3D measurement from nano to large scale measurement volumes. Products include Optical Laser Probes, X-ray computed tomography, Coordinate-measuring machine (CMM), Laser Radar Systems (LR), Microscopes, Portable CMMs, Large Volume Metrology, Motion Measurement and Adaptive Robotic Controls, Semiconductor Systems, Metrology Software including CMM-Manager, CAMIO Studio, Inspect-X, Focus, and Automeasure. Measurements are performed using tactile and non-contact probes, measurement data is collected in software and processed for comparison to nominal CAD (Computer-aided design) or part specification or for recreating / reverse engineering physical work pieces.
Origins[edit]
The origins of Nikon go back to 1917 when three Japanese optical manufacturers joined to form Nippon Kogaku KK ('Japan Optics'). In 1925 the microscope having revolving nosepiece and interchangeable objectives was produced. Significant growth for the microscopy division occurs over the next 50 years as Nikon pioneers development of polarising and stereo microscopes along with new products for measuring and inspection (Metrology) markets. These new products include devices targeted for industrial use such as optical comparators, autocollimators, profile projector and automated vision based systems. Continued effort through the next three decades yield the release of products including the Optiphot and Labophot microscopes, Diaphot microscope, the Eclipse range of infinity optics, and finally the DS camera series and the Coolscope with the advent of digital sensors. With the acquisition of Metris in 2009 the Nikon Metrology division was born. Nikon Metrology products include a full range of both 2D & 3D, optical, tactile, non-contact, and X-Ray Metrology solutions ranging from nanometer resolution on microscopic samples to μm resolution in volumes large enough to house a commercial airliner.[100]
Lithography equipment[edit]
Overview[edit]
Nikon manufactures scanners and steppers for the manufacture of integrated circuits and flat panel displays, and semiconductor device inspection equipment. The steppers and scanners represent about one third of the income for the company as of 2008.[106]
Nikon developed the first lithography equipment from Japan. The equipment from Nikon enjoyed high demand from global chipmakers, the Japanese semiconductor companies and other major companies such as Intel, and Nikon was the world's leading producer of semiconductor lithography systems from the 1980s to 2002.[107] Nikon saw a sharp drop in its market share from less than 40 percent in early 2000s to no more than 20 percent as of 2013.[46][48] The company has been losing an estimated ¥17 billion a year in its precision instruments unit.
In contrast, ASML, a Dutch company, has grabbed over 80 percent of the lithography systems market as of 2015 by adopting an open innovation method of product development, which includes the acquisition of U.S-based light source manufacturer Cymer.[108] In 2017, Nikon announced that it would cut nearly 1,000 jobs mainly in the lithography systems business and halt its development of next-generation equipment.[109][110]
Legal disputes[edit]
In February 2019, Nikon, ASML and Carl Zeiss AG, a leading supplier to ASML, have entered into a definitive settlement and cross-license agreement relating to multiple disputes over patents for lithography equipment that had been underway since 2001 and agreed to drop all the world-wide lawsuits regarding the issue.[111]
By the latest settlement, ASML and Zeiss paid approximately $170 million to Nikon.[112] The two companies had paid a total of $87 million to Nikon in 2004 for similar legal dispute.[113]
Other products[edit]
Nikon also manufactures eyeglasses, sunglasses, and glasses frames, under the brands Nikon, Niji, Nobili-Ti, Presio, and Velociti VTI.[115] Other Nikon's products include ophthalmic equipment, loupes, monoculars, binocular telescopes, metal 3D printers, material processing equipment, regenerative medicine contract manufacturing, cell sorting equipment, and cell culture observation systems.[6][7][8][9]
Nikon no longer manufactures its own image sensors as it outsources the manufacturing to Sony.[116]
Since 2019, Sendai Nikon, a Nikon group company, manufactures Lidar sensors for Velodyne as part of a partnership between the two companies.[117]
Awards and recognition[edit]
Nikon was ranked 134th among India's most trusted brands according to the Brand Trust Report 2012, a study conducted by Trust Research Advisory. In the Brand Trust Report 2013, Nikon was ranked 28th among India's most trusted brands and subsequently, according to the Brand Trust Report 2014, Nikon was ranked 178th among India's most trusted brands.[126]