# Camera Camera node is a source of [ImgFrame](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/messages/img_frame.md). You can control in at runtime with the InputControl and InputConfig It aims to unify the [Color Camera](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/nodes/color_camera.md) and [MonoCamera](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/nodes/mono_camera.md) into one node. Compared to [Color Camera](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/nodes/color_camera.md) node, Camera node: * Supports cam.setSize(), which replaces both cam.setResolution() and cam.setIspScale(). Camera node will automatically find resolution that fits best, and apply correct scaling to achieve user-selected size * Supports cam.setCalibrationAlpha(), example here: [Undistort camera stream](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai/examples/camera_undistort.md) * Supports cam.loadMeshData() and cam.setMeshStep(), which can be used for custom image warping (undistortion, perspective correction, etc.) * Automatically undistorts camera stream if HFOV of the camera is greater than 85°. You can disable this with: cam.setMeshSource(dai.CameraProperties.WarpMeshSource.NONE). Besides points above, compared to [MonoCamera](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/nodes/mono_camera.md) node, Camera node: * Doesn't have out output, as it has the same outputs as [ColorCamera](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/nodes/color_camera.md) (raw, isp, still, preview, video). This means that preview will output 3 planes of the same grayscale frame (3x overhead), and isp / video / still will output luma (useful grayscale information) + chroma (all values are 128), which will result in 1.5x bandwidth overhead ## How to place it #### Python ```python pipeline = dai.Pipeline() cam = pipeline.create(dai.node.Camera) ``` #### C++ ```cpp dai::Pipeline pipeline; auto cam = pipeline.create(); ``` ## Inputs and Outputs Message types * inputConfig - [ImageManipConfig](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/messages/image_manip_config.md) * inputControl - [CameraControl](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/messages/camera_control.md) * raw - [ImgFrame](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/messages/img_frame.md) - RAW10 bayer data. Demo code for unpacking [here](https://github.com/luxonis/oak-examples/blob/3f1b2b2/gen2-color-isp-raw/main.py#L13-L32) * isp - [ImgFrame](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/messages/img_frame.md) - YUV420 planar (same as YU12/IYUV/I420) * still - [ImgFrame](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/messages/img_frame.md) - NV12, suitable for bigger size frames. The image gets created when a capture event is sent to the Camera, so it's like taking a photo * preview - [ImgFrame](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/messages/img_frame.md) - RGB (or BGR planar/interleaved if configured), mostly suited for small size previews and to feed the image into [NeuralNetwork](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/nodes/neural_network.md) * video - [ImgFrame](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai-components/messages/img_frame.md) - NV12, suitable for bigger size frames ISP (image signal processor) is used for bayer transformation, demosaicing, noise reduction, and other image enhancements. It interacts with the 3A algorithms: auto-focus, auto-exposure, and auto-white-balance, which are handling image sensor adjustments such as exposure time, sensitivity (ISO), and lens position (if the camera module has a motorized lens) at runtime. Click [here](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image_processor) for more information. Image Post-Processing converts YUV420 planar frames from the ISP into video/preview/still frames. still (when a capture is triggered) and isp work at the max camera resolution, while video and preview are limited to max 4K (3840 x 2160) resolution, which is cropped from isp. For IMX378 (12MP), the post-processing works like this: The image above is the isp output from the Camera (12MP resolution from IMX378). If you aren't downscaling ISP, the video output is cropped to 4k (max 3840x2160 due to the limitation of the video output) as represented by the blue rectangle. The Yellow rectangle represents a cropped preview output when the preview size is set to a 1:1 aspect ratio (eg. when using a 300x300 preview size for the MobileNet-SSD NN model) because the preview output is derived from the video output. ## Usage #### Python ```python pipeline = dai.Pipeline() cam = pipeline.create(dai.node.Camera) cam.setPreviewSize(300, 300) cam.setBoardSocket(dai.CameraBoardSocket.CAM_A) # Instead of setting the resolution, user can specify size, which will set # sensor resolution to best fit, and also apply scaling cam.setSize(1280, 720) ``` #### C++ ```cpp dai::Pipeline pipeline; auto cam = pipeline.create(); cam->setPreviewSize(300, 300); cam->setBoardSocket(dai::CameraBoardSocket::CAM_A); // Instead of setting the resolution, user can specify size, which will set // sensor resolution to best fit, and also apply scaling cam->setSize(1280, 720); ``` ## 3A Algorithms The 3A - Auto-Exposure (AE), Auto-White Balance (AWB), and Auto-Focus (AF) - algorithms are used to optimize image quality and run directly on RVC. By default, these settings are in AUTO mode, with limits (e.g., min/max exposure) specific to each sensor (see [supported sensors](https://docs.luxonis.com/hardware/platform/sensors/sensors.md) for details). You can manually control these settings either by following the steps in [RGB camera control example](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai/examples/rgb_camera_control.md) or by using the [cam_test.py script](https://github.com/luxonis/depthai-python/blob/main/utilities/cam_test.py). * Stereo Cameras: Sensors share the same I2C bus, ensuring synchronized 3A settings automatically (AWB, AE). * Independent Sensors: On setups like OAK FFC or OAK-D-LR, where each sensor has its own I2C, the 3a-follow feature can be used to synchronize 3A settings from one sensor to others. Example Usage ```python cam['cam_b'].initialControl.setMisc("3a-follow", dai.CameraBoardSocket.CAM_A) cam['cam_c'].initialControl.setMisc("3a-follow", dai.CameraBoardSocket.CAM_A) ``` The 3a-follow feature copies the 3A settings (exposure, ISO, and white balance) from a primary camera (e.g., CAM_A) to other cameras in the setup (e.g., CAM_B and CAM_C). ## Limitations Here are known camera limitations for the [RVC2](https://docs.luxonis.com/hardware/platform/rvc/rvc2.md#rvc2): * ISP can process about 600 MP/s, and about 500 MP/s when the pipeline is also running NNs and video encoder in parallel * 3A algorithms can process about 200..250 FPS overall (for all camera streams). This is a current limitation of our implementation, and we have plans for a workaround to run 3A algorithms on every Xth frame, no ETA yet ## Examples of functionality * [Undistort camera stream](https://docs.luxonis.com/software/depthai/examples/script_camera_control.md) ## Reference ### depthai.node.Camera(depthai.Node) Kind: Class Camera node. Experimental node, for both mono and color types of sensors #### getBoardSocket(self) -> depthai.CameraBoardSocket: depthai.CameraBoardSocket Kind: Method Retrieves which board socket to use Returns: Board socket to use #### getCalibrationAlpha(self) -> float|None: float|None Kind: Method Get calibration alpha parameter that determines FOV of undistorted frames #### getCamera(self) -> str: str Kind: Method Retrieves which camera to use by name Returns: Name of the camera to use #### getFps(self) -> float: float Kind: Method Get rate at which camera should produce frames Returns: Rate in frames per second #### getHeight(self) -> int: int Kind: Method Get sensor resolution height #### getImageOrientation(self) -> depthai.CameraImageOrientation: depthai.CameraImageOrientation Kind: Method Get camera image orientation #### getMeshSource(self) -> depthai.CameraProperties.WarpMeshSource: depthai.CameraProperties.WarpMeshSource Kind: Method Gets the source of the warp mesh #### getMeshStep(self) -> tuple[int, int]: tuple[int, int] Kind: Method Gets the distance between mesh points #### getPreviewHeight(self) -> int: int Kind: Method Get preview height #### getPreviewSize(self) -> tuple[int, int]: tuple[int, int] Kind: Method Get preview size as tuple #### getPreviewWidth(self) -> int: int Kind: Method Get preview width #### getSize(self) -> tuple[int, int]: tuple[int, int] Kind: Method Get sensor resolution as size #### getStillHeight(self) -> int: int Kind: Method Get still height #### getStillSize(self) -> tuple[int, int]: tuple[int, int] Kind: Method Get still size as tuple #### getStillWidth(self) -> int: int Kind: Method Get still width #### getVideoHeight(self) -> int: int Kind: Method Get video height #### getVideoSize(self) -> tuple[int, int]: tuple[int, int] Kind: Method Get video size as tuple #### getVideoWidth(self) -> int: int Kind: Method Get video width #### getWidth(self) -> int: int Kind: Method Get sensor resolution width #### loadMeshData(self, warpMesh: typing_extensions.Buffer) Kind: Method Specify mesh calibration data for undistortion See `loadMeshFiles` for the expected data format #### loadMeshFile(self, warpMesh: Path) Kind: Method Specify local filesystem paths to the undistort mesh calibration files. When a mesh calibration is set, it overrides the camera intrinsics/extrinsics matrices. Overrides useHomographyRectification behavior. Mesh format: a sequence of (y,x) points as 'float' with coordinates from the input image to be mapped in the output. The mesh can be subsampled, configured by `setMeshStep`. With a 1280x800 resolution and the default (16,16) step, the required mesh size is: width: 1280 / 16 + 1 = 81 height: 800 / 16 + 1 = 51 #### setBoardSocket(self, boardSocket: depthai.CameraBoardSocket) Kind: Method Specify which board socket to use Parameter ``boardSocket``: Board socket to use #### setCalibrationAlpha(self, alpha: typing.SupportsFloat) Kind: Method Set calibration alpha parameter that determines FOV of undistorted frames #### setCamera(self, name: str) Kind: Method Specify which camera to use by name Parameter ``name``: Name of the camera to use #### setFps(self, fps: typing.SupportsFloat) Kind: Method Set rate at which camera should produce frames Parameter ``fps``: Rate in frames per second #### setImageOrientation(self, imageOrientation: depthai.CameraImageOrientation) Kind: Method Set camera image orientation #### setIsp3aFps(self, isp3aFps: typing.SupportsInt) Kind: Method Isp 3A rate (auto focus, auto exposure, auto white balance, camera controls etc.). Default (0) matches the camera FPS, meaning that 3A is running on each frame. Reducing the rate of 3A reduces the CPU usage on CSS, but also increases the convergence rate of 3A. Note that camera controls will be processed at this rate. E.g. if camera is running at 30 fps, and camera control is sent at every frame, but 3A fps is set to 15, the camera control messages will be processed at 15 fps rate, which will lead to queueing. #### setMeshSource(self, source: depthai.CameraProperties.WarpMeshSource) Kind: Method Set the source of the warp mesh or disable #### setMeshStep(self, width: typing.SupportsInt, height: typing.SupportsInt) Kind: Method Set the distance between mesh points. Default: (32, 32) #### setPreviewSize() Kind: Method #### setRawOutputPacked(self, packed: bool) Kind: Method Configures whether the camera `raw` frames are saved as MIPI-packed to memory. The packed format is more efficient, consuming less memory on device, and less data to send to host: RAW10: 4 pixels saved on 5 bytes, RAW12: 2 pixels saved on 3 bytes. When packing is disabled (`false`), data is saved lsb-aligned, e.g. a RAW10 pixel will be stored as uint16, on bits 9..0: 0b0000'00pp'pppp'pppp. Default is auto: enabled for standard color/monochrome cameras where ISP can work with both packed/unpacked, but disabled for other cameras like ToF. #### setSize() Kind: Method #### setStillSize() Kind: Method #### setVideoSize() Kind: Method #### frameEvent Kind: Property Outputs metadata-only ImgFrame message as an early indicator of an incoming frame. It's sent on the MIPI SoF (start-of-frame) event, just after the exposure of the current frame has finished and before the exposure for next frame starts. Could be used to synchronize various processes with camera capture. Fields populated: camera id, sequence number, timestamp #### initialControl Kind: Property Initial control options to apply to sensor #### inputConfig Kind: Property Input for ImageManipConfig message, which can modify crop parameters in runtime Default queue is non-blocking with size 8 #### inputControl Kind: Property Input for CameraControl message, which can modify camera parameters in runtime Default queue is blocking with size 8 #### isp Kind: Property Outputs ImgFrame message that carries YUV420 planar (I420/IYUV) frame data. Generated by the ISP engine, and the source for the 'video', 'preview' and 'still' outputs #### preview Kind: Property Outputs ImgFrame message that carries BGR/RGB planar/interleaved encoded frame data. Suitable for use with NeuralNetwork node #### raw Kind: Property Outputs ImgFrame message that carries RAW10-packed (MIPI CSI-2 format) frame data. Captured directly from the camera sensor, and the source for the 'isp' output. #### still Kind: Property Outputs ImgFrame message that carries NV12 encoded (YUV420, UV plane interleaved) frame data. The message is sent only when a CameraControl message arrives to inputControl with captureStill command set. #### video Kind: Property Outputs ImgFrame message that carries NV12 encoded (YUV420, UV plane interleaved) frame data. Suitable for use with VideoEncoder node ### Need assistance? Head over to [Discussion Forum](https://discuss.luxonis.com/) for technical support or any other questions you might have.