RotPy

RotPy provides python bindings for the Spinnaker SDK to enable Pythonic control of Teledyne/FLIR/Point Grey USB and GigE cameras.

See the website for the complete documentation.

Installation

You can install RotPy using pre-compiled wheels on Windows, Linux, or Mac or by installing the Spinnaker SDK and then installing RotPy from source.

Either way, you’ll likely need to install the Spinnaker drivers so that the cameras are recognized. Please download it from their website and follow the instructions to install the drivers if the cameras are not found.

Pre-compiled wheels

To install from the pre-compiled wheels (assuming it’s available on your platform), simply do:

python -m pip install rotpy

Note

For Windows, if rotpy errors out saying dll not found, you probably need to install the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable (64-bit, 32-bit).

Warning

RotPy is licensed under MIT. However, the pre-compiled wheels contain some of the Spinnaker SDK runtime libraries which have their own license. Please see the license file packaged along with the binaries in the wheel.

From source

To install RotPy from source, you need to:

1. Install the Spinnaker SDK development libraries.

2. Install a C++ compiler that supports C++11. E.g. on Windows Visual Studio etc. On Mac you may have to export the following environment variables:

   export CXX="/usr/bin/clang"
   export CXXFLAGS="-std=c++11"
   export CPPFLAGS="-std=c++11"
   

3. Set the environment variables so Python can locate the Spinnaker SDK.

   1. You need to set ROTPY_INCLUDE to the include directory, e.g. on Windows it may be something like set ROTPY_INCLUDE="C:\Program Files\FLIR\Spinnaker\include". On Linux and Mac it should typically be automatically found.

   2. You need to set ROTPY_LIB to the paths that contain the libraries and binaries. E.g. on Windows it may be set ROTPY_LIB="C:\Program Files\FLIR\Spinnaker\bin64\vs2015;C:\Program Files\FLIR\Spinnaker\lib64\vs2015". On Linux and Mac, again, it should typically be automatically found.

4. Then install RotPy with:

   python -m pip install rotpy --no-binary rotpy
   

5. At runtime, you’ll need to ensure the Spinnaker runtime binaries are on the system PATH using e.g. os.add_dll_directory.

   You may also have to set the environmental variable (depending on the OS bitness) GENICAM_GENTL32_PATH/GENICAM_GENTL64_PATH to the directory containing the FLIR_GenTL*.cti file as well as any or all variables FLIR_GENTL32_CTI_VS140/FLIR_GENTL64_CTI_VS140/FLIR_GENTL32_CTI/FLIR_GENTL64_CTI to the full path to the FLIR_GenTL*.cti file.

   Additionally, the FLIR_GenTL*.cti file containing directory may also need to be added to the system PATH. Spinnaker will raise an error if the cti file cannot be loaded.

Examples

Getting an image from a GigE camera

>>> from rotpy.system import SpinSystem
>>> from rotpy.camera import CameraList
>>> # get a system ref and a list of all attached cameras
>>> system = SpinSystem()
>>> cameras = CameraList.create_from_system(system, update_cams=True, update_interfaces=True)
>>> cameras.get_size()
    1
>>> # get the camera attached from the list
>>> camera = cameras.create_camera_by_index(0)
>>> camera.get_unique_id()
    '77T45WD4A84C_86TA1684_GGGGGG14_64CW3987'
>>> # init the camera and get one image
>>> camera.init_cam()
>>> # get its serial number
>>> camera.camera_nodes.DeviceSerialNumber.get_node_value()
'36548975'
>>> camera.begin_acquisition()
>>> image_cam = camera.get_next_image(timeout=5)
>>> # we copy the image so that we can release its camera buffer
>>> image = image_cam.deep_copy_image(image_cam)
>>> image_cam.release()
>>> camera.end_acquisition()
>>> # save the image
>>> image.save_png('image.png')
>>> # get image metadata
>>> image.get_bits_per_pixel()
    8
>>> image.get_height()
    512
>>> image.get_width()
    612
>>> image.get_frame_id()
    1
>>> image.get_frame_timestamp()
    67557050882
>>> image.get_pix_fmt()
    'Mono8'
>>> image.get_image_data_size()
    313344
>>> data = image.get_image_data()
>>> type(data)
    bytearray
>>> len(data)
    313344
>>> 512 * 612
    313344
>>> camera.deinit_cam()
>>> camera.release()

Configuring and getting an image from a USB3 camera

>>> from rotpy.system import SpinSystem
>>> from rotpy.camera import CameraList
>>> # create system/camera list instance and create the camera by serial number
>>> system = SpinSystem()
>>> cameras = CameraList.create_from_system(system, True, True)
>>> cameras.get_size()
1
>>> camera = cameras.create_camera_by_serial('87785435')
>>> # init so we can read the pixel format node
>>> camera.init_cam()
>>> # the names of the pixel formats available for the camera
>>> camera.camera_nodes.PixelFormat.get_entries_names()
['Mono8',
 'Mono12Packed',
 'Mono12p',
 'Mono16',
 'BayerGR8',
 ...,
 'BayerBG16',
 'YCbCr411_8_CbYYCrYY',
 'YCbCr422_8_CbYCrY',
 'YCbCr8_CbYCr',
 'RGB8']
>>> # the current one is BayerRG8
>>> node = camera.camera_nodes.PixelFormat.get_node_value()
>>> node
<rotpy.node.SpinEnumItemNode at 0x236edec43c8>
>>> node.get_enum_name()
'BayerRG8'
>>> # instead set it to RGB8
>>> camera.camera_nodes.PixelFormat.set_node_value_from_str('RGB8')
>>> camera.camera_nodes.PixelFormat.get_node_value().get_enum_name()
'RGB8'
>>> # set acquired image height to 800 pixels
>>> camera.camera_nodes.Height.get_node_value()
1200
>>> camera.camera_nodes.Height.set_node_value(800)
>>> camera.camera_nodes.Height.get_node_value()
800
>>> camera.camera_nodes.Height.get_max_value()
1200
>>> # get the current framerate
>>> camera.camera_nodes.AcquisitionFrameRate.is_readable()
True
>>> camera.camera_nodes.AcquisitionFrameRate.get_node_value()
42.7807502746582
>>> # get one image and copy and release it so we don't tie up the buffers
>>> camera.begin_acquisition()
>>> image_cam = camera.get_next_image()
>>> image = image_cam.deep_copy_image(image_cam)
>>> image_cam.release()
>>> camera.end_acquisition()
>>> # get some image metadat
>>> image.get_frame_timestamp() / 1e9
512.51940629
>>> image.get_height()
800
>>> image.get_buffer_size()
4608000
>>> 1920*800*3
4608000
>>> image.get_pix_fmt()
'RGB8'
>>> # cleanup
>>> camera.deinit_cam()
>>> camera.release()

System and camera properties

The system and camera properties can be read and set using node objects. These nodes, each represent a camera or system property, and they can be integer nodes, float nodes, boolean nodes, string nodes, command nodes etc.

These nodes derive from Spinnaker’s GenICam implementation for their cameras. RotPy provides access to a generic node access API as well as to some pre-listed nodes available on many cameras.

The generic API is accessed through the NodeMap using e.g. SpinSystem.get_tl_node_map, InterfaceDevice.get_tl_node_map, Camera.get_node_map, Camera.get_tl_dev_node_map, or Camera.get_tl_stream_node_map.

The pre-listed nodes can be accessed through e.g. SpinSystem.system_nodes, InterfaceDevice.interface_nodes, Camera.camera_nodes, Camera.tl_dev_nodes, or Camera.tl_stream_nodes. These link to the following respective objects: SystemNodes, InterfaceNodes, CameraNodes, TLDevNodes, and TLStreamNodes.

E.g. to access some of the system nodes using system_nodes:

>>> from rotpy.system import SpinSystem
>>> system = SpinSystem()
>>> # get a list of all boolean nodes
>>> system.system_nodes.bool_nodes
['EnumerateGEVInterfaces', 'EnumerateUSBInterfaces', 'EnumerateGen2Cameras']
>>> # let's inspect the USB node
>>> system.system_nodes.EnumerateUSBInterfaces
<rotpy.node.SpinBoolNode at 0x26822c20d68>
>>> # first make sure this node is actually available for this system
>>> system.system_nodes.EnumerateUSBInterfaces.is_available()
True
>>> system.system_nodes.EnumerateUSBInterfaces.get_node_value()
True
>>> system.system_nodes.EnumerateUSBInterfaces.get_description()
'Enables or disables enumeration of USB Interfaces.'
>>> system.system_nodes.EnumerateUSBInterfaces.get_name()
'EnumerateUSBInterfaces'
>>> system.system_nodes.EnumerateUSBInterfaces.get_node_value_as_str()
'1'
>>> system.system_nodes.EnumerateUSBInterfaces.get_short_description()
'Enables or disables enumeration of USB Interfaces.'

We can similarly use the node map to get the same node if it’s available:

>>> from rotpy.system import SpinSystem
>>> system = SpinSystem()
>>> node_map = system.get_tl_node_map()
>>> node = node_map.get_node_by_name('EnumerateUSBInterfaces')
>>> node is not None and node.is_available()
True
>>> node.get_node_value()
True
>>> node.get_description()
'Enables or disables enumeration of USB Interfaces.'

Similarly, for the camera, we can use the pre-listed nodes:

>>> # make sure to init the camera, otherwise many nodes won't be available
>>> camera.init_cam()
>>> # check that the auto-exposure setting is available
>>> camera.camera_nodes.ExposureAuto.is_available()
True
>>> camera.camera_nodes.ExposureAuto.get_description()
'Sets the automatic exposure mode when Exposure Mode is Timed.'
>>> # the auto-exposure is a enum node with children items
>>> camera.camera_nodes.ExposureAuto.get_node_value()
<rotpy.node.SpinEnumItemNode at 0x26822c2bc18>
>>> camera.camera_nodes.ExposureAuto.get_node_value().get_enum_name()
'Continuous'
>>> # but we can just get the symbolic string name directly
>>> camera.camera_nodes.ExposureAuto.get_node_value_as_str()
'Continuous'
>>> # to see what options are available for this enum node, look in the names module
>>> from rotpy.names.camera import ExposureAuto_names
>>> ExposureAuto_names
{'Off': 0, 'Once': 1, 'Continuous': 2}
>>> # or for pre-listed enum nodes, we can get it as an attribute
>>> camera.camera_nodes.ExposureAuto.enum_names
{'Off': 0, 'Once': 1, 'Continuous': 2}
>>> # try setting it to an incorrect value
>>> camera.camera_nodes.ExposureAuto.set_node_value_from_str('off', verify=True)
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "<ipython-input-48-d16a67f0044c>", line 1, in <module>
    camera.camera_nodes.ExposureAuto.set_node_value_from_str('off', verify=True)
  File "rotpy\node.pyx", line 650, in rotpy.node.SpinValueNode.set_node_value_from_str
    cpdef set_node_value_from_str(self, str value, cbool verify=True):
  File "rotpy\node.pyx", line 664, in rotpy.node.SpinValueNode.set_node_value_from_str
    self._value_handle.FromString(s, verify)
RuntimeError: Spinnaker: GenICam::InvalidArgumentException= Feature 'ExposureAuto' : cannot convert value 'off', the value is invalid. : InvalidArgumentException thrown in node 'ExposureAuto' while calling 'ExposureAuto.FromString()' (file 'Enumeration.cpp', line 132) [-2001]
>>> # now set it correctly
>>> camera.camera_nodes.ExposureAuto.set_node_value_from_str('Off', verify=True)
>>> camera.camera_nodes.ExposureAuto.get_node_value_as_str()
'Off'

Similarly, we can use the node map to set the exposure back to "Continuous":

>>> node_map = camera.get_node_map()
>>> node = node_map.get_node_by_name('ExposureAuto')
>>> node is not None and node.is_available()
True
>>> node.get_node_value_as_str()
'Off'
>>> node.set_node_value_from_str('Continuous', verify=True)
>>> node.get_node_value_as_str()
'Continuous'
>>> # now de-init the camera and the node won't be available
>>> camera.deinit_cam()
>>> node.is_available()
False
>>> camera.camera_nodes.ExposureAuto.is_available()
False

Attaching event handlers

Camera detection events

We can register callbacks to be called when the system detects a camera arrival or removal on any interface, or on specific interfaces. E.g. to be notified on any interface:

>>> from rotpy.system import SpinSystem
>>> system = SpinSystem()
>>> # register a callback for both arrival and removal
>>> def arrival(handler, system, serial):
...     print('Arrived:', serial)
>>> def removal(handler, system, serial):
...     print('Removed:', serial)
>>> # register and then plug and unplug a camera twice
>>> handler = system.attach_interface_event_handler(arrival, removal, update=True)
Arrived: 36548975
Removed: 36548975
Arrived: 36548975
Removed: 36548975
>>> system.detach_interface_event_handler(handler)

Logging handler

We can also register logging event handlers to get any logging events on the system or devices:

>>> from rotpy.system import SpinSystem
>>> from rotpy.camera import CameraList
>>> # create system and set logging level to debug
>>> system = SpinSystem()
>>> system.set_logging_level('debug')
>>> # create a callback that prints the message
>>> def log_handler(handler, system, item):
...     print('Log:', item['category'], item['priority'], item['message'])
>>> # attach the callback and do something that causes logs
>>> handler = system.attach_log_event_handler(log_handler)
>>> cameras = CameraList.create_from_system(system, update_cams=True, update_interfaces=True)
Log: SpinnakerCallback DEBUG Spinnaker: GetCameras()
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG Entering InterfaceGev::InterfaceGev()
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG Leaving InterfaceGev::InterfaceGev()
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG GenTL Trace: system.cpp, line 125, GenTL::EnumerateGigEInterfaces
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG Entering HAL_UsbGetInterfaces()
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG Enumerating host Controller PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_A12F&SUBSYS_06E41028&REV_31\3&11458735&0&A0
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG Host Controller's child instance ID: USB\VID_8087&PID_0029\5&587A6F87&0&4
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG Entering InterfaceUsb::InterfaceUsb()
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG Leaving InterfaceUsb::InterfaceUsb()
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG GenTL Trace: system.cpp, line 162, GenTL::EnumerateUsbInterfaces
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG GenTL Trace: system.cpp, line 191, GenTL::InitializeInterfaces
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG GenTL Trace: system.cpp, line 225, GenTL::System::RefreshInterfaces
Log: GenTLCallback DEBUG GenTL Trace: system.cpp, line 535, GenTL::System::UpdateInterfaceList
>>> # now detach the handler
>>> system.detach_log_event_handler(handler)

Camera image handler

We can also register a callback that is called on every new image that is received from the device, as opposed to polling for new images:

>>> from rotpy.camera import CameraList
>>> from rotpy.system import SpinSystem
>>> # create system and get a camera
>>> system = SpinSystem()
>>> cameras = CameraList.create_from_system(system, update_cams=True, update_interfaces=True)
>>> camera = cameras.create_camera_by_index(0)
>>> camera.init_cam()
>>> # create an image handler that prints the frame ID and time
>>> def image_callback(handler, camera, image):
...     print('Image:', image.get_frame_id(), image.get_frame_timestamp())
>>> # attach callback and start getting frames
>>> handler = camera.attach_image_event_handler(image_callback)
>>> camera.begin_acquisition()
Image: 1 388361262364
Image: 2 388366605529
 ...
Image: 135 389077033335
>>> # stop frames and printing
>>> camera.end_acquisition()
>>> camera.detach_image_event_handler(handler)
>>> camera.deinit_cam()
>>> camera.release()

Camera events

We can also register a callback that is called on camera events. E.g.:

>>> from rotpy.camera import CameraList
>>> from rotpy.system import SpinSystem
>>> # create system and get a camera
>>> system = SpinSystem()
>>> cameras = CameraList.create_from_system(system, update_cams=True, update_interfaces=True)
>>> camera = cameras.create_camera_by_index(0)
>>> camera.init_cam()
>>> # define the callback and attach it
>>> def event_callback(handler, camera, event):
...     print('Event:', event, handler.get_event_data(event), handler.get_event_metadata())
>>> handler = camera.attach_device_event_handler(event_callback)
>>> # now use the EventSelector enum to get the enum items which
>>> correspond to the event names that are available.
>>> nodes = camera.camera_nodes.EventSelector.get_entries()
>>> # not all are actually available, so only activate the ones available
>>> nodes = [node for node in nodes if node.is_available()]
>>> for node in nodes:
...     print(node.get_enum_name())
...     camera.camera_nodes.EventSelector.set_node_value_from_str(node.get_enum_name())
...     camera.camera_nodes.EventNotification.set_node_value_from_str('On')
ExposureEnd
>>> # this printed just ExposureEnd, indicating only this event was available
>>> # start acquisition so that the events occur
>>> camera.begin_acquisition()
Event: EventExposureEnd {'frame_id': 62629213124996} ('device', 'EventExposureEnd', 40003)
Event: EventExposureEnd {'frame_id': 62633508092293} ('device', 'EventExposureEnd', 40003)
...
Event: EventExposureEnd {'frame_id': 62676457765304} ('device', 'EventExposureEnd', 40003)
>>> camera.end_acquisition()
>>> camera.detach_device_event_handler(handler)
>>> camera.deinit_cam()
>>> camera.release()