ADPointGrey

author:

Mark Rivers, University of Chicago

Introduction

This is an areaDetector driver for cameras from Point Grey. These include IEEE 1394 Firewire DCAM, GigE, USB 2.0, and USB 3.0 cameras. The driver should work with any Point Grey camera. It has been tested on Firewire (Flea2), GigE (BlackFly, Flea3, Grasshopper3), and USB 3.0 (Grasshopper3) cameras. The driver has been tested on Windows and Linux with all 3 of these cameras. Note that Point Grey Firewire cameras can also be controlled by the generic areaDetector Windows Firewire driver and the areaDetector Linux Firewire driver, which work with Firewire cameras from any vendor. However, this Point Grey driver provides access to some vendor-specific features like strobe outputs that are not available in the generic drivers.

On Linux the Point Grey FlyCap2 SDK requires glibc version 2.14. This means it cannot be used on RHEL 6, but it can be used on RHEL 7, and Fedora 15 and higher. For USB 3.0 cameras kernel version 3.5.0 or higher is required. This means USB 3.0 cameras require Fedora 18 or higher, or RHEL 7.0 or higher.

This driver inherits from ADDriver. It implements nearly all of the parameters in asynNDArrayDriver.h and in ADArrayDriver.h. It also implements a number of parameters that are specific to the Point Grey cameras. The pointGrey class documentation describes this class in detail.

The Point Grey cameras use the IIDC/DCAM model for controlling features like shutter time, white balance, frame sizes, shutter time, frame rates, etc. This model is used not only for the IEEE 1394 Firewire cameras, for which the IIDC/DCAM model was developed, but also for their USB and GigE cameras. The Point Grey driver thus has many similarities to the generic areaDetector Windows Firewire driver and the areaDetector Linux Firewire driver. The FlyCapture2 SDK abstracts this model to a certain extent, which facilitates writing a driver that works with all of the Point Grey cameras.

Camera firmware

Point Grey frequently updates the available firmware for each camera to add features and fix bugs. However, they are not very good about putting the link to the latest firmware on their Web site. They claim this is because they only put the firmware on the Web site once it has been tested on all camera models in the camera family on which that firmware runs. In practice the firmware version listed on the Web site is often old and buggy. I have encouraged them to make the latest firmware more easily available. At present one must e-mail the support team (support@ptgrey.com) and ask them if newer firmware is available for a particular camera, and if so to provide access to it. They normally do this by sending a link to a Dropbox folder.

Video modes

The DCAM specification defines standard video formats, and a set of video modes for each video format. Point Grey combines the video format and video mode into a single quantity they call VideoMode. The following table lists these standard video modes.

Video mode Format7 is special. It allows defining an ROI on the camera to read out. The pixel resolution with which the size and position of this ROI can be defined can be queried, and is not necessarily a single pixel. In Format 7 the frame rate settings do not apply, and there is a another setting called PixelFormat that controls the video format, e.g. Mono8, Mono16, RGB8, etc.

Most cameras only support a small subset of these standard modes. The EPICS record $(P)$(R)VideoMode is an mbbo record that only has choices for the video modes actually available on the specific camera in use. Since mbbo records only allow a maximum of 16 choices and there are 24 standard video modes, it is conceivable that all available videos modes would not be presented. In practice this is not a problem since no existing camera supports more than 16 video modes.

Point Grey Video Modes
Mode Number	Mode Description
0	160x120 YUV444
1	320x240 YUV422
2	640x480 YUV411
3	640X480 YUV422
4	640x480 RGB
5	640x480 Mono8
6	640x480 Mono16
7	800x600 YUV422
8	800x600 RGB
9	800x600 Mono8
10	1024x768 YUV422
11	1024x768 RGB
12	1024x768 Mono8
13	800x600 Mono16
14	1024x768 Mono16
15	1280x960 YUV422
16	1280x960 RGB
17	1280x960 Mono8
18	1600x1200 YUV422
19	1600x1200 RGB
20	1600x1200 Mono8
21	1280x960 Mono16
22	1600x1200 Mono16
23	Format7 (user-defined)

Format7 modes

When the video mode is Format7 then there is an available selection of Format7 modes. These modes are not defined in the IIDC/DCAM standard, but are specific to each vendor and camera. Typically Format7 mode 0 is the entire chip unbinned, and mode 1 is often the entire chip with 2x2 binning. The supported Format7 modes are listed in the Point Grey Technical Reference Manual for each camera. The EPICS Format7Mode record is used to select the Format7 mode to use. This is an mbbo record and the enum choices are only those supported by the camera in use. The enum strings are of the form “Format7 mode # (NYxNY)”, for example “0 (1920x1200)” or “1 (960x600)” for Format7 modes 0 and 1 respectively on a camera with 1920 x 1200 pixels.

Pixel formats

When the video mode is Format7 then there is an available selection of PixelFormats. The available PixelFormats depend on the selected Format7 mode. Selection of a PixelFormat is done with the EPICS PixelFormat record. This is an mbbo record that only has choices that are valid for the currently selected Format7 mode. The enum values in this record are thus dynamic, and it is displayed in a separate GUI window that must be closed and re-opened when the Format7 mode changes in order to guarantee that it is displaying the currently valid PixelFormat choices.

The following tables lists the standard pixel formats for video mode Format7. Note that typically only a few of these pixel formats are supported on a particular camera with a specific Format7 mode.

Point Grey Format7 Pixel Formats
Pixel Format Number	Pixel Format Description
0	Mono8
1	YUV411
2	YUV422
3	YUV444
4	RGB8
5	Mono16
6	RGB16
7	Mono16_Signed
8	RGB16_Signed
9	Raw8
10	Raw16
11	Mono12
12	Raw12
13	BGR
14	BGRU
15	BGR16
16	BGRU16
17	YUV422_JPEG

Frame rates

The following tables lists the standard IIDC/DCAM frame rates for video modes other than Format7. Selecting a video mode (other than Format7) defines the choice of available standard frame rates. Selecting a standard frame rate actually defines a range of frame rates that are available, and the actual frame rate can be adjusted within this range with the FrameRate property. The FrameRate property is controlled with the EPICS FrameRateAbsVal or AcquirePeriod records.

Selection of a standard frame rate is done with the EPICS FrameRate record. This is an mbbo record that only has choices that are valid for the currently selected video mode. The enum values in this record are thus dynamic, and it is displayed in a separate GUI window that must be closed and re-opened when the video mode changes in order to guarantee that it is displaying the currently valid FrameRate choices. Note that not all frame rates are supported by the IIDC standard for every video mode, and even when a frame rate is supported by the standard it may not be implemented for a particular camera.

In Format 7 the frame rate settings do not apply, and the frame rate is controlled solely by the FrameRate property.

Standard IIDC/DCAM Video Frame Rates
Frame Rate Number	Frame Rate (Frames/second)
0	1.875
1	3.75
2	7.5
3	15
4	30
5	60
6	120
7	240

Properties

The DCAM specification defines a number of standard features, which control things such as the brightness, white balance, shutter time, etc. For each feature the standard defines control in both device units (12-bit integers) and absolute units (floating point). For example shutter time may support absolute seconds, as well as device units. A feature may or may not be supported on a particular camera. If it is supported it may or may not permit control in absolute units. Each feature may support both manual control and automatic control (e.g. automatic gain control).

Point Grey supports 18 of these DCAM features, which they call Properties.

Point Grey Camera Properties
Property Number	EPICS Record Base Name	Point Grey PropertyType enum
0	Brightness	BRIGHTNESS
1	AutoExposure	AUTO_EXPOSURE
2	Sharpness	SHARPNESS
3	WhiteBalance	WHITE_BALANCE
4	Hue	HUE
5	Saturation	SATURATION
6	Gamma	GAMMA
7	Iris	IRIS
8	Focus	FOCUS
9	Zoom	ZOOM
10	Pan	PAN
11	Tilt	TILT
12	Shutter	SHUTTER
13	Gain	GAIN
14	TriggerMode	TRIGGER_MODE
15	TriggerDelay	TRIGGER_DELAY
16	FrameRate	FRAME_RATE
17	Temperature	TEMPERATURE

GigE Properties

Point Grey supports 4 properties that are specific to GigE cameras.

	Point Grey GigE Properties
Property Number	EPICS Record Base Name	Point Grey PropertyType enum
0	Heartbeat	HEARTBEAT
1	HeartbeatTimeout	HEARTBEAT_TIMEOUT
2	PacketSize	PACKET_SIZE
3	PacketDelay	PACKET_DELAY

Standard areaDetector parameters

The following table describes how the Point Grey driver implements some of the standard driver parameters.

Implementation of Parameters in asynNDArrayDriver.h and ADDriver.h, and EPICS Record Definitions in ADBase.template and NDFile.template
Parameter index variable	EPICS record name	Description
ADTriggerMode	$(P)$(R)TriggerMode	The choices for the Point Grey are: ”Internal”. The timing is internal to the detector. “Ext. standard”. Each external trigger pulse starts the next image. The exposure time is controlled internally by the AcquireTime record. “Bulb”. The rising edge of the external trigger signal starts the next image. The detector continues to acquire while the external signal is high, and then reads out the detector on the falling edge of the external trigger signal. “Skip frames”. One external trigger pulse starts an image and then the next N external trigger signals are ignored. The SkipFrames record defines N. “Multi-exposure”. One external trigger pulse starts an image and then the next N-1 external trigger signals cause an additional exposure into the same image. The image is read out after trigger N. The NumExposures record defines N. “Multi-exposure bulb”. A combination of bulb and multi-exposure modes above. N exposures are accumulated into an image before it is read out. The time in the logic high state determines the acquire time for each exposure. The NumExposures record defines N. “Low-smear”. Smear reduction works by increasing the speed of the vertical clock near the end of the integration cycle. See the Technical Reference Manual for the camera for more information. “Multi-shot”. A single external trigger causes N images to be acquired. The NumImages record defines N. NumImages is limited to a maximum 255 in this mode. Note that the minimum time between external trigger pulses is no more than the maximum value of FrameRate in the current mode, and may be less for a particular camera. Note also that not all cameras support all TriggerModes. The TriggerMode enum string choices are only those supported for the camera in use.
ADTemperatureActual	$(P)$(R)TemperatureActual	The readback of the temperature.
ADNumImages	$(P)$(R)NumImages	Controls the number of images to acquire. When TriggerMode=Internal this is handled in software. When TriggerMode=Multi-shot it is handled in the camera firmware.
ADNumExposures	$(P)$(R)NumExposures	Controls the number of exposures per image when TriggerMode=”Multi-exposure” or “Multi-exposure bulb”.
ADAcquireTime	$(P)$(R)AcquireTime	Controls the acquisition time per image. This is converted into the ShutterAbsVal control of the SHUTTER property. ShutterAbsVal = AcquireTime*1000., because SHUTTER units are ms.
ADAcquirePeriod	$(P)$(R)AcquirePeriod	Controls the period between images. This is converted into the FrameRateAbsVal control of the FRAME_RATE property. FrameRateAbsVal = 1./AcquirePeriod.
ADGain	$(P)$(R)Gain	Controls the analog gain on the camera. This is converted into the GainAbsVal control of the GAIN property. The units are dB.

Point Grey specific driver parameters

The Point Grey driver implements the following parameters in addition to those in asynNDArrayDriver.h and ADDriver.h. The database file is pointGrey.template for all records except the property records, which are in pointGreyProperty.template.

Parameter Definitions in pointGrey.cpp and EPICS Record Definitions
Parameter index variable	asyn interface	Access	Description	drvInfo string	EPICS record name	EPICS record type
		Video mode parameters
PGVideoMode	asynInt32	r/w	The video mode. All possible values are listed in the Video modes section above. The actual enum choices for this record will pnly include the video modes supported by the camera in use.	PG_VIDEO_MODE	$(P)$(R)VideoMode, $(P)$(R)VideoMode_RBV	mbbo , mbbi
PGFormat7Mode	asynInt32	r/w	The Format7 mode when the camera is in VideoMode=Format7. This is discussed in the Format7 Modes section above. The actual enum choices for this record will only include the Format7 modes supported by the camera in use.	PG_FORMAT7_MODE	$(P)$(R)Format7Mode, $(P)$(R)Format7Mode_RBV	mbbo , mbbi
PGPixelFormat	asynInt32	r/w	The pixel format when the camera is in VideoMode=Format7. This is discussed in the Pixel formats section above. The actual enum choices for this record will only include the pixel formats supported by the camera in use for the Format7Mode currently selected.	PG_PIXEL_FORMAT	$(P)$(R)PixelFormat, $(P)$(R)PixelFormat_RBV	mbbo , mbbi
PGConvertPixelFormat	asynInt32	r/w	The driver allows converting the pixel format from the camera to another pixel format. The pixel formats from the camera that can be converted are: Raw8 Raw12 Raw16 Mono12 The pixel format that these can be converted to are: None: The input pixel format is not converted. Mono8: The input pixel format is converted to Mono8. Raw16: The input pixel format is converted to Raw16. This is useful when the input pixel format is Raw12, since this saves network bandwidth. Mono16: The input pixel format is converted to Mono16. This is useful when the input pixel format is Mono12, since this saves network bandwidth. Note that the FlyCap2 library does not support converting Raw12 to Mono16. The difference between Raw16 and Mono16 is that Mono16 has the sharpness and gamma corrections applied, while Raw16 does not. RGB8: The input format is converted to RGB8. This is useful when the input format is Raw8, for a color camera. In this case Bayer color is sent on the network, reducing the bandwidth requirement by a factor of 3. RGB16: The input format is converted to RGB16. This is useful when the input format is Raw16, for a color camera. In this case Bayer color is sent on the network, reducing the bandwidth requirement by a factor of 3.	PG_CONVERT_PIXEL_FORMAT	$(P)$(R)ConvertPixelFormat, $(P)$(R)ConvertPixelFormat_RBV	mbbo , mbbi
PGFrameRate	asynInt32	r/w	The frame rate choice when the VideoMode is not Format7. This is discussed in the Frame rates section above. The actual enum choices for this record will only include the frame rates supported by the camera in use for the VideoMode currently selected.	PG_FRAME_RATE	$(P)$(R)FrameRate, $(P)$(R)FrameRate_RBV	mbbo , mbbi
BinningMode	asynInt32	r/w	The binning mode for GigE cameras. The allowed values are camera-specific.	PG_BINNING_MODE	$(P)$(R)BinningMode, $(P)$(R)BinningMode_RBV	mbbo , mbbi
		Property parameters, These parameters apply to each of the 18 Point Grey properties discussed in the `Properties`_ section above. |br| The $(PROPERTY) macro in this table is the EPICS record base name listed in that section. |br| These records are defined in pointGreyProperty.template.
PGPropertyAvail	asynInt32	r/o	A flag indicating if the property is available.	PG_PROP_AVAIL	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)Avail	bi
PGPropertyOnOffAvail	asynInt32	r/o	A flag indicating if the property supports turning on and off.	PG_PROP_ON_OFF_AVAIL	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)OnOffAvail	bi
PGPropertyOnOff	asynInt32	r/w	Controls whether the property is on or off.	PG_PROP_ON_OFF	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)OnOff , $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)OnOff_RBV	bo , bi
PGPropertyOnePushAvail	asynInt32	r/o	A flag indicating if the property supports setting once (called One Push). This is typically used for setting things like the gain or shutter time automatically once.	PG_PROP_ONE_PUSH_AVAIL	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)OnePushAvail	bi
PGPropertyOnePush	asynInt32	r/w	Processing this record causes a one-push setting of the property.	PG_PROP_ONE_PUSH	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)OnePush	bo
PGPropertyAbsAvail	asynInt32	r/o	A flag indicating if the property supports absolute (floating point) control.	PG_PROP_ABS_AVAIL	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)AbsAvail	bi
PGPropertyAutoAvail	asynInt32	r/o	A flag indicating if the property supports automatic control.	PG_PROP_AUTO_AVAIL	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)AutoAvail	bi
PGPropertyManAvail	asynInt32	r/o	A flag indicating if the property supports manual control.	PG_PROP_MAN_AVAIL	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ManAvail	bi
PGPropertyAutoMode	asynInt32	r/w	Controls whether the property is manually controlled or automatically controlled.	PG_PROP_AUTO_MODE	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)AutoMode , $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)AutoMode_RBV	bo , bi
PGPropertyAbsAvail	asynInt32	r/o	A flag indicating if the property supports absolute (floating point) control.	PG_PROP_ABS_AVAIL	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)AbsAvail	bi
PGPropertyAbsMode	asynInt32	r/w	Controls whether the property is controlled in integer device units or floating point absolute units.	PG_PROP_ABS_MODE	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)AbsMode , $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)AbsMode_RBV	bo , bi
PGPropertyValue	asynInt32	r/w	The value of the property in integer device units. This controls the ValueA field of the property, which is the only integer field used for all properties except WHITE_BALANCE.	PG_PROP_VAL	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)Val , $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)Val_RBV	ao , ai
PGPropertyValueB	asynInt32	r/w	The value of the property in integer device units. This controls the ValueB field of the property, which is only used to control the Blue value of WHITE_BALANCE.	PG_PROP_VAL_B	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValB , $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValB_RBV	ao , ai
PGPropertyValueMin	asynInt32	r/o	The minimum value of the property in device units. This is used to control the LOPR and DRVL fields of the $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)Val record.	PG_PROP_VAL_MIN	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValMin	ai
PGPropertyValueMax	asynInt32	r/o	The maximum value of the property in device units. This is used to control the HOPR and DRVH fields of the $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)Val record.	PG_PROP_VAL_MAX	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValMax	ai
PGPropertyValueAbs	asynFloat64	r/w	The value of the property in floating point absolute units.	PG_PROP_VAL_ABS	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValAbs , $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValAbs_RBV	ao , ai
PGPropertyValueAbsMin	asynFloat64	r/o	The minimum value of the property in absolute units. This is used to control the LOPR and DRVL fields of the $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValAbs record.	PG_PROP_VAL_ABS_MIN	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValAbsMin	ai
PGPropertyValueAbsMax	asynFloat64	r/o	The maximum value of the property in absolute units. This is used to control the HOPR and DRVH fields of the $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValAbs record.	PG_PROP_VAL_ABS_MAX	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValAbsMax	ai
		GigE Property parameters, These parameters apply to each of the 4 Point Grey GigE properties discussed in the `GigE Properties`_ section above. |br| The $(PROPERTY) macro in this table is the EPICS record base name listed in that section. |br| These records are defined in pointGreyProperty.template.
PGPropertyValue	asynInt32	r/w	The value of the property in integer device units. This controls the ValueA field of the property, which is the only integer field used for all properties except WHITE_BALANCE.	PG_PROP_VAL	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)Val , $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)Val_RBV	ao, ai
PGPropertyValueMin	asynInt32	r/o	The minimum value of the property in device units. This is used to control the LOPR and DRVL fields of the $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)Val record.	PG_PROP_VAL_MIN	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValMin	ai
PGPropertyValueMax	asynInt32	r/o	The maximum value of the property in device units. This is used to control the HOPR and DRVH fields of the $(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)Val record.	PG_PROP_VAL_MAX	$(P)$(R)$(PROPERTY)ValMax	ai
		Trigger parameters
PGTriggerSource	asynInt32	r/w	The trigger source signal. Choices are “GPIO_0”, GPIO_1”,”GPIO_2”, and “GPIO_3”, which selects one of 4 GPIO pins on the camera. However, not all choices may be available on a specific camera, and the enum choices will only be the trigger sources actually supported on the camera in use.	PG_TRIGGER_SOURCE	$(P)$(R)TriggerSource , $(P)$(R)TriggerSource_RBV	mbbo , mbbi
PGTriggerPolarity	asynInt32	r/w	The trigger polarity. Choices are “Low”, and “High”.	PG_TRIGGER_POLARITY	$(P)$(R)TriggerPolarity , $(P)$(R)TriggerPolarity_RBV	bo , bi
PGSoftwareTrigger	asynInt32	r/w	Processing this record causes the driver to issue a software trigger.	PG_SOFTWARE_TRIGGER	$(P)$(R)SoftwareTrigger	bo
PGSkipFrames	asynInt32	r/w	The number of frames to skip when TriggerMode=”Skip frames”.	PG_SKIP_FRAMES	$(P)$(R)SkipFrames , $(P)$(R)SkipFrames_RBV	longout , longin
		Strobe parameters
PGStrobeSource	asynInt32	r/w	The strobe output signal. Choices are “GPIO_0”, GPIO_1”,”GPIO_2”, and “GPIO_3”, which selects one of 4 GPIO pins on the camera. However, not all choices may be available on a specific camera, and the enum choices will only be the strobe sources actually supported on the camera in use.	PG_STROBE_SOURCE	$(P)$(R)StrobeSource , $(P)$(R)StrobeSource_RBV	mbbo , mbbi
PGStrobeEnable	asynInt32	r/w	Enables the strobe output. Choices are “Disable”, and “Enable”.	PG_STROBE_ENABLE	$(P)$(R)StrobeEnable , $(P)$(R)StrobeEnable_RBV	bo , bi
PGStrobePolarity	asynInt32	r/w	The strobe polarity. Choices are “Low”, and “High”.	PG_STROBE_POLARITY	$(P)$(R)StrobePolarity , $(P)$(R)StrobePolarity_RBV	bo , bi
PGStrobeDelay	asynFloat64	r/w	The delay of the strobe signal relative to the start of acquisition.	PG_STROBE_DELAY	$(P)$(R)StrobeDelay , $(P)$(R)StrobeDelay_RBV	ao , ai
PGStrobeDuration	asynFloat64	r/w	The duration of the strobe signal. If zero then the strobe output is asserted during the image aquisition time.	PG_STROBE_DURATION	$(P)$(R)StrobeDuration , $(P)$(R)StrobeDuration_RBV	ao , ai
		Bandwidth control parameters
PGMaxPacketSize	asynInt32	r/o	The maximum packet size. This depends on the current acquisition settings for Firewire and USB cameras. For GigE cameras this is determined by calling DiscoverGigEPacketSize at startup, which should return the maximum Ethernet packet size supported between the camera and the IOC. However, this sometimes returns 9000 (jumbo packets) when jumbo packets are not in fact supported. In this case the user should manually set PacketSize to 1440 or image acquisition will fail.	PG_MAX_PACKET_SIZE	$(P)$(R)MaxPacketSize	longin
PGPacketSize	asynInt32	r/w	The packet size to use. This is used to control the maximum bandwidth, and hence maximum frame rate, on Firewire and USB cameras. For GigE cameras it should be set to the largest packet size supported on the Ethernet connection between the camera and IOC. It should be set to 1440 for connections that do not support jumbo packets, and as large as 9000 for connections that do support jumbo packets. If PacketSize is set to 0 then the driver will use the current value of MaxPacketSize.	PG_PACKET_SIZE	$(P)$(R)PacketSize , $(P)$(R)PacketSize_RBV	ao , ai
PGPacketSizeActual	asynInt32	r/o	The actual packet size being used.	PG_PACKET_SIZE_ACTUAL	$(P)$(R)PacketSizeActual	longin
PGPacketDelay	asynInt32	r/w	The packet delay to use in microseconds. This is used to control the maximum bandwidth, and hence maximum frame rate, on GigE cameras. It is not used for Firewire or USB cameras. The default is 400 microseconds. If the number of CorruptFrames is large then this can be increased, for example to 1000. This will reduce the maximum frame rate but can significantly reduce the number of CorruptFrames.	PG_PACKET_DELAY	$(P)$(R)PacketDelay , $(P)$(R)PacketDelay_RBV	longout , longin
PGPacketDelayActual	asynInt32	r/o	The actual packet delay being used.	PG_PACKET_DELAY_ACTUAL	$(P)$(R)PacketDelayActual	longin
PGBandwidth	asynFloat64	r/o	The calculated bandidth in MB/s. This is computed from the image size and the frame rate.	PG_BANDWIDTH	$(P)$(R)Bandwidth	ai
		Timestamp parameters
PGTimeStampMode	asynInt32	r/w	The timestamp mode. Controls the value of the NDArray,.timeStamp value. Choices are: Camera: The time from the camera is used. EPICS: The EPICS time is used Hybrid: The EPICS time when the camera started is combined with the time stamp from the camera.	PG_TIME_STAMP_MODE	$(P)$(R)TimeStampMode, $(P)$(R)TimeStampMode_RBV	mbbo, mbbi
		Camera statistics
PGCorruptFrames	asynInt32	r/o	The number of corrupt frames. The Point Grey SDK resets this to 0 each time acquisition is started.	PG_CORRUPT_FRAMES	$(P)$(R)CorruptFrames_RBV	longin
PGDroppedFrames	asynInt32	r/o	The number of dropped frames. The Point Grey SDK resets this to 0 each time acquisition is started.	PG_DROPPED_FRAMES	$(P)$(R)DroppedFrames_RBV	longin
PGDriverDropped	asynInt32	r/o	The number of frames dropped by the driver. The Point Grey SDK resets this to 0 each time acquisition is started.	PG_DRIVER_DROPPED	$(P)$(R)DriverDropped_RBV	longin
PGTransmitFailed	asynInt32	r/o	The number of time transmission failed. The Point Grey SDK resets this to 0 each time acquisition is started.	PG_TRANSMIT_FAILED	$(P)$(R)TransmitFailed_RBV	longin

Configuration

The Point Grey driver is created with the pointGreyConfig command, either from C/C++ or from the EPICS IOC shell.

pointGreyConfig(const char *portName, const char* cameraId, int traceMask, int memoryChannel,
              int maxBuffers, size_t maxMemory,
              int priority, int stackSize)

The cameraId parameter can either be an index of the camera in the list of available cameras (e.g. 0 if there is only a single Point Grey camera available) or the serial number of the camera to use. For additional details on the meaning of the parameters to this function refer to the detailed documentation on the pointGreyConfigConfig function in the pointGrey.cpp documentation and in the documentation for the constructor for the pointGrey class.

The traceMask can be set to a value > 1 to enable asynTrace debugging during initialization, before the value can be set from the IOC shell or via the asynRecord. Set this to 0x21 to enable ASYN_TRACE_WARNING, which will trace all calls to the Point Grey FlyCap2 library.

The memoryChannel can be set to a value > 0 to load the initial camera parameters from non-volatile memory in the camera. Setting memoryChannel to N loads from memoryChannel N-1, i.e. 1 loads memory channel 0. There is currently a problem with Linux and for BlackFly GigE cameras. If the IOC is run a second time after it has been used to acquire any images the driver loses communication with the camera. The problem appears to be that there is a corrupt setting in the camera, which causes it to malfunction the next time the program is run. Setting memoryChannel 1 will work around this problem by replacing the settings in the camera with a default set. Since the EPICS IOC sets nearly all the camera settings to save/restore values at startup anyway, this is not a serious limitation.

Example st.cmd startup file

The following startup script is provided with ADPointGrey.

< envPaths
errlogInit(20000)

dbLoadDatabase("$(TOP)/dbd/pointGreyApp.dbd")
pointGreyApp_registerRecordDeviceDriver(pdbbase) 

# Prefix for all records
epicsEnvSet("PREFIX", "13PG1:")
# Use this line for the first Point Grey camera in the system
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "0")
# Use this line for a specific camera by serial number, in this case a Flea2 Firewire camera
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "9211601")
# Use this line for a specific camera by serial number, in this case a Grasshopper3 USB-3.0 camera
# This is the GSECARS tomography camera
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "13510305")
# This is another GSECARS tomography camera
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "15355695")
# This is another GSECARS tomography camera
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "15337483")
# This is the 13-ID-D Grasshopper3 GigE camera, gse-pointgrey2
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "14481221")
# This is the 13-ID-D Grasshopper3 GigE camera, gse-pointgrey3
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "14481209")
# This is the GSECARS LVP CMOS camera
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "14120134")
# This is the GSECARS LVP CCD camera
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "15452742")
# This is the 2-BM camera
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "15355637")
# This is the 2-BM GS3-U3-91S6M-C camera
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "13510309")
# Use this line for a specific camera by serial number, in this case a BlackFly GigE camera
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "13481965")
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "16292610")
epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "18402100")
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "1624484")
# Use this line for a specific camera by serial number, in this case a Flea3 GigE camera
# epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "14273040")
#epicsEnvSet("CAMERA_ID", "17476170")

# The port name for the detector
epicsEnvSet("PORT",   "PG1")
# Really large queue so we can stream to disk at full camera speed
epicsEnvSet("QSIZE",  "2000")   
# The maximim image width; used for row profiles in the NDPluginStats plugin
epicsEnvSet("XSIZE",  "2048")
# The maximim image height; used for column profiles in the NDPluginStats plugin
epicsEnvSet("YSIZE",  "2048")
# The maximum number of time series points in the NDPluginStats plugin
epicsEnvSet("NCHANS", "2048")
# The maximum number of frames buffered in the NDPluginCircularBuff plugin
epicsEnvSet("CBUFFS", "500")
# The search path for database files
epicsEnvSet("EPICS_DB_INCLUDE_PATH", "$(ADCORE)/db")
# Define NELEMENTS to be enough for a 2048x2048x3 (color) image
epicsEnvSet("NELEMENTS", "12592912")

# pointGreyConfig(const char *portName, int cameraId, int traceMask, int memoryChannel,
#                 int maxBuffers, size_t maxMemory, int priority, int stackSize)
pointGreyConfig("$(PORT)", $(CAMERA_ID), 0x1, 0)
asynSetTraceIOMask($(PORT), 0, 2)
#asynSetTraceMask($(PORT), 0, 0xFF)
#asynSetTraceFile($(PORT), 0, "asynTrace.out")
#asynSetTraceInfoMask($(PORT), 0, 0xf)

dbLoadRecords("$(ADPOINTGREY)/db/pointGrey.template", "P=$(PREFIX),R=cam1:,PORT=$(PORT),ADDR=0,TIMEOUT=1")
dbLoadTemplate("pointGrey.substitutions")

# Create a standard arrays plugin
NDStdArraysConfigure("Image1", 5, 0, "$(PORT)", 0, 0)
# Use this line for 8-bit data only
#dbLoadRecords("$(ADCORE)/db/NDStdArrays.template", "P=$(PREFIX),R=image1:,PORT=Image1,ADDR=0,TIMEOUT=1,NDARRAY_PORT=$(PORT),TYPE=Int8,FTVL=CHAR,NELEMENTS=$(NELEMENTS)")
# Use this line for 8-bit or 16-bit data
dbLoadRecords("$(ADCORE)/db/NDStdArrays.template", "P=$(PREFIX),R=image1:,PORT=Image1,ADDR=0,TIMEOUT=1,NDARRAY_PORT=$(PORT),TYPE=Int16,FTVL=SHORT,NELEMENTS=$(NELEMENTS)")

# Load all other plugins using commonPlugins.cmd
< $(ADCORE)/iocBoot/commonPlugins.cmd
set_requestfile_path("$(ADPOINTGREY)/pointGreyApp/Db")

iocInit()

# save things every thirty seconds
create_monitor_set("auto_settings.req", 30,"P=$(PREFIX)")

# Wait for enum callbacks to complete
epicsThreadSleep(1.0)

# Records with dynamic enums need to be processed again because the enum values are not available during iocInit.  
dbpf("$(PREFIX)cam1:Format7Mode.PROC", "1")
dbpf("$(PREFIX)cam1:PixelFormat.PROC", "1")

# Wait for callbacks on the property limits (DRVL, DRVH) to complete
epicsThreadSleep(1.0)

# Records that depend on the state of the dynamic enum records or property limits also need to be processed again
# Other property records may need to be added to this list
dbpf("$(PREFIX)cam1:FrameRate.PROC", "1")
dbpf("$(PREFIX)cam1:FrameRateValAbs.PROC", "1")
dbpf("$(PREFIX)cam1:AcquireTime.PROC", "1")

MEDM screens

The following show the MEDM screens that are used to control the Point Grey cameras.

pointGrey.adl is the main screen used to control Point Grey cameras.

pointGreyProperties.adl is the screen used to control the properties of Point Grey cameras. Note that some of these properties, such as Shutter, FrameRate, and Gain can also be controlled by standard areaDetector records, like AcquireTime, AcquirePeriod, and Gain. The widgets on the medm screen are hidden if the corresponding feature is not available.

pointGreyProperties.adl for a BlackFly GigE color camera in RGB mode

pointGreyProperties.adl for a Grasshopper3 monochrome camera

pointGreyFrameRate.adl is the screen used to control the frame rate in standard video modes. This is a separate screen because the valid enum strings for the Framerate record can change when the standard video mode is changed. When that is changed it is necessary to close this screen and re-open it in order for the new menus to be displayed. This is a limitation of the EPICS Channel Access which does not send monitor events for changes in enum fields. Note that the readback of the FrameRate on the main pointGrey.adl screen can also be incorrect, so it may be necessary to close and re-open that main screen as well.

pointGreyPixelFormat.adl is the screen used to control the pixel format in Format7 mode. This is a separate screen because the valid enum strings for the PixelFormat can change when the Format7 mode is changed. When that is changed it is necessary to close this screen and re-open it in order for the new menus to be displayed. This is a limitation of the EPICS Channel Access which does not send monitor events for changes in enum fields. Note that the readback of the PixelFormat on the main pointGrey.adl screen can also be incorrect, so it may be necessary to close and re-open that main screen as well.