Frame Rate (FPS): The number of frames the camera or camera group will capture per second. The minimum and maximum values for frame rate depend on the model of camera that you are using. A higher frame rate will allow for more frames per second of data, and help prevent motion blur . A lower frame rate will allow for higher exposure values (and brighter images) and will also reduce the bandwidth required to transmit data, which can help in systems with high network or USB traffic.
Exposure (EXP): Sets the amount of time that the camera exposes per frame. The minimum and maximum values will depend on both the type of camera and the frame rate. Exposure is measured in scanlines for V100 and V120 series cameras, and in microseconds for Flex13, S250e and Prime Series cameras. Higher exposure will allow more light in, creating a brighter image that can increase visibility for small and dim markers. However, setting exposure too high can introduce false markers, larger marker blooms, and marker blurring--all of which can negatively impact marker data quality.
Threshold (THR): Defines the minimum brightness for a pixel to be seen by a camera, with all pixels below the threshold being ignored. Increasing the threshold can help filter interference by non-markers (e.g. reflections and external light sources), while lowering the threshold can allow dimmer markers to be seen by the system (e.g. smaller markers at longer distances from the camera).
LED Illumination (LED): Sets brightness level for the camera IR LED ring. Higher LED values allow the camera to emit more IR light, which can allow for better marker detection at longer ranges. However, a value that is too high may cause reflection off of non-marker objects, which can destabilize data. Generally, the value should be higher for larger volumes and lower for smaller volumes. Default is dependent on camera model.
Gain: Increasing a camera’s gain will brighten the image, which can improve tracking range at very long distances. Higher gain levels can introduce noise into the 2D camera image, so gain should only be used to increase range in very large setup areas, when changing illumination, exposure, and threshold are not sufficient.
Filter Switch : Sets the camera to view either visible or infrared light on cameras equipped with a Filter Switcher. Infrared Spectrum should be selected when the camera is being used for marker tracking applications. Visible Spectrum can optionally be selected for full frame video applications, where external, visible spectrum lighting will be used to illuminate the environment instead of the camera’s IR LEDs. Common applications include reference video and external calibration methods that use images projected in the visible spectrum.
Video Type: Several modes are available for efficient on-camera image processing. Available modes vary slightly, depending on camera model: Object: Performs on-camera detection of marker location, size, and roundness using methods similar to Precision Grayscale (except for V100 and V120 cameras, which use methods similar to Segment). Provides the smallest CPU footprint of all available modes. Recommended for Prime Series cameras, as well as Flex 13 and S250e cameras when CPU performance is taxed by Precision Grayscale mode (e.g. high camera counts using a less powerful CPU). Precision Grayscale: Sends thresholded grayscale images of markers to the PC for calculation of object data. Provides the most verbose marker information, but requires the most CPU resources to process. Recommended for Flex 13, V100, V120, and S250e cameras. Segment: Like precision grayscale processing, segment mode divides processing between the camera and CPU, providing a balance between precision and processing load. Recommended for V100 and V120 cameras when CPU performance is taxed by Precision Grayscale mode (e.g. high camera counts using a less powerful CPU). MJPEG-compressed grayscale: Full resolution grayscale frames, compressed on-camera for scalable reference video capabilities. Raw grayscale: Full resolution, uncompressed grayscale.
Name: Sets the name for the selected camera group.
Tracking Mode: This icon indicates that the camera or camera group is in Tracking mode. Clicking on this will change the camera or camera group to Reference mode.
Reference Mode: This icon indicates that the camera or camera group is in Reference mode, while it is recording video, will not be tracking markers. Clicking on this will set the camera or camera group to Tracking mode.
