Recording Images from Emergent Vision Cameras

This topic explains how to use eCapture Pro to record images from Emergent Vision Technologies' high-speed cameras, saving them to disk.

How Recordings Work: In eCapture Pro, a recording executes a data pipeline defined in Graph View. This pipeline includes cameras and processing tasks, such as image processing, compression, and storage. When a recording starts, image data flows through the pipeline, where it is processed and stored in a user-defined location.

Selecting a Project: Every recording belongs to a project. Before running the pipeline, create or load a project in Project View. All camera captures are saved under the active project.

Naming Captures: Each pipeline execution is called a capture. Every capture must have a unique name. Names are generated automatically but can be edited before recording.

Recording Modes in eCapture Pro: eCapture Pro’s recording modes determine how acquired images are processed and recorded:

• Single Mode: Processes only the first triggered image.
• Continuous Mode: Processes all triggered images.
• Burst Mode: Processes the first N triggered images per event.

Saving and Reviewing Captures: When a recording ends, data is saved automatically if the pipeline is set to store files. Saved captures appear in Project View, where users can review a summary of recorded captures.

Common Recording Scenarios:

• Manufacturing motion capture uses line-scan high-speed cameras with hardware sync to monitor conveyor belts. Continuous image acquisition and stitching improve inspection accuracy.
• High-speed event recording uses area-scan high-speed cameras for multi-angle recording. Adjust resolution, frame rates, and exposure settings for slow-motion playback and analysis.

Triggering Image Acquisition: For images to be recorded, the camera must be acquiring images. Triggers sent to the camera start image acquisition, but acquisition and recording are separate processes. A camera can acquire images without recording, and Live View will display these images in real time. Images are recorded only when both acquisition is active and the eCapture Pro pipeline is running.

Emergent Vision Technologies' cameras support multiple triggering modes, including software and hardware triggering:

• Hardware triggering uses an external signal (e.g., from a PLC, encoder, or button press) and requires GPIO configuration in eCapture or eSDK.
• Software triggering is initiated via eCapture, eSDK, or custom applications, commonly for testing or automation.

For details on each trigger mode, see Triggered Image Acquisition Overview.

Recording Workflow Procedures

The workflow in eCapture Pro for recording images from Emergent Vision cameras involves the following sequence of procedures:

1. Add or load a project in Project View.
2. Configure the system hardware in Graph View.
3. Configure the data pipeline in Graph View.
4. Configure the recording parameters in Live View.
5. Start the recording in Live View.
6. Monitor system performance in System View.
7. Stop the recording in Live View.
8. Review the recording in Playback View.

The following sections briefly describe the procedures for recording images.

Procedure 1: Add or Load a Project in Project View

Before recording, use Project View in eCapture Pro create or load a project for organizing the recording’s takes.

To add or load a project:

1. Go to Project View.
2. In the right panel, add a new project or load an existing project.

Figure 1: Use Project View’s right panel to add or load a project

For more information about Project View, see The eCapture Pro Project View.

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Procedure 2: Configure the System Hardware in Graph View

In eCapture Pro, use Graph View's System subtab to ensure that all necessary hardware components are added and correctly connected.

To configure the system hardware:

1. Go to Graph View.
2. Select the System subtab.
3. In the left System Actions panel, add nodes for the following hardware components:
   
   • A server
   • Network interface cards (NICs)
   • Cameras
   • Storage devices: Storage devices need to be added here for them to be selected later with a Disk Saving Task.
4. In the right Graph panel, ensure the hardware components are correctly connected.

Figure 2: Use Graph View’s System subtab to add and connect hardware nodes

For more information about Graph View’s System subtab, see System Graph.

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Procedure 3: Configure the Data Pipeline in Graph View

After configuring the hardware, in eCapture Pro use Graph View's Data Flow subtab to configure a data pipeline. To record the camera images to a disk, the data pipeline must directly or indirectly connect the cameras to an Image Disk Saving task.

To configure a simple data pipeline:

1. In Graph View, select the Data Flow subtab.
2. In the left Data Flow Actions panel, click the Add button and select the Image Disk Saving task under your Server. An Image Disk Saving node appears in the right Graph panel.
3. In the Graph panel, select the Image Disk Saving node. The Data Flow Actions panel displays the task's properties.
4. In the Data Flow Actions panel's Selected Nodes pane:
   • Select a Storage Device for the Image Disk Saving task.
     Note: The Storage Device options are the ones you previously added to the server on the System subtab when configuring the system hardware in procedure 2.
   • Select the Direct IO checkbox for best performance when writing to disks.
   • Optional: Select the Multi-Storage checkbox if you want to increase throughput and storage capacity by recording to multiple disks in parallel.
5. In the Graph panel, connect the camera node(s) to the Image Disk Saving node to establish the data flow.
   

Note: If a pipeline task has alerts, the pipeline will not run until you resolve the issues or disable the task. To disable a task, select its node in the Graph panel and use the toggle switch in the Selected Nodes pane.

Figure 3: Use Graph View’s Data Flow subtab to add and connect camera and image disk saving nodes

For more information about Graph View’s Data Flow subtab, see Data Flow Graph.

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Procedure 4: Configure the Recording Parameters in Live View

In eCapture Pro, use Live View to ensure that cameras are correctly grouped and settings are optimized before you start recording.

To configure the recording parameters:

1. Go to Live View.
2. In the left Image Display Groups View panel, create or manage camera groups.
3. In the middle Camera View panel:
   
   • Select cameras for recording.
   • Verify the live preview.
4. In the right Camera Parameters panel, adjust the following settings as needed:
   
   • Exposure
   • Gain
   • Resolution
   • Frame Rate

Note: While recording, some camera parameters cannot be changed.

Figure 4: Use Live View to group and configure cameras

For more information about Live View, see The eCapture Pro Live View.

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Procedure 5: Start the Recording in Live View

In eCapture Pro, use Live View to start the recording.

To start a recording:

• In Live View’s middle Camera View panel, use the recording controls to start the pipeline and begin recording.

Figure 5: Use Live View’s recording controls to start the pipeline

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Procedure 6: Monitor System Performance in System View

While recording, use eCapture Pro's System View and Global Status Bar to ensure optimal system performance and identify potential issues.

To monitor the system's performance:

1. Go to System View.
2. In the left System Status panel:
   
   • Monitor CPU load, memory usage, and connected devices.
   • Ensure the system is operating efficiently.
3. In the right Log panel, check for warnings or errors.
4. Monitor the bottom Global Status Bar for issues.

Figure 6: Use System View and the Global Status Bar to monitor system performance while recording

For more information about System View, see The eCapture Pro System View. For more information about the Global Status Bar, see The eCapture Pro Global Status Bar.

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Procedure 7: Stop the Recording in Live View

In eCapture Pro, use Live View to stop recording.

To stop a recording:

1. Go to Live View.
2. In the middle Camera View panel, use the recording controls to stop the pipeline and end the recording.

Figure 7: Use Live View’s recording controls to stop the pipeline

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Procedure 8: Review the Recording in Playback View

After recording, use eCapture Pro's Playback View to review the recorded images for quality control and insights.

Notes: Images seen in Playback View are reduced quality previews of the raw data stored on disk. Also, Playback View cannot display compressed recordings. 

To review a recording:

1. Go to Playback View.
2. In the left Recordings panel, select the recording.
3. In the right Recording View panel:
   
   • Click the Temporal playback mode button.
   • Click the Play button
   • Optional: Adjust playback speed or navigate frame-by-frame.

Figure 8: Use Playback View to review the recording

For more information about Playback View, see The eCapture Pro Playback View.